The Covid pandemic, in such circumstances, proved the latest straw on the camel’s back especially given the deteriorating economy. This situation added to the misery of the public that was already victim to inflation and unemployment.
Similarly, hundreds of thousands of stranded Pakistani laborers who have yet to return to the country would be another challenge for the national economy in the coming days, posing yet another test for the incumbent government's capabilities.
All the aforementioned challenges, however, are of collective nature and the government's strategy of blaming other political parties for the country's economic failure to cover its own weaknesses remains somewhat ineffective.
The challenges to the PTI government today are of different nature and the ‘blame game strategy’ may not be effective anymore. What are these challenges and how will they test the government’s resolve?
Getting the budget approved from the Parliament is the most daunting task for the PTI government right now, as there are reports that many disgruntled PTI members in National Assembly from Punjab and KP are planning to skip the session or oppose the budget.
The second most daunting challenges the Imran Khan government faces is in the form of its coalition partners. For instance, the departure of BNP-Mengal recently has been a threat to the government in terms of its abilities to keep the coalitions intact. Similarly, the PML-Q has expressed its reservations on various forums. In fact, party’s leaders have attended various meetings with opposition parties’ leaders, including PML-N.
Moreover, MQM-Pakistan, another coalition partner, is no more a hidden threat for the government. In such a situation, the Mengal threat can lead to a spillover effect upon the incumbent government.
The government has handled many such political stunts at the hands of its coalition partners in the past, this time the political environment is quite different. Imran Khan should not forget that the man who had been at the forefront of such political stunts has flown to London.
So, there are reports the current political challenges could be fatal for the government.
The cricketer turned politician will have to handle these political matters carefully in order to keep his rule intact as hammering the newly made political patches would not be that easy.