Political defiance, violence and indiscriminate use of force by the state go on to establish that rule of law is missing somewhere. This is further compounded by the belligerent rhetoric of politicians who go to any extent to not only exhibit their sense of otherness with their rivals, but also contempt for the state, its institutions and functionaries. This has literally torpedoed the evolution of a pluralistic society, where rule of law and constitution should be the canons of good governance, and not resort to intimidation and marginalisation. A glance at our recent history from the street nuisance exhibited by the Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan to the two-day long skirmishes with police in Lahore by the PTI workforce, as well as the language of coercion used by PML-N’s Maryam Nawaz, or the standoff of private militias by JUI-F, simply exhibits that none care for rule of law and are out to challenge the writ of the state by virtue of their political shenanigans and street vandalism.
This is unbecoming of Pakistan, and has let the nation down. So is the case with the tendency of resorting to militarism in the former tribal and settled areas of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, and a sense of parochialism prevalent in Sindh and Balochistan. This manifests that we have not been able to completely erect a sense of nationhood, and have relied on jingoism and ad-hocism to further our vested interests. Recourse to street vandalism, damaging public property, playing up the blasphemy card and threatening judges and generals from the podium has unfortunately become our national discourse, which is jaundiced to core and is a morass.
A nation is educated by its public representatives, and their acts are reflective in the national mirror. It’s time for our politicians to not only learn to behave but also educate themselves with the art of cohabiting with diversity when it comes to dissent. So must be the case with other pillars of the state that must confine themselves to the constitutionally-ordained role, and not go over the brink. Not only exterminating terrorism and extremism is a must, so is the case with those who wield private militias and have the audacity to challenge the writ of the state either physically or through verbatim. The Khetrans who have private jails in Balochistan to the Jam Jokhios of Sindh who get away with homicide are nuisance for the society, and so are their patrons. What is instantly needed is a touch of healing to the aggrieved and bruised masses who long for the patronage of the state, and have been wronged. That can only come when the blue-eyed and all those who had fleeced on the wealth of the state are put down and taken to task. Look inside and restore the writ of statehood, before it is too late.
Published in The Express Tribune, March 17th, 2023.
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