Prerequisites for Pakistan’s survival

On how we can make our country a truly modern and progressive state

Few will question the assertion that we as a nation are staring into an existential cliff – a predicament that has been brought about by our own destructive failings, delusions and obsessions. If our national experience is any indicator, there seems to be at least five fundamental prerequisites for Pakistan, not necessarily in the order below, to move away from the abyss and turn towards a modern, dynamic, progressive and prosperous path.

First and foremost is the paramount prerequisite for decisively confronting the violence, terrorism and mayhem being inflicted by the Taliban/jihadists’ assault on the state of Pakistan and its people and neutralising it to an ineffective level if not totally eliminating it. Why? Because these self-confessed enemies of our country have paralysed the nation’s social and economic life while casting a debilitating net of fear over the country.

This can only be achieved by an all-out, no holds barred attack. Half-hearted, piecemeal operations here and there have proven to be catastrophic, playing into Talibans’ hands. I know that many people will doubt our ability and capacity to crush terrorism, but if tiny Sri Lanka with its tiny army can do it then why can’t our fifth biggest army of the world go all out and finish off this monster once and for all?

Secondly, interlinked with the evanescence of terrorism/jihadism, is the need to cleanse the country of the blood of tens of thousands of our murdered innocent citizens through pursuing, prosecuting and punishing the Taliban/jihadi murderers. The reason is that any edifice built on the shaky and guilt-ridden foundation of a blood-soaked soil would not last for long: only justice for the fallen victims and retribution for the perpetrators can make the country whole again and restore the moral authority and writ of the state.

America’s war or not, the fact remains that someone did murder our citizens in cold blood and they must be held accountable and made to pay for these execrable crimes.

Thirdly, religion-related provisions of our Constitution, the fountainhead of our laws, must be discarded or amended. Because they negate some of the very basic human rights, foster uncertainty and confusion, promote inveterate hatred of other faiths and division among citizens, encourage backwardness, impede progress and undermine the rule of law.

For instance, the constitution on the one hand says that all citizens of Pakistan are equal under the law, but on the other hand specifies that citizens who are not Muslims cannot become the prime minister or president of the country. Isn’t this a most brazen contradiction or what? Similarly, open discrimination is legalised by the constitution by its Hudood and blasphemy provisions.

Moreover, prohibition that no laws would be made repugnant to Islamic injunctions and teachings creates utter confusion because these terms are left up in the clouds, undefined, undetermined and open for anybody’s interpretation.

The fourth fundamental prerequisite is the abolition of those clauses in our constitution that gives unbridled ‘suo motu’ powers to the judiciary, powers unheard of in a democracy. The reason is that the potential for abuse of this additional, unnecessary jurisdiction by an ambitious judge can create an unelected supra government answerable to no one, a kind of a state within a state, so to speak.

Under the pretext of ruling on matters of ‘public importance’ or ‘larger national interest’ or enforcement of ‘fundamental rights’, a double-talking and usurping judiciary can arbitrarily rule on any matter under the sun, from fixing prices of samosas, CNG etc, to appointments and transfers of army generals, civil servants, even judges etc, disqualifications of elected MNAs, MPAs and even prime ministers who are the democratically-elected heads of the national government.

These provisions are a tool by which a conniving and corrupt judiciary can override and arrogate to itself the powers of the other branches of the government, thus subverting the constitution and the sovereign will of the people.

The fifth essential requirement is choosing a set of competent and dynamic leaders at the helm of our affairs who have the strength to lift the nation out of the deep hole of despair, destruction and doom and who have the fearlessness and vision to steer the ship of the state towards a prosperous, modern and harmonious harbour.

Many of our citizens may legitimately ask: What about our burning problems and issues like good governance, endemic corruption, ubiquitous poverty, massive illiteracy, education, health, power and energy shortages, lack of necessary infrastructure, religious intolerance, fanaticism, safety of life and property, huge unemployment, stunted economic growth, etc, etc?

This concern is understandable, but that precisely is the purpose and task of elected leadership and government: to aptly, diligently and effectively tackle and resolve people’s problems and country’s issues within the framework of democracy and freedom. Once the foregoing basic, structural requirements are met, the elected government and the nation will be poised and ready to handle and effectively resolve hot national issues and people’s problems.

The nation’s quest for realising its destiny lies in tatters; our march for progress and prosperity has been brought to a grinding halt as a result of the pernicious effects of the factors highlighted above. Are we strong and determined enough to take the bull by the horn and challenge these destructive forces? Or, are we weak and cowering and content to kick the can further down the road?

If we opt to choose the latter course, to leave for the next or future generations to confront and remedy these fundamental defects, then the danger is that with the current existential cliff staring us in the face, there might not be a next generation of Pakistani citizens.

The writer is a corporate attorney and an analyst. He can be contacted at: [email protected]