Had there been some global competition related to speedy lawmaking, Pakistan might well have earned some sort of a record by now. But there is none, and there is a reason why no such contest exists anywhere in the world. Simply put, speed tends to compromise legislative efficiency. In a theatre of haste, every procedural pause becomes a potential inconvenience, and every voice of caution is taken as a minor irritation to those pushing for a constitutional amendment. The political choreography we are witnessing today is no different.
The amazing speed at which the whole thing has unfolded has given civil society, legal experts and the citizens little time to digest or debate the proposals. Speed in governance is necessary only when balanced with scrutiny, transparency and accountability — qualities that have historically been in short supply.
At the heart of our tendency to rush lies an uncomfortable truth: while the legislature and ruling coalition wrestle in parliament, millions of Pakistanis continue to grapple with poverty, joblessness, a fragile economy, worsening air pollution, failing public institutions, and diseases.
According to World Bank reports, the poverty rate is surging again in Pakistan, with nearly one-in-three households getting tipped into the zone of vulnerability, reversing relative progress made over the last few years. Unemployment remains persistent, while public health systems are stretched thin, battling outbreaks of dengue and other vector-borne diseases in flood-affected regions. In the meantime, Pakistan lags in human development, its passport ranks among the weakest globally, and all public institutions continue to underperform.
The argument that reform is urgent is hardly disputed by anyone, but the haste being shown demands that such acceleration be matched by prioritisation of the many ground-level crises, and not merely structural rearrangements at the very top.
MAJID BURFAT
KARACHI
