Daily Times

It may perhaps be a tad too early to commemorate a much-needed win of sanity in Pakistani politics. Still, given the vileness of the discourse and the stickiness of positions, even a small hint of windows opening makes one want to put the flags out.

On Friday, PTI Founder Imran Khan announced a decision to participate in the All Parties Conference being convened by the government to discuss Operation Azm-e-Istehkam. This move towards fostering unity and cooperation among political parties in Pakistan marks a positive development that has the potential to bring about a consensus on key national issues.

Previously, the opposition had parties vehemently opposed the counterterrorism operation that intended to use the entire arsenal (military, diplomatic, legislative and socio-economic) not only to eliminate a few high-value targets but to decisively crush the menace, once and for all. Hopefully, the legislature will continue on this path towards reconciliation, which remains the only mature way to hammer out a comprehensive strategy to stem the rising tide of militancy.

Of course, PTI’s past is littered with such statements followed by debilitating about-turns. Back in March, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur had raised similar expectations for normalcy to return when he had, despite his differences with the executive, agreed to a tete-de-tete for the sake of governance. However, much sooner than the ink could dry on his goodwill narrative, a war of words exploded, pitting him against the governor of his own province.

Between threatening to take over the federally-run power distribution companies and misogynist attacks against his colleague in Punjab, Mr Gandapur, and by extension, his whole party needs to consider the merits of a functional relationship with other parts of the country. Since the stakes are at an all-time high, all political actors would be better off sitting at the deliberation table, echoing their respective reservations and finding common ground to ensure support from civilian structures to this military offensive and stand as a shining example of statesmanship.

May it be the question of locals suffering as collateral damage during the campaign or how it would be financed out of an empty treasury, political problems are best resolved with political means and at appropriate platforms. *