Daily Times

The COVID-19 pandemic has confronted the world as a challenge of formidable magnitude plunging over 195 nation states into unfathomable political, economic and social uncertainty. No leader, analyst, economist, political visionary and philosopher could forecast how long this crisis will last, how far it will impact the economy of the developed and prosperous nations and underdeveloped countries and how profoundly it will pulverize the US dominated international political order and the capitalist global economy that were holding a dim hope for peace and security and economic dole-outs to the developing states – though at a heavy price. This uncertainty has rendered the devastation of the pandemic incalculable.

As rightly put it by Publo Servign, a French ecologists ‘the big lesson of history and of the Horsemen of the Apocalypse is that pestilence, war and famine tend to follow in each other’s’ wake’. We are having the pestilence. The global political, economic and strategic and civilizational contradictions have started surfacing with the US-led West blaming China for the spread of the virulent virus; the failure of the G-20 countries to devise a collective response to the COVID-19 pandemic and collaborative plans to save the global economy and the world civilization from the apprehended collapse. Are all these vitriolic utterances from big leaders momentary or will further intensify as the corpses of the victims of the killer virus keep piling up and protracted lockdowns play havoc with the weak economies in the various continents increasing unemployment, economic and fiscal contraction, escalating conditions of famine and giving stimulus to populist nationalism to the peril of liberal democracies. One can foresee many collapses in almost every continent.

As rightly put it by Publo Servign, a French ecologists ‘the big lesson of history and of the Horsemen of the Apocalypse is that pestilence, war and famine tend to follow in each other’s’ wake’

While the COVID-19 has defined the dividing lines between the nation states. It also has done so in the polity of every nation state. No country has escaped its domino effects. The division of the societies into haves and haves-not has been resurrected in a sharp and profound way. The capitalism is at the cusp of collapse like the demise of socialism with once well touted nationalization and planned economic development. This division in our dear land has amply become clear. As the pandemic drags on taking a heavy toll on the human lives and the economy of the country (God forbids), the aristocracy or the ruling elite looks clearly unnerved to save their wealth which they have amassed unlawfully over the years by abusing their official position and influence. They have directed all the resources of the state towards the wellbeing of their dependents, relatives and clans without bothering about the common people. For them, the nation has shrunk into a few dynasties, wealthy families, some clans and constituencies. The resources and equipment available with the state to fight the pandemic have been monopolized by the elite with guaranteed access to free testing facilities, masks and disinfecting campaigns.

We already have had a hostile division into the polity between the powerful and powerless; the poor and the rich; the worker and the worked for; the landed and the landless; the rugged and the well dressed, the homeless and the posh dweller. The COVID-19 pandemic has further deepened this fissure. The elite – the ruling class, landed gentry, industrialists and estate tycoons, bureaucracy and nouveau riche – arrogantly reject this hostile division in the polity without recalling the examples engraved in the evolutionary history of the human civilization pulverized by many sudden eruptions in the wake of small sparks. Blinded by their traditional complacency and by an inflated sense of infallibility, the elite is well indulgent in their pastime of power politics and palace intrigues pandering to the establishment to white wash their past vulgar crimes against the society. They feel no threat from the common people. Their toxic souls are too corrupt to reprimand them even.

The ruling elite has been fighting the so called war against the coronavirus pandemic with their same traditional complacency. They could not develop a national narrative soliciting the public support for the lockdown. Yes, the provincial authorities could have exercised their powers as bestowed on them by the 18th Amendment to ensure full compliance with the lockdowns by the public. Since there was no sync between the policies emanating from Islamabad and the provincial capitals on the lockdown, the public support was also equally lackluster and non-serious. We should not be deceived by the comparatively lower figures of infected patients and the deaths caused so far. There could be exponential growth in the patients. The Karachi Doctors’ collective warning of 22nd April that we do not have further capacity in our hospitals for coronavirus patients is too serious to be ignored. This is a clarion call to the ruling elite to shake out of their complacency and seize the occasion to reverse the compromise on the congregational prayers in the mosques during the month of Ramadan reached with the mullacracy a few days ago. The history, my dear men, will not differentiate between you as a federalist or provincialist, rightist or leftist but will hold you responsible for your deeds as leader of this hapless nation – ripped asunder by class, parochial and doctrinal schisms.

With the re-advent of democracy in 2008, some funny, weird and scary phrases seeped in our political discourse – excessively used by every Tom, Dick and Harry in the opposition and media. These phrases cynically describe political forecasts about the demise of the government of the day; collapse of the working relationship between the civilian government and the military or between the elected leaders and the higher judiciary. Every meeting between the high ups is monitored, body languages observed, probable subjects under discussion conjured up, results reached and forecasts made giving the regime a few months fueling political uncertainty. Though unsubstantiated by reason or logic, these forecasts are pursued by columnists in national press doing a great deal to muddy the political waters. This has been ongoing in this crisis too to keep the rulers on tenterhooks and distract them from taking wise course.

The author was a member of the Foreign Service of Pakistan and he has authored two books