THERE is a saying attributed to Maximillian Robespierre: “The secret of freedom lies in educating people, whereas the secret of tyranny is in keeping them ignorant.”
When America achieved independence, her founding fathers feared the misuse of governing power by those in power. Hence they devised a system to distribute power among the three arms of government — legislature, executive and judiciary — to maintain checks and balances on each other.
In this milieu, it is education that gives a person the insight to understand his basic rights and to realise the fact that the government is not meant to rule but to serve the people who elect them. Pakistan’s misfortune is that no government has given education and healthcare the importance they deserve. The tyranny and the persecution that Pakistani society has to face at the hands of its rulers is because of national illiteracy.
We need to implement what is called “restore factory settings” for smartphones in electronic engineering parlance. This is a situation where the misuse and resulting damage to a smartphone is wiped out by resorting to “restore factory settings” option.
A sound education will mean a well-informed electorate that votes for an educated, sincere leadership that follows the constitution striving for a strong federation while ensuring individual rights and liberties.
Shahid Khan
Islamabad
Published in Dawn, July 16th, 2017
