Paisa & Politics
By Mowahid Hussain Shah
Two elements highlight character, or the lack of it. One is paisa; the other is politics. Both present a choice and a test to reflect humility or to flaunt hubris.
Soon after the induction of power in Lahore, a Punjab Minister took to the podium to insult female artists and ended a TV interview with a four-letter profanity. While in Karachi, caught on camera, was a Government MPA slapping an average citizen on the street.
Both these episodes are a telling reminder of Hazrat Ali’s warning during the early days of Islam. He cautioned about the changing dynamics of destiny. He stated that there are two days of destiny: one day it is for you, and the other day, it is against you. The great sage and inspirational source of dervish values counseled that, when it is for you, do not be proud.
In Washington, President Trump mocked Senator John McCain, who died on August 25, for being captured and kept in a Hanoi prison during the Vietnam War. John McCain had planned and choreographed his funeral at the National Cathedral on September 1, where he did not invite Trump. But, remarkably, before his death, McCain, a 2008 Presidential nominee, called his rival, Barack Hussein Obama, and invited him to deliver a eulogy at his memorial service, which Obama did with flair and grace, subtly rebuking the direction America has taken under the directives of the current inhabitant of the White House. It showed how decency can transcend partisan divide.
Paisa and politics are two major fault-lines in Pakistan. Those with more paisa arrogate to themselves the right to deride those with less paisa. The sociology of the Subcontinent has allowed this behavior to be normalized and pervasive. Reforms or no reforms, the hard fact remains that the super-rich and the super-crook find a way to cling on to socio-political power.
In private lives, the fixation with paisa with the syndrome of demanding more, have torn families apart, with property disputes and usurpation a recurring pattern, particularly in Punjab.
At the public level, the divisive fault-line of politics is evident on evening talk shows, which quickly descend into abuse, name-calling, and personalized attacks, much to the amusement of millions who seek entertainment each evening by switching on the idiot box to watch dog fights.
Forget about the shrieking voices onscreen, but what about the lingering impact the daily infusion of toxicity leaves on the psyche and mind-set of millions of viewers? Spreading is the epidemic of mental pollution, with its spillover effects in multiple sectors.
Excoriating each other on differences of opinion deflects from the hard task of governance. Here, the government would do well to curb wasteful appearances of its ministers on TV talk shows. Those who created this mess aren’t going to be the ones to find a pathway.
Meanwhile, the stale pattern of praising the enthroned and condemning the dethroned continues. What bravery is there in harassing prisoners or dishing out loud lectures on morality? A refreshing change would be one of attitude – eschewing vendetta and taking the simpler steps of self-critique and self-correction.
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