The power of the individual

Very few of us would have ever anticipated the kind of unity that our national leadership showed following the tragic incident in Peshawar on December 16 – the day that coincided with the fall of Dhaka back in 1971.
The writing is now on the wall for all to see that neither a single institution with formidable strength nor a single political party with huge numerical strength in parliament can single-handedly steer Pakistan from the quagmire it is stuck in today. Today, more than ever, the role of every citizen has become crucial in shaping the destiny of Pakistan.
Let me relate a real story pertinent to the prevailing situation in Pakistan. I was travelling by a bus through a narrow and muddy road when it suddenly got stuck in a marsh land. The driver tried to steer it out with its engine power by pressing the accelerator but to no avail. He asked the conductor to place stones and planks under the tyres to provide a hard base for smooth movement but that did not work either. Finally, he requested the passengers to get down and push the bus through but no one was ready to leave his/her seat.
I noticed that everyone was expecting someone else to get the job done. This prompted me to warn them of the dire consequences of inaction in the form of hunger, thirst, and waiting for hours. Realising the gravity of the situation, they stepped down and started pushing the bus until it was out of the quagmire.
We Pakistanis generally live in the same state of mind as the bus passengers – waiting for some miracle to salvage us from our troubles or beg the US or China or the IMF for a temporary bailout before another crisis sits in. We underestimate or altogether ignore the role we can play as individuals.
Take the example of electricity consumption. In offices it has been seen that air conditioners run unstopped for hours even when the officer is roaming outside. At homes, the situation is not much different; there is excessive use of electricity without paying for it and everyone knows how people get away with such crimes thanks to pervasive institutionalised corruption.
‘One swallow does not make a summer’ is hardwired in our collective psyche – individual contribution or corruption does not matter. No one can dispute the fact that individuals, with their determination and strength of character, have changed the course of history.
The point where I dare to differ with Imran Khan, notwithstanding my admiration for his achievements, is his quick-fix approach to solving deep-rooted and complex social problems. He tends to hold the government responsible for every evil in society. Structures are no doubt important in setting the course of action for the future but the role of human agency cannot be eliminated from the equation.
To me ideological revolution precedes social revolution which transforms into a different political system. After all, individuals are running institutions and you cannot import people from outside (though we tried this approach too) to build systems from scratch in line with contemporary demands.
The question, however, is not to underrate government reforms but to emphasise the need to mobilise civil society including scholars, writers, artists, TV anchors, poets, and most importantly parents to guide individuals in the right direction. Modern science undoubtedly had a prominent role in ending the Dark Ages in the west but more credit goes to civil society to bring in the era of enlightenment.
A strong state with a weak society is catastrophic. In the former USSR, the revolutionaries had planned to create a stateless society but they ended up with a society-less state and the natural outcome was implosion and disintegration into pieces.
Pakistan has failed to live up to its ideals because no consensus has ever been evolved on what constituted its essence in the first place. Each new day reminds us of the wrong course we have followed but we tend to believe otherwise. Our attitudes need surgery more than our government structures so that we can make real and lasting progress.
The writer teaches at FAST-NU, Peshawar.
Email: zeb.khan@nu.edu.pk