Saad Hafiz

The view that corruption is widespread in public places is generally held around the world, but it is not just in governments that corruption is found. It has permeated all levels of society. Corruption has been around for just about as long as institutions and opportunities of any sort. [The King] shall protect trade routes […]

This year’s parliamentary elections in Pakistan will be the second ‘legitimate’ democratic elections for the first time since the country was founded in 1947. The upcoming elections are expected to be fought on the primary issues of the struggling economy, poor governance, the weak rule of law and the inability of the government to deliver […]

Societies that twist between negativity and cynicism are fertile ground for would-be saviours — political and military strongmen — with messianic proposals and authoritarian models. These would-be messiahs advocate quick fix solutions and extempore decision-making, which are often easier to sell during times of economic hardship and physical insecurity. Spin-doctors are on hand to convince […]

Tens of thousands of people have been killed in extremist violence in Pakistan since the late 1980s. The country has earned a reputation for being a hotbed of extremism and violence. The latest atrocity is the bomb blasts in Quetta targeting the Shia minority, which killed and injured over 200 people. The self-contained killing machines […]

The recurring message is that Pakistan’s economy is on a very fragile footing and the country needs to get its financial house in order. Barring a few growth blips and positive news, Pakistan’s economic story has been mostly about unsustainable government finances, stagnating growth, steadily deteriorating standard of living and high inflation, widening fiscal and […]

The recent veiled warnings and tough talk between India and Pakistan has largely abated. And not too soon, as hope was evaporating that the two nations might have, at long last, realised the futility of prolonged confrontation and might therefore give peace a chance. There is no getting around the fact that the two neighbours […]

Pakistan is categorised as a ‘soft’ state, exhibiting symptoms of an advanced level of administrative breakdown. Under these conditions the executive functions of the state, namely policing, taxation and general administration, are performed poorly or not at all. In spite of having clearly defined territorial boundaries including land, sea and airspace, soft states tend to […]

Some Pakistanis appear tired of democracy after a short civilian stint of five years. A recent BBC poll suggests that more Pakistani youth would prefer Islamic law or military rule than democracy. More than half of 5,000 18-29 year-old Pakistanis polled said democracy had not been good for them or the country. Almost a third […]

The primary eligibility criterion for electoral candidates in most parliamentary democracies is evidence of citizenship and a clean criminal record. In Pakistan, aspiring candidates appear to need a certificate of religious piety as well. The interpretation of constitutional articles determining eligibility seems more suited to candidates in a religious order, where conformity with prevailing religious […]

As Pakistanis gear up for elections in the new year amid clarion calls from some elected and self-appointed ‘saviours’ to rediscover clean and true politics, it may be worth examining the state of Pakistan’s democracy. As a start, it is significant that democracy in Pakistan survived at all, as it seemed doomed from the start. The […]