In the game of politics, the tide of power is often fast to turn. We have seen the fickleness of politics in this country where no Prime Minister has completed his term and the last decade alone has seen three different political parties come and go. One thing is clear- if a political party doesn’t adjust its sails according to the direction of the wind, it will sink. This is a lesson that Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaaf (PTI) may soon be learning after its first 100 days

It is safe to say that Punjab was the most difficult challenge for PTI in the 2018 elections, where the party barely managed to clinch a majority. Punjab has so far proved the hardest for PTI to rule- the Punjab government has been resisted at every turn- as seen by the endless protests by Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) MPAs, the removal of Punjab Police Chief and the reluctance of the Punjab bureaucracy. Perhaps due to these inconveniences, we have not seen the development in Punjab that was promised in the first 100 days. The lack of noticeable results and the huge rise in inflation may necessitate changes by the PTI leadership to demonstrate that they are serious about achieving swift results. A change is needed and it seems we might just have that soon.

There have been no substantiated news or official announcements of any change in line-ups of power but whispers in the wind indicate that a storm is brewing in the messy sphere of Punjab politics. Officially the responsibility of the province is in the hands of Chief Minister Usman Buzdar but the word around the street is that there is a bigger tussle of power in play between more established and experienced members of PTI. How this power struggle may pan out- we can only wait and watch, but it is hoped that the inner conflicts of the party do not scathe the politics of Punjab- the most populous and influential region in the political sphere.

Whatever the case, it is clear that PTI’s strategy in Punjab currently is not working and it needs to switch it up. Punjab has been PML-N’s stronghold for more than a decade- PTI will have to find a way to cooperate and work with the opposition if it wants to enact institutional and structural change in the province.