One cannot continue to stand at crossroads for 72 years.

There
ought to be a time to settle down, introspect, chart a course and
take off. Emotionally driven jingoism, religiously loaded spiels
and perpetually playing to the gallery may be short-term
gimmicks, but they are counterproductive to building a nation or
its institutions.

Pakistan’s first and foremost responsibility is the well-being of its

210 million citizens. This task has been hugely neglected. Except
for a very small coterie of rich elite who live their privileged “by-
pass” lives, the majority of the population and most of the state-
provided services lag behind by centuries. Education, efficient
services, infrastructure, civic systems and benefits that are taken
for granted in developed countries are way beyond the reach of
most Pakistani citizens. At present, we have the world’s worst
infant mortality rate, 22 million children out of school, ever-
increasing child abuse, untreated raw sewage, absence of clean
drinking water and a dysfunctional bureaucracy.

Nations that are impoverished, economically bankrupt and

politically confused cannot be taken seriously. It is time for
Pakistan to make a radical break from feeding clichés and
platitudes to its people and also to reconsider its exaggerated self-
assumed share of acting as the torchbearer of all things holy. Even
lagging behind in major performance indicators such as the
Millennium Development Goals and the Sustainable Development
Goals of 2030 have not been sufficient catalysts for a fresh
national reassessment.

Pakistan needs to learn from economist Angus Deaton on how

other countries progressed and bade farewell to poverty and
misgovernance. The rules of the game have been consistent for all
competitors. They used modern technology and smarter ways of
performing every task to promote self-reliance, indigenous
development and the local industry. Sadly, Pakistan has remained
reluctant to undertake any of these changes.

Sindh does not have the capacity to issue car number plates to
new car owners. We are dependent on unending foreign assistance
even for tasks such as building schools, holding seminars and
establishing Child Protection Units. About 44% of our children are
stunted due to nutritional deficiency. The state has no mechanism
to provide birth certificates to 60% of the newborn children.
International underground transport networks built over a
century ago remains impossible for Pakistan to this day. Should
then, such a state not focus on fixing its own house first?

It is entirely possible for Pakistan to make “the great escape” from

poverty and under-development. However, for this to happen the
state must shed the mindset and the extra baggage that it has
carried for the past decades. At least for the next 50 years,
Pakistan needs an era of peace and absolute focus on economic
development through rapid internal reforms that deploy new
methods, modern technology and innovative approaches. Pakistan
needs to adopt a strategic policy of internal focus and external
restraint. This must include never getting bogged down by
neighbourhood events.

Pakistan’s “great escape” is also a hostage to its burgeoning

population. It may be best to learn from Iran and Bangladesh on
how they controlled their populations. We can learn from Hong
Kong, Singapore, South Korea and Taiwan, on how they adopted
new technologies and methods for rapid industrialisation to
become high-income economies. Pakistan must cease its
dependence on foreign loans, letting out routine tasks such as
road making and garbage collection to foreign companies and
instead promote its own human, material and technological
resources.

An archaic bureaucracy will continue to remain a key hurdle in

Pakistan’s progress. It has no choice but to replace this burden by
technology based systems and accomplished professionals, who
can develop newer ways of running and transforming the country.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 28 th, 2019.