IT was an act of overindulgence by the government of Ayub Khan, Pakistan’s first military dictator, to spend millions in advertising the so-called Decade of Reforms, which backfired and only hastened his departure from the corridors of power. The ‘decade’ was subsequently nicknamed ‘Decadence of Reforms’. Unfortunately, subsequent governments in Pakistan were found unwilling to learn from history.
People-friendly projects that generate employment, investment in education and health facilities, and contribute to the rule of law speak for themselves. Schemes like Punjab vocational training institutes (VTIs) need to be promoted. No country in the world can develop or flourish unless it invests in education, science and research.
Instead of resorting to populist steps, like, say, distributing laptops, state funds must be invested in human resource development involving millions of youths. This tendency to ‘arrange’ overexposure of politicians has always backfired instead of yielding any sense of positivity, but the trend has survived because those at the helm feel happy doing that.
State-funded overexposure of indiv-iduals is reminiscent of dictatorial and fascist regimes and has no place in a democracy. The ruling elite need to emulate humility instead of falling prey to the temptation of self-projection. Performance speaks for itself. Let it speak.
Malik Tariq Ali
Lahore
Published in Dawn, March 1st, 2025
