Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's third government has completed 100 days in power, but without any popular public applause as he has failed to bring about any promised economic relief, and has instead chosen to impose further heavy taxes. His roller coaster style of governance during his first three months in power suggests that Sharif is in haste to outdo his predecessor, Asif Zardari, who has been dubbed the most corrupt politician Pakistan has ever had. Under Zardari's rule, the prices of essential commodities reached record heights while corruption, lawlessness, crimes and killings also soared. Although Sharif's party, the Pakistan Muslim League, enjoys a decisive majority in parliament and support from allied parties, Sharif's performance in his first 100 days was a stark contrast to the public expectations he had himself created with his electoral promises. As a result, he is drawing unusually large amounts of criticism both from opponents and the general public and may be set to surpass Zardari's notoriety. Sharif's rule so far has been nothing but a continuation of the corrupt and capitalist policies of his predecessors, especially those implemented by the regime of the outgoing Zardari-led Pakistan People's Party. Interestingly, Zardari's regime carried on with 99 percent of the policies employed by his predecessor, General [retired] Pervez Musharraf, who is also a strong contender for his successor's dubious legacy. As far as the promised relief to the people from price hikes, power shutdowns and lawlessness is concerned, Sharif is moving at a snail's pace, accomplishing almost nothing. His supporters argue that his failure is not because of lack of experience as most of his team is comprised of veteran stalwarts who have remained with him for over two decades. Perhaps his cabinet members have become too “old” and “tired” to make any difference now. Unfortunately, Sharif has squandered all the golden chances he had to bring about promised changes. When he took charge 100 days ago, he had everything he needed to achieve success: a decisive majority, a clear mandate, and above all, his campaign promises which earned him a resounding electoral victory. He also had the support of the media and the superior judiciary. However, to the dismay of anxious Pakistanis, he kept all of Zardari's policies in tact and went back on his promise to recover plundered public money from previous corrupt rulers and to bring an end to power outages within six months. Even worse were the new taxes Sharif imposed, in addition to the raising of petrol and electricity prices as part of the IMF's preconditions for obtaining fresh foreign loans, thus going back on his promise of “breaking the beggar's bowl” before the world and achieving self-sufficiency. But Sharif is smart enough not to give any timeframe or date for ending blackouts, something which kept Zardari's regime in the dock during its entire tenure. Nawaz Sharif said that the load-shedding (intentionally engineered electrical power shutdowns) issue would be solved before the end of his government's term, i.e. load-shedding will surely continue for the next five years. He also gave away the sum of $5 billion to private power-producing companies in the name of ending circular debt, but the debt is still there and the load-shedding has become even worse despite giving away such a large amount to multinational companies from the public's pocket. Sharif is protecting the corruption of former rulers and influential capitalists in the name of following the policy of reconciliation. He appears to value the reconciliation process more than democracy itself. No doubt, reconciliation with opposition parties like the PPP is an important democratic gesture, but it must not be done at the cost of sacrificing justice and accountability. Despite all the crises the nation is passing through, Sharif has not yet given up his habit of arbitrary often dictatorial decision-making and lavish spending on his luxurious lifestyle. Media has taken him to task for his proposed plan for a new city in Islamabad, the land of which is expected to be the most expensive in the entire world. Although his cabinet has covered it up under a plan for developing an economic zone for the capital city Development Authority, the secrecy of the plan raised suspicions and the media smelled a rat. The multi-billion dollar proposed city project would also include a new airport, a 10-km-long tunnel across the mountains, ring roads around the twin cities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad, and a ten-lane motorway to connect the new and old Islamabad. Members of his cabinet say the project would bring Dubai-style motorways, and shopping centers to Pakistan. But such luxurious developments would bring no change for the average Pakistani. The Pakistan Muslim League's party leaders must keep in mind that roads and buildings alone did not result in the enviable developments in Dubai and other states in the UAE. Sharif is perhaps also unaware that Dubai's rulers did not put the financial burden on their people for building roads and malls. Sharif, who was recently criticized for wearing a multi-million dollar wristwatch, has been refraining from enforcing Dubai-like governance in the country or following Dubai's industrial model. His plans seem out of place for a country as poor as Pakistan, where he has also avoided enforcing “e-governance”. If he ever succeeds in improving the economy by imposing more taxes, it will be the achievement of the people and not his own. He must keep in mind that he should follow the principles of democracy and not the achievements of the democratic countries he envies. If he follows in the footsteps of rulers of other countries without keeping in mind the realities on the ground in Pakistan, it will result in disaster for the country. Pakistan's former rulers must be subjected to strict accountability, since they are the ones who created a country where criminals, such as petty thieves, muggers, extortionists and terrorists exist in every city and town. Accountability is not mere revenge or victimization; it is a requirement for absolute justice and the enforcement of law. No doubt, there are a small number of people who are applauding Sharif's achievements over the past three months, like winning a majority of seats in by-elections, bringing in a fellow loyalist as the country's president, and establishing a unanimous mandate of all parties and the military leadership to negotiate with the Taliban to end terrorism and insurgency. However, Sharif's rule could become worse than Zardari's if, amidst receiving congratulations from supporters, he forgets to hold the corrupt accountable, punish criminals and provide relief to the poverty-stricken masses who brought him to power with the hope that he would make their dreams come true. – Mansoor Jafar is editor of Al Arabiya Urdu based in Islamabad. Follow him on Twitter @mansoorjafar
