Brig Gen (retd) M Sakhawat Hossain, security analyst, former election commissioner : Right at this moment, it is a bit difficult to predict what qualitative changes Imran Khan can bring to the politics after he is sworn in as the Prime Minister of Pakistan.
Imran is a newcomer to the conventional politics. The cricket star-turned-politician may give a breath of fresh air to the politics of Pakistan.
There are some formidable challenges ahead of Imran Khan. Now it remains to be seen how much he can cope with the challenges, particularly the internal political situation and steps to be taken with regard to foreign relations.
Former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) party boycotted the 11th general elections. The elections were marred by allegations of abducting and barring polling agents from entering the polling booths. Similar allegations are a commonplace in several countries of South Asia.
Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) rejected election results but the party announced it would sit on opposition benches in National Assembly.
I welcome the civilian government of Pakistan. It is a big deal for Pakistan. Pakistan army backed Imran Khan. The military is a key player in Pakistan. Pakistan’s army pulled strings from behind due to various reasons.
Now it remains to be seen how Imran Khan steers Pakistani foreign policy particularly to improve relations between the two traditionally hostile neighbours. Let us wait and see the post-poll situation in Pakistan.
There was a time when democracy was non-existent, civilian governments were in power on several occasions. People exercised their franchise, albeit being influenced. This is Pakistan-style elections different from other countries. We have not expected which is meant by democracy from Pakistan.