All aboard for November 2?
The call for countrywide protests by Imran Khan has not met with as much enthusiasm as was expected by the PTI chief. Small groups of PTI supporters however took part in demonstrations in major cities all over the country. The government had made use of all the repressive measures at its disposal to pre-empt the October 2 sit-in. Section 144 was extended from Islamabad to Rawalpindi, raids conducted to arrest PTI middle level leadership and Punjab government impounded hundreds of containers to block the roads to stop PTI workers from proceeding to Islamabad. A highly unusual measure was extending army’s stay in Islamabad for 90 days.
That the PTI still managed to hold protests in a number of cities indicates the ineffectiveness of repressive measures. The government however had to pay a heavy price to rein in the party for a while.
With political confrontation on the rise, uncertainty has gripped the country. Investors have started pulling out money from the KESC. While Imran’s show is yet to begin, $3.35 bn have been wiped off already in just a week’s time. The spokesman of Pakistan Textile Exporters Association maintains that impounding of hundreds of containers carrying goods for export means the cancellation of shipments, spoiling of certain goods and violation of exporters agreements with foreign buyers. Political confrontation has also forced the government to secure the loyalty of its parliamentarians through a hefty Rs 20 billion package for uplift projects, an amount equal to what the previous government spent for the purpose over a five year period.
The government would be a big loser if the rest of its tenure was to be consumed by protest marches followed by police crackdowns. This would provide enough material to opposition to run an election campaign highly damaging for the government which would also be the longest since 1970 and is likely to turn public opinion against the PML-N. It is in the interests of the system and national economy for government to display flexibility and resolve issues through talks rather than confrontation.
