IT seems that the government has badly fallen into the vortex of container politics and is losing its grip over the affairs of the state.

In fact, the facilitative role of the COAS on the request of the government, followed by the prime minister’s confusing remarks on the floor of the house, has raised a question about civil-military relations.

Rationally speaking, army takeovers or coups by virtue of necessity, in unstable situations, are the darkest chapter of the past, but the present role of ‘facilitative coup’ is highly commendable as compared to the previous hard experiences.

Unfortunately, the volatile political culture, produced and fostered politically, patronised the bureaucratic style of governance during the 1970s, 1990s and 2013 onwards.

That culture neither produced satisfactory administrative policies through constructive legislations, nor was determined to revise the outdated electoral reforms, policies for national development.

However, these suggestions and demands are included in the demands made by Allama Dr Tahirul Qadri for administrative changes and devolution of power, as well as in Imran khan’s electoral reforms agenda.

Therefore, the new ideological shift shows that there is no room for undemocratic conspiracies, politically patronised style of bureaucracy and inefficient politicians who are unable to play a sustainable role in national development, otherwise the container politics’ tradition would make the nation suffer more than ever.

Riaz Pathan

Thull, Jacobabad

Published in Dawn, August 31, 2014