Pakistan must revert back to a modern welfare democratic state, instead of distorted version of a security state that it has been forcefully transformed into by military dictators in collaboration with civil bureaucracy inherited and trained by Colonial Raj to rule an occupied colony. Can anybody justify the cover-up and defiance by Musharraf of the rape of Shazia Khalid by an individual allegedly belonging to uniformed services? It is not the job of an army, whose exclusive role is to defend the geographical boundaries, to assume unto themselves supra-constitutional powers to detain citizens in times of peace and be accused of being involved in missing persons case. They lack the intellectual capacity and foresight to rule and set priorities for a sovereign state to develop its infrastructure and become self reliant both economically and technologically, nor the political wisdom to be respected in the comity of nations.
It were corrupt adventurers like Ayub, Yahya, Zia and Musharraf, who abused their offices to illegitimately occupy power and deliberately introduce element of institutionalized corruption within the forces by legitimizing the plunder of real estate and involvement of the security establishment in corporate business ventures. The British occupation establishment distributed lands, titles and jobs as bait for natives to buy their loyalties. Such tactics are rarely resorted to by sovereign states, which focus on welfare of most deprived sections of society instead of welfare of its paid civil and uniformed servants, for doing jobs that they are paid for.
With the Quaid’s death, elements of the Unionist Party, that had joined bandwagon of Muslim League prevailed and the establishment resorted to large scale allotment of vast evacuee property on fake claims to plunder assets left behind by affluent Hindus and Sikhs and thereby create a new class of novae rich who then assumed political power and laid foundations of a culture of corruption that has now eroded the very foundations of Pakistan. Our founding fathers led by Quaid, Allama Iqbal, Fazal-ul-Haq etc could never have visualized that land mafia dons would emerge as kingmakers of Pakistan, who could defy not just our highest judiciary, but get away with robbing poor and destitute, a country where institutions of state meant to serve public such as Railways, PIA, OGDC, FBR etc are handed over to thugs, crooks or dual nationals to be destroyed systematically.
ALI MALIK TARIQ
Illinois, USA
