LOOKING through the historical prism, Pakistan seems to have lost more than what it has gained over the years. The country was born and established as a sovereign independent state along religious and socio-cultural lines. Indian Muslims were not safe in the subcontinent, primarily because the Hindu majority could have harmed the interests of the Muslim minority.

But have we achieved the goals for which we opted for a separate homeland? It is a bitter reality that we are regressing instead of improving ourselves in the face of the rising demands of modern times.

We find ourselves at embarrassingly low on the Human Development Index; at 154th place out of 189 countries. People at the helm of national affairs at any given point in time tend to ignore the people and their miseries. The masses remain deprived of basic needs, like food, healthcare, shelter, etc.

Sindh has been ravaged by heavy monsoons. People’s misery could be seen in videos on social media. Had the Quaid-i-Azam been alive today, he would have been aghast at the prevailing apathy of the authorities towards the misery of the people.

According to recent reports, hundreds of people have lost their lives in Sindh during the monsoon rains, with devastation in Balochistan being even worse. The two provinces are inundated with floodwater.

Administrative deficiencies have compounded the problem, leaving the people to suffer even more. We have the Chinese bureaucratic system as an example before us. Since ancient times, China has had a centralised bureaucracy that serves as an example for other countries. If a crisis hits the country, its administration immediately comes into action and responds to it efficiently.

It is because of China’s bureaucracy that Japan, South Korea and the likes have benefitted immensely by adopting the same model. In the 20th century, Deng Xiaoping brought some important reforms in the bureaucratic setup. The first revolutionary step that he introduced was the removal of 80 per cent civil servants who were not contributing enough. They were replaced by young civil servants. That is also the main reason policy initiatives take no time to take effect in China.

There are other countries that are perfect examples of progress and development, such as Japan, Singapore, Germany, Turkiye, Malaysia, South Korea, etc. On the other hand, we suffer from political polarisation, economic uncertainty, social and educational chaos and the ever-worsening administrative flaws.

If we are to tackle all our problems, including the current rains, we need to carefully examine where we fell and what can be done now to restructure the entire system by following in the footsteps of countries that have risen to newer heights only because of political will and a capable and visionary leadership.

Abdul Qadeer Seelro
Larkana

Published in Dawn, September 9th, 2022