INDEPENDENCE DAY CENTENNIAL

Pakistan came into being on 14 August 1947 after a struggle for many decades. We as a nation have lived a troubled life since independence and now it is up to us to decide the way we want to live in future as well. This Independence Day, on 14th August, we are 76 years old and after twenty four years we will be In Sha ALLAH celebrating our first centennial. It is of profound importance to note that the generation borne between1987 to 1997 will be at the helm of affairs of Pakistan in almost all the walks of public and private life. This younger generation will be the masters of Pakistan at its centennial, so one believes that it is the right time to set some bench marks, some dreams, some goals and objectives for the nation to accomplish in next two and half decades so that the centennial celebrations will be like a true honourable and dignified nation of the world.

Pakistan is an ideological state based on two nation theory (Hindus and Muslims are two different entities with their own religion, ideals, customs & traditions and way of life) which in short can be stated as the ideology of Pakistan. The ideology of an Islamic state based on the principles and ideals of the Quran and Sunnah. However, during the last seventy six years, since independence, Pakistan is still facing the crises of identity. There have been many controversies surrounding the identity and purpose of the nation.

The most dominant in the debate is the famous speech of Quaid e Azam on 11 August 1947. Here only the relevant portion to the debate is reproduced as taken from the National Assembly website “. No power can hold another nation and specially a nation of 400 million souls in subjection; nobody could have conquered you, and even if it had happened, nobody could have continued its hold on you for any length of time but for this. Therefore we must learn a lesson from this. You are free; you are free to go to your temples, you are free to go to your mosques or to any other places of worship in this State of Pakistan. You may belong to any religion or caste or creed — that has nothing to do with the business of the State. ……We are starting with this fundamental principle that we are all citizens and equal citizens of one State………..Now, I think we should keep that in front of us as our ideal and you will find that in course of time Hindus would cease to be Hindus and Muslims would cease to be Muslims, not in the religious sense, because that is the personal faith of each individual, but in the political sense as citizens of the State.”

 After settling in Madinah, Rasulullah Hazrat Muhammad (PBUH) made peace between the Muslims and Jews. This was called a Treaty (agreement). This treaty ordained all the people of Madinah the freedom to practice their religious teachings without any harassment and their goods and lives were not going to be interfered with. In view of this agreement, what was wrongly said by Quaid e Azam that might be interpreted against the teaching of Islam?

Therefore, the first bench mark should be that Pakistan shall be a true Islamic State. A country populated by 97% Muslims shall not be anything else but an Islamic country. In an Islamic country all the citizen shall be free to practice their faith irrespective of their belief and cult. The state shall not indulge in the matter of personal faith; however the legislation and functions of state shall be according to the guiding principles of Quran and Sunnah. Islam is a complete code of life and it shall not be mixed with unnecessary philosophies and dogmas like secularism, liberalism, moderation etc etc. For more details on ideology of Pakistan read this post in the link here.

https://blogs.bangboxonline.com/posts/14-august-yum-azadi-tejded-ehde-wafa

The other objective for the Centennial Independence Day Celebrations is that Pakistan shall be a constitutional democracy based on adult franchise where the political parties shall be playing the political chess game based on the social and economic issues. No party should be allowed to form on the basis of religion, caste, ethnicity or creed. There shall be youth wing / cell (age > 18) in all the parties for youngsters for their grooming and training in the state craft. The student politics shall not be allowed but the colleges and universities shall provide platforms for debates between the students on the topics of national and international importance. There shall be an annual national competition between students of colleges and universities on issues relating to social and economic problems. Paid internship with MPAs, MNAs and Senators may be introduced for university graduates and college students be given training in local bodies councils. The local governments shall be functioning to provide the self-government at the local grass root level. The leadership shall evolve from the bottom tier and shall be graduated to the national level so as to exhibit the aspiration of the people of the constituency. Necessary legislation may be made in this regards.

The Pakistan shall be a welfare state based on the principles of Justice and Equality. The country shall be known for its rule of law. The system shall be evolved so that all people should be treated equal to the law. The system and procedures shall be developed so as to dispense justice to all without any prejudices or acrimony. This may require a whole some overhauling of current judicial system including the method for selection and appointment of judges. Justice shall be dispensed at the cheapest cost and at the doorstep of the common man. Justice and equality may only be ensured through meritocracy in all walks of national life for example basic necessity of life like education, health, clean drinking water, jobs, and development funds, etc etc. The basic education till Matric shall be free and there shall be no discrimination in the system of basic education with unified curriculum. The basic medical facility shall also be free for all. There shall be adequate number of medical health units staffed with qualified doctors available at one hour drive at least in all the corners of country.

Another dream / objective for the Centennial Independence Day Celebrations should be that Pakistan shall be a strong, stable, secured and self-reliant, self-assured country. Today we are a nuclear country with credible missile capability. We also have reasonable Armed Forces which can defend the country. Our past buildup has been to counter the threat from East only but keeping in view the likely future threats to the sovereignty, it needs to strengthen even more. It is envisaged that we will likely be facing threats from west and south as well. So we shall develop our capability to counter the threats from south by developing weapon system to hit sea borne threats. Our EEZ can be given cover through missile systems. Pakistan Air Force with strategically located airbases along the coastal belt can further add to this cover. Pakistan Air Force cannot depend on the western sources to provide vital assets; therefore self-indigenization shall be must for essentials. PN Ships (Missile Boats and other similar smaller platforms) can act as the troops on the ground. The role of larger platforms like frigate and destroyer will have to be redefined. Pakistan Navy will have to augment and supplement it resources. Our ship building will have to be more cohesive and efficient in coming years. It is heartening to see indigenous development of ships, aircrafts and other military hardware during the last decade.

Pakistan Army has grappled a war against terror during last seventeen years and has engaged its valuable assets on the western region also. The situation demands an increase in the total troops but the fragility of the economy does not allow the proportionate enhancement. But it will have to be more than what it is today. Therefore we will have to evolve a different strategy. One could be compulsory military training for all the college / university students of all sexes and compulsory military service of at least two years (six months training plus three 06 x months deployment) for all able bodies till the age of thirty (30). 

The next objective for the Centennial Independence Day Celebrations may be to make Pakistan a knowledge economy. The HEC and the universities of Pakistan will have to play an innovative role in the realization of this dream. We shall plan to enlist at least ten universities in the top 500 universities of the world. Out of these ten, five may yearn to be top 300 universities and at least one shall be in top 100 universities. These universities shall create knowledge that shall have worldwide acceptance and recognition. The other outcome would be highly educated youth. The economy and the industrial setup will not be able to absorb a large proportion of these graduates. There shall be well identified regions and economies in the world where these highly trained and educated shall be exported. In fact there might be predesigned courses and degrees offered on the basis of targeted market. The foreign exchange earned through this knowledge export then shall be used to build infrastructure and industry so that there shall be sufficient space created to absorb the returning expatriate. It is important to create special funds and channels for such remittances so that these earnings are utilized in the right areas. Moreover emphasis may be laid for better and efficient universities-industrial linkages / liaison so that universities may be able to resolve the problems faced by industries. It may be made mandatory for all undergraduate students of universities to undertake internship during Bachelor studies. The IT technology has become an industry in itself and has a huge potential for countries like us to absorb its human capital in meaningful revenue earning source. There shall be enhanced measures to support start-ups and teams to develop front end web machines to earn in real time foreign exchange.

The population of Pakistan is 220 million today and by its centennial we will be approximately 268 million strong. Out of the 268 million an approximately 130 million will be the young with enormous amount of potential so we shall plan today to make use of the potent force gifted by the nature. The planned brain drain can add value to our foreign exchange reserves. The well-educated and compulsory military trained able bodies will be an enormous factor for any adversary to neglect for any adventure. This huge inertia can also be used to project our soft and powerful image worldwide by swamping the field of sports and games. Pakistan has potential as during early years of independence Abdul Khaliq won Asian gold in athletics as seen in this video:-

Our next objective for the Centennial Independence Day Celebrations may be to become one of the world renowned sporting nations. Presently we are known for our cricket only, after having lost the gloss in Hockey, Squash etc. We shall make it a national priority to produce world champions singing national anthem on the medal podiums in Olympics, World Cups, and Continental Games etc etc. This can only happen once we start giving respect and honour to our heroes. No person will be able to earn any respect if he does not have an honourable and respectable earning / employment. It is recommended that all international medal winners may be initially absorbed as sports consultant / trainers in all the public and private colleges and universities in officers’ scale. The coaches shall also be honoured in the similar fashion. Special reward / funding and tax subsidies may be granted to all institutions producing such champs. There shall be a national drive to build world class sporting infrastructure at least one in each district. The private sector may be encouraged to participate by giving tax subsidies. Pakistan has never been without talent as seen in October 2020, a young man jumping long distances for fun and the only thing is how to employ it to the world map.

The country shall be economically strong and self-reliant. This can only be achieved through honest and sincere revenue generation efforts. We will have to pay our taxes and tax collection along with expense shall be transparent and judicious. The easiest will be the documentation of economy and ensuring transaction of hundred thousand and above only through banking channel. Pakistanis are one of the largest donation givers which indicate that there is a will to give away. So we shall have an honest, reliable and trustworthy system of tax / revenue collection and expenditure. An energy starve country cannot be economically stable or strong. We shall therefore immediately start building small and large power generation dams. We shall also develop many solar power system and domestic users may also be encouraged to convert on solar energy source. Studies have suggested that there are strong values of wind energy power in the coastal areas of Pakistan which shall also be prioritized. Coal may a cheaper source of energy but it adds to pollution and therefore it shall be avoided if possible.

As stated earlier Pakistan will be a country of 268 million people. This enormous bulge of population will exert huge load on the existing cities and infrastructure. We today are unable to meet the demands and are limited in providing the basic needs of life to all. The increasing population will continue to exert pressure on the cities so we shall plan new cities. It is recommended that we shall develop four new cities on our coastal belt. These cities may be developed in Gwadar, Pasni, Ormara and Badin. The cities shall be planned on the similar concept as Islamabad. These cities shall have their own power generation from solar and wind energy. These cities shall have self sufficient water desalination system to provide potable water. This water will be costly so shall be well managed and free from wastage. These cities shall have strong industrial set up supported with farm lands around the outskirt. There will be many other economic, social and military benefits of these cities. It is also recommended that new development around the current mega cities shall be strictly banned. It is also recommended that there shall be solid ban on the conversion of fertile land into commercial and residential areas. We shall develop new cities on lesser fertile lands across the seasonal rivers, water flow channels supported with Dams (there can be many across the length and breadth of Pakistan).

Pakistan is an agricultural country, where 70% of the population is attached with agro based economy and lives in villages. We have an excellent canal irrigation system which supports some major cash crops. However our farmers suffer badly due to poor management of fertilizers and water provision to fields across the country. It is recommended that the fertilizers shall be subsidized and fair distribution to all the farmers may be ensured. The farmers may be provided solar based electric power for operation of tube wells and pumping systems. There shall be a system of price protection through crop purchase from farmers. The country shall be self-sufficient in food and shall be able to support deficient country like Afghanistan. We shall also develop our Dairy Industry and shall also be able to create world famous brand to export surplus produce. We have the potential and capacity to make a name in the world for our agro and dairy products and in next twenty four years it shall realize into reality. Moreover, the rural populace shall also be trained for small scale agro based economic activities and product diversification. The expanding population is exerting pressure on our urban planning which is costly and results in extended requirement of resources for development. Therefore, it will be much better to develop model villages throughout the length and breadth of country. The model village should be such to provide all urban facilities of health, education and entertainment at door step.

There can be many goals, objectives and dreams to accomplish for our nation for the Centennial Independence Day Celebrations. It is just few as one can wish and guess. However it is a considered appeal that we shall embark upon this journey to prosperity, honour and dignity as a national mission. The journey may be long but the destination is clear and it all begins with the first step. One hopes that our next generation will be a beacon of light and strength. It is the time to plan big and dream for next 24 years for wonderful, cheerful & honourable centennial celebrations.

In the end it is considered appropriate to share a National Song sending right sentiments in the above spirit.