Maulana says that we will not celebrate this 14th August as the independence day. We will start the movement for public independence after 14th of August.
He was speaking to a rally against the alleged rigging in Islamabad. While Shahbaz Sharif says says that I agree with Fazal Ur Rehman that we will not be celebrating the true in-dependency on 14th of August.
If anything, Pakistan’s Islamic identity has not been able to keep the country united. As Pakistan celebrates its independence day, the country is internally divided along religious lines. Islamic parties and right-wing conservative groups openly and regularly dispute the state’s writ.
Pakistan’s 1973 constitution lays out the rules of governance. However, political parties and state institutions have done everything to trample the laws of the land.
Pakistan is all set to commemorate its independence day on 14th August with traditional fervor and zeal. Celebrations will include grand displays and reiteration of promises to transform Pakistan into a diverse, multicultural, and tolerant society as per the vision of its founder, Muhammad Ali Jinnah.
Since Jinnah’s death in 1948, Pakistan’s leaders have marked Independence Day with fanfare, making sure that the founding father’s vision remains at the center of all celebrations. However, with every passing year, the country has only moved further away from Jinnah’s vision. And leaders, from political to religious, are mainly responsible for this.
The irony is that opportunistic politicians and religious leaders look toward the state institutions for support to sustain their own grip over power, and in the process strengthen their hold over the state’s affairs further.Andin the last they blame the institutions, sometimes openly, like Maryam Nawaz did, and mostly subtly through the help of media.
Pakistan is currently in the midst of one of its worst political, constitutional, and economic crises in its history. Parliament is turning irrelevant as the political elite is at loggerheads. The country’s judicial system faces a collapse, as thousands of cases remain pending in courts. The bureaucracy is deeply politicized and resists reforms that could see the administrative system becoming more effective..
It is time to forge the sense of oneness and march ahead with a united force, but these political leaders are doing something which is harming Pakistan.
In this setting, Independence Day should be a day to reflect and ponder on the mistakes of the past acts of the political leaders. It is about time that Pakistan’s leadership do some course correction and think about making Pakistan a country that is respected, valued, and sought after by the world.
