The Public Pillared Republic
- The actual security of Pakistan lies in its citizens; it remains at stake so long as they are. No matter how strong traditional national security is, it is impossible to have security when millions of people are scuffling it out to have access to basic rights. Once the state fulfils its basic obligation to preserve and enrich its ordinary citizens, Pakistan will come out stronger, tougher, and verily secure.
The modern nation-states appeared as the answer to the struggle of humanity against chaos and conflicts. Kinship and primal loyalty were the forms of survival in early human history, but as the societies expanded, so did the conflicts. In the absence of central power, there was violence, injustice, and lawlessness, which Hobbes referred to as the war of all against all. In order to get out of this chaos, communities eventually developed organized governance in the form of chieftainships and then kingdoms, where leaders offered security in exchange for loyalty. In the course of the development of human civilization, the shortcomings of chieftainships and kingdoms were revealed. There arose the necessity to have a sovereign authority with a defined population, territory and validity to enforce order, justice and protection of general welfare. By the Treaty of Westphalia (1648), the modern state was institutionalised as the sovereign political unit, with religious wars in Europe coming to an end in acknowledgement of sovereign territorial authority. This landmark solidified the position of the state as the enforcer of the peace, protector of collective welfare, the adjudicator of the law and the protector of stability in society, which has been the core of its existence to date.
The government of Pakistan celebrates macroeconomic successes: increased GDP, optimism on the economy and enhanced remittances as positive developments. However, common people experience a starkly different reality. There is a lack of justice and rule of law where the elites in the country avoid any checks and the common people suffer inefficient and corrupt services. Economic security is a myth among the people, where abysmal socio-economic indicators and inflated utility bills are overpowering households. As the officials celebrate national milestones, the struggle to survive at the micro-level remains unabated, revealing a distressing gap between the narratives pushed by the officialdom and the actual ground realities that the people of Pakistan have to painfully endure.
Pakistan spearheaded the development of its National Security Policy (NSP) 2022-26, which has a new historic shift that states the security of Pakistan lies in the security of its citizens. This citizenry-focused strategy helps to understand that national security is not only about frontiers but also about the stability of the economy, sound law enforcement, healthcare and the dignity of common Pakistanis. This policy was built on consultations with diverse think tanks, and it is boldly linked to the traditional defence and human security everything including education, climate resilience and so on. Although the vision put forward by the NSP was excellent, its execution is still in doubt. Public trust is degraded by weak governance and dismal public services. To secure sustainable security in Pakistan, the state has to go beyond mere rhetoric and make sure that its policies turn into actual protection for its citizens.
Despite governmental assertions, these are a few facts and figures that tell volumes about the current situation. Pakistan is ranked 168th among 192 as per the Human Development Index (HDI) 2024-25 (UNDP Report). It was ranked 164 in 2024, its non-improvement in HDI due to a lack of growth in health, education and living standards. There is 8 percent unemployment (IMF, 2025)-millions of Pakistanis and, in particular, educated people have no prospects. Poverty is still high, with 44.7 percent of the population (approximately 110 million people) (WB 2025). Outrageously 25.3 million children age 0-16 are still out of school (NFE report 2023-24) and reports by various bodies noticed almost 40 percent of under-five children are stunted, meaning a child born in Pakistan today is likely to be just 40 percent as productive as he/she would have been at age 18 unless there are turns in human capital outcomes. Moreover, Healthcare remains in a gruesome situation, with a single doctor to 1,300 people (WHO 2024), which is far below the international average. Furthermore, only 39 percent of the population has access to safe water, claimed the Director of Global Programmes at Human Concern International (HCI). In the World Economic Forum (WEF) Global Gender Gap Report 2025, the report about gender equality across key dimensions like economy, education, health, and politics, Pakistan is ranked last amongst 148 countries. Pakistan is rated as the third worst among 142 countries concerning law and order, and got an overall 129th position in the ranking report by the World Justice Project (WJP, 2024) Rule of Law Index, with delayed trials, corruption, and weaker accountability. Weak governance, poor management of the economy, and failed policies have negated any gains, with the citizens scrambling for basic rights.
In conclusion, these facts are of course, not only figures, but they symbolize failed plans and broken promises. The actual security of Pakistan lies in its citizens; it remains at stake so long as they are. The vision of National Security Policy, which is citizen-centric, should no longer have a rhetorical dimension, but should be taken as a practical reality. No matter how strong traditional national security is, it is impossible to have security when millions of people are scuffling it out to have access to basic rights -food, healthcare, education, and justice. The only way is to reprioritise its citizens as the primary concern of each of its policies. This is not lost hope, though. Pakistan has the opportunity to reverse challenges by revisiting the NSP with quantifiable goals, enhancing accountability, and upgrading human capital. Citizen-centric policy is the only way to achieve a secure future – the difference between policy and lived reality. Once the state fulfils its basic obligation to preserve and enrich its ordinary citizens, Pakistan will come out stronger, tougher, and verily secure.
