A Hybrid System

Naseebullah Khan;
Political scientists refer to a hybrid system to such type of a democratic system where it lacks true democratic values and where authoritative arm tactics are used__which makes it half democracy and half authoritarianism. In a hybrid system, the democratic setup has basic ingredients of democracy like constitution, election, legislative, administration, media, civil society, and legislature but the system is run on the foot fronts of authoritarianism. It has also been named as a defective system or competitive authoritative regime. In a true liberal democracy, the values of democracy are implemented with true spirit. There has always been human rights protection, true accountability, constitutionalism, the supremacy of parliament, the safeguard of freedom of media, and the absence of military interference in politics. In a hybrid system despite the existence of institutions, they are not allowed to function properly. Numerous obstacles are created so that to hinder the smooth running of the institutions which lead the country towards a huge administrative crisis. For instance, in the presence of Parliament, it is bypassed and most important issues are not debated where the legislature further becomes a rubber stamp. The most important tools in a hybrid system are the election commission, the accountability bureau, and the administration. The elections are rigged through (electoral authoritarianism according to Jonathan Morse) election commission and bypass its fairness by electing those people who have been the blue eye of the hybrid regime__ who further amend the constitution controversially for their vested interests such as happened in Egypt when Abdel Fatah el_ Sisi, in Russia in the case of Vladimir Putin, and some Central Asian Countries heads used this tactic. Mr. Morse further says that electoral authoritarianism can be problematic for those who impose and retain them. Whereas the accountability bureau is used for political victimization and the administration is further used to silence the opponent’s voices through fake cases and other violent tactics. In the presence of these non-democratic tacts, the mantra of the same page (Military Establishment and the Government) becomes a political gimmick in a hybrid system. Yet. Generally, when a popular leader or even a political party wins the election, even though free and fair__once it comes into power, the party or the leader then amend the constitution for the elongation of its rule. This, we have seen in the case of Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey. When it comes to Pakistan, the lexicon of hybrid regimes surfaced after the formation of the PTI _led coalition government under Imran Khan. Is this government deserved to be called a hybrid regime? How can the use of authoritative power be justified in oppressing the opponents on the mantra of corruption, and how one can testify this government moves against silencing media? One thing is for sure that the policies of the incumbent government are far from that of a liberal democratic spirit. And in a country like ours, where mushroom growth of social media, political awareness, increasing middle class, and by and large, in the presence of vibrant media, the authoritative policies do not remain longer.