Daily Times

Everybody in this country is in a state of what next. The political parties are taken aback, stumbling and stuttering for material other than the Lahore jalsa (rally), its after-effects and its impact on not just the political landscape but the way people think and live in this country. The media is clutching and hanging on to every story that can recall and recap the good and bad of the event. The public has pondered and worried and wondered over what it was and what it can be; and in all this hyper-reaction by the nation, the way forward for our current and prospective leadership seems still to be a toss of the coin.

The two main parties are trying to figure out how to react to this turn of events. The PML-N seems at a loss for answers and strategy to combat an attack on their capability to hold on to their provincial might. Firstly, their counterstrategy to the PTI jalsa proved to be an exposure of the confusion and incompetence within their ranks. Their unnecessary announcement of having a rally days before the jalsa was a typical knee-jerk reaction. For some reason, the motive only known to their high ups, they felt that by having a show of strength before the jalsa they would be able to discourage the efforts of the PTI. The rally date changed thrice. First it was announced for October 23, then it was changed to the 26th and then finally it was held on the 28th. This flip-flop change signalled their lack of confidence and gave the media a reason to develop an unusual hype on the importance of the Lahore jalsa. The media played it up so much that the PTI really needed very little effort to amass hype for the event. It had assumed a ‘clash of the Titans’ proportion, where each side was bent upon making Mohammad Ali vs Joe Frazier type claims against each other. This provoked interest in the jalsa beyond just a show of strength by two parties. PTI cashed in extremely well on this more than its due attention phenomenon on the electronic media and used social networks and other forms of media to excite the crowd into believing that this jalsa was
definitely worth giving attention and going to.

With this background, the PML-N should have been prepared for something unusual happening. However, like most ruling parties they were confident that their power muscle will defeat a weak opposition. They started giving ridiculous statements on the failure of the jalsa, with Senator Pervez Rashid even going as far as promising a resignation if the jalsa went beyond 50,000. This overconfidence egged on the public even more who were already tired of the arrogance of the government. The PPP on the other hand felt that this was a perfect revenge for the chief minister Punjab’s wild statements about the president. They decided to fuel the anti-PML-N rhetoric with their old belief that the PTI will reduce PML-N power in Punjab and thus make their job easier. However, when the jalsa became such a historic turnout with immaculate organisation, both parties are at a loss for words and counterstrategies. The PML-N has become obsessed with trying to attack Imran’s credibility and prove that if they are bad, so is he. The PPP is confused between declaring the jalsa a success that has ousted the PML-N or to declare it just a gathering of people wanting to attend a concert.

The reaction of the two ruling parties is reflective of the attitude of leaders living in a world where they only see what they want to see. The Sharif brothers have been in denial for years. Punjab’s lapses in every sphere of governance are never shouldered by the sitting government but responsibility shifted by blaming the Centre. Their constant feud at not being given their due share has become so stale and empty that even their own spokespersons are now finding it hard to talk with conviction about it. Similarly, the PPP leadership has a scapegoat in the form of laying it on the previous government and from energy to the economy, it is Musharraf who is to be blamed. To be in denial and to be irresponsible is a deadly combination. Denial takes you away from reality and makes you unprepared for the inevitable. That is what has happened to these two parties. Smug in the confidence that they just have to face each other and having focused on knocking each other down or trying to buy out each other’s loyalties through lobbies and alliances, they just did not consider the IK factor substantial and significant. All their previous experience has now become invalid. Here is a party that they have been dismissive about and that does not have a political leadership record to bash vigorously, so all you can do is try to malign the credibility of Imran Khan. Not a very sustainable strategy. Thus what we see is the two factions at a loss whether to condemn each other or PTI or the previous government or…???

PTI not only surprised everybody but also surprised themselves. The jalsa and the aftermath of support pouring in have certainly caught them unawares too. People are queuing up to join the party. Herein lies their dilemma as well. Should they let all come in to cash in on the moment of euphoria or should they let selectivity rule their entry test? And of course: what next? Should they plan another jalsa and make another bang or should they not risk trying to match something that only comes once in decades? These are the questions in the minds of all these parties.

As far as the public is concerned, they are now waiting expectantly. They feel that there is a change in the staid politics they have seen for decades. They are also pondering whether to let this change be treated as a flash in the pan or a momentum that their own zeal will be able to sustain. So the game of chess is on, where every player is required to think about not only his next move but about the countermove of the opponent as well. With so much uncertainty around, one certainty is that those who play the political chess game with older rules will be the first ones to be knocked out of this competitive political championship.

The writer is a consultant and can be reached at andleeb.abbas1@gmail.com