| September 7, 2002 | Saturday | Jamadi-us-Saani28,1423 |
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Degrees for politicians
Karachi Circular Railway
Global warming
Ensuring lasting peace
Withdrawal of GST on medicines
Pre-entrance test in NED
CA qualification
Doctors, not terrorists
Sabzi Mandi Park
Accountability
Post office
Business news
Promoting police-people cooperation
MUKHTIARMAI might have got some solace from the judgement that sentenced to death four of the gang-rapists and two jurors (panchayat leaders) who ordered that heinous crime. But the sad part of it is that the remaining eight accused persons (criminals, in my view) have been acquitted on account of insufficient evidence.
These persons were also members of the ‘panchayat’ and were criminals like the other two, because not opposing oppression is just like sharing the crime. Their abetment to the crime is beyond doubt.
And what about Abdul Shakoor’s episode, which began the grim affair? Why his abductors Javed, Punnu and Manzoor not punished? According to reports, they had molested him and then shut him up in a room with Salma Bibi, sister of the first two convicts, Abdul Khaliq and Allah Ditta.
What about ASI Muhammad Iqbal of Jatoi police station who wrongfully held Abdul Shakoor and then released him after receiving a bribe of Rs 11,000 from his father through arbitrator Ramzan Pachaar?
The death penalty, the life imprisonment and a fine of Rs 40,000 each for the six accused does give some satisfaction, but this judgement does not meet all the prerequisites of justice.
S M KAZIM NAQVI
Karachi
THE long awaited verdict has finally been given. Although it may not eliminate the wrong done to poor Mukhtiarmai, it would surely serve as a milestone in eradicating the miseries suffered by our women belonging to the rural areas.The judiciary must be applauded for bringing justice to the poor family.
The government must now ensure the safety of the victim’s family against a retaliation from the side of the convicted, which is very likely to occur.
SYED SHAMEEL SANI
Islamabad
THE death penalty awarded to the criminals involved in the Meerwala case is indeed a step that should be appreciated. Women in our society have been victims of such barbaric and brutal acts since the ages. The Meerwala case was given due coverage in the media and probably that is why some steps were taken against those responsible for the uncivilized act. But this is only one incident. There are thousands of other such cases which are not even reported.
For society to change for the better, we must change those customs that are unbiased and discriminatory against women or any other section of the society.
The Meerwala case might, hopefully, turn out to be the first step towards a change.
SAHAR JAMAL
Karachi
THIS refers to the letter by Mr Javed, ‘Degrees for Politicians’ (Aug 27). I want to clarify that the result declared for the politicians was according to the rules and regulations of the Bahauddin Zakaria University. Nothing has been done to favour anybody.
This has been a routine practice which is generally done to facilitate students seeking admissions abroad. This is also a common practice in the Punjab University. The example cited by the writer is a bout the Boards of Secondary and Intermediate Examinations, which is entirely different from the system of examinations in the university.
The examination system of the B.Z. University has two parts — evaluation and tabulation. Evaluation of papers is carried out in routine. The tabulation of 26,000 candidates takes considerable time. The only process which was accelerated was tabulation.
The complete system of examinations at the B.Z. University is computerized. The original roll numbers were used to tabulate the results based on actual award lists provided by evaluators without interfering with the secrecy of the system.
To set the record straight, nothing unlawful was done to facilitate any politician. Moreover, under the system, any person who wants to know his result in advance has to pay Rs30,000 for the benefit.
KHURSHID AHMAD KHAN
Registrar/PRO B.Z. University,
Multan
IT is unfortunate that the President has shelved the Karachi Circular Railway (KCR) project. If the ECIL master plan for the KCR is implemented, 70 per cent of Karachiites will be living within two kilometres of an effective and environmentally friendly mass transit system.
This is a luxury that no other Asian cities have except for Hong Kong, Singapore and Tokyo. In addition, the per kilometre cost of the circular railway is a fraction of the cost estimated in all the other proposals that have been made for a mass transit system for Karachi.
This is one of the major factors that guarantees a more affordable fare structure for the commuting public. Also, since the rail corridor will be used instead of narrow road corridors, congestion on Karachi’s streets will be reduced considerably.
For these reasons, the KCR project should not be allowed to die. The city government and the Railways should make sure that the KCR land should not be encroached upon or sold. This is easy to do as we know that without official patronage, not an inch of land can be illegally occupied.
Also, the City Nazim and the Governor of Sindh should appoint a committee consisting members of Karachi’s civic society to explore alternative sources and methods of funding the KCR and managing those funds in a transparent manner.
I am sure that these funds can be raised from the citizens of this great city which is the capital of the province that contributes the largest share of revenues to the federal exchequer.
ARIF HASAN
Karachi
I REFER to the following paragraphs that appeared in an article,‘Ecological drift in Pakistan’ by Dr Akhtar Hasan Khan (Aug 29), as it is factually incorrect:
“The universal environmental concern is the global warming caused by ozone depletion owing to CFCs. This has led to a cloud around the earth which is abnormally warming it.
‘‘These carbons are mainly released by developed countries whose industries and domestic appliances, especially the refrigerators, are responsible for it. The Kyoto Treaty was signed under which major industrial countries undertook to reduce the CFC release.”
The fact is that global warming is not caused by CFCs (Chlorofluorocarbons) which were used as refrigerants in the past.
It is caused by the so-called Greenhouse Gasses (carbon-di-oxide, methane and nitrus oxide). Global warming is responsible for melting of ice which results in the rise of the sea level.
It is also causing the dry areas to become more dry and happens to lead to more intense and frequent weather patterns, not seen before.
What the CFCs cause is another phenomenon called ‘ozone hole’ at the poles. This environmental problem has been dealt with in the ‘Montreal Protocol’ that was signed much earlier than the Kyoto protocol and which has been very successful in halting the ozone hole from increasing in size.
The ozone layer at the poles stops the cancer-causing ultraviolet rays of the sun from coming to the earth. USA had ratified the Montreal Protocol from the onset.
AWAIS LATIF PIRACHA
United Nations University,
Tokyo, Japan
PEACE is a positive dynamic concept and it does not merely mean the absence of war. Peace can be real and effective by accepting the philosophy of non-violence, which Arundhati Roy and two prominent Indian journalists stressed at seminars held in Pakistan recently.
A non-violent polity, non-violent economy, non-violent social order and a culture of non-violence can ensure lasting peace in the subcontinent.
A peaceful alternative needs to be found for solving various problems including the core issue of Kashmir. War between India and Pakistan can never resolve disputes. It will only plunge the two countries into deeper economic and political crises.
Efforts must be made to settle all disputes through meaningful dialogue and to relax travel restrictions and encourage cultural and academic exchanges that will help create a climate of mutual understanding, tolerance and peace.
ABDUL HAFEEZ CHACHAR
Karachi
THE GST imposed on medicines has been withdrawn in such a haphazard way that it is likely to cause a lot of misery to the patients. It has also resulted in a great confusion in the pharmaceutical industry.
The government has announced that it is not going to refund the GST which has already been charged. This means that the pharmaceutical industry will have to bear a loss on stocks on which GST has been paid and which are now with the distributors and the retailers if they do not charge the GST from the customers. According to estimates, this loss amounts to Rs 390 million.
The pharmaceutical industry is unwilling to bear this loss.
When the GST on medicine was imposed, the government had reduced by some percentage the duty it levies on the import of raw material for drugs on which the GST was being charged.
But there was no reduction in duty on raw material used in drugs which were exempt from the tax.
To end the present deadlock, I would suggest that the government should adjust the amount as ‘duty on the import’ of raw material.
I hope that the government, the representatives of the pharmaceutical industry and the representatives of the Pakistan Chemists and Druggists Association will settle this issue and the misery of patients due to non-availability of drugs will come to an end.
A PHARMACIST
Karachi
I WANT to draw the attention of the education minister and the Chancellor of the NED University to the irregularities noticed in the pre-entrance test conducted by the NED University on Aug 3.
It is astonishing that the NED University authorities have been maintaining two criteria for the selection of students — one is for those in the quota category who are eligible for admission by securing 35 per cent marks in the entrance test whereas the other students have to obtain 40 per cent marks. This is an act of discrimination.
The concerned authorities are requested to instruct the NED administration to conduct pre-entrance test on the pattern followed by the medical colleges.
ABBAS
Karachi
SINCE chartered accountancy (CA) is the highest qualification in the subject of accounts in Pakistan, one always held the community of chartered accountants in high esteem. It was rightly so because we often see some very brilliant students working hard to qualify as CAs but tumbling down in the final examination. The toughness of the course was even recognized by the foreign countries, especially Britain.
The CA entails four years of study after intermediate, BA, BSc or BCom. Isn’t it ironical that a professional qualification acquired after 16 years of education, which should otherwise be equivalent to a Masters degree, is not even considered equal to graduation?
The revelation which stunned not only the political circles but also the intelligentsia came when Mr Salman Taseer’s nomination papers for the forthcoming elections were rejected on the plea that his qualification as a chartered accountant was not at par with graduation.
The University Grants Commission appears to be living in the stone age. Notwithstanding the political implications of this case, it is time the ministry of education appointed a commission to ascertain the rightful status of chartered accountants.
RAFI NASIM
Lahore
THE US embassy’s new policy for non-immigrant visas has really hit hard all the doctors planning to go to the US for their Clinical Skills Assessment (CSA) test and interviews for residency positions.
Imagine clearing the USMLE exams and spending so much time studying and proving our worth by scoring the highest possible scores i.e. 99, and what do we get? An ‘indefinite time period’ to wait for FBI clearance.
I completely agree with the US visa policy realizing that their country had to go through so much terror, but I would request them to be more considerate towards doctors because they are healers and not terrorists.
DR IRFAN KARIM
Islamabad
THE politicians seem to abhor green spaces. So the day they take over, the Sabzi Mandi Park project in Karachi will be doomed.
The problem with the politicians is: One, they have to please and reward far too many people. If there is a demand from one of their supporters that a certain portion of a forest be denotified so that he could cut the trees and sell them off and later build houses there, they will willingly denotify it. Two, the politicians tend to legitimize everything illegitimate, for instance, if the residents of a kutchi abadi come up to the politicians and say that though the abadi they live in is built on land set aside for a park or a school or a hospital, yet their status of squatters be legitimized and their colony be given a legal status, the politicians will oblige.
That’s how Karachi has lost land earmarked for parks and schools. They don’t see what bad effect this will have upon the environment rather they think of their vote bank.
The army shouldn’t spare even one moment and cause the Sabzi Mandi Park to be laid out on a war footing, otherwise we will lose this space, too, after the elections.
AZMAT ANSARI
Karachi
THIS refers to Mr Sultan Ahmad’s article on corruption (Sept 5). His says that accountability through the Auditor-General and the Public Accounts Committee will help if given more powers.
It must be remembered that accountants deal with history (monetary reflections of physical acts). I found when I was sole arbitrator of defence procurement contracts that the only way I could lay my hands on the necessary evidence was to use my clout as a federal secretary. Doesn’t this tell a story?
Prevention is the best way of combating corruption and that can only be organized by the executive, within the executive. To do that, complete separation of the Executive from the Judiciary is a requirement. Otherwise, merely increasing the severity of punishments or introducing more rules or enacting new laws will not deliver.
MASOOD HASAN
Lahore
THE densely populated area of Chaklala Scheme-3, Rawalpindi, has no post office. Residents of the Army Housing Scheme and a lot of other face hardship due to the non-availability of postal service.
The relevant authorities are requested to extend the facility to the area which would also cover Rehmatabad, Bahria Town and Gulrez schemes.
At present, people have to avail the service at Chaklala post office which has become almost inaccessible for an ordinary man due to stringent security measures taken for the Chaklala garrison.
AHMED QADDUS
Chaklala
SOMETIMES PTV does not telecast business news and sometimes carries them as a separate programme after the Khabarnama.
Is not news about Pakistan’s economy important or is there nothing to report?
H.U. HASNAIN
Islamabad
THIS refers to the picture captioned ‘Checkpost on footpath’ (Aug 21). As a born Karachiite, I agree that after five decades down the line police highhandedness continues. Yet, one must not strip some competent policemen of due credit.
District Central is now an oasis of peace. Shops remain open until the small hours and there is traffic round the clock. Property prices, which plummeted to one-tenth of the actual worth, have reset to the original level.
Where just to enter his office, the SSP had to position two mobile vans as cover from the incessant firing meant to bar his movements (innumerable gun-trotting outlaws used to man each and every dark corner), not a single bullet has been fired there for years.
The police have achieved this goal in 10 years with the help of local people.
People of this most educated district of Pakistan, once hostage to bhatta extortionists, now happily donate money to various welfare projects initiated by the police. Residents collected money to construct three police stations and gifted them to police. Similarly, hospitals and dispensaries have also been built which are being run by civil and police volunteers.
One such facility, which has got X-ray plant etc., conducts free tests and gives away medicines worth Rs50,000 every month (all contributed by general public of the locality). This is voluntarily setup run by a professor of a university hospital who distributes his time between the two. Civilians have even donated ambulances for charity services.
A school constructed by locals of the district and run by citizen-police liaison also admits outstanding students from a nearby Madressa. Free uniforms, books, stationery and tuition are provided to class I to V students. Among other highly qualified voluntary full-time teachers, there is a retired professor of another prestigious university.
It has been made sure that SHOs (mostly locals) remain at the police stations during duty time. Computers have also been provided to them to remain abreast of the latest crime situation and remain in contact with each other.
As for religious tolerance, one of his (Muslim) SHOs even visits church every Sunday and is liked by the Christian community living in the district.
Businessmen and inhabitants of the area have so much confidence in the police that presence of any shadowy character is immediately reported.
Unfortunately, due to a disguised mode of providing employment to people of other provinces, Karachi wastes Rs7 billion on Rangers.
I sincerely believe that if this amount is given to the locally recruited police and a few sincere and wise police officers are posted here, the city would soon retain its lost title, the Jewel of Asia.
M.M. ALAM
Karachi
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