THE PML-N's demand that the PPP agree to implement a 10-point 'reform agenda' in exchange for some unspecified support to the government to ride out the crisis the coalition has been plunged into since the MQM's withdrawal appears to have given the PPP some breathing room. Having announced it would wait for a 'yes or no' decision to its demands and having set a trial period until Feb 20 to verify the PPP's commitment, the PML-N has effectively given the PPP leadership a month and a half to recover its coalition. Yet, this decision has not come easily and the PML-N appears to be a house divided. Some within the party clearly want to pull the plug on the present political dispensation immediately and thereby trigger fresh polls, but Nawaz Sharif still appears to be sitting on the fence. The most important question: with its announcement, has the PML-N signalled that it is willing to enter into a dialogue with the PPP again or has the largest opposition party really set the stage for mid-term elections? The PML-N's 10 demands do not provide a clear answer. Perusing them, the difficulty in, for example, turning around public-sector enterprises or devising a comprehensive plan to address the energy crisis by the third week of February is apparent.

Even more unclear, the PML-N has not specified in material terms what will happen upon the expiry of its 'deadline'. Throwing the PPP out of the provincial government is neither here nor there: the PPP is at best a symbolic partner in the Punjab government. The real question is what will happen in Islamabad. The sensible route would be for the PPP to engage the PML-N and determine if there is genuine interest to continue with the present parliament and to devise a road map whereby both sides can rebuild trust in each other. The 10-point agenda of the PML-N could be a starting point: at least one party has talked about real governance issues, however vaguely.