PRIME MINISTER Imran Khan has said one of the major problems for Pakistan is the lack of long-term planning. Speaking at a public event, Mr Khan lamented that the requirement of holding elections every five years led to planning aimed at winning the next poll. He said this five-year election cycle was a “tragedy” because it was a major hurdle for the government to think many years ahead. He quoted the example of China where leaders could think long term and benefit from continuity of policy.

The prime minister may have diagnosed short-term planning as a critical problem in governance but he is wide off the mark when he blames the election cycle for this problem.

Pakistan has experienced decade-long continuous rule at least thrice in its history. If continuity was the sole criterion for progress, Pakistan would not have been plagued with governance and underdevelopment issues as it is today. The real problem is lack of political stability often germinating from a lack of political legitimacy. These twin menaces have wreaked havoc on Pakistan’s governance structures and continue to create fault lines in new and unique ways.

Mr Khan may idolise the stable continuity of policies in China, but he may want to remind himself that Pakistan is a constitutional democracy and is governed under the overarching umbrella of this consensus document. The tragedy is not that we have a five-year election cycle but that we have been unable to keep up with it. In seven decades if only a handful of governments have been allowed to complete their five-year mandate, then the problem associated with lack of continuity that the prime minister has pointed out lies in the unwillingness of power wielders to let governments complete their five-year cycle.

The prime minister may want to dwell more on factors that inhibit long-term planning in order to get answers that fit more neatly into the constitutional structure of Pakistan. If indeed we want to benefit from continuity and longer-term vision for governance, we need to ensure that elections are held regularly in a free, fair and transparent manner so that stability and legitimacy are embedded in the democratic fabric of our electoral and governance system.

This structure allows for the type of continuity that Mr Khan is referring to. If a government has done well in terms of its performance, citizens can always vote it back in for another five-year term thereby enabling it to carry on with its policies. At the same time, perhaps all major political stakeholders should agree on some basic economic guidelines that can provide continuity even if governments change and bring in new policies. A basic minimum consensus on strategic issues would compensate for the change in policies and ensure continuity to an extent that is required.

Published in Dawn, January 31st, 2021

Opinion

Editorial

Judiciary’s SOS
Updated 28 Mar, 2024

Judiciary’s SOS

The ball is now in CJP Isa’s court, and he will feel pressure to take action.
Data protection
28 Mar, 2024

Data protection

WHAT do we want? Data protection laws. When do we want them? Immediately. Without delay, if we are to prevent ...
Selling humans
28 Mar, 2024

Selling humans

HUMAN traders feed off economic distress; they peddle promises of a better life to the impoverished who, mired in...
New terror wave
Updated 27 Mar, 2024

New terror wave

The time has come for decisive government action against militancy.
Development costs
27 Mar, 2024

Development costs

A HEFTY escalation of 30pc in the cost of ongoing federal development schemes is one of the many decisions where the...
Aitchison controversy
Updated 27 Mar, 2024

Aitchison controversy

It is hoped that higher authorities realise that politics and nepotism have no place in schools.