Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) has managed to make itself relevant in the current political scenario by actively campaigning in Sindh and also being extremely mindful of the political developments otherwise. One may very much assume that the party was in fact involved in the grand scheme of things, but former President Asif Ali Zardari now refers to the set up as “angels” interfering in the civilian elections. The comment, and the tenor of the following interview is odd, seeing as Asif Ali Zardari played a crucial role in snatching the Senate Chairmanship from Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and dropping it in the lap of Sirjani – a candidate favoured by the said “angels’
Yet it seems Zardari is returning to the narrative that presumably will “uphold the supremacy of democracy”. A hung parliament is in the cards, however, PPP is expecting that Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PMLN) will have finally learnt its lesson and come to reconciliation with PPP but this time on their terms. There is no doubt about the fact that PMLN is facing difficult times and needs a party to be able to pull out of this fiasco. For years, the two parties have fought against one another but this time around it is beneficial to come to a consensus in order to ensure the smoothness of the democratic process.
At the same time, President Zardari also feels that PPP is being severely targeted in Sindh - referring to the countless arrests by the Rangers. These encounters also happened in areas out of bounds of the rangers. By saying this, he is trying to imply how manufactured the upcoming polity will be but the party is prepared before the elections. It still has not been declared how many seats they are expecting from Punjab, but that is only a part of their election strategy so that the opponents do not take advantage of their elaborate plan.
Several mainstream parties are claiming that aliens are rigging the election, which is a claim that must be thoroughly checked for because people’s votes matter most and they should be able to decide on their own. PPP is the underdog of the upcoming polls.
It would be easy to dismiss Zardari’s comments as disingenuous, and to a certain extent they may be, yet the purpose behind them is clear – PPP holds itself to no pre-set ideological position, come election time, it is ready to form a coalition with whomever it sees fit.