Why “Not”?

Why is there a need for PTI and PAT to create such tension and drama? Why should they break all accepted truisms and paradigms – of Pakistani origin – and come out on the streets, make shocking statements, and show utmost rigidity in their stance?

As individuals and as a collective, Pakistanis have been subjected to a phenomenon called Learned Helplessness. It is a mental state “in which someone forced to endure stimuli that are painful or otherwise unpleasant, becomes unable or unwilling to avoid subsequent encounters with those stimuli, even if they are escapable, presumably because it has learned that it cannot control the situation”.

This is the same way baby elephants are trained with a rope tied to their feet so that they don’t run away. So even when they grow up to be mighty and powerful, their mind has conditioned them not to resist the gauntlet because it still thinks that the rope cannot be broken.

Sound familiar?

So it is quite natural that when someone else tries to jiggle, wobble, and stir you out of this numb mental state, the negatively conditioned mind resists and rejects the change as a first line of defence.

The extent of acceptance to all things corrupt and evil is so entrenched in our minds and lives that anything otherwise is seen with a lot of skepticism. Ironic.
Interestingly, we come out of this hypnotic state as soon as we board a plane to Europe or North America. There, we are the ideal citizens of a nation that is not our own. We obey all rules, laws, and cannot even think of taking the law in our own hands.

Now if someone is challenging the existing paradigm, those who have exploited the status quo and benefited and those who have been living in a state of Learned Helplessness will reject and resist it.

Any Pakistani drawing room discussion is not complete without cursing the current system, the politicians, their scandals, kick-backs, nepotism, corruption, abuse of power, injustice, etc., is all that we talk about. We talk about revolutions, religion, political movements, radical measures, and suggest our own solutions. However, when it comes to doing something about it, we do the exact opposite. We again become part of the same system, willingly or unwillingly.

The constitution of Pakistan, its institutions, and the governing arms are all there, but only serve the interests of those controlling them. Note that this has always been the case. The spirit and essence of these facets of government are virtually non-existent. The Zardaris and the Shareefs cannot talk about upholding the democratic institutions because they are the ones who destroy and abuse them, day in and night out. Both “families” have been given three chances each, and every time they have disappointed the nation. How many more chances would it take to put things right?

And when someone stands against the status quo, they all start reciting the mantra of the same constitution, the one gang-raped by them in the first place.

This is the agenda and narrative of the people destroying this country. What is your agenda? What is your narrative? Can you formulate an answer to this question in your mind please?

Imran Khan, they say, is an autocratic leader as he calls all the shots himself and doesn’t listen to anyone. The true mark of a leader is to listen to everyone and then make his/her own decision. You cannot have one leader and numerous decision makers or strategists. It doesn’t stack up. There was only one Mohammed (PBUH), one Umer (RA), and one Jinnah. Their team was there to support them, not to lead! Note that none of them were professional politicians. Their single most common trait was being true to their causes and staying relentless in the pursuit of their objectives, and that too against heavy resistance.

What IK has given us now is a formula and a direction to raise our voice. It is illogical to think that it is a bad precedent that he has set in coming out on the streets and laying siege to this self-created red zone. It takes courage, determination, will and a lot of perseverance to put up a show like this. Twenty days and counting, is anybody else equipped enough to hold their fort for this long? What is unprecedented is that now the Khawajas and the Butts will think long and hard before rigging their polling stations. Not to forget that his main demand for electoral reforms has been met. What is unprecedented is that he has fiercely jolted the decayed foundations of this evil system, educated the masses about true democracy, and has instilled a sense of self awareness in them. No leader after Jinnah has been able to do this. He has torn down the general perception of “Pakistan mein sab chalta hai”. What has been unprecedented is that he is the only leader who has stood up against this mutated political setup with utmost conviction and gumption. What is unprecedented is that people who had never voted before, got up, and went to the polling stations to exercise their right.

But what has been most unprecedented is that he has taught us to ask that why is it that we cannot be bold and courageous enough to break the shackles tied to our feet? Why do we “have to” live with this corrupt system and the people who are running it? Why shouldn’t we stand up for a better Pakistan where all are equal in the eyes of the law? Why can’t we dream of a Pakistan where the value of human life is cherished? Why can’t we reject the status quo and the people maintaining it? Why can’t we have a uniform system of education and health? Why do we have to continuously refer to the legitimacy of our constitution, even after six decades? Why cannot we question the flag bearers of this country? Why do we have to live in fear of the police that is there to protect us in the first place? Why not question the definition of democracy as perpetrated by these corrupt rulers? Why cannot we rise and stop to slate a poor man as an inferior life form? Why not openly condemn these politicians who feel that they are some superior beings, untouchable by the rule of law or land and question them for their performance? Why can’t we dream of a nation free from misery and injustice, where nepotism thrives and rights of the underprivileged and minorities are non-existent? Why not be brave enough and stand up against tyranny and label wrong as wrong?

Why “Not”?