Editorial
Pakistan has always grappled with the concept of democracy. Despite ideological and administrative differences, democracy is constitutionally protected as the form of government. The Pakistani political consciousness has also embraced democracy as the preferred system of governance. However, even the best forms of democracy in Pakistan have been unable to transcend the hybrid system.
All political parties in Pakistan have played a role, in one way or another, in the country’s democratic system. The Pakistan Peoples Party, Pakistan Muslim League-N, and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf have been key players in this hybrid political system. In the last five years, two democratic movements have been launched in Pakistan. Since 2017, the President of the Muslim League-N, Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif, has launched a movement called “Vote ko Izzat Do,” which gained significant public support. However, in 2022, Nawaz Sharif’s democratic movement was effectively ended by a regime change. After the regime change, Imran Khan also launched his own movement called “Haqeeqi Aazadi.”
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What is real freedom? According to the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, real freedom means democracy, the rule of law, and popular sovereignty. The question arises: Can the organizational structure of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf wrest real freedom from the powerful forces? A survey of political reforms conducted by Republic Policy has taken a detailed look at the organization and basic membership of political parties in Pakistan. There have been three main types of political recruitment in the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf: fifth-generation warriors, electable candidates, and Imran Khan’s old companions. Of the 5,000 primary workers of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, including center heads, parliamentarians, organizers, and leaders, only a small percentage are truly aligned with the original concept of real freedom. In the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, loyalty to Imran Khan is considered real freedom than upholding the principles of democracy.
Even the concepts of real freedom are comprehensive and based on public interest. The current leadership structure of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf will be unable to fight the battle for real freedom until it is managed systematically through its workers.
Neither the Pakistan Muslim League-N nor the Pakistan Peoples Party are democratic political parties in any sense. And the last hope for democrats in Pakistan is the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, which is still undergoing a process of evolution. It remains to be seen how the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf and Imran Khan will fulfill the aspirations of the people for the strengthening of democracy.
