Former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan and his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) party’s challenge to the writ of the state for the better part of this week in Lahore has demonstrated one aspect of the “perfect storm” that continues to hold the country in its grip. The term “perfect storm” was used by Pakistan Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari during an interview on an American TV show on 15 March.
What Bilawal Bhutto said needs to quoted in full because it demonstrates the dire condition of Pakistan. He said “Unfortunately, Pakistan is facing a perfect storm. Not only do we have heightened partisanship to the extent that political parties or political stakeholders aren’t even in a position to sit in a room and discuss issues amongst themselves we are also facing an economic crisis”.
He went on to add “We are facing a security threat from the fall out of from the fall of the Afghan government and terrorist attacks are taking place with increasing frequency in Pakistan. And, we just faced the biggest climate catastrophe of our history where the third of the land mass of our country was under water and that (is) something my generation and generations to come will continue to pay the price for decisions that others have taken”