Political debates are pretty common in our country. Usually, they’re about “who is better for Pakistan.” Rarely do they focus on “what is better for Pakistan.” If we look at the manifestos of all political parties, military rulers, and even caretakers, we’ll find a few common themes: education, poverty alleviation, increasing exports, stronger defense, more jobs, and fighting corruption. But if we dig deeper into their hidden agendas, it all comes down to one question: “How do I come into power and how do I stay in power forever?”
My point is that none of these published or unpublished manifestos, really serve Pakistan because they fail to answer one crucial question: “Who has given us the right to rule?” This question matters because we are accountable to whoever gave us that right.
In the Quran, Allah says:
…Allah gives His kingship to whom He wills. (2:247)
This means that Allah gives us the right to rule, making the rulers accountable to Allah and Allah alone. Not to the establishment or judiciary. Not to the various mafias in real estate, agriculture, retail, or sugar. Not to the various superpowers or ‘brotherly’ Arab countries. Not even to the people of Pakistan. The rulers are accountable to Allah and Allah alone. And the reason that the right to rule is given by Allah, is to implement the laws that He has mentioned in the the Quran and Sunnah.
This important factor is not just ignored by our ruling elite but also by us. We too have been given a right to rule—a right to rule over our families, homes, and employees. And most importantly, a right to rule our own lives. We too are required to implement the laws of Allah in the domains that are given under our control.
The real change will come in our lives and our country when we accept this one important fact: Our lives, our children, our money, our fame, our rules, are all given by Allah and Allah alone. And they have been given to us for a reason, which is to implement the dos and don’ts as specified by Allah in the domains that we rule over. Have we done so? And if not, what right do we have to criticize someone who has not implemented them? What right do we have to criticize the rulers of our country? In Pakistan, implementing the laws of Islam is not difficult. In fact, they are quite easy and facilitative. If we still have not implemented these laws or agreed to implement them, then as far as I am concerned, we have no right to criticize anyone else, be it our neighbors, friends, or even our political elite. Everyone is busy disobeying Allah, and we are Everyone.