LAHORE: A former prime minister has issued a warning regarding the current economic and political crisis, saying it could potentially lead to a military takeover.
Shahid Khaqan Abbasi highlighted the military has intervened in the past in less severe circumstances, and stressed the importance of top stakeholders initiating dialogue to prevent such a scenario.
During an appearance on Dawn News, Abbasi emphasised that martial law always remains a possibility if the system fails or if there is a conflict between institutions and political leadership is unable to find a way forward.
Abbasi also pointed out that Pakistan has experienced several prolonged periods of martial law in similar situations before, and that the country has never faced a more severe economic and political crisis.
He cautioned that if friction within society and institutions becomes too deep, anarchy could ensue, potentially leading to military intervention. He further explained that in countries where the political and constitutional system fails, extra-constitutional measures are often taken.
Abbasi’s warning comes as Pakistan continues to grapple with multiple crises, including a worsening economic situation and rising political tensions.
He, however, expressed his hope the military would not resort to imposing martial law. He said that a military takeover would only worsen the situation instead of improving it. He emphasized that a political solution was the only viable path forward, but every political party had been in power for a year and had not delivered any results.
Abbasi noted that the crisis went beyond the economic sphere and included constitutional, institutional, political, and judicial failures, as well as failures on the part of the military establishment.
He called for dialogue among the three key players in the current crisis: Imran Khan, the chairman of the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI); Nawaz Sharif, the supreme leader of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N); and Gen. Asim Munir, the chief of army staff.
Abbasi urged the leaders to prioritise the country’s interests over their personal agendas, and stressed that sanity must prevail.
Abbasi also commented on whether the military should play an arbitrary role to resolve the political impasse, saying there was no bar on institutional heads sitting down and trying to work out a solution for the country.
He brushed aside the suggestion of friendly countries such as the US and the UK’s attempt to mediate like they did during the Musharraf era. Abbasi stressed that solutions will have to come from within the country and that the leadership must understand and recognize the extent of the problem.
The former prime minister lamented the current composition of the economy, saying the country could not interact with the world just on the basis of being a nuclear power. He added that Pakistan needed to acknowledge its own situation in the world and articulate it clearly to talk of a way forward.
“When the situation is not rational, it is difficult to provide solutions, and this is where we are today. It has become a very irrational situation,” he said.
