The triumph of folly

WHEN good men and women can’t speak the truth, when facts are inconvenient, when integrity and character no longer matter, when ego and self-preservation are more important than national integrity, then there is nothing left to stop the triumph of tyranny.

I find myself lost in anger and anguish. The answer for how I can go through this inner convulsion is to put pen to paper for the benefit of all those who should be deeply afraid for the future of our nation.

What is at stake in our benighted land? To put it bluntly: collective suicide is actually in progress, with conscious efforts at denial, distortion and deceit by the ruling elite, which is bent upon sowing discord and discontent through their ‘psy-ops’ techniques. This recipe for disaster will lead to the unravelling of our state and society.

Erasmus wrote in The Praise of Folly (1509): “The less talent they have, the more pride, vanity and arrogance they have. All these fools, however, find other fools who applaud them.”

An illegitimate coalition of power-hungry politicos provides a democratic façade to the machinations of the deep state. Everyone is aware that the results of the Feb 8 national polls this year were manipulated in favour of those who do not represent the majority, which was denied its mandate. Some people justify the rigging by pleading that almost all previous elections were also manipulated by the actual string pullers. There is truth in this premise of political engineering by the establishment. However, the blatant misuse of power mixed with persecution and corruption within the state agencies responsible for holding the last general elections has crossed all limits. The institutions constitutionally responsible for holding free and fair elections failed miserably in their duty.

The experiment of putting together neutral, apolitical caretaker administrations for holding free and fair elections has been an abject failure. Cabinets, including the chief executives, were selected by the deep state whose agenda was perceived to be advanced by the outgoing prime minister and leader of the opposition.

The biggest disappointment has been the Election Commission of Pakistan. The chief of the electoral watchdog brought the civil services into such disrepute that his erstwhile colleagues openly condemned his conduct as undignified and unprincipled. He has caused irreparable damage to a constitutional office of great responsibility and public trust, and flouted the orders of the apex court by pandering to the political engineers running the current political charade.

Collective suicide is in progress, with conscious efforts at denial, distortion and deceit.

The judiciary, of all the premier national institutions, has suffered the most. The open bickering and infighting among the judges of the apex court has shattered the administrative and operational autonomy of the institution required to safeguard the Constitution and ensure the fair administration of justice to the people. A farcical display of manipulation and arm-twisting within parliament resulted in a constitutional amendment that has dealt a severe blow to the judiciary. The apex court had settled the matter of appointment of the chief justice by recognising the principle of seniority; the senior-most judge after the chief justice was assured of his place at the pinnacle and there was no dispute.

The present ruling elite did not want the senior-most judge after the chief justice to take over the mantle and therefore, a constitutional amendment that can only be described as person-specific was rubber-stamped by parliament and that too without any debate or deliberation.

A parallel constitutional court has been established, with junior judges predominantly selected by the executive, to adjudicate and preside over highly sensitive issues of great public significance such as the trial of civilians in military courts and the review of the recent award of reserved minority seats to a political party by most Supreme Court judges. Unfortunately, the judiciary faces this predicament due to the strife within its own ranks.

The bureaucracy and police services have broken all previous records of becoming handy tools of a callous ruling elite. Some spineless seniors are dragging their junior officers into very awkward and embarrassing situations where human rights violations are endemic. Arguably, in no previous era, including periods of military rule, were such acts of persecution and indignity witnessed. Certain senior police officers are openly defying court orders. Political agitation and protests are handled through brutal tactics, which include late-night raids on the homes of political activists and office-bearers who are illegally detained and allegedly tortured. This kind of brutality reflects an autocratic mindset in the top echelons of the law-enforcement institutions.

There are extremely serious challenges on the internal security front. Balochistan is burning. The recent carnage in Kurram is a manifestation of the festering violence that has engulfed much of KP. The entire focus of our security establishment should be on dealing with these crises. The military and the intelligence agencies must ensure that the writ of the state is restored.

They are already engaged in kinetic operations against militant organisations in Balochistan. It has been announced recently that a full-fledged military operation is being launched to restore peace and order in the vast province. Since the last few years, the military has already been dealing with the insurgency. Staying away from an operation that entails gross human rights violations, the military must focus on winning the hearts and minds of the Baloch youth.

Finally, what has happened in Islamabad recently in a brutal crackdown on the participants of a political protest, should be cause for serious introspection by those who are calling the shots. History will judge them on how they dealt with a political crisis of this magnitude, which has been developing since the elections earlier this year. It is time to change course to fulfil the democratic aspirations of the people of Pakistan.

The writer is a former inspector-general of police.

Published in Dawn, November 30th, 2024