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Acerbic Environment

Writer's picture: Saleem Qamar ButtSaleem Qamar Butt

The people in Pakistan are 24/7 exposed to acerbic criticism, humour, and cynicism through print, electronic and social media. The hired guns appearing on the electronic media as journalists turned intellectuals, political advisors and influencers has become the best bonanza; at the same time ever multiplying TV channels are also making hay even when the Sun is not shining. The war of flimsy narratives with a short lifespan is nevertheless causing abysmal mental trauma, societal disorientation and disenchantment. This is funny as well as painful to see  the same face appearing as anchor on one channel and simultaneously as programme participant on a number of other TV channels with well identified political, ideological or well paid bent with lies, lies and more lies unashamedly spread all over. For them all progress is based upon a universal innate desire on the part of every organism to live beyond its income; their story of rags to riches. To add salt to the people’s wounds, these performers still have stamina and time left to operate personal YouTube channels, besides printing their false narratives in the national dailies and magazines to further fatten their pockets. But what they are selling to the common people is not much different than addictive products freely available all over the country. Lately, the leading characters have made syndicates to scratch each others’ backs; and though untenable, yet united they even succeed to project a bright Sun as an eclipsed moon. Barefacedly, their mentors and the syndicate leaders ensure that in the eyes of the semi-literate public, they get portrayed as idols and icons through appearance in the morning and late night shows as special guests. However, such a breed of people with rare good exceptions have all the characteristics of a dog except loyalty...to the country, people and the national interest. A sad affair that has mind boggling effects on the raw minds.

It is said that ‘a politician is a man who can be verbose in fewer words than anyone else’. The hullabaloo observed and use of unparliamentary language in both houses of the parliament, impolite rhetoric in the press conferences and other media appearances and use of derogatory and extremely provocative language during the political rallies by the politicians is even more disturbing as that is what makes the rest of the state  and private broadcasters and publishers to continuously spew venom in the eyes and ears of the hapless public. Each one of them seems hell bent to prove that ‘a  liberal is a man too broadminded to take his own side in a quarrel’. The reckless behaviour by the elected, selected or imposed ruling elite is freaking-out people especially the young lot who are desperately trying to escape the county and tragically hundreds of them are dying every year in such illegal attempts. The political polarization has perhaps never been so bad wrecking the internal front of Pakistan with the worst law and order situation and with the economy in shambles despite untenable tall claims by the lame-duck government.  

The state is made for man, not man for the state. A great nation cannot abandon its responsibilities. Responsibilities abandoned today return as more acute crises tomorrow. “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” Money is power, and in that government which pays all the public officers of the states will enjoy all political power substantially concentrated. Perhaps for the first time, the part of the politicised and well looked after executives have been seen so slavishly and openly siding with their mentors and state power has been used extensively to subdue political dissent and opponents. The often repeated mid-night passing of bills and amendments in the constitution has virtually crippled the superior judiciary. On the  other hand, the lower judiciary/ special trial courts are brazenly being used as a coercive tool to punish the opponents on politically motivated tenuous charges. From the registration of the true or false cases, all the phases including judicial remand, custody, investigation, interrogation, well orchestrated trial proceedings and even the repeated delays in the announcement of the trial court decisions are all systematically used for making the political opponents to change their loyalties, political stances and throw the towel in the ring or face the gallows.

What could be worse than that after almost every decade or so, Pakistan has to repeat the same vicious political cycle with catastrophic consequences. How long will Pakistan continue to sustain the fallout of interventionism? How long will the tyrant Octopus keep asphyxiating the democratic system? As for the public pulse about the ruling conglomerate, let me quote Winston Churchill, “He has all the virtues I dislike and none of the vices I admire”.

 

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