KARACHI: After the darkest and the deadliest day in Peshawar, today, I am sick and depressed once again, like many millions in Pakistan. What is more disturbing is that I will, like all the rest of us, soon be fine and will get on with life and perhaps, barely remember this tragedy as time goes by. I think our sickness is unique, which seems to have ‘numbed’ our senses and the feeling of helplessness is so overwhelming that we have no choice but to continue to live with the layers of scars, shame and horror.
We have continued to live our fear-laden lives for decades, riddled with chains of bomb blasts, terrorist attacks and killings and massacres ever since the rulers of the day and the establishment decided to help Americans get rid of the Soviets from our neighbourhood in exchange for some dollars. This was the beginning of the misfortune for Pakistan as before that, life was quite peaceful in the region. Blasts and killings were happening elsewhere but not in Pakistan. It is not clear if surrendering our sovereignty was for receiving aid or we just became a victim of the ‘great game’. We had a choice — as our neighbour Iran chose not to become a part of the game.
Today, it seems that we have failed as a country, we have failed as a nation but I think most of all, over the last six decades, our leadership has failed the nation. We never had a leadership who would rise above self and steer the nation to safety and prosperity.
God help us all. The name of our country has been tarnished beyond repair, all institutions and systems barely function and we seem to be on the edge of a precipice. The need of the hour is a drastic change in political leadership and a sincere one along with an overhaul of systems. How many choices do we have? If that does not happen we will see the logical end of the great game which looks more dreadful than death itself. Meanwhile, let us pray that God has mercy on all of us.
Danish Azar Zuby
Published in The Express Tribune, December 19th, 2014.
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