Kick backs is a magical food
By Mir Murtaza Bhutto
For the first time since our Republic was dismantled in 1971 Pakistan once again, faces the unenviable prospects raptures. Multiple returns both horizontal and vertical. We as a nation have an appointment with catastrophe the dimensions of which we dare not even try to comprehend.
It has become politically fashionable to speak of the “Sindh situation” or of the “Karachi problem” without juxta-positioning them with the overall malice that is eroding whatever is left of our nation’s solidarity. Were stufe confined to these unfortunate and neglected realms of our state the infamous “soft uncles belly”, it would be sufficient to make a lasting mockery of the Prime Minister’s remark that there are only pockets of disturbances in Sindh.
It is without doubt that the festering wounds are most severely septic in sindh, but there also rages a vicious Tribal War in Baluchistan. The formidable Bugtis are pitted against the Raisani and the Raisani against Rind. Domkis too are, evilly nilly being gradually drawn into this conflict. A long simmering, sometimes explosively violent, tribal feud also persist within the Magsi Tribe. (The Bugtis too have their own internal conflicts). Tribal mayhem has erupted more often than are would like to recall in that proud and desolate region. Yet, its intensity and urgency has increased substantially last year. Now Quetta resembles Mogadishu with Tribal militias armed with rockets and heavy machine guns, openly patrolling the streets.
Sindh has been burning for long but what parallely can be drawn between its agony and tragedy of Malakand ? An armed “Islamic and tribal insurgency all rolled into one incongruous cocktail does not ordinarily fall out of the clear blue sky. Rebellion against State authority is not a symptoms of a deeply flowered political order, rather, it is, its product. By their ill-conceived decisions the Big Brains in Islamabad and the reckless administration in the Frontier quite literally hedged the inhabitants of the Provincially Administered Tribal Areas to opt for open rebellion.
The Tribal laws that had governed their lives for centuries, against which they had no grievances whatsoever, abruptly withdrawn. In its place was exposed the Pakistan Penal Code which was as action to them as music-stricts and “Bhangra” pop music. They then naturally sought refuge in a code of Law and ethics that was familiar to them and was part of their daily lives. They demanded the imposition of Sharia to protect their age-old customs and traditions. What often choice did these farce and independent people have. The price, 300 human lives lost and scores of houses demolished, and if Mr. Sherpao is sitting smug in the belief that he has “controlled” the situation then he is more asinine than even his looks betray. The upheaval in Malakand is merely a beginning of a very dangerous process.
In Punjab the scale and intensity of the blood-letting is still below the level of other provinces, but in terms of senseless it has no equal. Muslims butchering Muslims in public places of worship because they disagree whether the hands should be folded or held straight down when in prayer?
The stark reality is that somewhere along the line something has gone terribly wrong with our collective national self. That purposeless violence, senseless carriage, has become an integral feature of our existence is violently obvious. Were that our only sorrow higher wisdom may have some how overcome and eventually prevailed, over this appalling state of Hobbs Cain anarchy.
Pity the nation and suffer the people who elect a government whose only response to this brutal erosion of society is that “there are only pockets of disturbances limited to a few police stations”. How profound must be the concern of this government for the welfare and security of its people where the fist spouse remarks that only 150 people were killed in the first two weeks of December. Such pearls of wisdom these that they, unfortunately, can only numb the senses where sense prevails. To maintain Law and order is the primary responsibility of Government, and 150 people pilled in any space of time is 150 too many.
It would be bad enough if the maintenance of Law and order, the security of life and sanctity of home, were not primary hierarchy of our government’s priorities. For decay has set in ravel decay does not discriminate. Rot having no priorities and no favourites, rapidly becomes all-pervasive. Our foreign policy is devoid of vision and initiative. The conduct of our domestic affairs lacks a conceptional framework direction and coherence. Our moribund economy has only one utility for our ruling elite and that is to knock off as much commission as possible from any and every transaction. Never mind if that “deal” will have a detrimental effect on the economy no “sloppy liberals” these leaders of our. No sir, they are hard, pragmatic bread. The people may vote for them or the people may die for them but they sing only one tune:
KICK BACKS.
Kick backs is a magical food
The more I eat the more I loot
The more I loot the better I feel
So I want kickbacks with every meal.
The other magical word is privatisation. In its name, shameless plunder is being committed. Cronies and hanger-ous are “sold” all forms of enterprises at throwaway prices. This Robber Baron approach come to full glory when the government announced its intentions to privatise the country’s oil and gas reserves. Sell of this precious natural wealth and then you will have only two things left to “Privatise” the nuclear infrastructure and the Armed forces. The “Privatisation” of Pakistan itself will then follow automatically.
Part of our misery ties in the undeniable fact that governments, not only this pathetic one, but other down, rogues and fascists that came to bring Islam, to there shores 1400 years after it had actually arrived, just stopped caring. The agony of our people is that its governments have ceased to agonize. Our governments certainly loose no sleep over the steep price rise, unemployment, collapse of Law and order disintegration of civics amenities broken roads, contaminated drinking water, degenerating health and educational facilities. Government is certainly not deliberating about their deliberating faculties. But, heaven forbid if a choice polo pony should develop cramps or a particular political secretary should get her hair unruffled you can be sure that drastic measures will follow. No Sir, no “sloppy liberals” there.
Our plight may not have been so horrendous if it could be rectified by a change in what passes here as government. The three elected governments we have had the misfortune to endure after the night mere of a carriblistic martial law has left a sense of deepening apathy among the voters. And voter apathy is to the democratic process what facial wrinkles are to a glamorous movie star. (Face-lifts on both accents will be costly and short lived).
There rages violence, moral violence, even within our self. The assault on our values does not enemata from outside; there exists a deep and serious malice in our souls. We are hopelessly lost, way ward, corrupt, cynical, greedy and capricious. We have no “value system” as such no hierarchy of priorities based of ethics that could guide our children and us.
Our “Sindh club crowd “ all over the country twice in a perpetual state of cold-sweat, wheeling grovelling-dealing for those crores to come their way in return for their “loyalty” to whenever is no power. They are always loyal to everyone.
There is violence and turmoil in our state apparatus too. Democracy our ruler has forgotten (or perhaps never learnt) is government by institutions. If elected dictatorship masquerades as democratic rule then institutions will begin to disintegrate, both systematically and by default.
No country can claim to be a civilized nation if it does not have an independent Judiciary. Yet, it is this institution, which has been so crudely disfigured by our present “democratic order”. The entire comedy about public representatives being allowed or not into parliament is nothing short of anarchy created by the State. The senate and the national assembly are part of the state. Therefore, is our ramshackle Judiciary. For the Government to pretend that it is our innocent and impartial observer is the contest of authority between these state institutions is to be party to state sponsored anarchy.
The state does not fashion a people, the citizens condition the state. And we, unfortunately are a deeply divided and hopelessly disoriented people. On most accessions, we behave like an unruly mob rather than orderly, self-disciplined citizens. We do not eat, we devour. We are addicted to conspiracy theories, not concerned with rational deliberations. Whenever we abuse we call him “brother” our own brother we abuse without apology. Above all, we abuse our faith and ourselves; we are a nation without morals. We are a society without hope. Most significantly, we are only waiting, waiting for our appointment with catastrophe.
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