The first episode of this year, way back in January 2022, discussed how politics will dominate the economy for the entirety of the year. In this episode, we take a look at how things have shaped up and what the path forward looks like for Pakistan’s chaotic and unstable political scene. This instability is having a disastrous impact on the country’s economy, and Uzair talks to Amber Rahim Shamsi about whether or not there is light at the end of the tunnel here.

Amber Rahim Shamsi is Director of the Centre for Excellence in Journalism at the IBA and an award-winning multi-media journalist and free speech advocate, with wide-ranging experience in television, radio, online and the print media.

Chapters:

0:00 Introduction

2:00 What’s going on with politics today?

12:00 PML-N’s declining political capital

23:00 The military establishment’s role

33:40 Role of foreign allies as guarantors

41:50 The role of incentives in reaching compromise

51:10 Is Pakistan too big to fail?