Daily Times

When Shehbaz Sharif announced his plans for distributing free flour, many were quick to applaud his vision-after all, a country steeped in as much economic turmoil as Pakistan could definitely use a few subsidies to alleviate pressure on the public’s pockets. But the scale of people’s desperation is much bigger than they previously assumed and certainly far too deeply entrenched for a subsidised flour program to quell their fears at this stage.

Months of record-breaking inflation, skyrocketing prices and fuel shortages have engendered anger that will not be quelled quite as easily as the government hopes. This is precisely the kind of environment that breeds mob violence-people are fighting for their lives. With no legitimate means to secure their livelihood, people have taken matters into their own hands and begun looting flour trucks in various parts of the country. Pakistan is headed for an uncertain future, much like Sri Lanka where public discontent peaked just last year, inciting mass riots and loud displays of mob violence.

Our political class is fragmented, the rupee is among the weakest-performing currencies in the world and the country is certainly more isolated internationally than it was ten years ago. Sharif may be a good administrator but this crisis is a long-time coming, the culmination of decades of fraught policies and he has been tasked with making decisions that should have been made years ago. There are no quick fixes for Pakistan’s predicament-public discontent will likely continue to rise in the face of higher taxes and lower subsidies, and rising utility costs and higher food prices will slow industrial activity, contributing to unemployment that makes riots an even more likely possibility.

On one hand, it is essential that Pakistan meet its commitments to the IMF. But the decisions it must implement in the process are bound to fracture the country’s psyche, perhaps beyond repair. For ordinary people, the complex inner workings of the economy matter less than what they are able to tangibly see and feel. Right now, there is an overarching mood of distress that may be helped over time if the government stays committed to its plans. *