Elections 2024: Economic meltdown termed biggest challenge for new govt

PESHAWAR: Speakers from diverse professional backgrounds at a gathering on Tuesday discussed the pre-elections and post-elections scenarios and shed light on the current political situation in Pakistan.

The University of Peshawar has hosted the review under the banner of Peshawar Literature Festival. The event was attended by students and teaching faculty from different academic departments.

The alleged irregularities reported by the international media were the target of intense scrutiny by the panelists and its impact on the upcoming Pakistan-IMF deal. Additionally, the calls for inspection of such dubious processes of elections by the members of the US, EU governments was critically analysed by the audience, and satisfactory responses were provided by the panel.

The speakers were more focused on the dwindling economy than other issues as it was considered a potential threat to add to the ever worsening political situation in the country if not addressed properly by the newly installed government. They described the economic meltdown as an impending disaster and the biggest challenge if not handled carefully by the government.

The panel included Prof Dr Syed Hussain Shaheed Soherwordi, chairman of the Department of International Relations, Prof Dr Sami Raza Zaidi, Dr Aamir Raza of Political Science, and Dr Abida Bano, Director of Institute of Peace and Conflict Studies.

Madiha Zaffar moderated the event.

Dr Hussain Shaheed Soherwordi provided deep insight on the causes of complete failure of nationalist and Islamist parties in the recent elections and enlightened the audience with his convincing arguments on the importance of voting.

Dr Sami Raza analyzed the utilization of unconventional methods of election campaigns like use of social media and AI by political parties in the recent elections and how it proved an effective strategy.

Dr Abida Bano stressed upon the importance of holding the elected representatives accountable and the impressive role of young voters in the recent elections.Dr Amir argued that as how the democratic system was one of the best political systems and how different identities were intertwined in Pakistan and how they played out in the recent elections.