Daily Times

In 2015, Islamabad rolled out a National Action Plan to crush terrorist forces in Swat and the tribal belt. However, as is the case with all good things, the ensuing peace was soon brought to an end – not with a violent bang but like the proverbial frog in boiling water.

Today, those handful of incidents in the bordering regions are fast on their way to becoming a dreaded movement under which acts of terrorism continue unabated.

The fact that militant outfits changed their modes de operandi, choosing to target police and military personnel and marking 2023 as a blood-soaked year, demanded the incumbent government to cross all the t’s, dot all the i’s and get down to the serious business of finalising a reliable line of action. Nevertheless, a noisy parliament, on Sunday, added credence to the generally-believed notion, “For a democracy, a strong opposition is a must.”

As defence minister Khwaja Asif tried his best to water down the ruckus from the opposition benches against the newly-announced counterterrorism operation, he repeated a mistake made by his predecessors.

In stark contrast to the last time his party had reached out to the legislature for support against the menace of terrorism (when former prime minister Nawaz Sharif had managed to establish a national consensus) PM Sharif’s cabinet is throwing controversial buzzwords and allegations in place of logic and irrefutable strategies. There’s no denying the “defining movements,” but these tactical successes still fell short of completely eradicating militancy across Pakistan.

Mr Asif could have done an exemplary job by talking at length about how his government wished to draw the line once again. Kinetic efforts from the armed forces would do well to clear the reservations. Pakistan Army’s repeated efforts in weeding out key leaders and clearing out sleeper cells are enough to boost the nation’s morale, but at the end of the day, political issues are best resolved through political means.

Instead of sensational pressers or catchy slogans, politicians from across the divide should divert their energies to finalising a plan that ensures all of Pakistan is secured from the sinister agendas of those hell-bent on orchestrating grotesque massacres in addition to diplomatic channels forcing the Taliban leadership to act against TTP inroads on their end. *