Why nothing works — the merit factor

This is the final article in the series of ‘Why nothing works’ attempting to look at various fault lines we encounter as a nation. Why, despite being extremely rich in all the essential resources, we are unable to make progress and do not count in the comity of proud nations. The first article presented our ‘Rich and Powerful’ who think this country is their fiefdom. (The News, 21.12.20). The second addressed the ‘Numbers’ factor i.e. our population predicament. (The News, 12.04.21) The third article is about the quality of human populace that makes the engine running. This article has 3 sections which ideally deserve a separate article for each theme but for want of space they are briefly discussed here.

Part One: The first section looks at the basic Contents of any system that are to be delivered/implemented; and if they have some inherent faults the outcome of that system will be disappointing. It is a standard practice that the observers outside the system take notice of the outcome, without questioning the contents of the system.

In the field of Design initial planning of every entity, that has a certain function to perform, is most critical. May it be a simple traffic signal or the Constitution of a country; all entities have to be planned and rudimentary contents put together to deliver a function successfully. For example, take one flaw in our National Constitution. It delineates about the roles of Federal governments and Provincial governments in detail but has no chapter on Local government. Governance at the grass roots level is equally important yet our local government tier is the weakest having no legal cover. The results are obvious, the masses continue to suffer on the grass root level. There is an air of colonization of smaller units by provincial and federal governments.

For decades the lower cadre of government employees suffered because of poor planning of national salary structures by some Wage Board in Islamabad that bears no relationship with actual cost of living. This creates an environment of unfair means and corruption. An invisible design content failure.

A seasoned economist would lay out innumerable flaws in our fiscal policies causing huge losses. The Sugar industry is being pampered with subsidies which is a Rupee cost. This has created a reduction in Cotton production which has to be imported now at a Dollar cost. To give incentive to local production/increased employment one should have lower duty on raw material and higher duty on finished products. There is a high duty on paper import whereas printed material and books are duty free.

Ask any educationist, a long list of inherent faults in our education system will be highlighted. The moral here is that if the basic building blocks of a system have flaws; how can we expect better results?

Part Two: The second section relates to the delivery of basic contents to the recipient who may use these to perform a certain function or a duty. This is a metaphor for our entire Education system, the record of which has been nothing but disaster.

It is a universal belief that Education is an indispensable tool for individual, social and national development. Ideally it should enable each individual to reach their maximum human potential, to become enlightened, responsible and productive citizens to serve its society.

This equates Education as a Panacea for all our ills yet Education is the only sector that has been neglected to its maximum. Pakistan has been judged as most illiterate country in South Asia. Many have blamed our thriving feudal culture that does not allow a pro-education environment.

Pakistan’s public expenditure on education as a percentage to GDP ranges from 2.3% to 2.9% in recent years, which is the lowest in the region. International benchmarks requires a minimum of 4% of the GDP, yet even after umpteen education policies collecting dust in the archives (1959-Ayub, 1972-Bhutto, 1979-Zia, 1992-Nawaz, and 1998-Nawaz) we continue to fail. Even Afghanistan spends 4.1 %. It has been established by our own Dr. Mahbub-ul-Haq’s famous HDI standards that the only way to survive and universalize education is to meet a target of 5-6 %. A half a century record of failed performance in the education sector has not shocked any government out of complacency.

The space does not allow for listing tragic shortcomings, criminal neglect and rampant corruption in this sector like ghost schools etc. The country has all the experts and material required to fix this problem but a political will has always being missing. If we fail to transfer essential knowledge, train and uplift our masses, should we expect desired results?

Part three: The third is about universal concept of ‘Merit’ which has been replaced by favoritism and bribery. History was unkind to us and we were plagued with political upheavals since our birth. Corruption has been institutionalized within every system. Cronyism and nepotism are a norm. If we have a wrong person in the driving seat the journey will be full of problems and we are bound to fail.

While working in an architectural design studio in Karachi, earning a decent wage, I was more than satisfied. One morning we were visited by a bright Pakistani engineer who was earning about 20 times more, which left all of us aghast. It turned out that this guy was placed at a remote location and salary was in Dollars, but what he said next was quite educating. He was a top position holder and was picked up by some big company who go ‘Talent hunting’ every year in various Universities to hire the best brains to achieve the highest standards in their particular field. It became clear to our young minds that mediocrity and poor personnel can do the reverse. We place mediocre people in responsible positions by choice.

We have institutionalized such a system. Take for example the infamous ‘Quota System’ (QS) which was introduced in the country for ten years to cater for the backward areas vis-a-vis government jobs, admission to colleges etc. The objectives of the QS were never achieved as it was devoid of any merit within. Ironically the QS bill keeps on getting a new lease of life from the Parliament (Article 27, 16th amendment, 40 years extension). Instead of creating opportunities and developing rural areas an easy way was found to please the Feudal controlled rural areas. To make matters worse QS was given the colour of Rural-Urban divide in Sindh. The ruinous effects of QS are quite visible in Sindh more than other provinces. The feudal class and their minions benefitted from the QS for urban jobs etc. and kept the poor sections poorer. One can imagine what it can do to the quality of life if a mediocre workforce guide our destiny.

The Analogy of ‘Whole vs Parts’ comes to mind. The Whole is only sum of the parts put together. The progress of any nation is directly proportional to the quality and output of its workforce. If the selection of the workforce is not done on merit, the output will only be bleak.

In the final analysis, I opine that these 3 are the major wounds in the body and soul of our beloved homeland. The grip of the Rich and powerful, the burden of our population and the death of merit. We keep on bleeding from them, wondering why we do not heal, why nothing works, when the solutions are quite obvious.