Obedience to law is demanded and not an option, otherwise chaos and jungle law will prevail
LAHORE: Anarchy and a brute violation of laws and basic human values was recently visible on streets of Lahore. Heart patients in critical condition were subjected to physical torment and agony, with their life-saving support attachments forcibly removed by protesting lawyers to quench their ego in their quarrel with doctors and paramedical staff.
Obedience to law is demanded and not an option, otherwise chaos and jungle law will prevail; power politics devoid of ethics follows. What is tragic is that in the opinion of the ruling elite and bureaucracy there is no realisation that a red line was crossed when this attack on the PIC occurred. The state failed to exercise its right to protect citizens. When power flows from the barrel of a gun then unruly and egoistic groups resort to force as show of power. The hooliganism at a cardiac hospital by a so-called educated lot shows that their false education is meaningless. Heart patients need a very clam atmosphere. These black coats did not understand even this basic thing.
We have failed to understand that the Quaid-e-Azam’s political struggle to carve a nation-state was for “We the people”, our welfare, basic human rights and dignity. The Quaid had very clearly elaborated upon the role of paid civil and uniformed public which is solely confined to serve the people as servants of the state. Unfortunately a bureaucrat, Iskandar Mirza, who continued his liaison with the British Indian Army until 1950, after being promoted as Major General started reversing Jinnah’s legacy and vision. It was no coincidence that General T W Resse who, as commander of the British Indian Army in WW2, had removed Ayub Khan from active duty to be replaced by Lt Col Steve Parson.
As citizens of Pakistan we need to learn our roots and revive the vision of the Quaid that has been lost along the years.
Malik T Ali
Published in The Express Tribune, December 13th, 2019.
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