Let’s not blow this chance

The world is at the dusk of the era of neocolonialism, while we in Pakistan are busy with rallies by ex-PM Nawaz Sharif and opposition leader Imran Khan. Although the country is in a position to make the best use of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor not by virtue of hard work or strategic thinking of our current leaders, but by being at the right place at the right time geopolitically and geo-strategically, we are completely missing the storm heading our way as neocolonialism, which did not came into being without WWII.

A new colonial era does not start without having around 220 wars and battles within European countries just like the Second World War, which brought all of the European monarchies, including Britain and France, close to financial bankruptcy. And to pay their banks who had become more or less financial masters of Europe by the end of 17^th century, the colonial era began. It is quite evident that a new era doesn’t begin without any bloodshed.

So, it is very likely that we will enter the new era of neocolonialism in a similar manner. However, we will see the next 15 to 20 years of prosperity as well, not only for Pakistan but for most of the emerging economies like Brazil and India by 2030. This will be in the equilibrium phase of transition from neocolonialism to CPEC. And Pakistan can and will be able to make it, unless it gives a free hand to some country, political party or terrorist group to disrupt its success.

Unfortunately, some of it is already under way after Nawaz Sharif’s dismissal, in the form of his brash defiance of law and terrorist bombings that have been occurring once again. Nonetheless, these 15 to 20 years are conditional upon how fast the world would try to move away from the dollar. If Sino-Russia bloc tries to push it faster then things might start to tumble faster but there seems to be no instrument at their disposal to do that. In the meantime, world banking vampires need new bodies to suck blood on and that is why there will be 20 more successful emerging economies by 2030.

I have learnt one thing in life that there is no plan A or B there are only different ways to reach an objective, but there are always three phases to reach your goals: short term, mid term and long term. In my lifetime of living and working in seven countries, I have never seen success of a person, company or people without these three in place. And for Pakistan, the short-term plan is prosperity by 2030. To reach there we should make sure we negotiate all deals in favour of the country; no LNG scandal, no Mayfair flats, no Surrey Palace, no ransom and extortion in Karachi or across Pakistan. In simple words, the rule of law should prevail amid zero tolerance for corruption. We know it won’t be simple but if every Pakistani tries, we can achieve it. You don’t have to be an MNA, MPA, bureaucrat or an army officer to be on the right side. You just have to be honest.

Once, before a client’s meeting, my boss advised me not to ‘blow this chance’ since it was all we had. Similarly, this short-term plan of success and prosperity in the form of CPEC for the people of Pakistan, leading to the right population growth, large cultivatable land, right workforce availability, etc, is very close. And we shouldn’t ‘blow this chance’.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 21^st, 2017.

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