Politics of inflation

By Editorial Board
June 20, 2022
As small civil rights groups and student collectives take to the
streets in small numbers but with legitimate slogans on inflation
and price hikes, the PTI too has taken out countrywide protests
against the rising inflation. These protests are the democratic
right of all political parties and human rights movements.
During the PTI government’s tenure, the then opposition parties
had also taken out protest rallies against inflation. That was
then and this is now: with Pakistan going through one of its
worst economic phases in history. Petroleum prices have been
increased three times in less than a month; the dollar is
touching the sky; the IMF is continuing to build even more
pressure – and the government looks completely helpless.

All of this is leading to perfectly rational questions over why

exactly the coalition government opted to go for a vote of no-
confidence when they were well aware of the ‘economic
landmines’ waiting to explode. So much so that even Imran
Khan has asked what was the reason to oust him when he
would have been blamed for the economic crisis had he
remained in power. It seems the answer to this may be the fear
of mass-scale disqualifications had the PTI remained in power.
Unfortunately, this says more about the current government’s
will and intention than it does about the PTI and its leaders,
whose proclivity for witch-hunts against opposition members is
hardly a secret. Even if this misguided step did concern high-
ranking appointments and the fear that Imran would be
vindictive and powerful, given the economic crisis that was
lurking around the corner, did the PDM-PPP combine genuinely
think they could manage the economy once in power? Now that
the coalition government is in power, it is on unsure footing –
not knowing whether it can complete its tenure or not, not sure
of the status of the Punjab government, and seemingly
shouldering the blame for the economic crisis. In this too, the
PML-N is sure to come out as the major loser: it has become the
face of the coalition government and while other parties such as
the PPP may be able to feign ignorance later, the PML-N will not
be able to do that.

PPP Co-chair Asif Ali Zardari’s interview on Saturday may be an

indication of what could come next. Zardari has said that the
PPP will form the next government and will take the entire
share. While the PPP knows it cannot pull this off if it doesn’t
win in Punjab, where the real battle is between the PML-N and
PTI, such statements will do little to encourage coalition
cohesion. The PML-N is in for a turbulent few months and the
next elections, whenever they may take place, will not be as
easy for the party. It had to take difficult decisions so that
Pakistan would not default like Sri Lanka, where day-to-day
living has become hell for the regular citizen, but the issue is
that such econometrics does not make much sense to a public
that is screaming under the pain of rising living costs.