Four years of democracy... and it's time for people to act

The real democracy has never been experienced in Pakistan save for brief periods in the 70s when Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto had some sort of overall control. The country's history is full of intrigues and tussles between the institutions. The balance, however, always remained in favor of non-democratic institutions.
The electoral process has been full of flaws where bullies, bullets and bogus votes play significant roles. People hardly had much influence in this process and therefore cannot be blamed for the election mostly of thugs, cheats and criminals. Once elected, these political leaders try to implement their agenda of amassing as much wealth as possible within the shortest possible time. They plunge the nation into yet another era of loot, mismanagement, cronyism and incompetence. They show disregard for any kind of law, ethics or principles. Given the imperfect electoral system and the fact that a large number of voters are uneducated who get influenced by the senseless slogans, tribal influence and religious misguidance, it is not inconceivable that such hoodlums would be elected again. It is quite an irony that those who could not be trusted with minor and insignificant tasks and who are devious and dishonest to the core, are the masters of the destiny of millions. The so-called opposition is no exception. The sitting government has been successful in proving to a large extent that everything and everybody is for sale — it is only a matter of knowing and paying the right price.
Despite these facts, one may concede that we have made a certain amount of progress as far as beginning of a democratic process is concerned. Certain constitutional amendments have been carried out. Transfer of the power to the elected representatives, NFC awards, unanimous election of the prime minister and appointment of the leader of opposition as head of the public accounts committee are some such examples. The process is taking roots. What we are seeing now are teething problems. A bit too many perhaps but nevertheless, this is the only process that has the potential to stir us in the right direction, if allowed to grow and sustain.
One wonders if we would ever have transparent probe into Army Headquarters' attack, Mehran base onslaught, Siachen issue, Kargil, Ojhari and many such incidences. Would we ever know how and why we were caught off guard in Abbottabad? Were the political and military leadership knew about the Abbottabad raid? Would anybody ever be held accountable or this too would be yet another futile exercise? Even today our citizens are massacred by foreign drones.
Why the sixth largest army in the world cannot shoot them? Why the seventh nuclear state of the world accepts slaughtering of its gallant soldiers within its own borders? Why our head is bowed down instead of staring them in the eye? Who allows minor foreign functionaries to roam about our country and bark their commands in the style of the viceroys of the days of the Raj? Who is responsible to let a foreign agent go free after he killed our innocent citizens in the broad daylight in our own streets when Afia Siddiqui has been imprisoned for life for much lesser offense? Have we even raised our voice for what happened to her in that prison by those who claim to be civilized and champions of human rights? Do the words self-respect and sovereignty even exist in our dictionary? Have we sunk lower than the low? Why, even today, our citizens are picked up and made to disappear by the intelligence agencies without any recourse to law? Are they answerable to anybody?
Some indeed are untouchable. There are cows and then there are holy cows. The law of the land should be equal for all, with or without the uniform. Till when, dare one ask, till when? We want them to protect our borders and fight the enemy, not its own citizens.
There may be an opinion that judiciary is not entirely flawless, that there may have been certain dark spots on some in the current high judiciary but no person in his right mind can deny that this judiciary has tackled major corruption cases and has not spared the people in high places. It has not been able to deliver fully due to the fact that everything possible has been done to obstruct and frustrate the efforts of the judiciary. The jesters from the highest house in the land have been let loose to make mockery of this judiciary, legal hounds have played havoc and the government coffers have been opened. It is a miracle to achieve what this judiciary has achieved despite heavy odds against, and it is perhaps our only glimmer of hope if we are to see dawn at the end of this sleepless and endless night.
Imran Khan does seem to hold some promise and he is a welcome addition to the political arena. A lot of people have a lot of hope from him. There is quite a palpable and visible optimism given that he holds an impressive track record of being able to deliver, however, recent infiltration of PTI by turncoats and some elements of disrepute has been a cause of concern. I am still optimistic that PTI still holds a very high promise as I believe that if the top leadership in any party is sincere and clean then the others would have to behave. One earnestly hopes that he would put his house in order, lest this be his and our last chance.
We, the people, have experienced the men with and without uniforms, those living in the palaces and talking about poor and the down-trodden, the men with large turbans and long beards and also those in the designer outfits. We lament that we have been robbed and stripped by these predators. We wished that they would see our plight and let us be free.
Alas, it doesn't work like this. Since when do the wild beasts pay heed to the scared hapless animals. In the end, it is we, the people, who have to take our destiny in our own hands. We have to ask ourselves that for how long we are going to go about with our heads down, hat in the hands and eyes averted. We have to put our voice together and say no, no and no again. Enough is enough. This nightmare has to end. We have to shout at the top of our lungs and say that we are not going to put up with these crooks anymore. We do not want family dynasties anymore. We would not accept any non-constitutional adventurism from any self proclaimed savior. We want an electoral process that is honest and clean. Each one of us would go out and exercise our right to vote. We should make every effort to choose the right candidates to get to the legislature. We should take full part in the electoral process to make sure that these hoodlums don't get to the higher houses. Let's try to unmask these goons. We want to decide our own fate and we would rise as a nation that can hold its head high in the community of the nations and who can write its own destiny. We are entrapped by the butchers but we have to tell them that we are not lambs for the slaughter and we have to kick them where it hurts most. We have to do it for the sake of our pride, our dignity and of course, for our children, and yes we can do it and yes we would do it, yes, we , the people...