Status quo of the masses

Earlier this month BR Research's interview with UNDP's outgoing country director in Pakistan, Marc Andre, caught fire in Pakistan. The reason: his epic sound bite that questioned the country's elite. "Pakistan's elite needs to decide do they want a country or not," Marc fired away in his parting sit down with us. And thus began a nationwide elite bashing by newspaper columnists and TV anchors alike. But would elite-bashing turn this country into a better land?

Demonization of the elite almost always comes up in politically-correct conversations in drawing rooms and on the self-righteous social media. The irony is that even elites are miffed at each other. There is apparently a lot of blame to go around. But few elite bashers care to think that unless they are advocating the dreadful R word, which we know is "no garden party, nor bed of roses", any systematic change in the system will have to be brought about by the elite or at least with the help of the elite. Threatening the elite away will only result in loss of capital: financial, human, political, and diplomatic alike, affecting both farms and factories.

So if it's not the R word, then essentially we have to wait for the elite to reform and reset the game. But what motivations do the elite have to seek strategic alliances with the poor?

Some among Pakistan's economists and social science community say that the elite will eventually have to reform due to fears of a Tunisian trigger, with reference to the self immolation incident in Tunisia that kick started the Arab Spring. But so many people have already burned themselves in protest in Pakistan; and so many mothers have sold their newborns for as little as Rs17500, because they could not pay the bills.

If incidents like these didn't start the R word, then what will? Clearly, the poor didn't rise up when poverty was much higher in this country. Now when poverty is coming down, the poor cannot be more of a threat to the elite. This is perhaps why the elite are unperturbed, being quite cognizant of the status quo of the masses.

Others in the intellectual circle hope the elite would change on account of self interest. Referring to Canada's Silent Revolution, Marc too alluded to the notion that Pakistan's elite would have to lead the reform if it wants to ensure a consistent supply of buyers for the goods and service they produce, besides a consistent supply of good human capital to be able to produce goods and services and compete in global economy. Leading Pakistani economist, Dr Faisal Bari also recently told BR Research that elite will have to change for their own "self-preservation".

This sounds like a plausible motivation for the elite. However, two factors may prevent that motivation from sinking in. First, the many among the elite already have insurance policy by way of foreign nationalities and the proverbial Panama accounts. Second, the elite are not very happy competing with the global economy; hence they are happy raising barriers to free trade and selling sub-optimal quality of goods and services to the poor. In absence of competition, the elite will always have buyers for their sub-optimal goods.

So what then one could do to change the system? Instead of bashing the elite or waiting for the elite to turn over a new leaf on their own one fine day, it is better to find handful of champions within the elite and, with their help, work towards changing the status quo of the masses.

Instead of turning and revolting the masses against the elite, the masses need to be sensitised in demanding their rights, transparency, information, and equal opportunities in a manner that is peaceful and civilised. The supply of these public goods will not emerge one fine day; they have to be demanded albeit without anarchic means.

As for the handful of those elite who are bent on the R word, they should read about the story of Marquis de Condorcet and his appetite for dozen eggs. That story serves a good example of how revolution is no garden party; not for those revolted against, nor for the revolutionaries.