The making-breaking conundrum

Politics is all about statecraft. It deals with such complex questions as: what an effective state has to be, how can it be designed to establish its legitimacy in the eyes of its citizens and the global community, what functions should it perform, why and how, and so on. In Pakistan, for good or bad reasons, the project of statecraft has always been and continues to be in a state of perpetual flux with complete confusion about its purpose, scope and focus. The noble ideal of politics — statecraft — is now viewed as a theoretical construct with no place in the real world. Machiavellianism is what defines the behaviour of politicians across ideological spectrum.

Regardless of one’s stated/prescribed job description or social role, politics has become an object of mockery and a pastime. It is now in a state of complete mess and disarray which has, in turn, spoiled everything else — economy and society in particular. It is the hyper-cum-nasty politics everywhere that has led to polarisation, trivialisation and, what happened on May 9, even to devastation of the symbols of state and the fabric of society. One visible sign of this ugly trend is the reluctance of politicians and other stakeholders to sit together and talk about the daunting challenges that the country has to grapple with.

The latest (not the last) of making-breaking conundrum is the PTI project that was cobbled together by weaning away the so-called electables from PML-N, PPP and some regional ethno-nationalist political parties. Now it is being dismantled before our eyes using the old carrot and stick approach. The PTI, led by its charismatic leader Imran Khan, was portrayed as a party embodying the vision of the Quaid and philosophy of Iqbal until last year when it fell from grace as a result of historic civil-military rivalry. The country is now back to square one and stuck deep in the quagmire with PTI under the spotlight! No lessons, no regrets and no course-correction!

Every political party in Pakistan is faced with a recurring situation that the following parable illustrates. Two mice were fighting for a piece of food. While they were up and down against each other, a cat appeared and instantly caught one and then the other and swallowed them both in haste after cutting them into pieces. Going back to his din with pride in his agility, the cat whispered, “you bloody mice! Why were you fighting over such a small slice of bread? This fight would never have ended if it had not been for me to intervene. Be careful in future you fools!” The fools, thus, perished along with their future and the saviour patting himself on the back for maintaining peace and order in his vicinity.

Now, when the country is teetering on the verge of default with two-thirds of its population in terrible situation thanks to stagflation, political instability is drifting into chaos. International Financial Institutions have lost confidence in our ability to pay back our debts and FDI has almost dried up as the consequence of high risk in doing business in Pakistan. Capital flight from the country, unprecedented brain drain, institutional confrontation, resurgence of terrorism and closing down of businesses are the vital signs of a brain haemorrhage that everyone feared a year ago in the wake of political turmoil. Instead of building consensus on a roadmap for economic recovery and governance reforms, the focus unfortunately has been on political engineering and victimisation with no semblance of the rule of law.

Despite all heinous plots and sponsored narratives, people have not yet lost fascination with democracy because it ensures rule of law, accountability and participation that create conditions for real socio-economic development besides promoting social harmony and national integration. But the way democracy is put into practice is a stigma on any form of governance! The making and breaking of governments and political parties has brought the country under the grinding stone. Decapitation of a political party may provide some psychological solace to its rivals but this sows the seeds of hatred in society. No state can move forward with its citizens disenfranchised and alienated!

Published in The Express Tribune, June 5^th, 2023.

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