Granted, things were never encouraging before and we were in never-ending “Nazuk dours” which probably started since our inception, but the way the situation is evolving now is completely different and it has already shaken all edifice of the system. It seems like political and economic instability fostering a scenario never seen before. Things are getting out of control for anyone like sand slips through fists. We are mired in a worst-ever economic condition which is expected to further worsen strangling already weak sections of society to death. Appalling an inflation rate with millions of jobs lost recently might be a mundane matter for our political elites but the way it can start social fabrics is not hard to apprehend. Cases of theft, robbery, and snatching have increased significantly and huge fake currency is circulating in markets.
Daily wagers cannot find work for almost half of the day of the month, factories that somehow are still operating are forced to sack laborers, industries, malls, and companies are downsizing considering the reduced purchasing power of the people which is perhaps not just reduced but almost exhausted. Many from the working class are now forced to ask strangers for help with serious compromise on their self-respect. Amid this economic turmoil state is absent to grant social security to the already less fortunate citizens. People are being exploited by land owners, feudal lords, and other influential factions of society.
Even registering an FIR against a murderer let alone seeking justice for a minor crime than murder is next to impossible if has acquaintance with some political, uniformed, or any other sort of Wadera. And even if by some rare media pressure a complaint is launched, one can find numerous examples where our criminal justice system protects the influential one among the parties of the conflict. People are left on their own with almost all the departments of the state dysfunctional. TTP rearing again yet and in recent attacks on top sights, it has become apparently clear that our security apparatus is not prepared to encounter it. Protecting their own has become a challenge and people are at the mercy of terrorists which luckily has spared the general public so far with alleged apprehension that killing them will not bother anyone. For commoners, social and political security is now not a priority; but how to get find the next meal for themselves and the family they belong to.
Fear of hunger is triumphing over everything else. Who is to blame for this mayhem? We are also not sure there too. The ruling coalition, previous government, and establishment are playing blame games and even some sections of the ruling coalition are enjoying power and playing victim simultaneously. Political expediency is the only thing that seems to be in enacting no matter which party is in power. People are yet to discover what prompted the ruling coalition to assume power when they already know the economic mess their successors had created. Why then ruling PTI was not allowed to bear the political cost if the worst was yet to come?
If you still do not the answer, perhaps a quick go through to changes in NAB laws which were made shortly after PML N-led government assume power will help you understand this conundrum. People are already suffering from this dive nose of the economy and skyrocketing inflation rates. The looming threat of default and the rightful cold shoulder from tested friends further create chaos for multinational companies and investors are unsurprisingly in perplexing conditions. Youth is justifiably desperate to fly abroad for work and some try to escape this beloved country by illegal means which cost them their lives sometimes, nonetheless, there are many willing to risk their lives for bread and butter. It is heart wrecking to realize that the worst is yet to come and all these sufferings and hardships would not lead to any prosperity. When the foreign policy of former dictator General Pervaiz Musharaf (late) particularly for Afghanistan and their role as an ally in the war on terror was questioned by some brave citizens, he persuaded them with “you would not know what hit you and from where” with his fists waving in the air. Although he was not laying then too, his words seem more perfect for current situations. Since the current ruling government is in power, the people of Pakistan do not know what hit them and from where.
