Gilani's powers are limited

Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani, back from his first visit to the White House after meeting US President George W. Bush, still faces a fundamental challenge.

His authority as head of Pakistan's government looks increasingly in doubt, as the country's political picture becomes murky and questions mount over the government's ability to bring the situation under control.

Despite the political recognition he got from his US visit, Gilani must reconcile himself to some of the key challenges faced by his government, which came to power after the landmark elections five months ago.

Just in the past week, the limitations to Gilani's authority have become ever more visible in the wake of his controversial decision to bring the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) - the elite spy agency - under the control of the interior ministry. He then reversed his decision after a few hours.

Intact

While the ISI's supervisory arrangement under the prime minister's office remains intact, the case has demonstrated the worst kind of indecisiveness at the top of the ruling structure.

The handling of the ISI issue has prompted speculation that the agency's top hierarchy fought back to resist the move that would have placed it under a system of daily monitoring rather than reporting to the government periodically, and that too during periods of crisis.

The case of the ISI has indeed reinforced the fast growing view that Pakistan's newly elected politicians have simply failed to read the writing on the wall.

Political consolidation for the future will come primarily from initiatives such as a parliamentary agreement on important new legislation, backed by plans to strictly enforce the law. Such a legislation must deal with some of the toughest challenges faced by the country such as the need to strengthen political institutions to improve the law and order situation for ordinary Pakistanis.

Concerted attempt

More importantly, though, there must also be a concerted attempt to begin aggressively tackling some of the major economic challenges faced by the people of Pakistan. The population is suffering in the face of unprecedented inflation, fast rising unemployment and the fallout of an economic slowdown.

The bottom line is that there is a need to establish a strong connectivity, indeed a linkage, between forward-looking government initiatives and the popular needs.

Ordinary people will remain unimpressed with their government as long as politicians such as Gilani focus on futile initiatives with little relevance to people's needs.

The case of the failed attempt to take charge of a body like the ISI aptly demonstrates the point.

Meeting the challenge faced by Pakistan is indeed all the more relevant at a time when the powerful military has been forced to stay away from politics.

General Ashfaq Kiyani, the chief of staff, appointed towards the end of 2007, is widely believed to have repeatedly told his closest confidantes that he has no interest in assuming control of the country.

Kiyani's reassurance must also be seen within the context of a mounting security challenge in the North West Frontier Province (NWFP) which has become the front-line for the military.

Taking charge of the country at a time when there are many raging battles would be a disaster for the military. This would also overstretch the army.

The military's preoccupation with the situation in NWFP must not be a reason for complacency for politicians like Gilani, who have yet to wake up to the full scale of the looming disaster. The government's failure to establish the road to a qualitatively new future, creates two inter- related risks.

On the one hand, there is every chance of public disquiet turning into active agitation which causes widespread instability in Pakistan. On the other, all these challenges have the potential to force the military back into power.

Farhan Bokhari is a Pakistan-based commentator who writes on political and economic matters.