Pakistan has so many feathers in its cap. It is the world’s fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 225 million people. It is also the second-largest Muslim population, after Indonesia. Pakistan Army has emerged as a rising global military power as it ranks as the seventh most powerful army in the world, according to the Military Strength Rankings 2023. Pakistan Army has jumped up eight places within three years. Its ranking improved from 15th back in 2020 to 7th in 2023. Tested its first nuclear weapon in 1998, becoming the world’s 7th state to officially test a nuclear weapon. The exact yields of the weapons in the country’s current arsenal are not known, but general estimates are between 5-12 kilotons (kt) for most weapons, with some longer-range ballistic missiles possibly reaching 40 kt. It is believed to have a stockpile of approximately 160 warheads, making it the 6th largest nuclear arsenal. Pakistan is actively developing nuclear weapons, and experts project that it may have the 5th largest arsenal by 2025 with 220-250 warheads.
Despite all Pakistan stands brittle among the world community which makes one wonder what happened and how it happened that Pakistan reached this point. Why is there so treacherous divergence at all levels? What are the reasons which brought Pakistan to such an intersection? Why are we politically so unstable? This is an air of disorder and confusion? Can we call ourselves a self-governing sovereign state? Can we survive with IMF World Bank?
Indeed, the central role played by Quaid-e-Azam in the creation of Pakistan is irrefutable. He believes in and always spoke highly about democracy, observance of good governance, accountability, Rule of law, integrity, political pluralism and diversity and above all tolerance. But what people at the helm of affairs did after his untimely death and then the assassination of Liaquat Ali Khan in 1951?
Except for a short span of time our political history is completely a mess, unending crisis, disorder and anarchy.
It is a fact at the time of independence Pakistan faced an economic crisis, administrative issues and political instability along with litigation problems. However, Pakistan managed all of them quite well with its limited resources.
Quaid’s vision
Quaid-e-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah had always envisioned a democratic Pakistan and many of his successors have struggled towards this goal, but not more than maintaining their own platforms of power. Unfortunately, the prime objective of its leaders is to secure their own power. The actions of both civil and military leaders have exhaustively tried the Pakistani people and their struggle as a nation. Pakistan faces the unenviable task of setting government priorities in accordance with the needs of its diverse and unevenly developed constituent units.
Regardless of the form of government — civilian or military, Islamic or secular, the solutions to the problem of mass illiteracy and economic inequities on the one hand, and the imperatives of national integration and national security will also determine the degree of political stability, or instability, that Pakistan faces in the decades ahead. But the people and the nation persevere offering the world great cultural, religious, and intellectual traditions.
Five big questions
One: After the Shahadat of first Prime Minister Liaquat Ali Khan why Quaid’s Pakistan has failed to transform into a reality under various governments?
Two: How, when and whom was the country hijacked?
Three: How does those came into power who do not have any contribution to the independence struggle?
Four: How did the military bureaucracy nexus and the role of the feudal and political elite jeopardised the political process in the seminal phase?
Five: Why did Quaid’s successors fail to give Pakistan a constitution for nine years after its inception?
The first constitution of Pakistan, which was promulgated in 1956 was abrogated in 1958 and Pakistan’s nation tasted the first-ever Martial Law. Unfortunately, there were eight Prime Ministers in Pakistan from 1947 till 1958.
If we critically analysed Quaid’s vision of Pakistan, we derived the major reasons which contributed to the degeneration of Pakistan since its inception.
Quaid-e-Azam’s life is a role model for all of us when it comes to terms of integrity, the rule of law, devotion to merit, enlightenment, severity and disdain for VIP culture. Unfortunately, so far it has failed to have any mark on us as a nation and also people at the helm of affairs. Corruption, nepotism, bad governance, lack of accountability, absence of rule of law, lust for power, political opportunism and adherence to VIP culture emerged as a dominant norm, particularly in the Western wing of Pakistan.
As years passed, Quaid’s vision of a welfare state dwindled because Pakistan focused on state-building instead of nation-building. Pakistan emerged as a security state where the priority was not on social and human development but on projecting external threat perception, primarily those emanating from India. As a result, 20 million children in Pakistan are out of school and the country ranks 144th on the human security index, 154th on the human development index and 140th (among 180 countries) on Transparency International’s Corruption Perception Index 2022. Abandoning proper work ethics, the post-Quaid leadership failed to focus on time management, discipline and efficiency, giving rise to a culture of incompetence and laziness.
The growth of mafias in the state and societal structures of Pakistan patronized corruption and nepotism and carried out genocide of merit. The stark contrast in cultural and social settings of East and West Pakistan gave rise to authoritarian forces having their hold in the West to usurp power. Jinnah advocated political pluralism, enlightenment, democracy and the rule of law, those in the Western part were neither amendable to the culture of dissent nor wanted to adhere to simplicity and austerity in order to rely on the country’s resources rather than being dependent on borrowed money. It means Jinnah’s assurance for religious tolerance and equality for minorities was not subscribed by his successors.
The degeneration of Quaid-e-Azam’s Pakistan has much to do with the failure of political parties to establish a democratic culture in their own ranks, thus giving rise to bureaucracy-military nexus and plunging the country into a dictatorship. Degeneration of education, health, and public transport and the inability to provide clean drinking water and affordable housing reflect the failure of democratic forces to mitigate people’s sufferings. When non-political organs of state intervene in politics and get involved in making and breaking political parties, the outcome is the fragility of democracy.
The Quaid-e-Azam during his address at the Command and Staff College Quetta in early 1948 had made it clear that armed forces must adhere to their oath and remain subservient to civilian rule. But, after the assassination of Liaquat Ali Khan, the military-bureaucracy nexus took advantage of the irresponsible behaviour of political parties and imposed martial law. The military ruled the country for around 30 years out of 75 and retained its control by pulling strings from behind in the rest of the years.
Capabilities and improvement
The problems afflicting Pakistan are very complex. But there is light at end of the tunnel.
Pakistan certainly has ample human and natural resources which are either under-utilised or not utilized at all. However, an inspired leadership could revolutionise Pakistan’s outlook if it were to maximise the potential of its environment. Pakistan has enormous natural which are waiting to be harnessed by leaders of vision, capable of instilling a sense of nationhood and pride with the foresight to maintain cordial relations with neighboring countries of differing ideologies by applying astute diplomacy of the highest order.
Likewise, the extent of Pakistan’s failure to modernise her industries can be illustrated by looking at the fate of those countries which became independent at the same time or later than Pakistan then one must wonder why they failed to do so. Entrepreneurial activity should be encouraged by tackling red tape and bribery. Work must begin to eradicate tax avoidance and evasion so that increased revenue is available to the government for developmental work. Long-awaited land reform should begin as soon as possible so that agricultural income is channeled for the benefit of the tillers and thus improving rural poverty. Many other aspects such as corruption, religious fundamentalism, and the restoration of confidence also need to be looked into. These cannot be effectively done unless the fundamental problems are solved.
We are also required to re-visit our policies including foreign policy and other changes are:
- Mending relations with neighbours including India
- Reviewing relationships with the West on the basis of Pakistan’s past experience and avoiding the proxy wars
- Strict exemplary punishments for corruption
- Allow democracy to flourish
Finally, the mindset of those who succeeded Jinnah and Liaquat because of their myopic vision of politics, economy and foreign policy also plunged Pakistan in a vicious political and economic crisis. Only by reverting to the vision and principles of Quaid-e-Azam can Pakistan be saved from further degeneration. In a nutshell, the Quaid would never have liked to live to see the pathetic state of his country at the hands of dishonest, corrupt, inefficient and mediocre leaders.
The author, Nazir Ahmed Shaikh, is a freelance writer, columnist, blogger and motivational speaker. He writes articles on diversified topics. Mr. Shaikh can be contacted at nazir_shaikh86@hotmail.com.