Pakistan minister says governance has ‘collapsed’; warns united ‘cockroaches’ can ‘turn everything upside down’

Pakistan Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi has described the country’s governance system as “collapsed” and called for sweeping constitutional reforms, including the creation of new administrative units, while warning that a united Generation Z could “turn everything upside down,” according to a Times of India report.

Addressing the Pakistan Economic Summit 2026 in Islamabad on Thursday, Naqvi said Pakistan’s decades-old governance model had failed to deliver justice, economic opportunity and effective public services. He argued that decentralisation and the emergence of new political leadership were essential to pull the country out of recurring political and economic crises.

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“Whether you agree or not, the system we have been living under has collapsed,” Naqvi said, adding that repeated attempts to fix the country’s problems within the existing framework had failed.

He called on political parties to come together and negotiate a comprehensive reform agenda, saying Pakistan would remain stuck in the same cycle unless its governance structure was fundamentally overhauled.

“The solution is only one. You will have to take administrative units, provinces or whatever you may call it, to the public,” he said, arguing that new provinces would improve governance by giving local communities greater ownership and allowing fresh political leadership to emerge.

Naqvi, who described himself as “the biggest supporter” of democracy, said democratic governance could take different institutional forms and Pakistan should not remain tied to a model that had underperformed for decades.

According to the report, he also criticised policy failures, pointing out that Pakistan continued to import agricultural commodities despite being an agrarian economy. While praising Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s work ethic, Naqvi said the government remained trapped in “firefighting” rather than pursuing structural reforms.

Turning to the country’s youth, the interior minister said young Pakistanis were seeking merit-based jobs and equal opportunities instead of welfare schemes or financial assistance.

“We think giving youngsters stipends of a few thousand rupees a month or tablets will make them happy. Their only demand is merit-based jobs and employment opportunities,” he said, adding that Pakistani youth had the potential to earn between $2,000 and $4,000 a month if provided the right opportunities.

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Referring to a term that has recently gained attention following student protests in India, Naqvi said, “If these ‘cockroaches’ get united, they can turn everything upside down,” warning against ignoring growing frustration among young people.

He also urged Pakistan’s business community to take a more active role in politics instead of merely funding political parties, and raised concerns over the country’s mounting debt burden, saying governments continued to borrow without addressing structural weaknesses.

“Leaders know the problems, but unless they sit together and implement reforms, the country will remain in the same condition,” he said.

With inputs from TOI