As the presidential election looms large, it appears that the PPP’s unilateralism is here to stay. Indeed, the party had earlier failed to support the PMLN’s choice for the prime ministerial slot. And now it has fielded its own candidate for that of president. This is quite a turnaround for a party that had, in the run-up to the general election, spoken in un-hushed tones of the imminent PTI victory being ‘engineered’. Yet just one month on and the top leadership is virtually handing the presidency to Imran Khan’s nominee for the job; on a silver platter to boot. Thus the 11-member strong grand opposition alliance’s dreams of fielding a joint candidate in a bid to challenge the PTI’s hold on power has, for all intents and purposes, gone up in flames. On the one side sits Maulana Fazlur Rehman; the man of the moment whose nomination is backed by everyone but the PPP. The latter is stubbornly standing by Senator Aitzaz Ahsan as its only contender for the job even as the rest of the opposition continues to urge it to put forward a total of three hopefuls. Back when it was time to cast ballots for the premiership, the PPP, in a dramatic show of undemocratic game, abstained from voting. Which led to accusations that co-Chairman Asif Ali Zardari had his eye fixed firmly on the bigger picture. Namely, saving both he and his sister’s skin in the wake of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) net closing in on them over charges of financial misconduct. Whether or not this is true, such missteps do not boost the party’s image; especially when its young Chairperson Bilawal Bhutto Zardari is emerging as the leader of the future. It also represents a loss for the country given that the PPP has the most inclusive of all party manifestos in terms of proposed safeguards for all minorities as well as the poor. Indeed, Bilawal won over many a heart with his excellent campaigning; followed by an eloquent maiden speech to Parliament in which he sincerely vowed to assume the role of a robust opposition. The upshot of all this is that the PPP has opened itself up to allegations of pursuing its leadership’s self-interest above and beyond the public mandate. Not least because it appears that the party views its parliamentary presence as being worth little more than helping its leaders secure their future in the short-term. It is important to underscore that it is just as much the opposition’s job to serve the citizenry as it is the ruling party’s. This extends to the PMLN, too. The latter, after all, admitted how it would be willing to jump ship to the PPP on the condition that Aitzaz Ahsan personally apologise to Nawaz Sharif for his strong remarks. To presume this does not bode well for the country would be a gross understatement. For when politicians fail to keep promises to each other — it hardly instils much confidence in the citizens. We hope that the PPP will reconsider its unilateralist position and play its role in democratic strengthening rather than becoming an instrument of palace intrigues that Islamabad is only too well known for. * Published in Daily Times, August 29th 2018.