Opposition coming together?

The Pakistan People's Party (PPP) held an Iftar dinner for the heads of almost all the opposition parties. The purpose of getting together is said to be to chalk out a joint strategy against the government on the issues of inflation, the IMF deal, the actions of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), the allegedly rigged elections of 2018 that brought the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaaf to power, the rupee's steep fall and the projected further increase of 28-47 percent in gas tariffs. Amongst those invited were Maryam Nawaz representing the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), Awami National Party's Asfandyar Wali, Jamiat-i-Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl's (JUI-F's) Maulana Fazlur Rehman, Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party's Mahmood Khan Achakzai, Balochistan National Party-Mengal's Sardar Akhtar Mengal (did not attend), Jamaat-e-Islami's Sirajul Haq, Qaumi Watan Party's Aftab Sherpao, and JUI-Noorani's Owais Shah Noorani. The guest list read like a veritable who's who of the opposition, if not a significant chunk of the political firmament. PPP Co-Chairperson Asif Ali Zardari had already come out with a call for a movement after Eid against the government. Before that, and soon after his defeat in the 2018 elections, Maulana Fazlur Rehman had been exhorting the opposition to start an agitation. He is said to have played a role in persuading the PPP and the PML-N, the two main opposition parties, to lay aside their differences in the interests of removing the present incumbents. Although matters are not so clear cut in the PML-N, with imprisoned Nawaz Sharif reportedly having given the green signal for a movement and Shahbaz Sharif still in London, Maryam Nawaz's stepping into her father's shoes may well prove the most significant development for the party in recent times. Although government spokespersons are characterising the talk of a possible grand opposition alliance as just a cover for distracting attention from the alleged corruption of Asif Zardari and the Sharifs, the development cannot be so easily dismissed. Both the PPP and PML-N leaderships are in the dock in numerous cases being pursued by NAB.
Although the PPP and PML-N leaderships are tainted by the corruption allegations being pursued night and day by NAB, it is too facile to simply describe the intended coming together of the opposition as merely a ploy to wriggle out from under the NAB barrage. The opposition is keenly aware of the fumbling image of the PTI government, especially where the economy is concerned. They are also sensitive to the complaints getting louder by the day from the public and ordinary citizen about the tsunami of inflation that has threatened even the normal food intake, not even sparing people during Ramazan. Now the news of a further tariff hike of gas to follow the earlier over 140 percent increase must be giving the ordinary citizen nightmares. Three square meals a day are rapidly going out of the reach of the poor, with further inflation expected once the IMF programme kicks in. All this potentially provides both tinder and seething lava on the street for the opposition's plans to hold protests all over the country after Eid, building up to Maulana Fazlur Rehman's dream of a 'long march' on and shutdown of the federal capital. It may be early days, but there is a discernible convergence amongst the opposition parties against the perceived arrogance of the government, especially Prime Minister Imran Khan, who has consistently avoided reaching out to the opposition even when it is constitutionally required, and exhibits an extraordinary indifference and even contempt for parliament, to which he is accountable for his government's policies and actions. Added to this opposition parties' convergence is the growing frustration and anger amongst the people at the inept, fumbling, and in terms of affordability disastrous handling of the economy by the PTI government so far, with far worse feared to be in the pipeline.