Stuck in the past

Published November 24, 2015
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif at the inauguration of the Khanewal-Multan section of the motorway.—DawnNews screengrab
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif at the inauguration of the Khanewal-Multan section of the motorway.—DawnNews screengrab

IT was the most mundane of settings: the inauguration of a small stretch of motorway connecting Khanewal and Multan. But, perhaps in a sign of how recent civil-military tensions have frustrated and irked the civilian government, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif chose that otherwise innocuous moment on Saturday to rake up the past.

According to the prime minister, the coup that toppled the last PML-N government in 1999 had thrown off course economic progress and infrastructure building in the country, and the PML-N was now having to put right the many policy blunders and oversights made in the years since it was last in power.

Also read :PM inaugurates Khanewal-Multan section of motorway

Clearly, there is some truth in what the prime minister claimed — the Musharraf dictatorship was unconstitutional; democracy suffered; and some of the roots of the energy crisis lie in the decisions made in the early years of this century. But what is the point of dredging up that history just at this moment?

More importantly, notwithstanding the PML-N’s zeal for infrastructure and energy projects, is the PML-N really putting the country on the path to sustainable and inclusive growth?

Too often it appears that this government, and the prime minister in particular, are still stuck in the past.

In a week in which the Musharraf treason case is likely to be back in the spotlight, does Mr Sharif have his mind firmly on the challenges of today or is he still trying to settle scores from the past?

The trial of Pervez Musharraf is necessary for a host of historical, constitutional and democratic reasons — but the government has not gone about it the right way or for the right reasons.

Moreover, if there is a lesson to be drawn from the past, it is that democratic institutions need strengthening, both to thwart a military takeover and to ensure that the state is focused on sustainable and inclusive growth.

When it comes to reforms and strengthening institutions, however, this government’s record is anaemic at best. Whenever there is a push for change — be it legislative activity or administrative restructuring — it appears to occur at the behest of other institutions.

Consider how in the days since the military publicly reprimanded the government for the quality of its governance, there seems to have been a spurt of activity on legal reforms.

Perhaps what Mr Sharif should realise is that like the Lahore-Islamabad motorway could not save democracy in 1999, infrastructure projects alone are not the right foundation for a strong democracy.

Published in Dawn, November 24th, 2015

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