The Real Culprits: Rulers or Voters - 2
By Mohammad Ashraf Chaudhry
Pittsburg, CA
“Men become builders by building houses, and harpists by playing the harp. Similarly, we grow just by the practice of just actions, self-controlled by exercising our self-control, and courageous by performing acts of courage.” - Aristotle
The issue before the people of Pakistan is not how many people do not believe in God, but the real issue is how many remember God and obey Him, and how many pay attention to His Dictates, and do not ignore Him?
What the mullahs and muftis do not talk about is the relevance of religion to the social and economical problems of life, and the deliberate disobedience of the moral code prescribed by Allah - a code that relates to these issues. That moral code demands adherence to an honest way of life, fair play in dealing with others, decency of manners, justice in all matters of life, empathy for pain and sufferings of others, care for the needy, protection and security for the weak, cure for the sick, fair distribution of wealth and resources, and disregard of the tribal virtues of revenge and bloodshed, and promotion of peace and love in the land of Pakistan, and in the world, and protection and respect for the people of other faiths.
The disobedience of the dictates of Allah is the denial of Tawheed, which is an unpardonable sin. Unfortunately, these religious scholars in their preaching restrict and reduce the universal teachings of Islam to correction of rituals and concepts, and shift the emphasis from the practice part to the profession part only. The result is obvious. Islam is talked about, and is fought over, but is hardly ever practiced in spirit and essence.
“Truly, God does not change the condition of a people until they change what is in themselves”. Qur’an 13:11
The idea of the linkage of morality with justice is not new. Justice without compassion is not complete. In 2004, Hurricane Charley devastated Florida. The storm claimed twenty-two lives and caused $11 billion damage. It also generated a debate on price gouging when people out of greed began to capitalize on other people’s hardships and misery, a common practice in Pakistan.
Gas stations in Orlando began selling a two-dollar ice bag for ten dollars; contractors charged $23,000 for removing two fallen trees from a home-owner’s roof; household generators were sold for $2,000 against their normal price of $250; a room in a motel got rented for $160 against its original rent of $40. Some contended that it was not price-gouging. It was what the market could bear. It is neither greed nor brazen-heartedness. It is free market and all public anger is unjustified. To take any measures to control this price-gouging, they thought, amounts to interference in the freedom of buyers and sellers as they are free to make deals whatever they choose to make. Interesting.
We all know greed is a deadly sin, is a vice and is being characterized as a bad way of life. Michael J. Sandel in his wonderful book, “Justice: What’s is the Right Thing to do?” says, ‘In times of trouble, a good society pulls together. Rather than press for maximum advantage, people look out for one another. A society in which people exploit their neighbors for financial gain in times of crisis is not a good society. Excessive greed is therefore a vice that a good society should discourage if it can…by punishing greedy behavior rather than rewarding it, society affirms the civic virtue of shared sacrifice for the common good.”
Pakistan in 2009 and 2010 to name only two years, faced sugar and onion/tomato shortage. Since the country’s 82 sugar mills are controlled or owned by the people at the helm of affairs, it is just not possible to control the evil of price-gouging. It is a unique situation in Pakistan that greed stands legitimized through price-gouging. Pakistan is a country that runs on shadow economy. Most big businesses pay no taxes because they are owned by the parliamentarians or by people who matter. Pakistan’s tax collection at 8.6% of the GDP is the lowest in the world. Virtually there are two Pakistans: one for the very few and rich, and one for the teeming poor.
Moral laxity has reached such a level in Pakistan that even Manto’s “Eisher Singh”, a veteran rapist and killer, of “Thanda Ghost”, and his “Khushia,” an experienced pimp, appear angelic in comparison. Prevalence of iniquity is not just a folly or aberration; it is symptomatic of a much deeper malady. It breeds narrowness of vision, as it turns people blind to the finer things of life. People just refuse to see goodness in others or anywhere. This is the result of the withdrawal of the Grace of God that eventually leads people to this kind of decline in spiritual vitality. The result is that the victims are neither able to go forward and make progress, nor are they able to turn back.
Mr. H. W. Brand in his book on President Wilson says, “Politics in a democracy is ultimately an educational process, an adventure in persuasion and consent”. Democracy in Pakistan is not linked with the free-will of the people; it is aligned to the feudal mindset, to the shepherd and sheep-herd mentality. It is linked to greed, and not to education. About 41% parliamentarians possess fake degrees. Politics has become a family pastime, a game of getting into power without accountability or even ability. People as voters had a better sense of electing their leaders in the 50’s they have now. Matters of grave importance relating to foreign relations that can even destroy the country completely get a very trivial and non-serious treatment, often being put before an emotionally whipped up crowd. A sagacious leadership knows how to fish in the troubled waters. India did that in a masterful manner after the 9/11 tragedy scenario.
Leaders also matter a great deal, especially in countries where people are illiterate and where societal composition is based on ethnicities and on feudalism. Till recently Brazil had all the old maladies that are still inflicting Pakistan, namely poverty, official corruption, and lawlessness. Now Brazil has become a South American powerhouse, overtaking the United Kingdom as the world’s No. 6 economic power, with a hefty 7.5% (Pakistan’s growth is 2.4%) economic growth last year just by dint of the leadership of a school drop-out, Mr Lula, a former steelworkers’ union President. Brazilians consider themselves uniquely blessed. First, they got the right kind of a most sincere leader in the person of Mr.Lula, and then they got blessed by the discovery of two gigantic oil fields off coast near Rio de Janeiro. In the words of President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, “It is simply a further proof of a celestial bond”. “God”, Lula gushed, “is Brazilian”. Yes, it is true. Great poet, Iqbal says, God becomes a co-worker in the up-lift of those people who make sincere efforts to improve themselves.
Economic well-being and independence are linked with freedom now. Economic growth and stability have brought to Brazil new heights of respect and status. Now it can flex its diplomatic clout “as the hemisphere’s first real counterweight to the US”. The school dropout leader of Brazil has led the creation of a bloc of developing nations, the G-20, to thwart US and European hegemony in global trade talk. Brazil is even a strong candidate for the membership in the world’s most exclusive club, the group of nations with permanent seats on the UN. Mr. Lula’s leadership performed some of the most unlikely feats. Since his first election as President in 2002, Mr. Lula set aside the fears of all those who thought that he would slavishly follow the Socialist policies. Instead, he shrewdly followed a middle way, retaining the virtues of both the systems. He carefully followed fiscal sobriety, strengthened Brazil’s currency, reformed a bloated civil service pension system, and shifted the fruits of economic boom to the poor and the needy. No other leader can claim to have up-lifted such a huge number of poor people, moving them upward into a middle class.
Lula’s policies and a windfall in commodities triggered a boom: the economy began to grow at 5% or more and the inflation fell to a historical low. This 4th grade educated politician is now considered as “one of the most intelligent politicians in the world.” His real mastery had been in how he dealt with President Bush’s administration on the one hand and with the left wing Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez on the other hand. Mr. Lula’s biggest challenge has been how to bridge the huge chasm between Brazil’s rich and poor. The gap, as in Pakistan, had made Brazil look a feudal monarchy of the 19th century rather than a real modern democracy of the present century.
Lula himself coming from a poor family- an impoverished kid who had once polished shoes on the streets of Sao Paulo, on becoming the President, pumped more than $100 billion into social projects ranging from micro-finance to grants for families who keep their kids in school. As a result, 52% of Brazil’s 190 million are now designated as middle class, up from 43% in 2002. In Pakistan more than 50% people virtually now live under the poverty line, and about 35% on two dollar a day. The country’s president is accused of having extracted graft to the tune of $55 million now under dispute, and the country is fighting over this issue with complete disregard to the sufferings of people.
Mr. Lula made efforts to keep Brazil business-friendly with a $280 billion Growth Acceleration Program (GAP) to boost infrastructure and by cutting taxes. His motto has been, “Let the rich earn money with their investments, and let the poor participate in the economic growth.” One of his ministers restored Brazil’s sinking railway system and turned it into a profitable enterprise. Did any such thing happen in the last 5 years in Pakistan? The country remained embroiled in issues that were non-productive, silly, meaningless and were a by-product of the clash of leadership egos.
India’s Sreenam Chaulia in his February 3 article published in India West under the title “To Raise GDP, India Should Learn from Brazil.” admits that Brazil traditionally had been one of the most economically unequal countries, but its wealth hiatus has been shrinking in recent years, thanks to determined state-driven social spending and educational schemes that actually reached the intended beneficiaries. The gap between the rich and the poor is at its lowest level since 1960.” “Brazil has grown stronger, more stable and even more socially equitable under democratic rule since 1994… Brazil is a clear-cut example of the difference that the right men or women at the top can make”, says Heine.
Brazil had the good fortune of being ruled by two successive visionaries with popular support and a zeal for implementation of tough but necessary public policies: President Fernando Cardoso (1994-2002), and President Lula da Silva (2003-2011).
Mr. Lula made the economic growth more participatory and emancipatory for Brazil’s teeming millions. Uninterrupted economic reforms are imperative for emerging economies to live up to their promise and potential of lifting their impoverished majority of citizens out of misery. Lula did that. What Brazil has done right so far is to elect leaders who play by democratic rules but stamp a certain authority while in harness to get sleepy and incorrigible systems moving towards defined targets. So mixing of charismatic leadership and goal-oriented policymaking in Brazil is winning praise for “acting decisively’ and effecting ‘determined economic reforms” from even the Chinese state Media. And this is what Sreeram Chaulia is wanting India to learn from Brazil. A firm hand in the implementation of a visionary dream, and not a totally free-hand to the business magnates who are often led by their greed is essential. India made tremendous economic progress, but much of it did not reach the teeming poor in millions, a promise PM Manmohan Singh had made eight years ago.
Pakistan’s main leadership, unfortunately, is foreign-based. One actually lives there, Mr. Altaf Hussain, the other two, Mr, Zardari and Mian Nawaz Sharif , are perennially hostile to each other, and have their second homes outside with a major chunk of their assets. Pakistan is good for them as a golf course is for any golfer - play and leave.
To expect that they can turn Pakistan into an economic powerhouse, or can bridge the existing vast gap between the rich and the teeming poor, is like expecting the Margala hills turn one day into gold. They can never do it because they like Lula have never polished the shoes of people on the streets of Anarkali or Bunder Road. Imran Khan also lacks the touch of a Manmohan Singh or Lula. But his two merits are singularly unique. He is comparatively clean, and he has not been tried as yet.
Back to Pakistanlink Homepage
