In declining societies, political and religious divisions are severe and deep. In these societies, love and hatred also reach extremes. Moderation is lost, the use of reason is lost. Love and politics are completely different fields, but in these societies, the opponent is considered a rival and their leader is considered a beloved. Thus, they do not see any virtue in the world in their rival and do not see any flaw in the world in their beloved. Both these behaviors are reflective of immoderation, extreme partiality and extreme emotionality. Just look at the day of February 8, the Shahbaz government is celebrating the anniversary of its one-year performance. The front pages of newspapers are full of their one-year achievements, and on the other hand, the friends of the PTI are mourning the rigged elections on February 8. It is as if both are still stuck in the past, neither coming out of the past themselves nor letting the country come out of the past.

I remember well that neither the ruling party nor the caretaker government of that time wanted to hold elections on February 8 because they saw the risk that the PTI might break the pressure and win the elections. At that time, three individuals or groups ensured the elections. The most credit goes to today’s so-called “villain” Justice Qazi Faez Isa, who has now become a shadow of himself after enduring stone pelting, but they were the biggest heroes of the February 8 elections. The second group consisted of Pakistan’s friends and well-wishers and their diplomats, who wished that Pakistan’s journey towards democracy would begin, even if it was not complete democracy, at least a step forward. The advice that a diplomat of a superpower gave to the powerful circles was also conveyed to us journalists, and that was that we have advised our friends to definitely hold elections, whatever they may be. Big names like Mujibur Rahman Shami and humble people like me were of the same opinion that elections should be held in any case, as this will end the imprisonment, start a new journey of democracy and open new paths. It is a different matter that the Muslim society has not yet been able to recover from the fall of Dhaka, the fall of Baghdad and the fall of Granada. How will it recover from February 8? Unless lessons are learned from the mistakes of the past and efforts are made to improve the future, a stone thrown into stagnant water creates turbulence within the banks and loses its strength. Any advice given today has become like a stone that creates a few waves and then falls asleep eternally. Stagnant water remains stagnant at its current level.

Was there any rigging on February 8? Was there rigging only in Punjab or in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa? How much rigging was there? All these questions are on everyone’s minds, but if the PTI did not get power at the center in the February 8 election, it did get it in Pakhtunkhwa. Before February 8, it was only in the opposition. Now it has achieved official opposition status at the center as well. Its leader of the opposition enjoys official privileges. The agenda in the National Assembly and Senate is set with their advice. They are a regular part of the current state system. They may be treated like stepchildren, but no one can deny their kinship. The government and the elite are also forced to accept their status. If there is any security issue, their representatives are also present in the meeting. It may not be an ideal situation, but still, all this has been possible only because of the “rigged” elections of February 8. As if the situation after February 8 is much better than the situation before February 8.

On the other hand, the Shahbaz government is celebrating February 8 as its anniversary. It is celebrating its one-year performance today as a celebration and is rightly claiming that the country’s economic condition has improved. This is the first political step of the Shahbaz government after a full year, otherwise it would have forgotten politics and got lost in the maze of government corridors, although the reason for the government it has got is solely politics. Governments are a mirage, while politics is a reality. Whatever government is formed by forgetting or neglecting the people, its foundations remain weak.

To move forward from February 8, it is important for both the government and the opposition to remember this lesson that both the government and the opposition are riding in a democratic vehicle and both are wheels of the same vehicle. If one wheel does not work properly, the vehicle will not be able to move forward. Even if the negotiations fail, the negotiations should not be terminated. The PTI has the right to hold rallies but it has no right to close cities. The government is shooting itself in the foot by imposing restrictions on freedom of opinion and expression. All this is being written in its record. It will have to account for it in the coming tomorrow. Recently, an organization has conducted a new survey in which an attempt has been made to assess the political trends one year after February 8. This survey shows that even today Imran Khan is the most popular as a personality, Nawaz Sharif is in second place. However, this survey has also revealed a surprising fact that the performance of the Punjab government is in first place and the performance of the Sindh government is in second place, which is at least 12 points lower. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is even further behind. It is being said that the interference of the ruling party in Punjab is the least, the most in the center and then in the rest of the provinces. According to these sources, perhaps the reason for this is the excellent merit and performance in Punjab. Punjab is given a complete free hand in cabinet formation and planning. The objectors raise the point that the Punjab government has started more than 80 new projects and initiatives, all of which will be difficult to implement and complete. The answer is that Punjab will receive a huge amount of 1100 billion next year. If such a large budget is available, then even a hundred projects can be completed.

Finally, it is submitted that developed nations did not develop in a day, they too have taken one inch, one step forward and reached the destination of development in centuries. Making leaps, talking about revolution or changing everything overnight may sound good, but they are not feasible. The destination will be achieved only by taking one step at a time, therefore even today, if we do not take a step forward, if we do not determine the direction, the path will start to get lost. Determine the direction, the journey will start to get lost. The direction is clear, democracy and a welfare state, if we take just one step, hope will come.