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THIS article was originally planned for Independence Day, and hence the underlying patriotic theme, but thanks to tardiness here we are weeks later: except that, one is always proud to be a Pakistani. Perhaps, verging on fantasy, or maybe being completely delusional, my Independence Day prayer was for common Pakistanis to get united again; which frankly may only be possible if one fine morning the entire ruling elite simply vanish into thin air, and take all the media with them.
I have not ever before witnessed the extreme political polarisation existing in the country today; ironically, fostered not on ideologies but on agendas of various political demagogues. One is aware that the following statement will evoke extreme adverse reactions from the intelligentsia; nonetheless, I for one conclude that a unified Pakistan is well nigh impossible under democracy.
Why? Because democracy is a zero-sum game, one party wins and everybody else loses, and unfortunately all factions of our ruling elite simply do not have the maturity or character to digest losing. Superimpose this on a majority that is vastly illiterate, and you have a nation going after each other’s throats over trivial pursuits, while our enemies rejoice.
As far as one can see, if the enemies of our state wanted to sow discord amongst our ranks, we have offered them this prize on a platter; they have to do absolutely nothing.
If our enemies want to sow discord, we have offered them this prize.
Before writing this article, which as explained earlier was planned differently, I was surfing through the umpteen news channels, while simultaneously perusing Twitter, and ended up being depressed to the core.
This was during last month’s rally to Lahore; while media supporters of one side were busy trying to establish that the rally was many kilometres long, which therefore proved that the moon was made of blue cheese, the other side was equally loudly arguing that the few thousand persons scattered here and there proved that it was Cheddar.
One is human after all. The content on one’s smartphone is sufficiently irritating and infuriating to provoke an exchange of expletives with the nutcases that abound on social media. And I am someone who belongs to the educated class and believes that irrespective of ideological preferences, I will always stand for what is right, and is in the best interest of my beloved Pakistan, irrespective of party loyalties.
If all these convoluted narratives can have this effect, one shudders to imagine the amount of political hatred infused in those who were not even provided primary education, simply because everything else was more important for those walking in the corridors of power. The intention is to write a series of articles on how our leadership has threatened our future by largely, if not completely, ignoring education; but for now back to the causes of all this hatred.
I don’t subscribe to the narrative proclaiming an all-powerful, seemingly immortal, establishment working in the shadows to derail democracy for some unfathomable objective. I agree with Owens that money is the only establishment.
In any case, no one except our political leadership can be blamed for this hyper-charged political environment; which brings us to the numero uno mystery: is the noble objective of serving the people of Pakistan really the driving force behind all-out confrontational politics? Can good intentions generate so much ill?
In the 70 years since our independence we have achieved a lot. We have produced the best of the best in a diverse array of fields ranging from science to sports. Considering our geography, few friends and many enemies, and considering that we stand almost alone today, we have not only survived very well, we have grown. During all this time our strength has always been that we have been Pakistanis only; and proud to be Pakistanis.
But times have changed; once the guardians of the Islamic world, we seem to be struggling to maintain cordial relationships even with our staunch Muslim allies. Enemies at all gates, this is the worst time to continue to find excuses for domestic conflicts. It is evident that it is time for the senior journalists and opinion makers to break with party ties and unite to debate and agree, and thereafter unanimously stand behind righteousness. Seventy years after independence, let’s remember our strength, we are one.
My original plan for this article was to discuss Ricardo’s two-nation theory. I am not sure how I ended up shifting gears and focusing again on political polarisation in Pakistan; perhaps fate. If you repeat the truth again and again, it may even become ubiquitous. We are one.
The writer is a chartered accountant based in Islamabad.
Published in Dawn, September 1st, 2017
