Remodeling role models

Pulled a fast one. Beat the system. Left everybody standing. Got away again. What a cool con. These are some descriptors that hold our younger generation in awe and admiration. These are some actions that intrigue and obsess the onlookers. And, unfortunately these are the so-called "inspirations" available for those trying to move up in life. A society is shaped by the people that reach positions of success. These can be in business, academics, sports, philanthropy, politics, etc. They then become role models for others . A role model is someone who influences and leads others by example. Role models can help depict how we would like to fit into the world by shaping many of our behaviours and decisions. The collective behaviour of a community or society is shaped by the values preached and practiced by the role models. When we rue about what has happened to Pakistan, just look at people at the top. 3 times Ex-Prime Minister of Pakistan is "on the run". After enjoying the Premiership 3 times, becoming billionaire, convicted on multiple accounts of assets beyond means, he has left the country on medical grounds. While the courts are declaring him wanted and absconder, he is seen in UK enjoying a life on picnic.

Role models can be positive and negative. Which category will inspire more in a social system depends on who is being "classified" as successful. Most people aspire for success in terms of wealth, fame and power. If the success associated in these terms is attributed towards positive role models the likelihood of a value system that creates humane societies is more. If negative role models are in preponderance in a society and are "perceived" as "success" figures, negative values will become the norm in that society. This is especially true for the youth. They are impressionable and influenceable. Teen-age is always a rebellious age and they are looking to defy the norms. Being lectured at home on hard work, and honesty, when they see how these values bring no fruit around them, they quickly adopt the easy path of astray under the guise of declaring themselves as "misfits". Pakistani millennial generation of teens and tweens born in the 21st century has seen success models based on skillful duplicity due to:

1. Short Circuiting of Values-Social fabric of a nation is made of the set of value systems and norms believed and practiced by the majority. Time is practiced by the importance a society places on it. In the west, high value is placed on time and that makes them adhere to each minute as per commitment. In our country time has no value and is treated as such making the society lax, non-committal, and laid back. Role models have the power of changing attitudes, beliefs and behaviours. Pakistani society is facing a moral decay. The reason for this decay is the emergence of negative role models in the country. Success is defined by the values of the fastest short cuts in life. People with money, splashy houses, positions of power are mostly those who have become rich and richer without really putting too much effort. This "effortless" rise attracts young people. Political leaders, real estate tycoons and bureaucrats have all been blatant about their acceptability of wrongdoings. Cheating, lying, deceiving is all a code of conduct.

2. Rules and Laws that are malleable-To be corrupt is a respectable non-reproachable trait. Government officers with hardly Rs 100,000 as salaries have houses and cars that require a millionaire earning capacity. Nobody is bothered to be inquisitive about where the money is coming from. You see people attracted to their life-styles and wanting to be part of the approved group. Take the recent wedding of the daughter of one of the top politicians or the over-blown function of two top business groups in Lahore, gripped people's attention for weeks. Everybody aspired to be there. What happened to the FBR notices given to wedding planners, etc., who were paid in millions, etc., under the table is not even discussed. The real game is to either get into positions of power yourself or sponsor candidates in return for changes in rules and policies. The Sharifs when in power passed the Economic Reforms Act to whiten black money. This was done to hide the ill-gotten money which was purportedly transferred abroad through money laundering and brought back through accounts of minor employees. The money laundering laws were not tightened to facilitate their "stolen" money out of the country. This not only led to a huge black economy but Pakistan being placed on FATF's grey list.

3.Normalizing Corruption- When corruption becomes a norm, scams and scandals stop shuddering and shocking people. Hardly anybody was shocked when the then Prime minister Yousaf Raza Gillani gave the necklace donated for flood affected people by President Erdogan's wife to his own wife. Its value may be lower than many metro projects but it reflects horrific breach of trust, theft, deception. Similarly, refusing to pay toll tax on motorway is considered a "trivial" matter. These "Ok things" have led to a tradition of "speed money" to get things done, "service charges" for jumping the queue, "greasing" the palm for breaking the laws. The person whizzing past the red lights is considered normal and sensible and the person waiting on an empty street in front of a red light is considered crazy.

When a society becomes comfortably numb to value degradation, rule breaking, justice violation, it develops role models of criminals, con artists and smooth operators. That is the danger Pakistan is facing. That is the atmosphere in which our next generation is growing. That is when people like Ayyan Ali are invited by universities as chief guests. That is when Hamza Shahbaz goes to school and tells kids, corruption is ok.

We need to remodel "success". There is a desperate need to show "success" as integrity, as hard work paying off. That is why celebrating Olympians like Arshad Nadeem, Talha Talib is so important. That is why cases like the tragic horror story of Noor Mukaddam will tell a bigger tale. This case is a test case. A tale of two worlds. A tale either where the rich, powerful get away with murder or the tale where the powerless prevails over the powerful. A tale where the corrupt are not just temporarily behind bars only to escape abroad or that they are brought back and made to pay for their crimes. Whichever tale prevails will be the story the society will be telling emulating and living in the future.

(The writer can be reached at [email protected])

Copyright Business Recorder, 2021