khurshidalam44@hotmail.com Dated:28 Feb. 2012
The slide of Pakistan to non-viability as a state and failure to have a delivering civil government has multiple causes. But few important ones, are like the absence of a political process and accountability. If the process would have been started since its genesis it would have resulted into established institutions. And the idea of collective leadership and democratic process would have automatically followed.
It was not in the interest of the rulers, so a particular mind set started ruling the country. They had a phobia towards democratic process. The country was run by dictators irrespective of khaki and Jinnah cap. The mentality was the same.
When the khaki wanted to give a chance to Jinnah cap they did so but the nucleus of power never changed hands. The chairs were given without authority.
The absence of the political process gave birth to opportunists and military created leaders. Majority of them have not been through a process. They erupted like mushrooms in military shavers and inherited the same mentality.
Neither they had a vision nor they had roots in the public. They considered themselves like military masters above accountability.
They were brought to power by masses but were never worked for the masses and of the masses. The system and the country had a huge vacuum that sucked in corrupt aristocracy. The army managed to further corrupt the roots in the name of democracy. The corruption became the norm and honesty was an exception.
F.M. Ayub, Zia and Musharaf played the pivotal role. The first one in the name of basic democracy and the last one in the name of the local government. Gen Zia committed the most heinous crime by radicalisation of the army and the masses. He introduced bribing the legislators. In fact they were hatched legislators, made in military shavers too.
This unhealthy practice on one hand disfranchised the 99 percent population and on the other hand made the legislators to forget about legislation and try to secure their own position and distribute the awarded money as a bribe to their own voters. The basic flaw was implanted in the roots. The legislators were given an extra role in local government to invest for the future elections and awarded a huge sum from public money.
The poor were disfranchised. They could not buy even the voters list. And the masses were corrupted and money became the all powerful.
On papers there was a limit to be spent on electioneering but a deaf ear was turned to the role of money. The moneyed persons had a free hand. It was the only trade with no danger of losses. Invest today in millions and get tomorrow in billions was guaranteed. Bribes and the use of the influence of the chair created a different class better called electoral tribe.
Party programs were made irrelevant. Those who struggled for basic human rights were flung out of the window. The moneyed elected persons after election made parties as Sheikh Rashid put it.
In my opinion unless these malpractices in the electoral system are rectified and in built mechanism of accountability is made an integral part of the system, it is beyond imagination that a common man will ever dream to reach to the corridors of power and be the owner of his own destiny. The present members are far away from the masses sufferings.
The political parties also said good bye to the democratic values to the intra party system. The result was the introduction of nepotism in the parties. They are as non democratic in their nature as the government.
Fear was created in the parties to silence the voice of dissension. It was tailored the sacred duty of the party workers to have unwavering loyalty to the party leadership and not to bother about the manifesto or core values. It resulted in dynastic politics. It was unsubtle attitude to nip free thinking in the parties.
Fear is the biggest killer of the logical thinking. These two factors can never live in one system. It gives holiness to the leaders and a status of dogma to their thinking.
The denial of free thinking is a slavery in its worst form. The slaves could not be expected to make a rationale decision. Like landlordism and industrial mindset, the intellectualism become a tool of exploitation. Dwarf starts growing and intelligence starts shrinking. The suppression of free thinking and the the unlimited role of money are the growing threats to the humanity and it's values. Unless checked in time it may lead to the collapse of the basic fabric of human society.
This is a painful fact that our society is standing on one leg. We are allowed to comment on an honest but we have no right to point our finger towards a dishonest. The denial of this very right has made accountability irrelevant. The corrupt and dishonest are scot free. They have no fear, because the system is providing them protection. They are unashamed of their blatant dishonesty and feel proud of it.
It is because the claw of power is corrupt. Corrupt cannot check corruption. I have seen people going to the parliament on bike or bare footed and coming back in bullet proof cars. Some were disowned by their parents but owned by the system and made fortunes. Corruption is the cancer of the body of humanity. It is every where but in Pakistan it is considered a norm.
Fear and money decay mental development and intellectual thinking. It makes a human myopic and mentally criminal. These two tools has turned human being in to a commodity. It is there for sale. The same factors have devalued the values of the humanity and has created a characterless class. It is like autoimmune disease killing its own body, that is the humanism.
We are Hippocrates of a superlative degree. We claimed to be the followers of Islam but having no Islam in our genes. In western democracy the parliament is sovereign and the members are answerable to the public. In Islamic democracy we have double accountability. The sovereignty lies with God. The parliamentarians are viceroys of God. They are responsible to God and the masses. But looking at the Muslim world we are the most corrupt and dishonest. We are scared of the powerful but have least bothered of God and the public. We are by nature autocratic and despots. If some of us have not been, they were probably denied an opportunity. We have disown the golden principle to be afraid of God and those who are not afraid of God. We are the most cruel to our masses and the biggest coward to our enemies.
The selection of the candidates is based on nepotism and bribery. The masses have no power to dismiss their representative for corruption or any other misdeeds. The power lies with the party leaders.
I would agree with Maulana Tahirul Qadri that if we want to introduce a sound political and democratic system we have to change the basic flaws in the election system. And give the masses a feeling that they are not born to be voters only to elect others but they have the right to be voted and elected too.
This needs change in the process of thinking. It needs mass education as Bacha Khan did in the beginning of last century. We have the means and the tools, and he had nothing except will, determination and the faith in his own honesty and integrity.
The free thinking should not be assassinated in the name of discipline. Discipline means the knowledge of forums allotted for different topics. No one would accept that one should wash the dirty lenin in the public. But intra organisational healthy discussion must be encouraged. The tolerance and patience are the key to the healthy organisation. Masses should have the feeling of ownership.
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