Life itself is fickle; in the end, structures tend to outlast humans and live on for generations to come, whether they are physical or theoretical. These structures aren’t built in a day, nor can they be. ‘Rome wasn’t built in a day,’ neither was the Chinese (or Indian) economy, nor the Australian (or Indian) cricket team.

Not to sound too pessimistic, but regardless of where one looks, there are structures either on the verge of collapse or structures that have collapsed, yet somehow the nation tries to salvage something from the remaining rubble.

Personally, I strongly believe that the absence of one individual does not affect systems. The wheel keeps rotating. After all, whatever is written in the Constitution is just words on a piece of paper (or at least that’s how we tend to treat them). The Constitution mandates that elections are to be held within 60-90 days (as the case may be) after the dissolution of the assemblies. Yet, in blatant disregard, the ‘appointed’ interim government continued far beyond its legal mandate. The Constitution (further crystalized in the Elections Act) stipulates the procedure for carrying out these elections and the allotment of reserved seats accordingly.

Despite flagrant ignorance of the policies laid out by men much smarter than the rest of us, Pakistan has continued to function (barely), limping across multiple finish lines (which have also been self-created). This concept only strengthens the theory of structures. Regardless of how weak the structure is, it continues to function despite the frequent and tumultuous earthquakes it has experienced.

Contrastingly, this also brings to mind a renowned dialogue from the infamous movie ‘Batman: The Dark Knight Rises’: “There’s a point, far out there when the structures fail you, and the rules aren’t weapons anymore, they’re shackles letting the bad guy get ahead.” Although this was said for Gotham City, these words echo deep in the corridors of your average Pakistani household (one of many similarities between Gotham and Pakistan these days).

The current circumstances beg the question: are the structures within our society and governance shackles letting the ‘bad guys’ get ahead, or are they the only pieces still holding us together?

While the Constitution ought to be held supreme, the institutions declared as the guardians of the Constitution are the biggest perpetrators of its very principles. Phrases such as ‘subject to law,’ ‘public morality,’ and ‘reasonable restrictions’ were enacted to ensure lawmakers create structures around the Constitution to cement the letter and spirit of its very essence. Yet, the Parliament continuously enacts laws in stark contradiction to the Constitution, and the judiciary continues to uphold those principles. Concepts like judicial independence, rule of law, and separation of powers, the very core of a democratic nation, are nowhere to be seen.

With the country standing on the brink of economic collapse, only being held afloat through a lifeline extended by the IMF, the budget for the year 2024-2025 has just been announced. As always, the common man is confused about the implications of the latest budget for his daily living. For those simpletons, a basic message of ‘brace yourselves’ shall suffice. Among promises of this being the last IMF bailout and the budget being the most comprehensive one produced in years (which is the same narrative peddled every year), are false promises of a brighter tomorrow.

These promises are just about as accurate as the promise of a dream team of Pakistan being assembled to win the T20 World Cup this year. The return of players like Amir and Imad is similar to the announcement of a ‘comprehensive’ budget and the country no longer being dependent on the IMF. Babar’s captaincy is synonymous with the leadership of our Government(s) (appointed not on previous merit but based solely on familiarity). Yet, much like the fate of our cricket team, our economy and all other aspects of governance and policymaking will fare no differently.

The problem?

Structures are slowly deteriorating and becoming shackles to benefit those who exercise might and power. From the PCB to the Government to the Judiciary, all failures result from a lack of stability and increasing manipulation with each passing day.

How can a cricket team guarantee victory when the players can never be assured of their place in the side? Even worse, how can cricket players be assured of their place in the side when the Chairman of the entire cricket board (also your Interior Minister, former interim Chief Minister, current Senator) has no guarantee of the term of his tenure? Much like the Constitution of Pakistan, the PCB also operates under a Constitution, which one would imagine would lead to job security for all relevant stakeholders. Rather, the state of management in the PCB is much worse than that of the Government. This means that a lack of performance is no longer the fault of the team but a fault in the structure surrounding the team.

Our country is at a crossroads where we require structural changes. Those changes need to happen in the highest corridors of power. Too much is still centered around a colonial time, using borrowed intellect that may have lasted for a different time, for a different people. It is high time for a rethink on everything, starting from the formation of Government to elections to the appointment of Judges to a realistic separation of powers and rule of law that suits the environment of Pakistan.

Such a reform happened in our neighboring country not too long ago, and the results are before us. The time for borrowed wisdom has come to an end. Let us usher in a new era that deviates from the settled principles of Western theorists. Pakistan needs an identity. An identity that shapes and molds its own structures and principles.

Haider Omar Hayat
The writer is a lawyer practicing in Islamabad. He can be reached at haider.omar@srlaw.com.pk.