| January 17, 2002 | Thursday | Ziqa’ad 2, 1422 |
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Export of houbara bustard
Clinton on terrorism
Sentenced for corruption
Sidetracking the real issues
Bold decisions
Bonus shares
Training of city government officials
Computer science at SSC level
Postal department’s performance
Vajpayee’s statement
Zoological Gardens
Refugees in Australia
Chicken-feed instead of F-16
Aggressive response to peace-walk
PLEASE refer to a Thatta report in Dawn (Jan 13) about “historians” claiming in a moot that Jhirruk (and not Karachi) was Quaid-i-Azam Jinnah’s birthplace.
As a researcher and writer on the Quaid-i-Azam’s life, I had refuted the Jhirruk claim when it erupted in Dawn’s columns during Mr Abdullah Shah’s Chief Ministership of Sindh, and neither he nor the then Sindh Governor, Mr Kamal Azfar acceded to the demand of some MPAs of Thatta for building a Jinnah birthplace monument at Jhirruk with a government grant.
Quaid-i-Azam Jinnah, all through his lifetime, declared Karachi as his birthplace in hugely-attended public meetings in Karachi, particularly in 1938 and 1942, in his many passports, many other official documents etc.
Sindh’s famous writer and historian, the late Mr G. Allana, who knew far more about the history and origins of the followers of the Isna Ashri sect in Sindh than his present namesake, declared Karachi as the birthplace of the Quaid-i-Azam in his well-researched book, “Quaid-i-Azam Jinnah: The story of a nation” (Ferozsons, Lahore, 1967).
Not a single biography of the Quaid-i-Azam in English or Urdu, published during his lifetime, ever mentioned Jhirruk as his birthplace; Karachi was mentioned as the city of his birth.
Instead of good newspaper space being wasted on the dubious Jhirruk claim, its protagonists should file a suit against the Government of Pakistan in the Sindh High Court for having declared decades ago Wazir Mansion on Newnham Road in Karachi as a national monument, protected and preserved by the government as Mr Jinnah’s birthplace. The flat in which Mr Jinnah was born to Mithibai in 1876 was later absorbed in the larger Wazir Mansion Complex, as it now stands as a government-protected place, and a marble plaque in the room in which he was born adorns this historic room.
The Sindh High Court is now the proper place for the Jhirruk protagonists to prove their allegation that the Quaid-i-Azam was wrong in saying that he was born in Karachi (and not Jhirruk).
QUTUBUDDIN AZIZ
Karachi
THIS is with reference to Mubarak Zeb Khan’s report, “Probe against Customs Men” (January 11).
I wish to point out that the houbara bustard which winters in Pakistan is on a rapid decline, and is, therefore, listed in the appendices of two conventions,— the Convention of Migratory Species (CMS) and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). Since the government of Pakistan is a signatory to both these conventions, the houbara bustard is a protected bird.
Permission to export the houbaras is unthinkable without reference to the two conventions and cannot be granted except for scientific purposes for a reason specifically endorsed on an import/export permit. Even for scientific purposes, just a few birds (about five or six) would be allowed, not by the hundreds.
Strangely, the government of Pakistan recently permitted a Saudi prince to export 200 houbaras to his country.
I hope Mr Mubarak will be curious enough to find out and disclose if the so-called ‘valid NOC’ for exporting these birds was issued after fulfilling the CMS and CITES requirements.
LT COL (Rtd) ERNEST SHAMS
Lahore
MR Clinton, in his very evocative lecture from the BBC on the current world scene with reference to the fight against terrorism, raised some very valid concerns for the free world to ponder Jan 14). Incidentally, none of these concerns have yet crossed the mind of the US president.
His analogy of how we liked to organize our lives in little boxes for men, women, British, Americans, Muslims, Christians, Jews, etc, was very perceptive. He implied that we would have to come out from behind these walls — “we can make the world of our dreams for our children, but since it will be a world without walls, it will have to be home for all our children”.
He also claimed that just before leaving office, he had put up a Middle East peace plan which Israel had accepted but the PLO had rejected.
The Mitchel Report made the minimum demands on Israeli withdrawal, no further settlements and an appropriate solution of the Jerusalem problem. This was acceptable to the PLO but not to Israel. Mr Clinton’s peace plan obviously must have offered much more to Israel for it to accept it, and much less to the PLO for them to reject it.
I would request Mr. Clinton to come out of the ‘American/Israel’ box, to analyze the issue fairly and impartially.
KHURSHID ANWER
Lahore
Congo’s former president Pascal Lissouba and four ministers were sentenced to 30 and 20 years respectively on December 28, 2001 for corruption. Moreover, a collective fine of $ 340 million was imposed along with the freezing of their foreign bank accounts.
Their crime was the signing between Lissouba and Occidental Petroleum (Oxy)—an American oil giant—of an agreement which awarded to Oxy the rights to Congolese oil at $ 3 a barrel when the market price at the time was $ 14. The Congolese court also termed this corruption as high treason. This is certainly as it should be.
The Congo did not succumb to foreign pressure. We did in the case of Hubco.
S. I. WASTI
Lahore
PRESIDENT Musharraf’s recent televized address is an attempt to please the West and divert the nation’s attention from real issues like price hike, corruption, black-marketing, nepotism, jobbery, unemployment and absence of democracy.
The president skipped the real issues facing the nation and the agenda fixed by him. He did not utter a word about elections.
The president dumped both Jaish Muhammad and Lashkar-i-Taiba under instructions from the US. If the government had any proof against them, it should have gone to court.
S.A. KHOKHAR
Lahore
President Musharraf has shown exemplary courage to take the Pakistani nation to a new threshold. Such bold decisions are rare in these difficult times. I wish and pray that the people of Pakistan stand behind him in this hour. I also pray that the Indian leadership rises to the occasion and works to reduce tension.
Let us all resolve to solve the Kashmir issue in a cordial atmosphere, taking into consideration the viewpoints of all concerned.
COL (R) KARAMINDER SINGH
Patiala, India
THE government has recently imposed a 10 per cent withholding tax on the issuance of bonus shares. On account of this, small shareholders are facing great difficulty.
The companies issuing bonus shares to their shareholders, are demanding payment of withholding tax in the shape of Demand Draft or Pay Order. The small shareholders have to bear additional expenses for getting the Demand Draft or Pay Order from the banks.
Hence I appeal to the government to withdraw the withholding tax on bonus shares. It would also serve as an incentive for saving.
MOHAMMAD NAZAKAT ALI
Karachi
RECENTLY elections were held to various committees constituted by the City Government of Karachi, Hyderabad, etc. Members of these committees are the City Council members, who have been elected in in-house elections. These committees will oversee diverse functions so as to cover all areas in the purview of the city governments all over Pakistan. For each committee the scope of operations appears to be very wide.
The City Council members come from different walks of life and will have diverse background. While some may be highly qualified, the others may not be so proficient in formal education. They may have a lot of practical experience. It is possible that some of the members may have educational background / qualification and work experience pertaining to the task of the particular committee. But the majority of the members are expected not to be familiar with the variety of work so that they might find themselves in an odd situation.
It is felt that as the members will for the first time be exercising city government powers, they need guidance and training so as to be able to perform well and make the best use of financial and human resources of the city. Our cities have limited resources and it is imperative that the resources are used to get the best value for the money. There is no scope for experimentation or leniency. For sterling performance, the City Council members need to be provided training in the art of governance.
The committees can be said to be the middle level forums for decision-making. The committee members on the one hand will oversee the activities and functions of the city government employees and on the other, inter-act with the federal government, the provincial government, the business community and a large number of utilities and institutions. Therefore, the members are to have fair knowledge of modern management, finance, accounting, team work and meetings, dispute resolution, recruitment and promotions, award and monitoring of contracts, familiarity with the GOP policies, rules of business, etc. They may note that through the city government process they are stepping into shoes of those civil servants who were well educated and were groomed for the types of work under discussion. Training will help equip them with relevant knowledge / know-how and thus they will conduct the business of the committees with more confidence.
Short and special courses designed to impart relevant broad knowledge in various disciplines can be useful for the members, NIPA, IBA and other institutes imparting professional training can be very helpful in this regard. Short courses covering the broad principles in areas listed above may be used as a beginning. Later, specialized courses with more detailed work can be arranged for specified committees. Orientation to the work earlier done by similar committees or the departments responsible / authorized to undertake similar functions in provincial government or civic / development authorities can also be helpful.
Pitfalls and complaints in such work in the past can be listed for future guidance. Extensive training at NIPA and other academies may also be considered later. Let us help train and prepare our elected members to better manage the affairs of the city government.
MUHAMMAD BASHIR CHAUDHRY
Karachi
THE Federal Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education, Islamabad, has included computer science in its syllabus at the SSC level. Many government schools affiliated to FBISE Islamabad have acquired computers and started teaching computer science at the SSC level.
The Federal Ministry of Science and Technology is likely to provide 50,000 computers to secondary schools in Islamabad and Azad Kashmir, according to a news item. This is a good step to promote computer science in view of the importance of information technology in our daily life.
The Federal Ministry of Education and other concerned authorities are requested to provide the government high schools in Northern Areas affiliated to the Federal Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education, Islamabad, with computers to start teaching of computer science at the SSC level.
At present many students at the SSC level in the high schools of Northern Areas face difficulty in taking up computer science at the HSC level after passing the SSC exam without computer science as a subject.
SALEEM JAN
Hunza, Northern Areas
THIS refers to Qazi Nazim Naeem’s letter about the postal department (Jan 13).
I sent bank drafts for US $2790 and $3280 through Camp Post Office No. 2102 Karachi under a registered cover (Receipt No. 1036 of May, 1997) which never reached my daughter who was then studying in Oklahoma City University. What an agony that was.
Again I sent a cheque for $2600 to my son at Karachi, correctly addressed, and duly registered under Receipt No. 77452353 109 dated 9th January, 1998 at Post Office No. 230506 ILE BIZARD, Province of Quebec, H9C 2HO Canada, that was also pilfered just short of its destination. It landed with some racketeers in Karachi who criminally altered its amount to US $4650, cleverly advanced the last digit of its machine number, changed its date of issue and name of the beneficiary and presented the same at a bank Karachi on 20th January 1998 for payment.
The then Chief Justice of Sindh High Court took notice of the matter upon publication of my letter on February 1998 and ordered an inquiry whose findings were not communicated to me. However, Canada Post paid without hassle $60 as compensation for the lost registered letter.
I have recently noticed an encouraging change in Pakistan’s Post. I sent cheques for Rs 2000 each to Ansar Burney Welfare Trust, Leprosy Patients Welfare Trust, Society for Welfare of Patients, Urology and Transplant, Karachi and to my parent unit located at Akora Khattak, NWFP, through normal post, during the month of Ramazan and none was pilfered.
In North America cheques for payment of utility bills, tax etc. are sent through normal post and none is lost or misplaced. I only wish and pray that we, as well, adopt the finer points of the West.
LT COL (R) SYED AHMED
Karachi
ACCORDING to a report (Jan 1), Indian Prime Minister Vajpayee at the end of his article on the New Year’s day, addressed Pakistan thus: “Shed your anti-Indian mentality and take effective steps to stop cross-border terrorism, and you will find India willing to walk more than half the distance to work closely with Pakistan to resolve, through dialogue, any issue, including the contentious issue of Jammu and Kashmir”.
Who caused the anti-India mentality in Pakistan? Nehru, the first Prime Minister of India. Why? Because he was not reconciled to the emergence of Pakistan as an independent state and therefore suffered from an anti-Pakistan mentality.
Regarding the anti-Indian mentality, one cannot but feel that Mr Vajpayee has put the cart before the horse. If the Kashmir issue is resolved through dialogue among the leaders of India, Pakistan and Kashmir the question of anti-Indian mentality will not arise and the two countries will work towards improving their respective economy.
JALAL AHMED
Karachi
READING the letter by Shahid Qadri (Jan 1), where he wrote that the authorities are not permitting the use by the public of a beautifully made baradari declared to be for the use of public as the public will damage the baradari if it is used by them, reminded me of a true anecdote which I would like to share with the readers.
Back in my student days at the American University of Beirut I was quite lenient in giving loans to my fellow students and consequently I was short of cash and could not buy an umbrella. It was winter and it was raining almost daily. Somehow I persuaded one of many friends to purchase an umbrella. I did succeed in my efforts.
He purchased the item and as we were coming out of the store it started raining heavily. I therefore naturally expected him to open his umbrella and when I asked him to use it his reply was “open it and spoil my new umbrella?”
I hope the Karachi City Government will be wiser.
KHALID QURESHI
Karachi
THIS is with reference to a news item reported by Richard C. Poddock on this subject (Jan 12). It is terrible how the Australian government is dealing with refugees, specially the children, in their detention centres.
Where are the human rights organizations?
KAMAL DANISH
Karachi
IT was shocking news to learn that Pakistan has reportedly received a huge consignment of soybean meal for chicken feed from the USA, against the F-16 payment made in advance. I believe that a similar deal was made earlier, too, during the Nawaz Sharif government, but was foiled when leaked out.
One fails to understand the circumstances under which the present deal has been agreed to, especially given the Indian war threat. One should keep in mind that the USA is the biggest producer of soybean and whenever it is unable to sell it out or dispose it off under the pretext of Aid or PL 48, then the commodity is usually dumped into the sea.
Will the ministries of Defence and Agriculture enlighten us on this subject ?
DR A.A. QURESHI
Karachi
IT was a peace-walk organized on Jan 7 evening by the Joint Action Committee for Peace at Hasan Square Karachi. But armed personnel from the law-enforcement agencies scuffled with the peaceful demonstrators. Arrests were made. Placards were torn and banners confiscated.
A heavy contingent hounded the demonstrations across the streets. How strong? The walk was meant to symbolize popular opposition to war in the subcontinent, the senselessness of nuclear weapons, and the basic right of our people to health and education.
Such blatant abuse of power, as at the walk, only reinforces public distrust of the police. And this lack of decency is prevalent not only amongst the lower tiers of the force. Officers were more to blame than any constable. They abused the demonstrators in every way conceivable. Given the largely female presence at the meeting, their demeanour was appalling. Controlling a crowd of placard wielding peaceful citizens with lathis and abuse is not the done thing in any civilized part of the world.
The pro-peace agenda of the government belies the reality in the city street. When force is used to crush a peace demonstration at home, it is hard for one to visualize a dovish external front.
The constitution and our fundamental rights lie in abeyance. Peaceful public protests and gatherings stand outlawed. Why should we not express ourselves when we feel the need to? A half-hearted local government and brave plans for a controlled future are certainly no compensation for the basic human right to express oneself. It is about time the new dispensation realized that.
DR MUZAFFAR HUSAIN
Forum for Peace and Development
Karachi
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