Pakistan must rise from ashes like a phoenix

As the country faces a multitude of crises — economic, political, and judicial, it seems no one in the elite class is willing to take responsibility for this sorry state of affairs.

Pakistan was once a region of enormous wealth and power, ruled by an elite few with seemingly limitless resources at their disposal. Unfortunately, the country’s elite has since lost its way, resulting in a growing divide between those at the top and the masses.

Since the mid-1980s, the country’s elite has been complicit in its downward spiral. The country’s top bureaucrats, businessmen, and politicians make up the elite, who are more concerned with furthering their own interests and maintaining the status quo.

They have been slow to recognise the need for reforms, infrastructure investment, and job creation, putting short-term gains ahead of long-term goals and refusing to make the difficult decisions required to put Pakistan on a sustainable path.

Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, China, and India, on the other hand, have implemented reforms to reduce their reliance on the carbon economy and deleverage their geopolitical rent-seeking behaviour. Over the last two decades, these countries have become the potential new EU and Far East in terms of trade numbers, exports, tourism, corporate culture, and human resource development.

Unfortunately, Pakistan’s political elite has not developed institutions and is largely controlled by families. Their second and third tier leadership has not been groomed or empowered, which is why, despite winning millions of votes, they have no street following when their leaders are imprisoned or the establishment intervenes (as complained by them). Furthermore, they lack teams to run the country and solve its numerous problems. This is true of the PMLN, the PPP, and, most recently, the PTI.

For many decades, Pakistan’s elite have lived a privileged life, isolated from the struggles of ordinary citizens. However, their hold on power has been eroding in recent years as a result of the country’s faltering economy and increasingly fractured political landscape. This decline can be attributed to successive governments’ reliance on foreign aid and loans to prop up the economy, resulting in a growing debt burden and a widening wealth gap. This is evidenced by frequent appeals to friendly countries such as Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and China to help Pakistan shore up its reserves.

Simultaneously, the elite have been complicit in the rise of religious extremism by failing to rein in militant groups and providing tacit approval for their activities. This has had a devastating effect on the country, with extremist groups targeting religious minorities and women, undermining the rule of law, and instilling fear and mistrust. Sectarian outfits have been used as tools to advance vested interests.

Political patronage has also benefited the elite, with key players in the bureaucracy and business community frequently receiving preferential access to resources and opportunities. This has exacerbated inequality and facilitated corruption, with cartels operating as businesses and colonial-style officialdom still wielding enormous power and manipulability.

It remains to be seen whether the current caretaker governments in KP and Punjab will be able to break the country’s long-running cycle of misgovernance, inequality, and corruption.

The majority of the population now lacks access to basic necessities due to lack of investment in public services such as education and healthcare. Simultaneously, the political system has become increasingly unstable, with a series of martial law interventions, as well as rampant corruption and nepotism. As a result, people are losing faith in the political system and feeling increasingly disillusioned.

The elite have been unable to respond to popular demands, and their failure to do so has eroded their power even further. The majority of citizens now face an uncertain future, with limited economic opportunities, limited access to services, and an increasing sense of insecurity.

The elite have failed to provide the necessary leadership and direction to move the country forward, leaving the people to bear the brunt of their short-sighted policy decisions.

Technocratic solutions may be innovative, but they fall short in addressing the fundamental issue that plagues our political system: a complete breakdown in communication among political actors. This problem is further exacerbated by the growing divide within critical state institutions. The gap between these factions is simply too vast, and it is clear that extraordinary times call for extraordinary measures.

It is disheartening that our elite failed to learn from the mistakes of other countries such as Sri Lanka, Lebanon, and Greece. Due to their snobbishness, no real solutions were implemented, and the people in these countries only experienced more pain. The Greek political parties failed to survive the financial crisis, as they did not effectively address the root cause of their country’s problems.

To move forward in Pakistan, we must prioritise effective communication and collaboration among all political actors. Only then can we begin to bridge the gap and implement meaningful solutions that will benefit all citizens. It is time for us to take bold and decisive action to address the challenges facing our society. We must learn from the mistakes of others and take proactive measures to ensure that our political system is effective and responsive to the needs of our citizens.

Are they ready to drag Pakistan back from the brink of disaster? Aptly summing up Pakistan’s current crises, Senator Mushhaid Hussian Sayed in his Senate speech recently, said, “We are facing the biggest ever challenge after the tragedy of 1971 [the fall of East Pakistan]”.

The phoenix must rise from its ashes, however bleak the current state of affairs may seem. Despite the challenges that lie ahead, we must remain steadfast in our determination to rebuild and renew our nation. Let us draw inspiration from the mythical bird that symbolises rebirth and transformation, and let us work together to create a brighter future for all Pakistanis.

Jan Achakzai is a geopolitical analyst, a Balochistan politician, and a former media and strategic communications advisor to GOB. He tweets @jan_Achakzai