Heaven Forbid

Pakistan is currently at its historic low, lost in the predominating deluge of galloping inflation coupled with depleting foreign reserves. When seen through the prism of globally-honoured development indices and standard economic determinants, there is nothing to write home about as the country is rapidly inching towards rank bankruptcy, sovereign credit default, and full-blown fiscal ruin, to say the least. Adding insult to injury, despite its more than 75-year journey, the 240-million nation has yet to determine its key priorities, especially when it comes to choosing the appropriate mode of governance, let alone having any long-term vision or collective mission in the comity of nations.

Having tried and tinkered with almost all forms of government – from military dictatorship to presidential system, to civil democracy to a hybrid democratic setup – Pakistan, from its inception, seems to have been reduced into a guinea pig, or a subject of experimentation, which is now at the end thereof, battling the last breath through artificial means. While the rest of the developing countries in the region and beyond are making great strides towards steady progression and vigorous growth, Pakistan is fast morphing into a global liability as the country cannot budge an inch without the help of international lenders. And yet, there is no way it can steer its ailing economy out of crisis under conditions more strenuous than those imposed earlier. However, amidst the current nightmare facing the inflation-hit nation, what lies beneath the surface is even more shocking and disturbing. When some people see the current crisis in terms of a well-hatched conspiracy of the global powers that be, what else stays true and more valid is still between the lines. This self-evident truth is grave and more axiomatic in nature than the foregoing scenario.
Pakistan is reeling under overwhelming debt and empty state coffers and owes more to its foreign creditors than it could realistically repay at any point in the future. Though it would be too early to pigeonhole Pakistan as a country for sale, given the looming insolvency credentials on top of back-breaking hyperinflation and unrelenting political unrest, the country has seemingly run out of options to keep things going even through makeshift arrangements. Pakistan has already been grappling with fifth-generation warfare waged by hostile forces backed by New Delhi, and a slew of attacks on Pakistan Army soldiers have returned the spectre of cross-border terrorism to centre stage in both Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, especially in areas bordering Afghanistan.

In a word, the die is cast. Sooner than later, heaven forbid that Pakistan will be asked to surrender its nuclear weapons and withdraw from its atomic programme in exchange for food security and debt relief guarantees. And on the face of it, Pakistan is being thrust by leaps and bounds to such a conclusive moment when the country will be left with no option but to commit to a deal but at the expense of its nuclear disarmament. Teetering on the verge of absolute failure, the country now even lacks key attributes it needs to boast of as a failed state as in spite of utter shambles, its concerned yet holier-than-thou stakeholders, along with political institutions, fail to recognise their own malfeasance and decades-long abuse of power. What else we all need to identify the grim reality and how long will we take to read the writing on the wall is still anybody’s guess. A people that revels in deriding its judiciary and delights in relegating the constitution to less than a piece of paper only merits the divine wrath – no more, no less!