Author Details: Syed Salman Mehdi, LinkedIn, Email: salmanmehdi128@gmail.com
Redefining Democracy in Pakistan: A Call to Action for the Elite.
Explore the imperative for Pakistan's elite to concede privileges and adhere to constitutional norms to foster genuine democracy. #Pakistan #democracy #elections #ImranKhan #youth #NFC #18thAmendment
Now What? Pakistan's elites need to concede their privileges, temper their ambitions, and stay in their constitutional lanes, in order to democratize a restive nation. March 30, 2024.
The 2024 Election saw a new generation of voting Pakistanis graduate from
virtual to real politics, demanding the mandate owed to them. Pressure mounts
on state institutions, particularly the military and judiciary, from within.
Now what?
General Zia’s children, the Gen Xs of the 80s, faced asceticism, gender
apartheid, and ethnic inequalities, defeated by religious supremacy. General
Musharraf’s Millennials rejected binaries but were contradictions, benefiting
from authoritarianism while embracing Muslim exceptionalism.
Imran Khan’s Gen Zs embrace populism while disdaining landed electables
and tolerating religious politics. They share global youth's resentment towards
economic elites but support disruptive leaders, fueling underachieving,
virtue-signaling in the generational schema.
Elite capture by older politicians, bureaucrats, judges, and activists
widens the generational disconnect, suffocates meritocracy, denying
marginalized access. The Lawyers’ Movement of 2007 was the last of the
20th-century protests. First-time voters elected Imran Khan, who repaid by
enabling Bajwa’s extension and indulging in dam-populism.
Khan’s governance, marked by weak economic missteps and bureaucratic
messes, missed opportunities due to conservatism and victim-blaming. Threats to
freedoms were cloaked by piety and pomposity. Khan rebranded as an
anti-establishment victim, masking reality.
Pakistan's Constitution, deemed exemplary, is marred by military and
judicial influence, becoming a negative constitution. Despite flaws, Khan won
hearts, including neophyte women supporters and worldly intellectuals who
sacralized him.
Older liberal democrats must challenge the crumbling order and support
PTI women activists. Ratifying statutory restrictions on military and judicial
roles, limiting office holders' mandates, and erasing gender inequalities in
laws are imperative.
The debate on provincial and local government powers is critical. Healthy
competition can deepen democracy, with local governments ensuring meaningful
service delivery and genuine representation.
The Council of Common Interests must include citizens' voices, with
private sector expertise tapped. Democracy requires fair elections and
empowered local governments to sustain people’s power.
Is the military's interventionism too dangerous to continue? Elite
concessions and adherence to constitutional lanes are essential for
democratizing Pakistan.
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