Last Sunday, Imran Khan rocked Lahore! So to speak. Then came the onslaught of analysis, victory slogans, and shouts of ìChangeî. While it is tempting to get caught in the fast flowing tide, it is always wise to wait and see what happens when emotions come down and reality starts setting in. So, does one singular rally mean absolute victory? Is PML(N) being rendered irrelevant in the eyes of the youth? Is the future for the youth Imran, and only Imran? How will this effect the apolitical youth and the political one too? While some of these questions have been already answered in the analysis that followed the youth part of it has been largely ignored. So what really happened in Lahore on 30th October 2011 for the youth?
Well, first of all it is important to understand that the youth is not one singular entity. It is a mix of young people from diverse backgrounds and ideologies. Having said that, Imran does enjoys a special place in the hearts of the youth across the country. He has charisma and can communicate with young people in a way other politicians just canít. His rally on the 30th had a festival like feel, with dancing, cheering and music. The right appeal for this demographic. It is hard to imagine Shahzad Roy and Strings performing in the rallies of Nawaz Sharif, Zardari or anyone else for that matter. Imran using this charisma to his advantage can motivate and call young people to stand up with him, which they do. While his reach is concentrated and more powerful in the middle class, university and college going, tech savvy youth of the country, he is not an alien to the rural youth population too. Many know him and respect him from his cricketing days and social work with Namal and Shaukat Khanum. He has successfully been able to bridge the gap between the youth and a confusing politics of the country by making himself and his party accessible to young people. The youth sees space for itself in PTI, unlike other parties which are already held by traditional political structures.
Dr. Farrukh Saleem, wrote an interesting piece in the News ìImran wins hearts not minds.î He argued that Imran Khan lacks definitive policies and roadmaps to accomplish the tasks he says are needed to secure the future of the country. While many would say this is true, it is not very relevant in the youth equation. The youth of Pakistan is newly politicised, most opened their political eyes in the era of Musharraf. They generally consider the ìtraditionalî politicians and leaders as being widely corrupt and damaging to the country. The current government has not done much to curb this way of thinking, and Imran has been able to cash on this with his clean and honest image. Unless the youth develops an understanding of key issues and policy requirements, which is unlikely in the near future, Imran does not need to give a complete plan to win most of them over. For this youth perhaps what is more important is new faces and change.
Imranís biggest asset at this point, is his clean and honest image. This along with his personal charisma has given him a cult like following. There are people, specially many young people who will more or less follow him blindly wherever he leads them willingly without any coercion. They are willing to overlook all his misgivings, and defend him no matter what. They trust whatever he says against any party or person without verification. Imran has taken advantage of this trust by mainly maligning others politicians and parties.
They work for him day and night spreading his messages through sms, facebook, twitter and email. They go door to door and convince everyone that Imran Khan is the only hope for the country. No other political party has that dedicated a workforce and following, and it is unlikely the traditional parties will ever be able to develop that at any point in the near future.
On the other hand unlike Imran and PTI, PML(N) has taken a downward spiral in the past few months. This has been out of negligence, ill planning and a lack of team building on their part. PML(N) has alienated itself from the youth which was widely in itís favour after the restoration of judiciary movement in 2009. One of the reasons for Imranís success has been complacency on the part of PML(N). One example of the ill planning on PML(N)ís part was publishing the wrong number to join its SMS group on the front page newspaper ads it gave. The three years that PML(N) has posed as a ìfriendly oppositionî have engraved the perception in the youth that there is not much difference between PML(N) and the government. If PML(N) does not act swiftly in engaging the youth and presenting itís side, a formidable challenge, it will be rendered irrelevant in the eyes of the youth.
PML(N)ís strongest asset in wooing the youth is itís team and Shahbaz Sharif. The most common criticism on Imran Khan even in the youth is a lack of a strong team in PTI. Imran is viewed as a solo flight critics and it is important for him to show that PTI is a strong organisation with strong leaders. Imranís selection of candidates in bi-elections has not pleased anyone, and he needs to keep on his promise of nominating better candidates for the future. Shahbaz Sharif, unlike others from PML(N) has a respectable following in the youth. Many see his as a hard worker who gets things done and is serious about changing Pakistan. If he can engage with the youth as much as Imran does, and show refrain he can be helpful in turning back the tide for his party. For the youth it wonít be Imran vs Nawaz, but more Imran vs. Shahbaz.
As the next possible election year approaches, it is important to remember, all of the youth has not unanimously declared Imran its leader save for one segment. So, I donít think the future leader of the youth at this point in time is only Imran, but he has the potential. Whoever will be able to captivate and gain the support of the youth now will have a long political career ahead of them, because maybe the youth vote is not as important in this election it will be very important in the next ones to come. The success of Imran in this election pivots on how he can get new voters to register their votes and come out to caste them on election day.
One rally can not be the definitive test for elections and can not guarantee a win. However, one rally can leave an impression which can make people take you seriously. It has been particularly impressionable on the youth which had not picked any sides yet, and has encouraged them in a way towards Imran. The youth cake is still up for grabs however, it will depend on what the other parties do. The youth needs someone who can convince them that things will change, someone who can convince them of his or her honesty and more importantly makes them a stake holder. The demands of the youth are quite simple yet unfortunately very hard to fulfil. It is a wait and see game for now.
