Papering over differences won’t do
After the nomination of Shahbaz Sharif as PML-N’s future Prime Minister, a perception had been created that now the party stands united to fight the election. Chaudhry Nisar has however gone public over differences on vital issues like the way the party is functioning as well as Nawaz Sharif’s election strategy. The statement strengthens the view that the struggle between the ex-prime minister’s youthful advisers and the old hands, sometime referred to as hawks versus doves, continues unabated.
To start with, one section in the PML-N believes that there is a likelihood of Shahbaz being treated as another Shahid Khaqan Abbasi who is required to seek the party President’s approval before taking any important decision. As Nisar puts it, the nomination of Shahbaz can prove positive only if he is allowed to work according to his vision and his capabilities. Another issue raised by Nisar is the way decisions are currently being made in the party. It is maintained that a handpicked coterie takes all important decisions which the party is required to follow. He also demands that party decisions should be made on logical and not on emotional grounds. Nisar too is critical of Nawaz Sharif’s policy of confrontation with the judiciary. As Nawaz Sharif travels from town to town to restore what he calls ‘the sanctity of the vote’, party leaders who are in agreement with Nisar would interpret it as an attempt to rouse the public against the apex court’s verdict.
.
When Nisar rails against unelected elements within the PML-N, he is in fact targeting Maryam Nawaz without naming her. Political parties, he says, are not run through tweets and tickers. He believes that while non-political figures have the right to give advice, there is no room for them to foist their opinion upon the party. It is time the PML-N sorts out its differences before starting the election campaign.
The criticism can be dismissed as complaints of a frustrated insider who has of late been sidelined. But Nisar could very well be the mouthpiece of a section of the party, perhaps also including Shahbaz Sharif.
