Pakistan’s new PM
The former cricket star Imran Khan secured a dramatic election victory in Pakistan last week – his PTI party won an impressive 115 seats, breaking the long-standing hold of the two main “dynastic” parties on national politics. The ruling Pakistan Muslim League-nawaz, led by the brother of ousted prime minister Nawaz Sharif, won just 64; and the Pakistan People’s Party, led by Benazir Bhutto’s son Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, a mere 43. In his victory speech, Khan pledged to tackle corruption, improve ties with India and build “an Islamic welfare state”. Being short of an outright majority, his party will now need to seek the support of smaller, fringe parties.
Khan’s victory was marred by widespread allegations of vote rigging. Rival parties claimed their officials were often barred by soldiers from observing the count; Pakistan’s Human Rights Commission spoke of “blatant” manipulation of the media and the intimidation of candidates.
What the editorials said
Full marks to Khan for a “remarkable” victory, said The Times. Long dismissed as a “political dilettante” because of his sporting past and playboy reputation, he has spent more than 20 years building up his own party. Now he has shown the “mettle” needed to overcome the Bhutto and Sharif dynasties, who have come to see power in Pakistan as a “clannish entitlement”. But Khan will need all his “maturing political savvy” if he is to meet his campaign pledges, said the FT. Dwindling exports and rising oil prices mean he will soon be forced to seek a fresh loan from the IMF – “a sure way of dampening public euphoria”.
Khan is off to a bad start, said The Guardian. He may not be part of a grand dynasty, but like his predecessors he’s in thrall to the army, which has ruled directly for half Pakistan’s history, and wielded vast power behind the scenes for the other half. It was apparently happy to fix the election in Khan’s favour because (among other things) Sharif’s Muslim League had challenged its influence. As Khan is now in the generals’ debt, the “New Pakistan” he promises threatens to look much like the old.