Rafiq Jan
Leadership is an art, learn it.
I feel squeamish about defacing the title of my article, by describing Pakistani political elites as leaders. I love my country like any other citizen of this universe. I feel ecstatic about its glories, and I grieve when it bleeds. Thee recent G-7 summit in Cornwall UK ,between June 11-13 , offered yet another opportunity for comparing those leaders with those in Pakistan. It left many lessons for the rulers of third world countries as how to advocate the cause of your people and have an eyeball to eyeball interaction to convey your message in a commanding style.
The summit meetings and final communique made considerable headlines across the global media . One reason for that was their collective initiative to Build Back a so-called Better World (B3W) to counter China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).
What makes them stand out in the crowd of dummies is the strength of character and propensity of their incisive nationalist bias. Despite being rivals, Biden and Putin got together in summit and strongly propagated their countries’ interests and defended it too. both of them emphatically proved their points to the counterparts to ensure they bring home the bacon for their people who chose them to the country’s top rank.
What makes Joe Biden stand out?
America is back, was Biden’s buzz phrase and strategy for his high- profile trip to G-7 summit. He started it with a meticulous homework which he executed well during each leg of his eight days tour and interactions with world leaders. He aptly flattered the audience for a buy-in to American strategy and the American vision of the world.
Prosperity and the possession of treasure troves are not enough to lead super powers. President Trump took the reins of his country when the economy was booming. His contributions consist of a further strengthening of the economy, mainly due to an ambitious multi-billions of dollars defense agreements with Gulf Arab states. But throughout his tenure and post elections 2020, it turned out that neither the most powerful leading nations respected him, nor about half of the United State citizens under his leadership.
Pitching the brand America.
Before embarking on his first European trip for the G-7, summit Biden had already wrapped up two significant and phenomenal achievements under his belt:
First, he ramped up anti covid-19 vaccination campaign so fast and so far to make the United States the first major country to join the post-pandemic club.
Secondly, he passed a massive $ 1.9 trillion relief bill to bolster the U.S economy and put it back on the pre-pandemic recovery track.
Biden’s approach to leadership has been “inside out” first, and then “outside-in”. He took “America is back” buzz phrase with him and pimped it during every interaction of his trip. He used his 40 years of experience in the U.S political arena to entice his European allies into buying-in the American approach on issues such as combating climate change, strengthening ties among G-7 states, deterring Russian aggression in different forms, and most importantly stepping up efforts to confront and contain both Russia and a rising China.
Biden knew that America is no longer a “shining city upon a Hill”. He rather used his 40 years of hands-on in U.S power politics, holding key positions, to persuade the world leaders to take heed and look up to America as a tower of democracy and global power.
He returned as a victor of respect and dignity for his countrymen. His wisdom and political smarts have already upped the approval ratings of America from pre-visit to post-visit status. He is well poised to capitalize upon his short-lived victory abroad to build a success platform at home. He has proved within the first half-year of his presidency that Americans can count on him as their emancipator and a north star in their darker times.
A feisty Putin touts Russian pride
The Russian economy may not be as strong as that of the U.S, but it is a country that spans 11 time zones, rich in uranium, oil, precious metals, the world’s largest nuclear arsenal and the mightiest in central Europe at this time.
Putin showed yet again how easily he can deny the predictability approach of the U.S unless it meets Moscow’s terms, prompting Olivier Knox, the Daily 202 political correspondent to write:
“It may be sort of the things Biden says will cost Russia prestige, Putin sees as making Moscow “relevant” and a power with which the west must reckon.”
His typical confidence and blasé demeanor was obvious as he confidently championed and defended the interests of his country. His confidence is predicated on the belief that that Moscow’s international status does not rest on One-On-One meetings with American presidents. He knew he has little to lose or gain because his country’s power lies in the “ability to reliably deter U.S military power” and being resilient to growing U.S political, economic, and financial pressure in the form of sanctions.
Pakistan’s allegories—-a striking contrast.
In Pakistan’s case, the Billionaires are the new kings who call the shots. Those greedy rich gradually turned Pakistan into a poor country where too much money in too few hands has torn the very fabric of the nation apart.
The chaos, dysfunction and insanity of the past several decades have taken a predictable toll. But put bluntly: Pakistan’s leadership slide is not just a domestic policy issue anymore; it is a foreign policy disaster too.
We have become a society that feels enlightened at the chaos and revels at violent protests taking place in parliament house where the country’s so-called lawmakers sit every day to brainstorm over the nation’s future. A society that dehumanizes itself cannot advocate the human rights. We love grooming the kids to take over the politics for the subjugation of the country as a family business. When a nation reaches this state of abjectness, it is just waiting for one individual to gaslight the entire nation.
Realization:
We can learn in these three ways:
From our own mistakes, from the mistakes those of others, and from the fortunes and misfortunes of our peers. And of those three I believe, the quickest and the most effective way to learn is to simply look at what others do that works, and “copy it”.
When you do not repair your house you end up paying a bigger bill—but chances are you may not be able to afford it by then.
The author is an aeronautical engineer, avid learner and a current affairs analyst.
