Editorial
The caretaker, the Prime Minister of Pakistan, visited the LUMS university for a lecture. It is good to see the political executive visiting universities and interacting with the students. However, the primary question is why they always chose LUMS over other institutions. Why do they not choose public institutions? With all professional respect to LUMS, does LUMS lobby it, or does the political executive find it essential to mingle with the kids of the elite in Pakistan? Politicians might choose LUMS due to their elitism as they believe that kids of the elite may serve the purpose better than the students of public universities.
Apart from the selection of LUMS for a lecture, it was common for the students to ask questions from the PM, Kakar. Kakar is an interim PM, and it was obvious that he would have been asked tough questions due to the particular circumstances of the country affecting every citizen of Pakistan, including students. There is no rule of law, democracy, electioneering or governance in the country. And more importantly, people are not happy with the power corridors. Accordingly, students asked a few pertinent questions, which they had the right to ask. And PM Kakar answered them nicely and appropriately. It was a common discussion with normal communicational procedures. Apparently, there was no political dimension to it. However, this was different with political parties.
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Political parties in Pakistan are highly competitive because elections are around the corner, and there is already a contest between a level playing field. Normal questions by the students were set ablaze by the political parties for their advantage. PTI seemed to be happy with the questions, and their social media accounts propagated the questions and answers to their advantage. Then, how could PMLN and others have remained silent? Therefore, PTI supported the LUMS sessions, whereas PMLN and others criticized the LUMS students for asking normal questions. A few asked if LUMS was a brilliant educational institute, whereas others criticized it as an elite institution. However, one thing is more significant: how can an institution like LUMS be judged on merely a session on common political and cultural discussion?
There is something wrong with our political culture. The politicization of all events is uncalled for. Then, what is the solution? Political polarization can easily be mitigated if there are free and fair elections and genuinely people-representative governments may be voted in and held accountable. Political engineering and denial of the rights of the people to elect their governments will only create fissures and differences, even to the level of social structures, unabated and thus resulting in more political rivalries and chaos. Accordingly, the best move forward is to implement the spirit of the Constitution and the rule of law.
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