Skewed priorities

EditorialUpdated November 30, 2017

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Nawaz Sharif is unhappy and he wants the country and the world to know it.

But Mr Sharifs reaction to the end of the Faizabad protest is puzzling. The ousted prime minister would like
the country to believe that not only does he disapprove of his governments handling of the protest, but that he
was unaware of the decisions being made to try and bring the protest to an end.

Yet, on Saturday, when the police-led operation to try and end the Faizabad protest was under way and protests
had begun to erupt in cities across the country, Mr Sharif was pictured in a meeting in his Raiwind residence
with Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi and Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif.

In that meeting, Interior Minister Ahsan Iqbal reportedly briefed Mr Sharif about the police operation as did
the Punjab chief minister on his governments plans to deal with protests erupting in the province.

But after the spectacular failure of those plans and the shocking concessions made to the protesters, the three-
term prime minister and president of the PML-N would like to pretend that his governments decisions have
nothing to do with him.

There are two other elements of Mr Sharifs self-serving description of the events of the past few days that are
disturbing. First, the former prime minister is reportedly concerned that the outside world will once again see
Pakistan as a defender of extremism and this may impact investments in the country, particularly Chinese
investments under CPEC.

Consider for a moment what that implies: Mr Sharif is more concerned about the image of Pakistan in foreign
capitals than the security of the denizens of Pakistans cities, including the federal capital, which was under
siege for nearly three weeks.
While the country must be mindful of the image of Pakistan in an interconnected world, the obsession with
foreign perceptions and desperation to please external benefactors is arguably part of the reason the country
lurches from crisis to crisis.

The PML-N governments fundamental duty is the people of Pakistan ensuring their safety and security and
protecting their rights. If that duty is kept front and centre and informs all governmental decision-making, the
countrys image will automatically improve and concerns in foreign capitals will dissipate.

Second, Mr Sharifs lament that governance is suffering is to ignore that he is the reason his government is
deeply distracted. Ever since the Panama Papers issue erupted, and certainly since Mr Sharifs ouster in July,
the federal cabinet appears to exist largely to help Mr Sharif deal with his legal and political struggles.

Moreover, the succession struggle in the PML-N between Mr Sharifs side of the family and Shahbaz Sharifs
family appears to have severely damaged necessary coordination between Lahore and Islamabad. Arguably,
the Faizabad debacle began with Mr Sharifs own selfishness in recent months.

Published in Dawn, November 30th, 2017