Finally, PM Imran Khan has realised that he cannot fight corruption, inflation, the pandemic and crimes against women alone. Instead of helping those in distress, a promise he made during the elections, he wants others to take responsibility for his government’s failures.
Among the tasks that were closest to his heart during the election campaign was to bring back the money looted by corrupt politicians and award them exemplary punishment. Failing to retrieve a single paisa, the frustrated PM has held the courts and the NAB responsible for his lack of performance. “Here the judiciary protects a person who looted public money and NAB protects a person who stashed away $60 million national wealth to the Swiss bank.”, he decried during a telethon on Sunday.
While contesting elections, Imran Khan, like other crafty politicians, made tall promises to the voters like five million houses, 10 million jobs, ending corruption within months, and bringing down inflation. His opponents accused him of telling fairytales. Now he accuses the people of expecting too much from him maintaining that the things of the sort only happen in fairytales.
After finding that continuous accusations against former governments are bringing diminishing returns, the PM now points to “mafia” for being responsible for the rise in prices little remembering that his cabinet allowed the export of sugar and Punjab government provided subsidies to exporters, thus benefiting those he now calls mafia.
The PM has consistently sent wrong messages to the people thus underrating the corona threat. In March last year he opined that Pakistan’s hot and dry weather will help to mitigate the coronavirus outbreak. For weeks he failed to use a mask in public appearances. Recently after being found corona positive he got himself photographed addressing a meeting which was publicized officially sending the false signal that a person who has tested positive for Covid-19 can start socializing. How can he accuse the people then of being careless and not taking precautions while going out in public?
The PM had no strong words to condemn the rapists or propose a deterrent to curb the crime. Instead, he held the victims responsible for not wearing the veil. “We have to promote a culture of pardah to avoid temptation,” he said. This was a typical male chauvinist response unexpected from anyone claiming to be an enlightened person.
