Islamabad, Aug 5 (IANS) Many in Pakistan view the recent statement by “all-powerful” Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi of the current system of governance having “collapsed” and fundamentally incapable of resolving the country’s problems as an attempt to redirect public attention from the real issues and tighten control, the local media has highlighted.
Writing in leading Pakistani daily ‘Dawn’, author and journalist Zahid Hussain noted that Naqvi’s comments raise many questions considering that he is himself the product of a system whose legitimacy he is now questioning.
According to Hussain, the Interior Minister’s statements point to the unravelling of the hybrid arrangement and what he said cannot be dismissed as merely his personal views, “given his perceived association with the powers that be”.
Addressing the Pakistan Economic Summit last week, Naqvi had called for talks among political parties to introduce reforms in the current governance system and proposed the creation of new provinces and bringing administrative reforms.
“The system we are living under has collapsed. Problems cannot be solved through it,” Naqvi was quoted as saying by the local media.
He said that Pakistan will continue to discuss the same issues even after 10 years if this system continues and stressed that a reset was important.
Naqvi also said that the “failed system” had continued in Pakistan for 70 years. He mentioned that Pakistan has been importing wheat despite being an agricultural nation, Dawn had reported.
Naqvi’s remarks come amid growing protests in Pakistan over the rising cost of living due to inflation and an increase in fuel prices.
Writing in Dawn, Zahid Hussain highlighted that Naqvi’s veiled criticism of his own government’s policies have laid bare the fault lines within the hybrid political structure established after the controversial 2024 elections. Naqvi’s statement, he noted, was later endorsed by the military spokesman, who also urged political parties to consider an administrative reset to improve governance.
“The Interior Minister’s remarks have jolted the ruling coalition, with some federal ministers questioning Naqvi’s own credentials. Yet while chastising him, they understand that he is not answerable even to the cabinet or the Prime Minister. In the words of Defence Minister Khawaja Asif, Naqvi is a ‘powerhouse’ who is not answerable to anyone. A man for all seasons, as he is referred to by some, Naqvi deals with everything from cricket to security and even ventures into foreign policy. He seldom attends cabinet meetings or appears in parliament. He is not a member of any political party, yet is arguably the most powerful person in the government after the Prime Minister. Most analysts agree that he draws his power from close ties with the establishment,” wrote Hussain.
Hussain reflected that Naqvi’s regret of the “failed system” being dragged on for seven decades isn’t wrong but he has failed to mention the dominant influence of the security apparatus for much of the country’s history.
“The decline of the present hybrid, and increasingly autocratic, system was long foretold. A mere change of face and creation of new administrative units will not solve the state’s problems. Many view the statements as an attempt to redirect public attention from the real issues and tighten control. More important than the creation of new provinces is the devolution of administrative power to the local level and the restoration of democratic rights. Any imposed plan for the creation of new provinces or administrative units would further destabilise the country,” he opined in Dawn.
Spotlighting the complete breakdown of law and order in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), the worsening situation in Balochistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), the analyst mentioned that the Pakistani authorities are relying entirely on kinetic options to deal with a largely political problem.
“No blackout of the news can change the reality on the ground. Would it not be better for the Interior Minister to focus on his main job of ensuring security, rather than trying to create more administrative units?” questioned Hussain.
–IANS
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