Balance of Political Power

The United Opposition vowed to nominate candidates collectively and support each other during the
assembly’s proceedings. Today, they voted for their nominated candidates for the Speaker and Deputy
Speaker of the National Assembly. However, Bilawal Bhutto has placed some reservations on Shehbaz
Sharif as the Prime Minister nominee from the United Opposition. The hooting that took place in the
National Assembly against election rigging and false mandates did not involve Pakistan Peoples Party
MNAs. This perspective of politics could be easily understood during the World War 1, when Britain and
France were allies of the Triple Entete against Germany and other central powers. France had suffered
the severest of the destruction in WW1. When the war concluded with the defeat of Germany, and terms
of Treaty of Versailles were being decided; Britain took a rather diplomatic move. Lloyd George (the then
Prime Minister of Britain) wanted terms of reparation that would not cripple Germany’s economy, so that
Germany would remain a viable economic power and trading partner. Lloyd intended to maintain a
balance of power in Europe to thwart France from dominating Europe. Even though today, this ‘balance
of power’ in the National assembly could easily be observed. With the government of Sindh already in
hand, PPP would not want to let PML-N halt the upcoming government for its political gains. Whatever
the politics concealed behind this move, one thing is clear that the old rivals in politics my find a hard time
to even remain united under the ‘United Opposition’.