Since independence in 1947, it won’t be wrong to say that Pakistan a long period has been under military rule however in 2008 tables turned in favor of political parties somehow when the parliamentary and presidential elections in Pakistan were successful enough to complete a peaceful and a non-violent transition from the military rule to democracy. In 2013, for the first time in the history of Pakistan, our leaders managed to hand over from one democratically elected government to the next.
In 2010, a constitutional amendment was adopted which strengthened not only the parliament but also the position of the Prime Minister, the power of provinces, central government and the independence of the judiciary. Also, it gave the right to information and education which were also enshrined in the constitution. However, despite all of this, our military leadership continues to have a strong influence, especially on the foreign and security policy of Pakistan.
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Understanding the matter better
In 2018, the constitution of Pakistan was amended again in order to make what used to be called Federal Administrative Tribal Areas (FATA) part of the Province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa no doubt this reform was indeed a decisive step as it played a major developing role in completing Pakistan’s unity and harmony and it also established rule of law and democracy in the region.
25th July 2018, was another important year in Pakistan’s history as again elections took place which was massively won by Imran Khan and his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf even though significant restrictions were imposed during the whole election campaigning, these selections can be described as democratic which led to a second peaceful change of government in succession.
But unfortunately, after weeks of political drama, Prime Minister Imran Khan was ousted from power through a no-confidence vote in parliament. Pakistan’s parliament then elected a new prime minister, Shehbaz Sharif, the opposition parties’ jointly selected him prime minister’s post, was elected without opposition. Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf staged a walk-out in protest and did not participate in the voting.
It is observed that the new government is expected to reach out to the IMF to revive the $6 billion bailout program, which will be put on hold due to the existing political uncertainty and instability in the country. It won’t be wrong to say that many in Islamabad’s corridors of power are heaving a sigh of relief that everything ended well. However, the tragic end to the PTI government has not only devastated us but also made us wonder if this is the real end of the PTI party politics, once considered to be the party of the military.
It is widely believed that Imran Khan was brought to power by the country’s military leadership, in the hope that he would bring betterment in the governance and would be more manageable, unlike the other leaders who came before him. It was believed that the security elite with the help of technocrats was helping Imran Khan with governing the country.
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But after all this chaos and drama main point to ponder is where on earth our country is heading towards what this new government is all about like if we question ourselves being a lay man do we really think that all this fuss created by an opposition that is now the new government had the ideology to make Pakistan prosper, were they really thinking about the betterment of the people, absolutely not and any individual who comes up with this stance that the new government aims to bring prosperity in Pakistan is simply I would say living in a fool paradise.
Like from the day they have occupied these offices things are getting worse in Pakistan their blind supporters are not currently realizing it at the moment but the little do not know that their leader’s greed will lead Pakistan to great suffering and eventually those leaders won’t suffer it will be us who would face those hardships.
A few days back a news was circulating that new government is banning Twitter in Pakistan, now the question arises that if they claim themselves to be a democratic party, they believe in freedom of expression and promote western ideologies then why are they moving our country towards the stone age if one uses its common sense one would see that either a country is a superpower or it’s a developing one, digitally they are striving hard to gain a strong position because they know that future is all about being digital but in our country who is already way behind such technicalities plus this new government with its own insecurities and ego I would say is taking Pakistan off the track from the road of prosperity by banning the social media platforms and shutting down the institution like digital media wing. They need to understand that we are living in the 21st Century.
Such steps will further create disputes
Even they have blacked out PTI’s rallies from the mainstream media, on the other hand, the country’s institutions which are backed by the security elite are now geared up to provide full protection to the new government. As we all know that Shehbaz Sharif was going to be charged in a corruption case but the hearing, in this case, is now postponed for no reason at all even though the investigating officer has gone on leave.
The worst part in this whole crisis is that our courts have refused to take up petitions asking for an investigation into the alleged foreign conspiracy to remove Khan’s government, even Islamabad High Court rejected a petition seeking an inquiry into the alleged U.S. conspiracy to overthrow Khan’s government and instead of investigating the matter they imposed a heavy fine on the petitioner.
Read more: Applying game theory to Pakistan’s politics
So we can have a clear picture on the working of our institutions either its military or judiciary our whole system is rotten because none of them is working for the country’s benefit they all have gathered around for their own interests and in the end I’m mentioning again that public is the one who’ll suffer, I would say that it’s high time now that people should realize that who is actually on their side who is really working for their interest.
Slogans like “ Jiye Bhutto or Aj bhi Bhutto Zinda hai aur Sher Ek Warri Phir ” won’t sell anymore. Our ancestors didn’t go through such hardships for these corrupt leaders to rule us and take advantage of us, we need to understand the real meaning of Pakistan, or let me be clearer the current scenario is leading to a situation that either it’s now or never and I won’t oppose it because if we really believe that we as a nation are not beggars, we have to prove it unlike are Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif who say beggars can’t be choosers. We have to remind our leaders and institutions that we are not beggars but self-sufficient.
The writer is working as a Lead Outreach & Advocacy in G5 internet observatory. The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Global Village Space.