Elections will not Solve Pakistan’s Problems
Preparations for the elections are underway, pictures of politicians are everywhere to be seen…(even in washroom stalls!), the rangers are allocated to sensitive areas, the air is filled with rhetoric and promises made by candidates and rumors of all sorts spread like wild forest fire. Within this hectic environment, one question remains to be un-answered;
Besides perverse entertainment, will these elections bear any fruit for Pakistan?
The answer is…No. Elections will not solve the problems of Pakistan, but instead might enhance them. How so? This is so, as the candidates contesting in the elections are incapable of solving these problems.
Firstly, we must analyze the key problems that plague Pakistan, and then proceed to analyze whether the potential future Prime Minister will be able to solve these problems.
Problem # 1 - Terrorism
Perhaps the gravest problem Pakistan faces is an outstanding increase in terrorism and militancy. This phenomenon has reached surprisingly new heights and does more damage besides the obvious; deaths of soldiers, civilians, and damage of property. It also demoralizes the public and scares away billions of dollars of foreign investment.
Will elections bring an end to Terrorism?
Absolutely No! Elections will not bring an end to terrorism. This is so, as terrorists are not opposed to one particular leader, they are opposed to the democratic system and it’s ideals as a whole. It would be foolish to think terrorists will cease to be terrorists simply because Nawaz Sharif or Asif Zardari has been elected to office. Furthermore, majority of suicide bombings that occur are supposed retaliatory strikes for the military campaign in Waziristan. Hence, in theory if the military campaign was to cease so would the suicide bombings…but yet no prime ministerial candidate has a policy of withdrawing the military campaign but instead have policies to expand the campaign. Perhaps if these candidates were not exerting majority of their resources to developing policies which impress the U.S State Department, they would have realized that expanding the campaign could mean an increase in the already high volume of suicide attacks.
Problem # 2 - Economic Hardship
Pakistan after half a decade of impressive economic performance faces a challenge which could halt its economic upsurge. Rising inflation, increasing unemployment and devaluation of the rupee is adding to the woes of the general public. Although, recently Pakistani’s have witnessed a downturn in their nation’s economy, it is imperative to point out that if this problem is tackled correctly, it can be solved rather quickly and in the future be referred to as being just a bump on the road to prosperity.
Will elections bring economic prosperity?
The answer again is No! Why? The clarification for that answer is quite simple; the candidates that will soon be responsible for turning the ship around have proven time and time again that they are incapable of doing so. Nawaz Sharif the lead candidate has left Pakistan’s economy tarnished and naked, not once but twice. It would be foolish to believe that third time is the charm. Pervez Elahi is part of the regime that is responsible for the current economic fiasco, so it would again be foolish to believe that he can resolve the economic issues of Pakistan. The remaining candidate is Asif Zardari…who I don’t really want to get into…because Pakistani’s are very familiar with his policies of increasing interest rates and other things by 10%.
Problem # 3 – Corruption
Corruption in Pakistan has eroded the trust between the government, institutions and the citizens. It is a problematic road block for Pakistani’s that want to progress and a vanguard for those Pakistani’s who abuse others with their power and stature.
Will elections bring an end to Corruption?
Unfortunately, the answer again is a blatant NO! Who will bring an end to corruption? Mr.Zardari? Mr.Nawaz Sharif? We all know about Mr.Zardari and his deep relationship with corruption, but what about Nawaz Sharif? Granted Mr.Sharif may not have pending corruption cases and he may not have served 8 years in jail due to corruption (like Mr.Zardari) but it is imperative to point out that Pakistan under the rule of Nawaz Sharif’s administration was graded as being the 2nd most corrupt country in the world. Perhaps Nawaz Sharif’s administration can take solace in being graded 2nd best in something!
Having Elections is a waste of time/resources
Some individuals may claim, (despite evidence to the contrary) that elections are urgently required and will actually be beneficial for Pakistan. To those individuals I pose the following questions;
1 - What is the benefit of elections where the candidates are proven failures as leaders?
2 - What is the benefit of elections when parties contesting the elections themselves are dictatorial?
3- What is the benefit of elections where contesting parties direct resources to destabilize the President?
When an election occurs in successful/progressing nations (Canada Britain), they not only bring a new administration but also a change of policies. Furthermore some successful policies of the previous administration are also continued. Unfortunately, this “phenomenon” of success does not take place when elections occur in Pakistan. What does occur is more of the same packaged in a different color.
I’m one with the belief that, Pakistan should not have elections until responsible political mature political parties come into existence. What are “mature/responsible political parties?
- Political parties that have internal elections
- Political parties who remain firm on their platform despite changing environments
- Political parties with new leaders who exhibit fresh and creative ideas.
The 2008 elections of Pakistan can be best described as futility dressed as the grim reaper! The elections will be a façade, a distasteful joke and a mockery. Whatever the “democratic” process churns out in February will not be worth the severe destabilization, fiasco and deaths caused by the democratic process.
