'Panamagate verdict fallout'

This is apropos a Business Recorder editorial "Panamagate verdict fallout" carried by the newspaper on Tuesday. The newspaper has presented a highly objective analysis of the post-verdict situation in the country. It has argued, among other things, that "the PM, his family, the ruling party and the country may be better served by the PM himself standing down pending clearance by the JIT or calling an early election to seek a fresh mandate from the electorate, one that will not free him of the investigation, but at least provide him a more solid foundation morally and politically to remain in office and govern."
The Supreme Court judgement has clearly demoralised the prime minister as he appears to have been visibly shaken by the Panamagate case's outcome. Notwithstanding the dissenting notes by two of the five judges, the formation of a joint investigation team has given the prospect of his disqualification a new lease of life. The PM and his colleagues are finding it extremely difficult to concentrate on their job with greater focus. Hence the need for calling an early election to seek a fresh mandate from the electorate although an early vote can be a curse or blessing for a battling prime minister. He is fast running out of options.