The beauty of democracy

The 1960 US presidential election between Richard Nixon and John F Kennedy is often called controversial. Despite the claims by the Republican National Committee that former Chicago mayor Richard Daley fraudulently handed 8,800 votes to Kennedy, which ultimately led him to win the presidency, Nixon decided not to contest the results as it would portray him as a sore loser. In 2000, Al Gore accepted the US Supreme Court’s decision in the larger interest of the country after the Florida recount scandal. By confronting state institutions, Imran Khan is not glorifying his name in history books. He has a chance to go back to the people and win the election as Nixon did in 1968. Dharna politics, street agitation, refusal to accept bitter decisions and continuous criticism of state institutions will harm PTI politics in the long run.

The PTI’s politics of agitation gives an impression that party officials are looking for a one-party rule in the country. Democracies do not work this way. It appears that our country has not learnt any lessons from the PNA movement of 1977 against Bhutto. It was a pyrrhic victory as all parties had to wait for eight years instead of 90 days for the next election. A leaf from history is that patience is the biggest weapon of humans, but certain sections of our society are not willing to accept it.

Sufghan Sarwar Khan

Dubai, UAE