I am not a fan of Asif Zardari, but I have to give him credit for swallowing his ego, yet again, and going to meet Nawaz Sharif at Sharif’s residence. Given Pakistan’s awful economical and political situation, I do admire Zardari’s commitment to finding common ground with as many political parties as possible to keep the country from falling apart. Yes, you read it correctly; I said falling apart because the country is not really in good shape.
I have been in Pakistan for couple of months, I have traveled the country, I have had conversations with Pakistanis from almost all walks of life and in the end, I have not been able to find anyone who was either positive or hopeful about Pakistan or its future. As I have mentioned before, everyone complains about the perpetually deteriorating situation in the country, but no one does anything about it. Worse, people just love to loath the United States and all conversations about Pakistan start and end with viciously condemning America. More alarmingly, people in Pakistan have come up with bizarre and worrisome conspiracy theories about American involvement in the region and this unhealthy attitude of shifting blame is at the center of all the troubles that the country faces today.
It is time for Pakistan’s public and leaders to realistically view the internal threats that can seriously harm Pakistan, if honest corrective measures are not initiated right away. The country cannot afford to be in denial anymore about itself or its future. Therefore, it is important to appreciate the gracious gesture of Asif Zardari’s initiative of traveling to Nawaz Sharif’s residence to reestablish the relationship between Pakistan’s two major political parties. This cooperation between PPP and PML (N) is the only way to tackle the out of reach food, petroleum, and electricity prices for majority of Pakistanis. In fact, everything in the country needs a fresh start and this fresh start is only possible if every stake holder in the country comes together to deal with Pakistan’s monstrous challenges.
Let’s hope and pray that Pakistan elected leadership would wise up and do the right thing to save the country.
Bilal Qureshi
Washington, DC