With approximately one and a half year remaining till the next general elections, the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) government is focused on initiating public projects to gain political mileage in the wake of threats of street agitation from opposition parties, mainly the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI). This time, it was the ground-breaking ceremony of the Lahore-Sialkot Motorway. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s speech circled the same aspects as had been heard in more than the last three years. Targeting Imran Khan, the prime minister asked the people to reject “container politics” and support the government that is establishing mega projects. Prime Minister Sharif added that those elements were given the mandate to stage protests whereas the government enjoyed the mandate to “construct motorways.” The need to highlight themselves as the saviours of the country, again and again, shows the insecurity of the PML-N government. It has a majority in the National Assembly of Pakistan, and enjoys almost an absolute majority in Punjab as well. The three years of the government has been full of turmoil and political chaos. The way government handled these issues highlights its lack of confidence in its own mandate. Despite having a majority in the National Assembly, the attendance of the PML-N lawmakers has remained abysmal over the past three and a half years. Important governance decisions are being taken in special meetings instead of in parliament. The attitude of the opposition has not helped either. The sloganeering from PTI against the parliament did not work, and the absence of opposition leaders from the house further harmed the situation. Although there is no harm in protesting if a person is wronged, the way PTI has made it a tool to threaten the government to accept its demands is not going to work. The example to learn from is the protest in 2014 that harmed the country economically of billions of rupees. Furthermore, without a focused agenda, Imran Khan, or any other leader for that matter, cannot gather people every other day to hold protests. What is needed is a system to make the governmental affairs transparent. That is only possible through parliament, and the opposition parties should use the platform to highlight issues as well as force the government lawmakers to attend proceedings and answer their questions. Exchange of allegations outside parliament from both sides does not help the cause of democracy. The current political situation is quite bleak, and it is primarily because of lack of transparency. The Pakistan People’s Party has become an isolated entity, and the fate of the Muttahida Quami Movement hangs in the balance as well. PML-N’s misplaced priorities show its fear amid the threats of PTI who seems been hell bent to cash in on any political mishap on the part of the government. Such attitude from all parties is harming the democratic process in the country. Important national level decisions should be taken in parliament, which is the only way of improving accountability. Announcing motorway projects to camouflage bigger problems is not going to work for the government, nor is the politics of agitation for the opposition. *