Muhammad Hanif’s Satirical Take on Pakistan’s ‘Hybrid Political System,’ Calls Mohsin Naqvi Its ‘Engine’
ISLAMABAD: Analyst and writer Muhammad Hanif has offered a satirical analysis of Pakistan’s current political system, describing it as a “hybrid political system” in which, he said, key decisions are made behind closed doors while politicians, the bureaucracy, judiciary and media are used to carry out functions similar to those once performed by clerks of the Nawabs.
In his commentary for the BBC, Hanif compared Pakistan’s political arrangement to hybrid vehicles that operate on both petrol and electricity. He said that, similarly, decisions in Pakistan are made elsewhere while political figures and state institutions are left to implement them.
According to Hanif, if there is an “engine” at the centre of this hybrid system, it is Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi. He noted that the police, prisons and Rangers fall under Naqvi’s authority, while his responsibilities also include the Pakistan Cricket Board, given the country’s strong interest in cricket.
Referring to a recent statement by Naqvi, Hanif said the interior minister generally speaks little, but recently remarked that the “system has collapsed.” Hanif said Naqvi’s statement also appeared to convey a message to the country’s political leadership that the military leadership had effectively put the world at their disposal, yet they were still unable to manage the country.
ਪਾਕਿਸਤਾਨ ਦੇ ਸਿਆਸੀ ਨਿਜ਼ਾਮ ਅਤੇ ਮੋਹਸਿਨ ਨਕਵੀ ਦੇ ਬਿਆਨ ਬਾਰੇ ਸੀਨੀਅਰ ਪੱਤਰਕਾਰ ਅਤੇ ਲੇਖਕ ਮੁਹੰਮਦ ਹਨੀਫ਼ ਦੀ ਟਿੱਪਣੀ
(ਇਹ ਲੇਖਕ ਦੇ ਨਿੱਜੀ ਵਿਚਾਰ ਹਨ)#Pakistan #mohsinnaqvi #Imrankhan pic.twitter.com/gLU5caOWBP— BBC News Punjabi (@bbcnewspunjabi) August 9, 2026
Hanif observed that talk of new political leadership in Pakistan was not new, noting that younger generations of the Sharif and Bhutto families had already emerged in politics. However, he said Naqvi’s political rise had been comparatively rapid.
He said that only a few years ago, Naqvi was primarily known in journalistic circles, after which he became caretaker chief minister of Punjab and later reached the position of federal interior minister.
Hanif further claimed that Naqvi now appeared to be present wherever major decisions concerning the country’s future were made behind closed doors. He said the system itself was now acknowledging that it had collapsed and that something needed to be done, while the public had also been repeatedly saying that the system had failed.
The analyst described the current government as the “debris” of the collapsed system, saying people were feeling its failure because its consequences had fallen directly on them.
Hanif warned that if the hybrid political system continued, Pakistan’s political conditions could remain unchanged for a prolonged period. However, he said the outcome of previous attempts to introduce new political leadership should also be examined.
He concluded by suggesting that if the system had indeed collapsed, those ruling over its remains would ultimately bear responsibility for its condition.
