Naya Pakistan has finally completed its first 100 days and the change that everyone was waiting for is nowhere to be seen. PTI government during its first three months in office remained embroiled in several controversies instead of making some notable achievements. It was simply unable to make necessary decisions necessary to defeat the challenges that country is facing.
PTI 100 Days in Office
A look at Prime Minister Imran Khan’s 100 days in office shows that it is futile to expect some major progressive change from the sitting government.
Here is how PTI proved that it was unable to make strong decisions despite being in power.
U-Turn on Atif Mian’s Appointment
The very first challenge that new government faced was making robust financial and economic policies. For this purpose it hired top notch economists in Economic Advisory Council like Atif Mian, world famous name in the field of economics. But Atif Mian belongs to Qadiani community, which according to Pakistan’s 1973 constitution has been outlawed from Islam. Therefore his appointment didn’t go well with the clergy. Hence Imran Khan’s government despite earlier defending its appointment on the ground of merit succumbed to the pressure from mullahs and removed Atif Mian from Economic Advisory Council.
Lack of Clarity on Economic Policies
PTI government was unfortunate that it started with scarce foreign exchange reserves, the country was already facing a huge budget deficit when new government assumed charge. It is a fact that previous government left economic conditions in a crisis where the only way of rescue was to look towards foreign assistance. PTI in its 100 days in office has shown that it has no idea how to resolve the economic crises of the country without resorting to conventional methods of knocking at IMF doors or looking towards China and Saudi Arabia.
In fact, government seems clueless on economic front.
Agreement with TLP on Aasia Bibi Case
There is no doubt that religious extremism is one of the major challenges that Pakistan is facing. Even Bhutto, a popularly undaunted leader in Pakistan’s political history couldn’t resist the backlash from mullahs. Recently, when Supreme Court released blasphemy accused Aasia Bibi, everyone lauded the decision except some firebrand mullahs and self-claimed custodians of religions who protested against the decisions. TLP (Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan) a political party headed by Khadim Hussain Rizvi brough the government down to its knees for almost a week by blocking mega cities of the countries.
Instead of taking a robust action against these protesters who denied Supreme Court’s judgement and challenged the rit of state, government agreed to their demands and put Aasia Bibi’s name on ECL (Exit Control List).
Zulfi Bukhari Appointment
Since the establishment of PTI we are hearing that party is committed to curbing nepotism and ensuring the merit based appointments once in power. Now when it is in government it has proved that all it has committed was merely an illusion. The best example in this regard is the appointment of Zulfi Bukhari as a special assistant to Prime Minister. It is to be noted that Bukhari who is a business tycoon is also a close friend of PM Imran Khan.
The case proves that nepotism is going no where in Naya Pakistan as we can’t expect some merit based appointments and riddance from tradition of rewarding cronies.
Some Notable Achievements of PTI Government
PTI’s first 100 days in government were not merely characterized by U-Turns. The government also made some historic decisions like establishment of Citizen portal, running cleanliness and plantation campaigns and the most importantly building shelter homes for homeless citizens. Well, we hope that government comes up with more such plans in future. But, a look at 100 days shows that there is a clear absence of policies and acumen needed to face the real challenges which are an obstacle to a prosper Pakistan.
Also Read:
Imran Khan’s Naya Pakistan Is Under Tough Scrutiny
Ideology of Barabri Party Pakistan and Views on Establishment and Imran Khan
