Readjustments for the nation’s sake

Rakhshanda Khan Rakhshy

The nation is in a state of crises and everyone is guessing hard and is at a loss to understand what is likely to be the solution to this difficult situation. It is not difficult to understand that at this critical juncture there is a tremendous responsibility on the shoulders of the leaders of different political parties, who have been chosen by the people through the last free, fair and transparent general elections internationally acclaimed to be so, to quickly dissipate the situation so that everyone in the country is relieved of the unnecessary stressful environment that prevails in the country. For the sake of the nation and its people, all the players in the political arena have to make adjustments so that the democratic process moves forward and is not held in a state of limbo as it is being seen today. This is the time to show flexibility and accommodation rather than taking positions of hard and fast and adamant attitudes. Is it not time that instead of continuing the past practice of putting all the blame on the predecessors and declaring that everything has to be set right so we need to start all over again, we need to show a little maturity and help to continue the policies in national interest with a view not to loose all (or whatever little) that has been achieved during the past few years and build on these basis for the future.

One course of action is to tread on the previous path and scrap all the policies of the past, finding fault with everything that has been done and then taking up everything from the scratch. In this manner we will not only lose time but also unnecessary effort would be put in to achieve very little with hardly any benefit .The world had recently formed a better opinion about our country that we can provide continuation in our policies and all this had created an environment which attracted investment into the country from quarters which were earlier never interested in this country. We need to continue to benefit from this confidence of the investors and also attract new individuals, organisations and countries so that the financial and economic progress is resumed and we go back on to the road and path of progress and prosperity. This is not only in the interest of the governing parties but also in the overall interest of the nation and indeed in the interest of the common man who is languishing in the difficult environment of high prices and shortages in essential commodities.

It is time to take maximum benefit from the capabilities and potential of all those who are now in power and all those who have been in power in the recent past. Should we not join hands and forget our own personal and petty differences and put our efforts together so that jointly we improve the lot of the common man, give him and his children a better standard of life and ensure that he gets a break from the difficulties of existence and gets a chance to live in peace, tranquility and harmony .We would fervently appeal to the President to really move ahead and prove to the nation and the world that he really means it when he says that he is ready to work with the new government and lend them full support in their endeavors to run the government in a smooth and efficient manner . At the same time we would also hope that the new government should take the President’s words seriously and in the same spirit and moves ahead in the same fashion in national interest. Indeed this is the only path towards national unity and integrity as well as towards progress and prosperity of the common man. We are lucky that we have in the National Assembly today a very healthy mix of seasoned and totally new parliamentarians who are committed and convinced that their task is to quickly restore peace and tranquillity as well as bring back economic order and justice in the society as soon as possible .Law and order needs immediate attention while foreign relations needs expert and precise handling to steer the country out of the dangerous situation developing due to the increase in oil prices and the increasing fiscal deficit that is looming over our country as a result of the stagnation that has prevailed over the last year .We need to get our economy back onto the healthy track and begin to move forward with speed and precision to ensure minimizing of damages and to make amends for the lost time and opportunities .This is only possible if we concentrate on the positive and forget about settling scores with each other and the past rulers . Mud slinging and trading of allegations will only worsen the already sour atmosphere and will detract us from our primary objective of regaining our path towards peace tranquility and progress. Many enemies of the state inside and outside the country would like to see us lose sight of the real aim so that we damage ourselves further and increase our vulnerability both on the economic and political fields as well as in the international relations. Let us rise above all petty, party and personal considerations and dedicate ourselves to the ultimate cause of putting our nation back on the road to the democratic process, achieve good governance at the local, provincial and national level and demonstrate to the world that we have learnt a lot of lessons from the past crises and we have emerged as a mature and responsible nation with our eyes on a magnanimous future for ourselves as well as ready share the international efforts to improve the global atmosphere for the collective well-being and prosperity of the human race at large .If we are sincere and earnest in our desire and efforts , God Almighty will crown our efforts with success and help us achieve our aim with ease and convenience .

Link: http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=200841\story_1-4-2008_pg3_2