WHY is Inflation not falling despite a continuous decline in petrol prices? Petrol prices have been falling consistently, yet inflation refuses to come down. Why is that? The biggest reason behind Pakistan’s persistently rising inflation can be traced back to a decision made nearly twenty-five years ago. After taking power, General Pervez Musharraf established an institution called the National Reconstruction Bureau, much like Field Marshal Ayub Khan had created new administrative structures during his rule. The Bureau was headed by the retired General Tanveer Naqvi. He recommended that one of Pakistan’s major governance problems stemmed from the Commissionerate System. Consequently, the system was abolished. However, while the Commissionerate System was dismantled, no effective mechanism was created to fill the institutional vacuum that followed. In effect, the backbone of the state was broken, leaving the administrative structure significantly weakened. Once the civilian administrative system was dismantled, the entire governance framework began to unravel. Tasks that a magistrate could once accomplish almost instantly now require the attention of the Prime Minister or the Chief Minister before any meaningful action can be taken.

This happened because the executive arm of the state was effectively decapitated. The police and other law enforcement agencies........

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