By Qamar Bashir
The recent elections in Pakistan have catalyzed a monumental shift, challenging the traditional elitist stronghold on politics and signaling a move towards a more inclusive and democratic electoral landscape marking a departure from the past where political success was often synonymous with wealth, lineage, and the backing of the establishment. By disrupting the age-old dynamics of vote trading and elite dominance, these elections hint at a new era where the collective voice of the broader society—encompassing the poor, the middle class, and the educated—can significantly influence political discourse and outcomes. This evolution towards a merit-based political system, less tethered to patronage and elitism, heralds a promising future for Pakistan's democratic institutions and the fabric of its society, reflecting a more diverse and equitable representation of its people’s aspirations.
The electoral outcomes in Pakistan have also challenged and overturned a deeply
ingrained narrative: that a political party like PTI, bereft of electables , estranged
from establishment backing, and faced with opposition from state institutions,
would inevitably falter and face obliteration. Contrary to these expectations, the
elections have emphatically demonstrated that it is possible for a party to secure
victory without the traditional pillars of establishment support. This breakthrough
is particularly poignant, highlighting that individuals from the poorer segments, the
middle class, and the educated populace can achieve electoral success without
resorting to vast financial resources or leveraging influential connections.This
collective awakening to the power of the ballot signifies a momentous step towards
democratizing political participation, heralding an era where genuine change is
driven by the electorate's collective will, transcending the barriers of wealth,
gender, and institutional influence.
It also brought home one important outcome that any party which will sell itself to
undemocratic assumptions will not go unpunished. PML(N) during the PDM
coalition, used undemocratic means to beat its opponent. They had in their mind
not to strengthen democracy but to jail the Chairman PTI, force PTI leaders to
either forsake politics or join another party and put the workers in jail in thousands.
They took and projected all their undemocratic acts as their biggest win and used it
as a rallying point during their public meetings, without realizing that it is
destroying its perception as a political party to trigger a happy undemocratic party.
The PML(N) also paid the cost of bringing back Nawaz Sharif by trampling the
law of the land and subduing the judiciary at the cost of sacrificing the political
capital. They projected these apparent gains as their biggest achievement not
realizing that sand has already been shifted right under their own feets. Secondly it
brought Nawaz Sharif back home with zero risk and in return it rendered the
government, the country and its people ransomed with the establishment. It gave
the key role to establishment in SIFC and handed it over major and sensitive
institutions like NADRA, PTA and NAB. If we club the power of only these three
institutions together, one will easily realize that the soul of the people, economy
and politics have been ransomed. It also plunged the economy into negative
growth, spiraling the country to unprecedented inflation which was around 12% to
42% inflicting untold misery to the people of Pakistan.
The elections-2024 amongst other things, bring home one important point that if a
party heavily bent upon using brute state power to remain in power and is sold to
the assumption that the political issues can be handled by brute state power will not
go unpunished. These brute assumption taught a good lesson to PML(N) when it
used in-proportional force on the participants of PTI long march and PTI protests
which included women, elderly and children, and with complete insensitivity the
gruesome suffering of the protestors were willingly circulated in the traditional
and social media as lessons to those who participated in the protests and to those at
home who may have been thinking to using the fundamental rights of assembly,
freedom of speech and peaceful protests.
On the other side of the isle was PTI, both its leaders and the party, emerged as
steadfast party and steadfast leaders and staunch and loyal workers, who stood
bravely against the state brute power and instead of using any violence preferred to
use constitutional, legal and political means to pursue their objectives. They
shunted all electables and appointed completely unknown educated and learned
persons as the candidates. Resultantly, Unlike PML(N) which was punished in the
elections, the truncated party and its candidates were rewarded with immense
political capital in the same proportion as the PML(N) lost it.
In the PDM government, unlike PML(N), the PPP played extremely well. It
unloaded all the economic, financial and law and order challenges to PML(N), and
stayed clear of ministries of economy, planning, law and order and did not endorse
the state aggression against PTI, and in doing so saved its political capital. This
saved political capital paid the PPP with a dividend in the form of excellent and
more than expected performance in the elections-2024, in the center, punjab,
Sindh and Balochistan making it second biggest national stature party only after
PTI.
In the post 2024 elections, PPP has again played very smartly. It has very cleverly
opted for all constitutional posts, the presidency, senate chairman, Speaker
National Assembly and governors and other such positions in lieu of extending its
support to the candidate of PML(N) for the position of premiership while cleverly
staying out of the government. It has once again trapped the power hungry
PML(N) to form the government in the center and made sure that PML(N) loses
whatever little political capital it has left with. With only 79 seats, PML(N) has
accepted the premierships disregarding the cost it would have to pay in terms of
losing political capital or what cost the country or its people will have to pay. It is
now immaterial who would be the prime minister, either Nawaz or Shahbaz or
Maryam, in any case up to the next elections, PML(N) will be a party which would
most likely lose whatever political capital it has left with.
The 2024 elections in Pakistan have unequivocally signaled a transformative shift
in the political landscape, underscoring the electorate's rejection of undemocratic
practices and the misuse of state power for political gains. Parties like PTI, which
prioritized constitutional, legal, and peaceful means of engagement, have been
vindicated, emerging stronger and more politically capitalized, while those
resorting to oppressive measures faced a decisive rebuff from the voters. This
electoral verdict not only reaffirms the resilience of Pakistan's democracy but also
highlights the evolving political acumen of its populace, who have demonstrated a
clear preference for governance rooted in democratic principles, transparency, and
accountability. As the dust settles, the lessons of these elections resonate deeply,
heralding a new era where political legitimacy is earned through adherence to
democratic norms and respect for the electorate's mandate, setting a precedent for
future political contests in Pakistan.
