IT appears that we, as a nation, are trying to find a black cat in a dark room at night, or trying to find a needle in a haystack. It is beyond comprehension as to why some among us, especially politicians, are on a suicidal path and on a mission that can only lead to self-destruction and where no one even has a chance of being a beneficiary. Enough is enough. One must say. Before it gets too late, let us give sanity a chance to prevail … somehow.

The brighter aspect is that 99.9 per cent people of the country are loyal citizens of the motherland. But this massive majority seems to have been taken hostage by the 00.01pc minority that is misleading the nation to satisfy some personal egos.

Let us see who is the beneficiary of the current chaos and instability; none, but our arch-enemy India which gets covert backing by the anti-Islamic forums worldwide because they know that Pakistan is a potent nuclear power that stands stoutly in the way of their nefarious designs and intrigues. They are also well aware that they cannot defeat Pakistan in the battlefield; therefore, they have resorted to hybrid warfare to weaken the country from within.

Those from among us who are playing this dirty game must realise that if, God forbid, any harm comes to Pakistan, natural justice and history will not forgive them. Never. All those individuals who are trying, from within or outside, to weaken and harm Pakistan will, God willing, meet their Waterloo soon, and ignominy is their destiny. They would do well to recall that all those who ever tried to harm Pakistan ultimately perished in a manner which should be an eye-opener.

The painful history of internal strife and intrigue to satisfy personal egos and petty gains resulted in the fall of Spain, the Ottoman Empire, the Mughal Empire, Iraq and Libya, and now there is chaos in Syria and Lebanon. Who benefitted in all these historical episodes and many more? Only the respective enemies did in each case. What is the point of embarking upon such a course where everyone is bound to be a looser?

Pakistan came into being owing to the sacrifices of millions of men, women and children, and has survived many an episode. All those who are trying to harm Pakistan to satisfy their egos and owing to personal vendetta will become a symbol of ignominy. Sooner they realise this, the better it will be for them.

The current leadership, instead of wasting time and energy on playing the blame game, which is only adding to the level of hatred and the intensity of divisions among the people, must roll out their action plan related to comprehensive and large-scale national reforms.

The ultimate objective of every political party should be to make Pakistan an Islamic welfare state where every political party may have the liberty to adopt a different path to reach the ultimate objective. The basis of the action plan, needless to say, has to be in consonance with the Objectives Resolution that was adopted in March 1949 and is part of the Constitution.

Lt-Col (retd) Syed Iftikhar Ahmed
Karachi

Published in Dawn, November 3rd, 2022