The PML(N)’s cancellation of rallies in Lahore only occurred because the first two rallies held to whip up support for a huge turnout for party QQuaid Mian Nawaz Sharif’s return did not yield the desired resu;ts. Both illustrated very pointedly the problems the party faces. At Chief Organizer Maryam Nawaz’s rally, the turnout was poor. This could be blamed on poor organization, which is a reflection of the fact that the party organization is in poor shape. Then at the other, party chief and outgoing Prime Minister Mian Shehbaz Sharif the windows of his vehicles smashed in. This shows that his year and a half as PM at the head of the coalition that ousted the PTI and its chief, Imran Khan, was wildly unsuccessful in winning public approval.
If Mian Nawaz thinks that he will be welcomed with open arms on October 21, when he is scheduled to return, he should think again. The party organization is in disarray, and may not get as many people to turn up as Mian Nawaz wishes. One reason is that no one knows when elections will take place, with a date not having been announced. That means that the MNAs and MPAs tasked with bringianng a fixed minimum number of people to Lahore are not willing to shell out for the transport and food that even political workers have come to expect as their right from the party. After all, those MNAs or MPAs are either certain of selection, or do not know if they will be reselected. Either way, there is little incentive to spend on the welcome.
Then there is the performance of the PML(N) in government. The economic performance was dismal, mainly because of Finance Minister Ishaq Dar. The voter knows that Senator Dar was sent by Mian Nawaz to replace Mian Shehbaz’s first choice, Miftah Ismail, and thus the blame for the economic situation will spill over onto Mian Nawaz, especially since he is not proposing any solution. Is the voter to trust Mian Nawaz? There is also the problem that Mian Nawaz is not coming back as some sort of returning hero, but as someone whose party has disaffected its traders’ constituency, where it was strong, but which has been badly hit by the economic crisis, and on top is being asked to pay taxes. Whatever the crowd that goes to the Lahore Airport on October 21, Mian Nawaz will have his work cut out.
