The victors and losers have been pretty obvious in the 2013 elections. Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) emerged the clear victor, while the Awami National Party (ANP) and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) suffered overwhelming defeats in Khyber Pakthunkhwa (KP), Punjab and Balochistan.
Celebrations by PML-N workers and leaders were flashed across television screens, while Pakistan Tehrik-i-Insaf (PTI) supporters were seen celebrating in KP.
But soon, as the euphoria dies down, the parties will have to look ahead to a difficult, if not Herculean, task ahead of them.
The Pakistan being handed over from one civilian government is not in the best of condition. The centre will have to take into account a formidable energy crisis, and come up with long term, sustainable solutions to what has crippled people’s daily lives as well as the country’s economy.
Inflation has been the bane of many an ordinary household in Pakistan as well, while crippling debts remain unpaid, as does tax by most of the population.
On top of that is the crisis of militancy, with the Pakistani Taliban moving beyond the border along Afghanistan and carrying out widespread terror attacks across Pakistan – alongside the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) have re-emerged, with a vengeance, sectarian outfits like Lashkar-e-Jhangvi responsible for the death of hundreds. Minorities in Pakistan are also besieged, and various human rights groups have pointed out the vulnerable state these groups are in.
Meanwhile, in Balochistan, missing persons’ bodies keep turning up, scattered across the province. Other missing persons’ cases are pending.
Then of course, there are Pakistan’s bilateral ties with India – something that the prime minister-to-be Nawaz Sharif has attempted to repair in the past, only to be thwarted by the Kargil incident.
So by no means is the victory in the elections the ultimate victory for the winning parties this year. The next five years appear filled with problems that need to be resolved urgently.
What do you think the solutions to these widespread, and diverse range of problems are? And which ones need to be resolved on a more urgent basis than others?
Do you think the elected government will manage to make a dent in these issues that threaten to override Pakistan?
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