Daily Times

More Importantly, representatives of the Afghan peace committee need to look ahead and work out what comes after a deal has been struck. For any peace in the near future, economic stability must be a top priority for the Afghan government moving forward. And the best way to guarantee that is through regional cooperation. This is where Pakistan can assist the western neighbor and has done so in the past as well; Pakistan just recently opened up transit trade even though India at the receiving end is leaving no stone unturned to foment instability in the region. Pakistan has stood for peace before negotiations began, and has offered unconditional support to the Afghan government. Exact nature of support and cooperation could be determined after a ceasefire has been agreed to.Even at this early juncture, chairman Abdullah can use his visit to Pakistan to make initial inroads related to economic partnership in times to come.

For economic stability, sound governance and accountability Pakistan itself needs improvements in tax culture. The tax culture in Pakistan cannot be promoted unless our parliamentarians contribute to tax collection honestly from all available income sources and assets. An essential aspect to promote tax culture is to spend the taxpayer’s money on socio-economic prosperity and welfare of the masses. This is how developed and progressing countries are raising and scaling up their tax to GDP ratio up to 50 percent. According to a report, 1 percent of GDP is spent on charity by 98 percent of Pakistanis.

Looming cases of rape are a matter of shame and an attack on the soft image of Pakistan. The rape cases have become rampant in Pakistan. Lately, the case like brutal gang rape child abuse, and killing of transgender community have been reported but our leaders seem to be in deep slumber. The delinquent police is getting more and more out of control. No practical and effective action has been taken against the criminals, the monsters. Incriminating the harassed women instead of the culprits is a sadly sad ill-mentality of our society. Now it seems impossible of a woman even to step out of her house. Prime minister Imran Khan had vowed to turn Pakistan into “Riyasat-e-Madina”, will that dream ever become a reality. Is the Prime Minister helpless before the real culprits, is he pulling back of his promise. Why should the rulers not act against those who are a nuisance for our country, who can dash our prosperity and peace into dire.

Pakistan does not face threats from any external rival but it has great menace from her internal political influence. The youth needs a true, faithful and honest leader who could bring merit, political stability and democracy

We need to fortify our strengths to minimize our weaknesses to confront all internal and external challenges. Only a selfless and sincere leadership can make it possible. Holistic and well thought of plans and action will deliver. Patchwork is not the solution. Cooperation and positivity is the key to way forward and success. Government witch-hunt is a ‘futile think’ that never can help improve things.

The biggest problem Pakistan faces in not corruption, but instead the inability to take or make decisions. No decision leads to no work done, hence zero growth. Intent to deliver is often missing. Projects suffer from delayed approvals and the fights for clearance of already approved funds is still the way it has been for centuries. Don’t blame the bureaucracy, it is a system and set of rules only that we fail to understand and follow for effectiveness and correctness as per desired objectives and goals. In the last two decades our country has borne the brunt of the global war on terror. Corona-virus related pandemic and other crisis situations have often prompted bureaucracy to deliver meaningfully and effectively. It is important to understand and follow government policy with all its pros and cons. There should be no doubts in our people’s minds relating to the state’s policies and institutions. The critical role played by our armed forces in all crisis and unusual situations has to be clearly understood and appreciated.We take pride and view such scenarios that bring hopefulness and brighter and secure future, leaving behind all fears and desperation.

Any country that adopts democracy as a system of governance requires its politicians to be law-abiding citizens in order to inspire faith in their ability to create, discuss and implement law and policies. As such, it is imperative for prominent members of the government, specially Presidents and PrimeMinisters, to disclose information regarding their personal financial/economic status, assets and liabilities etc. As soon as powerful individuals make dubious statements or refuse to prove their abidance of the law, the entire system threatens to crumble. Selfish interests and underhanded works explain all that.

Pakistan does not face threats from any external rival but it has great menace from her internal political influence. The youth needs a true, faithful and honest leader who could bring merit, political stability and democracy. The government of Pakistan and the judiciary should look after the country’s prevailing huge social problems. Pakistan needs meritocracy in all its institutions and organizations so that the country could achieve progress and prosperity. Our justice system has the obligation to bring an end to the brutalities across the country. Criminality of all sorts must be effectively dealt with for the positive image of the country to return for our security and peace.

We need a quality of mind that will help to use information and to develop reason in order to achieve lucid summations of what is going on in the world and what may be happening within us or the people we interact with. It is this quality, C.WrightMills contend, that journalists and scholars, artist, and publics, scientists and editors are coming to expect of what may be called the “sociological imagination”.

The sociological imagination enables its possessor to understand the larger historical scene in terms of its meaning for the inner life and external career of a variety of individuals.

The first fruit of the sociological imagination and the first lesson of the social science that embodies it is the idea that the individual can understand his own experience and gauge his own fate only be locating himself within his period, that he can know his own chances in life only by becoming aware of those of individuals in his circumstances. In many ways it is a terrible lesson; in many ways a magnificent one. We do not know the limit of man’s capacities for supreme effort. Every individual lives, from one generation to the next in some society;by the fact of his living he contributes to the shaping of this society and to the course of its history. The sociological imagination enables us to grasp history and biography and relation between the two within society.

The writer is former Director, National Institute of Public Administration (NIPA) Government of Pakistan, a public policy expert, political analyst and an established author. His book 9/11 Pakistan was published in the United States and recently launched book Existential Question for Pakistan is highly recommended for readers of varied interests in Pakistan’s economy and society