- Rhetoric versus reality
The parties have up to May 15 to campaign as with the beginning of Ramzan there is little likelihood of people coming out to attend public gatherings till after Eid holidays i.e., the third week of June. As things stand the PML-N is the only party which is fully utilising the opportunity by holding 10 meetings before the beginning of the fasting season. While the PTI’s big rally at Lahore was meant to attract the maximum number of “electables” to the party, Nawaz Sharif has taken the campaign to the home ground of the electables to put up a show of his popularity in their constituencies.
The MMA, led by the JUI, has held a public meeting in Mardan carrying a down-and-out Jamaat-Islami piggyback. The religious parties’ alliance is eyeing PTI’s conservative voters in the province.
Bilawal Bhutto, the PPP’s last hope for revival, is concentrating on Karachi to try to wean away as many MQM voters as possible. Zardari meanwhile is holed up in Lahore, away from the maddening crowd, busy in wheeling and dealing. Considering Punjab beyond his depth, he is concentrating on KP and tribal areas. On Tuesday an MNA from Kurram Agency along with the PML-N’s regional Secretary in Fata met Zardari and announced joining the PPP.
While everyone is hopeful, everyone has to give explanations to voters about their respective failures to deliver.
Corruption charges, opponents’ propaganda and the establishment’s all-too-visible hostility have apparently failed to bring down Nawaz Sharif’s popularity in constituencies that voted for him. What goes against him however is the continuation of load-shedding at a time when the elections are not far away. The party’s claims about good governance in Punjab have been questioned by NAB. Imran Khan stresses improvements in education but a survey by KP government’s Education Department reveals that over 1.8m KP children are out of school in the province, making one take Khan’s claims with a pinch of salt. Unconcern about continuing child mortalities in Thar, the neglect of Karachi and rampant corruption in the province are some of the failings the PPP will have to answer for after a 10-year uninterrupted rule in Sindh.