A season of accusations

The government should be careful when criticising protesters and members of the opposition parties, especially the former prime minister, Nawaz Sharif. The leaders and their followers shouldn’t be called the ‘agents of India’ only to discredit the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM). The country is dealing with the threat of hybrid warfare and its enemy can easily take advantage of it weaknesses, especially when those in power get into the habit of blaming the opposition for working in the interest of a rival country. The government must also consider the point that accusing the opposition parties of acting in India’s interests as a knee-jerk reaction to their protests is actually a way of accepting that the PTI does not have credible answers to some of their strongest accusations.

In almost all democratic countries, ruling parties reply to criticism by highlighting its performance. This, however, may be a problem for the PTI as its government has failed to improve economic growth – it couldn’t even control the prices of essential items including food. It is not surprising that the opposition was able to build its case so easily. Instead of calling the protesters ‘Indian agents’, the government is advised to provide good governance.

Azfar Siddiqui

Karachi