So, how must we as a nation respond to populism and the rise of fascism in Pakistan?
Populism creates sections of cult following by arousing feelings of extreme hatred against the ‘other’ through the use of social, economic and existential insecurities present among the targeted groups. People in insecure situations usually tend to take shortcuts to achieve prompt results by suspending their rational and intellectual capacity for some time. Populism, unlike other rationally and intellectually formulated theories, rarely attains permanent place in the collective consciousness of a society.
The messiah syndrome is usually galvanised for abrupt growth, expansion and sustenance of a cult following. The messiah syndrome conveniently exempts cult followers from applying physical and intellectual energies through persistent struggles. The ‘messiah’, on the other hand, is pardoned for not working painstakingly to develop political narrative and socio-political and economic policymaking. In such a situation, organisational work of the party to build sustainable structures for smooth political processes is set aside.
Populism, unlike other rationally and intellectually formulated theories, rarely attains permanent place in the collective consciousness of a society.
The current authoritarian populist narrative in Pakistan is based on slogans of ‘conspiracy’, ‘traitor’, ‘national honour’ and ‘freedom’, electrified largely through construction of the digital reality and social media platforms as a post-truth tool. Public rallies are held for repetitive sloganeering -- with hatred, otherisation and disgust against the political opponents.
Populism has attained a fascist streak, which is systematically targeting groups, classes and state institutions that refuse to chant the same hate-filled slogans. This kind of onslaught on state institutions -- from judiciary to election commission, security apparatus to law enforcement agencies – may cause disruptions.
Given the country’s precarious economic situation, the conundrum of Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Afghanistan, the alarm bells may soon start ringing. The million-dollar question is: how to respond to the rising wave of populism and fascism in Pakistan? The response must be institutional and political. It must also be proactive, consistent, planned and systematic, not sporadic and reactionary.
All the state institutions and government departments including the judiciary, election commission, accountability bureaus, security and law enforcement agencies must act in accordance with the constitution, and must not surrender their institutional authority under pressure. The foreign funding case, interpretation of article 63 and investigation of corruption charges must be carried out on merit and without hesitation.
The security establishment must not be allowed to interfere in politics. There must be an end to experimentation with hybrid regimes and manipulation of elections. The people’s representatives must formulate policies and allow the civilian executive authority to implement policies. The new government must undertake some solid work for electoral and accountability reforms, instant relief for masses through shifting the burden on haves, not have-nots, putting economy back on track, and ending international isolation on a war footing. Time is running out fast.
The political response must include creating a favourable environment for mutual dialogue and negotiations. Revenge politics must not pollute democratic processes. Political response must also include deconstruction and debunking the authoritarian populist narrative by highlighting contradictions, distortions and inflammatory content.
The political response must include creating a favourable environment for mutual dialogue and negotiations. Revenge politics must not pollute democratic processes. Political response must also include deconstruction and debunking the authoritarian populist narrative by highlighting contradictions, distortions and inflammatory content.
Political parties, civil society, academia and media must cooperate to construct an alternative narrative against populism and fascism. The alternative narrative must be based on parliamentary supremacy, culture and economy of peace, vision for a social welfare state and federal parliamentary democracy. Political parties must use social media platforms extensively and efficiently to disseminate alternative narratives. Simultaneously, to connect with people, political parties must organise cultural activities and political rallies. Academic seminars in educational institutions must be encouraged as well.
Pakistan needs a socio-cultural, socio-political and socio-economic paradigm shifts. The state machinery, governmental institutions, policy-making, economic framework, administrative structures and justice institutions need to be radically reformed and transformed to provide security to the people of the country.