In today’s globalised world, especially with the global political regime dictating terms to developing nations, it is extremely difficult for nations to create their own presence and work their polity accordingly. History is witness to how nations have suffered mercilessly at the hands of the imperialist inclinations of the West. However, the last 70 years of Pakistan’s existence proves that the country and its people take pride in their existence and have created a working model for themselves not entirely dependent on other nations.
There is no denying that the country faces many issues, particularly the increasing debt, the lapsing economy and the mounting international pressure but the country and its people also manage to take you by surprise to making some of the most progressive decisions. The fact that a country like Pakistan has produced a female Prime Minister, has managed to introduce the women protection bill, and offers legal rights to the transgender shows that there is hope.
At the political front, Pakistan has managed to achieve a great feat by accepting a third party into the traditional two-party system. This development alone will change several factors in the political scene of Pakistan. The country will see a strongly contested parliament that will hopefully produce a show of great political acumen from all sides, especially with all key players in the parliament and the narrative of accountability just taking off.
This will leave very little room for error. This is particularly true with the inception of social media into the daily lives of the people. During the last year, we have seen how criticism on social media has prompted leaders to take the opinions of the masses into account and make policies accordingly. The pressure is definitely going to mount and the expectation will be nothing short of the best possible delivery of the interests of the masses.
However, this independence day, a lesson we all need to internalise as patriotic citizens of the country is to respect those around us and particularly those we elect in our public offices. The country is juggling with parochial concerns and a westernised version of democracy and changing that takes time. The utmost responsibility lies on us to change as people because if the basic structure of the society is the same, no amount of policies can change the outcome. At the same time, let us get out of the messiah thinking pattern which pushes us to believe that a single entity can solve problems. This is precisely why we disrespect people we elect. Let us all pledge to work together and respect each other.