Development rooted in the past is the key
In any postcolonial state, the structures of governance preceding its freedom start crumbling in due course. Because of the changed scenario, those structures need revisiting which calls for a comprehensive system of reform. The process of reform has to be comprehensive and all-encompassing.
With meaningful changes having been wrought at the state level, the society also imbibes influences, and social evolution is the natural corollary of the interaction between the state and society.
In the postcolonial setting, the state mostly exercises its agency to control and ‘discipline’ the individual inhabiting the social space. Therefore, the society (read collectivity of controlled individuals) is usually a passive assimilator of the influences emanating from the ‘state’. Consequently, the society is reduced to an object, which continuously acquiesces to the authority of the former.
What needs to be underscored here is the inability of the postcolonial society to actively interact with the state apparatus -- largely because the relationship between the two is markedly asymmetrical. While the state claims to reflect the will of the people, its coercive modes and methods of regulating the lives of its ‘citizens’ through top-down policies preclude it to do so. Therefore, the elections are merely an exercise of casting votes yielding little consequence.
The need for a new social contract between the ruler and the ruled has not come to pass in a majority of postcolonial states including Pakistan. A change with lasting impact will come only through reform. While emphasising on the need for reforms, I do not allude to tectonic changes which tend to blow away the existing structures and trends. Drastic measures of any kind cannot be effectively carried out without resorting to violence. And violence is the counterpoint to sanity and culture.
More importantly, a steady process of reform works as a bulwark against the ideological regimentation at socio political level which gives rise to a dispensation that is fundamentally resistant to religious fundamentalism. The flexibility ensured through a gradual but continuous reform opens up society to new ideas which often result in the much-needed integration of people with the wider world. The social interaction with different cultures sets into motion a process of creativity which Pakistanis direly need at the moment. Learning about different cultures is vital for enrichment of the collective self.
What is extremely important at this point is imparting of comparative analysis of different systems of faiths, traditions and ideologies. In Pakistan, the general ignorance about other faiths like Hinduism, Christianity and Judaism presents quite disconcerting scenario. Pakistan has been a fertile ground for entrenchment of meta-narrative(s) and anybody picking up the courage to dispute its veracity ends up into a life-threatening situation.
Thus promotion of plurality in thoughts and practices is the prescription if social camaraderie is the goal. Homogenisation in the name of religion or ethnicity presents menacing prospects for any social formation, and history stands witness to it. Equally crucial is the interaction between the knowledge acquired from abroad and cultural traditions springing from the soil. That epistemic synthesis opens up new cultural avenues for the people without sacrificing their ethos couched in their own history. All this becomes possible if people at the helm have the political will to carry out meaningful reforms.
Attention must be drawn to the detriments of radical changes undertaken by self-styled strongmen (rulers without any accountability) in various countries of the third world. Such radical changes in most cases prove counter-productive and eventually tend to create a hiatus of sorts between the present and the past.
Nations progress and move forward only when their present is anchored in their past. The so-called development projects which may radically transform the historical profile of the city can be equated with violence. No mega project conceived in the name of development is translated into reality without violence with the existing features of the landscape in question. Usually Sher Shah Suri is quoted as the model of development for his construction of a Gernaili Sarak (Grand Trunk Road). But what gets rarely mentioned is other equally significant reforms that he promulgated in his five years tenure, the revenue system and also the system of justice.
These reforms became the basis of further evolution in the state system of the Mughals under Akbar, and subsequently the British too built their respective revenue system on almost a similar pattern. What I want to underline here is the much wider scope of development which our rulers should get a hang of.
The institutions already in place ought to be rectified by making small alterations here and there or doing some tweaks so that their performance is enhanced and optimised. Unfortunately, what has been witnessed is not attending to the institutions already in existence; instead setting up new ones without giving any cognizance to the pathetic state of the former.
Establishment of new universities and colleges without carrying out proper study of feasibility regarding the availability of qualified teaching staff is one such example. As a consequence, mediocrity reigns supreme and the standard of higher education has gone down the drain. One may prescribe that reforming the existing institutions should be the priority and, after making sure that these institutions are out of the woods, new ones can be founded.