ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan said the elite’s capture of national resources and absence of the rule of law not only deprived the public of basic amenities but also kept the country from achieving its immense potential.
“The problem was the elite capture of resources which deprived the majority of proper healthcare, education and justice. Lack of rule of law is the reason why Pakistan had not achieved its potential,” the prime minister said in an online conversation with Hamza Yusuf, an American neo-traditionalist Islamic scholar, which aired Sunday.
President of Zaytuna College, the first accredited Muslim undergraduate college in Berkeley city of California state in the US, Yusuf has also authored several encyclopedia entries, academic papers, and articles on Muslim bioethics, legal theory, abortion, and other topics.
During the conversation, Khan said no society could ever achieve its potential if there is no rule of law.
“Merit is also associated with rule of law. If you do not have a meritocracy in a society, you have this elite which is spoiled, rich and which did not strive and struggle and they sit on the main positions.
Countries disintegrate because of a decadent elite. People do not decay it is the elite that decays,” he said.
The prime minister said the fundamental principle of a civilised society was the rule of law where the powerful is also equally answerable to the law.
The biggest problem in the developing countries is the absence of rule of law and discriminatory laws for the rich and the poor, he explained.
He told Yusuf he wanted to make Pakistan an Islamic welfare state to be based on the concept of the state of Medina by Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H.).
“We want to base this country on two principles. One it should be a welfare state and humane state which takes care of its bottom strata of society and second rule of law.”
Talking about the climate challange, he said the environment should be treated as sacred. The biggest environmental disaster in the world happened because nations deviated from the basic principle of protecting the earth.
Quoting a Hadith of the prophet that advised the people to “work for this world as if you will live forever and work for the hereafter as if you will die tomorrow”, the prime minister said whatever the nations would do today would ultimately have an impact on the future generations.
He said the Hadith had completely encompassed everything about the environment and how one should be living on earth, the prime minister said.
He said one would have to pursue a humane life if he or she wanted to get close to Allah.
Khan said the leadership that came up through the political system was just too divorced from faith so they came in for power and compromised for staying in power and gaining personal benefits.
“I find every few politicians coming with the specific objectives of looking after humanity. In most of the developing world, they come in power for self-interest and for making money.”
“Unfortunately, there were very few [Nelson] Mandelas who came in for a noble cause. Our great leader Jinnah who was the founder of Pakistan was someone who came for a great cause,” Khan noted.
He viewed that the politicians were looked down upon because they say they claimed to help the people but contrarily, they helped themselves, he added.
The prime minister said he came into politics because of his faith.
“I had everything. I was already a big name in the country as a sports star and I had enough money. So, for me struggling for 22 years to become the prime minister made no sense.
The only reason was I believed that I had a responsibility towards society because I was given more than others,” he added.
He said according to all religions, the human being would be tested based on the benefits and privileges given in life.
“I came into politics because I had faith and realised that I was so blessed, so had the responsibility towards society.”
He said he was not in politics to make personal gains or get the benefits of power.
“God has given us the power to struggle. Whether we succeed or not is not within our hands.”
When the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) set up the state of Medina, he unleashed the potential of the people who all became leaders, he commented.
He said after going outside Pakistan, people get a level playing field there and excel, he observed.
He said in Pakistan only one percent had access to quality education and others did not have opportunities.
“Winning the struggle in present-day Pakistan will unleash the potential of the people of Pakistan. And the second goal is to lift the people out of poverty.”
He said the government started the greatest welfare programmes in the country’s history.
Our objective was to lift people out of poverty, create wealth and spread it around and break the monopoly of the elite and mafias, he added.
He said true faith gave a person dignity and it gave liberation to a human being.
