| August 26, 2002 | Monday | Jamadi-us-Saani 16,1423 |
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Dual citizenship
Mangroves along Mai Kolachi
SME Bank’s lending policy
A liberal democracy
Breaking immigration laws
Delaying Senate Elections
Self-respect
O-level and SSC systems
Ridley to embrace Islam
KWSB’s responsibility
Medical college affairs
‘The truth about the lost decade’
However, those not enjoying the blessings of these political parties, or not having a prominent personality on their back to win favours for them, are actually being tested for competence.
AMERICA’S claim of more Al Qaeda elements in Pakistan than in the original theatre of war has understandably been rejected by Pakistan.
Commander of Coalition Forces in Afghanistan Lt-Gen Dan McNeill who seemed to see an abundance of Al Qaeda fighters who had fled to Pakistan, however, had no information on the exact number in both countries.
The American obsession with Al Qaeda and Taliban has been going on for too long and it is time to snap out of it. Far too many people are beginning to doubt the authenticity of the US position about its war on terror and see it as having a sinister purpose. It will be better if Washington smelt the air that it cannot take on an organization, which it believes has spread worldwide and succeed in eliminating it.
How long will United States continue to cry hoarse over Osama bin Laden and Al Qaeda? How can it eliminate each of the Al Qaeda members, whom it calculates in profusion?
Washington, instead of seeing Al Qaeda behind every incident, should now focus on issues which give rise to such organizations. The call for going solo against Iraq, its pro-Israel policy and the tirade against Saudi Arabia are some of the reasons behind the widespread hatred for the United States.
Washington will do well to rethink its policies and instead of spending huge amounts on military operations should utilize the resources to eradicate poverty and injustice from the world.
On the Pakistan front, while Interior Minister Moinuddin Haider rightly termed the US General’s information as wrong, he also needs to create conditions that will not give rise to such doubts.
Pakistan has already paid a high price for joining the War Against Terror with 10 troops killed while pursuing remnants of terror network.
The US General who appreciated the government’s efforts and realized the problems being faced by the Musharraf government in siding with the coalition, would have done better by not making exaggerated claims.
S. MUSTAFA
Karachi
Lt-GEN Dan McNeill, Commander of Coalition Forces, who is leading the campaign against Al Qaeda fighters in Afghanistan, has said there may now be more of the extremists operating in Pakistan than in the original theatre of war.
The US General said that his task has now become more complicated as the coalition does not have the right to conduct combat missions in Pakistan (Aug 12).
The General should update his information that Pakistan has completely sealed off its borders with Afghanistan and the question of Al Qaeda fighters crossing over into Pakistan does not arise.
If he assumes that Al Qaeda fighters have been hiding in the tribal areas of Pakistan, than he should very precisely indicate such locations so that appropriate action could be taken by our government.
However, if it is just an assumption, then he should not blame a country which is providing all sort of support to the Americans in Pakistan.
I would like to suggest the General not to assume too much about Al Qaeda men in Pakistan as it may not be good for his health.
SYED A. MATEEN
Karachi
IN response to A. S. Pingar’s letter ‘Dual citizenship and divided loyalty’ (Aug 23), I would like to mention as a Pakistani American who has returned home after 25 years and been working in Pakistan for the last three years that I agree with you in principle that this country and its institutions should be run by Pakistanis.
But observing the pathetic condition of their original motherland, some of the very conscious Pakistani patriots decided to come back and utilize here the knowledge and good governance skills acquired while working in big corporations and universities in the USA.
lf Pakistanis could have shaped up this country during the last 25 years, there was no need for us to return.
When Mr. Shaukat Aziz was selected as finance minister, I had asked a very senior Professor as to why was it so? Isn’t there a Pakistani economist who should have been given the chance? Her answer was, there are many, but in this country you cannot trust the leaders and that is the reason that a Pakistani from USA has been selected.
May be for a while, a few Pakistani Americans working in reputable institutions are required on a contract basis to improve the governance of several government and semi-government institutions and then they should be asked to go back. Some of us who have come back have no difficulty going back, but sitting trans-Atlantic and seeing your own house burning and not doing anything about it, is also painful.
When I had applied to some private institutions for a job, I had started receiving anonymous letters threatening me and asking me to go back. Pakistani intellectuals have to learn to trust and at the same time to do away with jealousy. This is the only way that Pakistan would be able to utilise returning Pakistanis for its own benefit.
DR MUMTAZ LAKHANI
Karachi
THIS refers to the letter by Mr A. Rehman concerning Mangroves Park along Mai Kolachi. He has regretted over the fact that no NGO has taken any action to protect the mangroves.
To set the record straight, we would like to submit humbly that Society for Conservation and Protection of Environment (SCOPE) took the destruction of mangrove area very seriously and after conducting fact-finding surveys and documentation, persuaded the KPT and its housing society not to remove the mangroves.
Correspondence with the authorities in this regard is on record. We also lodged an official complaint to the Sindh Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) and wrote letters to the Chief Justice of Sindh High Court for a suo motu action.
We finally took up the issue with Omar Asghar Khan who promised to put it up at a cabinet meeting in order to stop work on the controversial project.
Good news is that the mangroves have refused to die and they are still there growing up slowly. Let’s take care of them.
TANVEER ARIF
Karachi
THIS refers to the news item ‘Seat for SME Bank on Smeda board sought” (Aug 16). I agree with the convener of the UNISAME that quick and cheap finances should be arranged for the small and medium enterprises (SMEs) as the SME Bank created for the purpose does not seem to have devised the modus operandi for SME-specific financing.
The lending criterion and credit operation of the bank are far from being customer or SME-oriented. The cost of the loan and the documentation it involves along with the time factor, are a big problem for the person seeking the loan.
The exorbitant charges one is required to pay, include the case submission fee, that is paid to the bank; case processing fee, payable to the consultant; and property valuation fee, that is paid to the bank’s recommended valuer.
Once the loan is sanctioned an applicant has to pay the cost of stamping on the loan agreement papers, cost for obtaining legal opinion on the mortgage property to be paid to the bank’s authorized legal adviser, cost for mortgaging the property with the bank payable at the registrar’s office, insurance fee to be paid to the insurance company (again recommended by the bank).
A loan aspirant has to be in possession of 30-40 per cent equity of the loan amount. A mark up rate of 18-20 per cent further adds to the woes of the hard-pressed borrower of SME Bank.
With some planning and adjustment in the bank’s lending policy these charges can be brought down. For example, one fails to understand why at SME Bank a loan applicant is made to get his loan papers processed by a consultant/ agency that does not seem to be a component of the bank.
A new bank is supposed to have professionally trained and qualified work force to deal with loan processing and disbursement and be competent enough to give business operation advice and technical assistance to its clients.
The lending policy of SME Bank needs to be taken care of by sector specialists and efficient bankers.
KHALID AHMED
Karachi
YOUR editorial ‘From today’s vantage point’ (Aug 14) envisages “Pakistan has no other destiny except as a liberal democracy” and it is a bold dream indeed.
However, a liberal democracy in true sense of the term means total freedom including freedom of speech and the press, right to pursue any volition without hindrance, a religious freedom in personal domain but state must renounce bias and become religion-blind in the administration and execution of laws, equality of sexes and faiths, right to have liberal education and people’s right to choose a government in periodic manner and military is completely subservient to civil government and state to initiate freedom of movement including immigration.
In order to have this kind of liberal democracy, Pakistan would have to renounce ‘Islamic Republic’ status and adopt secular character instantly. It would have to declare Blasphemy law as unconstitutional.
In a liberal democracy, women and other religious groups must have equal rights. Parliament must be supreme and sovereign while President would be selected by the Prime Minister having nuclear button in his possession and armed forces would be restricted to their barracks permanently. Staging a coup should carry capital punishment.
I sincerely hope it happens in Pakistan.
SAM BAIDYA
Toronto, Canada
OUR country’s international image has been ravaged by the masses of Pakistanis willing to do anything for a “better” life in the west. As most of them knowingly break immigration laws, these individuals are rightly classified as criminals. However, what is even more disturbing is the fact that these individuals are treated with sympathy and allowed a free return to Pakistan.
Another disturbing crime is the Canadian immigration lacunas. Some unethical Pakistanis are running in cahoot with Pakistani immigration officials. It is a common practice for Pakistanis to enter Canada on a residence visa and then return to Pakistan only to have their entry stamps post-dated to the time they return to Canada to fulfil residency status. This practice is not only damaging the chances of genuine immigrants in the future, but is also allowing these individuals to re-occupy jobs that could have been taken by Pakistani nationals who have opted to remain in this country.
The government should set clear guidelines on dealing with such miscreants. Our government should also engage Pakistani missions abroad to establish networks with their hosts in tracking illegal Pakistani immigrants and bringing them to bear responsibility for their misdeeds.
ALI KHAN
Karachi
THIS refers to your editorial “Neither controlled nor packaged” (Aug 18) in which you took the violation of the Supreme Court’s (May 2000) decision as a minor aberration regarding the Senate elections.
Admittedly, it is a minor violation but look at history. For instance, contrary to the Quaid-i-Azam’s convention, Liaquat Ali Khan occupied both the offices of prime minister and president of the Muslim League at the same time.
President Ayub Khan prolonged his tenure by a self-made Constitution. Gen Yahya Khan ordered the military action in East Pakistan. Mr Bhutto was accused of rigging the 1977 elections. Gen Zia prolonged his stay in office through the so-called Majlis-i-Shura. Ms Benazir broke all records of corruption. Mr Nawaz Sharif destabilized the checks-and-balances system by concentrating all major powers in the office of prime minister.
All these mistakes can be minor in someone’s estimation but in a discussion on the Constitution and the law, a mistake is a mistake — not minor or major.
In fact, all mistakes are minor in the beginning but later they become major because of the shadow they cast on the future.
Therefore, in my opinion, it is not a minor aberration to hold the Senate elections after October 11, 2002, by violating the Supreme Court’s decision.
On the other hand, it is not suitable for a head of government or a head of state to set a pattern of violating the law because this would become a cover to the extra-constitutional thoughts of all other office-holders.
A head of government must be an example for his subordinates. So, the government should manage to hold the Senate elections within the timeframe set by the Supreme Court.
MUHAMMAD NAVEED AKHTAR
Harappa
THIS refers to the letter ‘self-respect of a nation’ (Aug 19) where the author has lambasted our leaders for discussing Pakistan’s internal affairs with foreign election observers and dignitaries.
The retired colonel himself cites a foreigner, a British opposition leader Mr Callaghan, for disdaining to discuss Britain’s internal affairs abroad. The writer urges our leaders to demonstrate the same brand of self-respect.
The colonel seems to think that conditions in our country and Britain are identical and that country, too, is the recipient of aid from all sorts of donors besides being ruled by military men.
Unwittingly, he, too, uses a foreign example to make his point.
Unfortunately, the fact is that foreign certification, help and approval have become a factor
in our lives due to our destruction of unity (by Yahya), faith (by Zia) and discipline
(by Ayub).
KHALID AHMAD
Montreal, Canada
GOING through the centralized admission policy of class XI, I was astonished to note that the O-level has been considered inferior to the SSC. According to this policy, if a student of the O-level gets 90 per cent marks, it would be treated as 76.5 per cent for equivalence in the SSC, and the student will not get admission to any good college.
It may be mentioned here that the standard of the SSC is no match to that of the O-level. The O-Level studies are for three years and the level in all subjects is much higher than even that of the HSC. The treatment they are getting here in Pakistan is very discouraging. If the standard of the O-level is really so low, then why doesn’t the Board of Education recommend to the government to close all the institutions having adopted this system.
I request the Minister for Education to look into the matter and direct the Board of Education to take O-level education equal to the SSC, if not higher.
HIRA FATIMA RIZVI
Karachi
THIS is with reference to the news item ‘Ridley plans to embrace Islam’(Aug 22).
It is now easy to understand why Ridley was not given any coverage by the Western media after her release from Afghanistan. It was evident from what she wrote in Dawn that she was impressed by the hospitality of her captors and the respect given to her during her captivity. How could the BBC or the CNN allow her to broadcast her views and her experience with the Muslims whom they always portray as terrorists?
S. M. N. Imtiaz
Islamabad
THIS is in support of several letters published on this subject. The quality of water being supplied to the citizens has been abhorrent.
This is a criminal act on the part of the KWSB and in any civilized society this would be considered a punishable crime. But no body bothers to look into the pathetic affairs of this civic department. Even the Nazimeen and the elected representatives constituting the city government, have not bothered to do as much as to pass a resolution censuring the KWSB.
I would like to add that the control of turbidity is not a very high-tech affair. If the required quantity of alum is added within the right range of PH, it could serve the purpose. I am afraid that in KWSB no one is bothered in controlling this factor and the least interested in public health.
I request the human rights NGOs to look into this state of affairs, and approach the courts to take stern action against those who are playing with the health of the inhabitants of this city.
DR SOHAIL SHAH KHAN
Karachi
BY virtue of the experience of one of my nieces and a few of her classmates studying in one of the two prominent government-owned medical colleges of Karachi, I can say that the examinations in these two medical colleges are subjected to negative intervention and are influenced by the student wings of various political parties in favour of those who support these parties in one way or the other.
Teachers and professors have to accede to unfair demands under duress and coercion. They have no alternative other than declaring the list of students provided to them as successful in the exams.
Evidence of this menace is the latest incident at Sindh Medical College where, as soon as the results were declared, the students of one of the political parties stormed into the department of community medicine, in rage against the teachers who had denied the list of pals given to them to be declared successful.
They caused considerable damage to property and injured the staff.
The administration has so far not been able to apprehend the culprits for an exemplary punishment.
Another sore reality is some teachers’ extending favour to the students of their personal liking and to those who carry names of prominent doctors and other VIPs behind them.
This observation is, however, not aimed at offending the handful of students who have actually worked hard and studied days and nights together to pass the exam.
It goes without saying that the students who are today using unfair means to pass the exam, will never be able to bring relief to the patients. They will never be able to handle a complex medical emergency. They will only bring a bad name to this noble profession.
M. ASIF SIDDIQUI
Karachi
This refers to the elaborate and comprehensive review written by the special correspondent of Dawn [12.8.02] under the above caption which contains a number of inaccuracies. The purpose of this letter is to point out these inaccuracies and place the factual position for the benefit of the readers.
These inaccuracies relate to the following:
That during General Ayub’s era, rupee counterpart funds generated through the sale of the commodities imported under PL-480 programme were used to meet the budget deficits, instead of meeting the expenditure by collecting taxes. The Indus Basin project was partly financed by these funds.
That the cheap import of wheat under Pl-480 programme inhibited domestic agricultural growth. Agricultural sector was neglected and the industrial development, mainly the textile sector, was given priority so much so that the industrial sector growth reached 24 per cent annually while agricultural growth remained barely to the extent of population growth level.
That during the dictatorial regimes, and particularly that of General Zia-ul-Haque, there had been a lot of foreign “dole”. Additional were the annual receipts under “home remittances” of the order of $3 billion. These receipts enabled the Zia regime to keep the GDP growth at the level of 6 per cent annually.
That there was a halt in the foreign inflows during the democratic regimes succeeding the Zia era because of the “Pressler Amendment” and despite stoppage of foreign funds, the democratic regimes had been successful in maintaining the annual GDP growth level at the rate of 4.5 per cent which had fallen around or less than 3 per cent during the tenure of the present dictatorial regime.
That the dictatorial regimes forcibly borrowed from the banks at the rate of 5 to 1.05 per cent per annum. for budget deficits while the banks were mobilizing the resources at the rate of 18-20 per cent. The democratic regimes, however, initiated borrowings at the market related interest rates.
(a) It will not be correct to say that rupee counterpart funds generating through the sale of commodities (usually four commodities i.e. wheat, soyabean oil/soyabean meal and cotton) imported under PL-480 programme were used by the autocrats for financing the fiscal deficits. These funds used to be held with the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) in the account of the USA government and were utilized by the US embassy for (i) meeting its local expenditure (ii) lending to the Pak-American joint ventures established in the country. (These funds may also have been allowed to be used for financing the governmental projects but what is the objection to it when we have all along been financing public sector development programme by resorting to the borrowings from the external sources.)
(b) It is also not correct to say that wheat was imported under PL-480 programme at cheaper rates. The import was made by floating tenders in the USA by the Pakistan Embassy there. The prices in the USA are not supposed to be much below the international prices. The imports from the USA are costlier than the European and Australian continents; one factor being the freight cost which is much higher when import is made from the USA.
(c) That the industrial growth under the Ayubian dictatorship (or the subsequent autocracies) inhibited progress in the agricultural sector is not correct. There had been a green revolution in wheat production during the Ayubian era. The figure of annual industrial growth of 24 per cent is also not correct. The maximum growth in the industrial sector during this era did not exceed 12-13 per cent. The country had never been self-sufficient in wheat production except the last 2-3 years.
The maximum wheat imports during some years had been of the order of 2.5 million tons - which was only a fraction of the total national consumption. If the agricultural sector was neglected by the autocratic regimes for the sake of industrial sector growth, in which account one may put the mega agricultural sector projects like Tarbela dam, Mangla dam and Indus Basin water distribution system etc. The population of the existing Pakistan was 35 million in 1947 which has grown up by 4 times to 140 million and the agricultural system is catering to the requirements of this huge population besides leaving substantial surplus (cotton, yarn, hosiery goods, garments all made up from cotton and rice,etc.) for exports. Could the neglect of the sector have given such results?
(d) The conclusion that the average annual economic growth of 6 per cent during Ziaul Haq era was on account of large “dole” received from abroad coupled with $3 billion per annum receipts under “home remittances” while during the succeeding democratic regimes, the growth rate fell down to 4.5 per cent or so because of stoppage of the “dole” (external loans) under the Pressler Amendment does not seem equitable. This is so because the Pressler Amendment stopped inflow from the USA alone and not from other bilateral / multilateral sources the overall stoppage of foreign funds inflow occurred after the nuclear test in May, 1998 because of the imposition of “sanctions” by all the bilateral lenders; in those days too inflow under the agreements then in force continued. To give an idea, the figures of “dole” accruals during various eras are given in the table below.
It would be seen from the above table that the net inflow of foreign funds during the democratic regime (1988-89 to 1998-99) was much higher (average $ 1485 million per annum) than the previous autocratic regime (average $ 597.4 per annum). In addition to that the democratic regimes also mobilized additional foreign currency deposits of over U.S. $ 8.5 billion since the first rule of Mr. Nawaz Sharif which amount was too used up. As for the home remittances, it is true that during the Zia regime, the figure was nearly $ 3 billion, but for two years only i.e. 1982-83 and 1983-84 and not during Zia’s entire tenure. The yearly average of the home remittances during Ziaul Haq’s and succeeding democratic regimes work out to $ 2145 million and $ 1586 million respectively which reflects dwindling of home remittances during democratic regimes but overall foreign resources available to the post Zia democratic regimes were much higher than the Zia tenure accruals.
(e) The accusation of autocratic regimes forcibly borrowing from the banks at 0.5-1.05 per cent interest rate does not depict the whole truth. The government’s borrowings at this rate were from SBP alone while the borrowings from commercial banks were at the rate of 6 per cent per annum regardless of the bank’s lending rates. It was in pursuance of the World Bank’s banking sector reform package that the government commenced borrowing at the market rate through the auctions of the treasury bills with effect from the 26th February, 1991. It is a matter of co-incidence only that at the time of implementing the World Bank’s reforms package, democratic regime was at the helm of affairs of the country.
(f) The assertion that the banks were mobilizing deposits at the rate of 18-20 per cent interest and on-lending to the government at 0.5-1.05 per cent is not based on facts. No such high deposit rates ever prevailed in the country’s half a century history. There may be a very few exceptional cases where banks like the IDBP and the NDFC may have introduced long term savings schemes envisaging compounding of the deposits at such high rates like defence savings certificates of the government.
(g) There have of course been progress in the power and the telecommunication sectors but at what cost? We have managed purchase of electricity from the private companies at the rates highest in the world. Similar is the position with reference to the mobile phones. The cost to the consumers is perhaps the highest in the world. The Pakistan Telecommunication Company Ltd. (PTCL) did not initially embark upon manufacturing the “toys” (mobile phones) and let the foreign companies establish themselves in the country by charging the consumers at the highest rates using the PTCL’s infrastructure including the “lines”. The PTCL came into the field but without significant benefit to the consumers. Is that a real progress?
A.M Talha
Karachi
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