| October 10, 2002 | Thursday | Sha’aban 3, 1423 |
To send a letter to the Editor
Click here
Restructuring of civil service
Democracy: recent experience
Extortion by banks
Blasphemy law essential
GST and retailers
Election results on PTV
A look at govt policies
WTC: underlying causes
Gold imports
Whom to vote for?
Water management
Street dentists in Pakistan
Karachi
IN today’s environment, the consumers can play an effective role in ensuring the enforcement of quality standards. But the main problem is that there is no awareness amongst them of their rights. Due to their lack of knowledge and being unorganized, they are getting substandard items which only damage their health.
With the formation of the Consumer Rights Commission of Pakistan (CRCP), they have been provided with a platform wherefrom they can question anything which they feel goes against their interest. The CRCP has been bold enough to air the sentiments of the consumers at various forums and it has really played an effective role in looking after their interests.
These days, there is a grave threat to Pakistani products as they are losing credibility due to the improper enforcement of quality standards. Because of this laxity on the part of the enforcement agencies, the businessmen do not adhere to the required specifications of the products with the result that our markets are flooded with substandard items. Even the multinationals take advantage of this state of affairs.
A few examples that may be quoted are:-
• Standard of the vegetable Ghee being sold in the market under various brand names. Is this ghee really fit for human consumption? Are all the required ingredients as claimed by the manufacturers, available in the ghee in the required ratio? Is its melting point compatible with the body temperature? If not, imagine what can happen to the consumer! A cardiologist can better tell you.
• The colours being used by the sweetmeat shopkeepers. Are these colours really genuine and do not pose any danger to the human beings? In the past, some unscrupulous people have been caught using textile colours instead of food colours in the eatables.
• The suitability of water available for drinking purposes in various localities. Is this water really fit for human consumption? Is this water being tested at regular intervals and are sufficient labs available to perform this task countrywide? If at all these labs are available (which I strongly believe they are not), are they competent to issue fitness certificates which can only be done if they conform to 24 requirements of the international laboratory standard i.e. ISO-17025. By the way, not a single lab in our country, to my knowledge, is accredited to ISO 17025!
Many more examples could be quoted in this regard. During a snap check of certain eatables being sold in the market like milk, flour, grains, spices, juices and sweets, about 20 per cent were found to be adulterated.
Organizing consumers’ forums will be a right step in this direction. This could be the only vocal platform from where the voice of the consumers would be heard.
AIR CDRE (R) AZFAR A. KHAN
Rawalpindi
LOOKING at the proposed civil service structure one finds that DMG has no place in it, while most of the other groups of the federal services remain untouched.
Public dissatisfaction and failure to deliver is cited as a reason for restructuring the civil services, but it is restricted to the abolition of DMG. Isn’t the public dissatisfied with the other departments and haven’t they all failed to deliver? Abolition of a single service group consisting of less than seven hundred officers would definitely not serve any purpose nor is it justifiable.
DMG officers are no doubt an elite group but they have earned this position through merit. There are elites in every structure, there are elite groups of doctors and lawyers. It’s a social phenomenon which would always be there as some people prove themselves better than others. There is no reason for depriving the DMG officers of their rightful and hard-earned position.
AHSAN ALI
Karachi
SOME of the headlines that appeared in different sections of Dawn during just one week in June this year are reproduced below:
‘Nazim, Naib among 136 accused of terrorism’ (June 13)
‘Nazim’s son held for robbery’ (June 15)
‘Nazim punishes deputy for demanding funds’ (June 17)
‘Nazim, 8 others issued warrants’ (June 21)
Such has been our first experience of ‘restored democracy’ at local district level.
How can we be sure that the restoration of democracy at the national level would be any different? How can we hope that the new elected representatives won’t misuse power and authority? After all, our skill in it has become a national talent.
Tailored or custom-made, I don’t think democracy of whatever kind it might be, can fit our national frame of mind, as yet. As a nation, we have to go a long way before we can make the right use of this great tool.
HARIS MASOOD ZUBERI
Karachi
WE, the Pakistani expatriates, try to help our country by sending our hard-earned money to it through the right channels. But it is very unfortunate that the banks extort money from us in various ways.
I am one of those account holders whose foreign currency accounts were frozen in May 1988. I had to close my account in accordance with the instructions issued by the then government. In August this year, I opened another foreign currency account with the Habib Bank and deposited brand new dollar notes, which were purchased in Saudi Arabia from the Saudi American Bank. In Saudi Arabia, foreign banks issue new currency notes only.
But I was astonished to see the statement of my account in which $5 had been deducted as “cash handling charges”. On my enquiry, I was informed that the bank makes cash handling charges on cash deposits at the rate of 0.25 per cent with a minimum of $5 and a maximum of $250. This was being done since 1st January 2002.
It was known that the banks do make clearance charges on deposits through cheques, as they had to send it to foreign banks. But any charge in the case of cash deposits, was never heard of. This is indeed an innovation to extract money from the account holder.
Sending the statements of accounts is the duty of the banks. But my bank had charged me another $5 as “charges for sending the statement of account under registered cover” and deducted this amount from my account. It is surprising as to how the banks have been allowed to cheat the account holders and deduct from their hard-earned savings on various pretexts.
I had an account with another branch of the same bank, which I might have opened in 1964 or 1965. On my visit to Pakistan in September 2001, I went to the bank to deposit some money, but I was told that my account had been closed as I had failed to maintain the minimum balance required by the bank. In fact, the imposition of the condition of a minimum balance had never been intimated to me.
On the one hand, the government is asking overseas Pakistanis to send more money through the right channels and on the other, the banks have been permitted to make arbitrary deductions from their accounts.
AZIZ AHMAD KHAN
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
THIS refers to Dr Abdur Razzaq’s letter, ‘Blasphemy Law essential’ (Oct 4). He has tried to stress the essence of the Blasphemy Law and has proclaimed that it is essential for peace and harmony in the country.
Hats off to the doctor who must be fully conversant with all the canons of justice and fairplay that Islam has laid down.
Islam puts great emphasis on observing the rights and dignity of all human beings. Tolerance, forbearance and patience were the hallmarks of the Holy Prophet (PBUH). He exhibited them in his personal conduct in ample measure.
In a country like ours, where the literacy rate is one of the lowest and the weak are subjected to humiliation, the doctor himself admits that nearly all laws are being abused in broad daylight. If it is the practice, then a highly controversial and sensitive affair like blasphemy can easily be manipulated and exploited against a particular class or group of people in order to settle personal scores. Would it be fair if a man is sentenced to death when in reality he is a scapegoat and not in fact an offender?
As far as freedom of expression is concerned in England, anybody can go to the Hyde Park, London, and express his views — against the queen, the country, any religion, etc. The blasphemy law that constitutes the British statute book does not pronounce a death sentence for any oral or written defamation of sacred figures.
No sane man insults the other or speaks impolitely. We should set examples that may bring a good name to Islam at this hour of extreme need instead of inducing resentful feelings among the disbelievers.
UMAR MANSOOR BAJWA
Lahore
IT is evident that the government has withdrawn the general sales tax imposed on medicines but the owners of medical stores are still selling at the previous prices which include the GST, particularly in the rural areas where illiterate and innocent people are settled.
As customers argue that the government has withdrawn the GST from medicines, the shopkeepers insist that they have purchased the stock at a price which includes the GST. Hence, they would continue to charge the tax on buyers till their GST-paid medicines are exhausted.
How would customers know that the stockists or manufacturers have been refunded the GST?
It would be in the best interest of the general public that the government should order the retailers not to charge the GST from a fixed date.
SHAFAQAT ALI
Sheikhupura
PTV is to broadcast election results of the National Assembly and the Provincial Assemblies on two different PTV channels.
However, every viewer will have an equal interest in watching the results of both. But with the above-mentioned arrangement made by PTV, this would not be possible. The flow of election results is at times so fast that a viewer switching from one channel to another would hardly be able to keep pace with it.
It is, therefore, suggested that the election results of the National Assembly and of Provincial Assemblies be telecast on one and the same channel. The other channels can be used for news bulletins and comments by experts. .
MOHAMMAD IJAZ
Lahore
ON the external front, Gen Musharraf’s performance has been outstanding. His decision after the tragic 9/11 was in the national interest as ‘Pakistan comes first’. His stand on the Kashmir issue has public support and his performance at the Agra summit was extremely praiseworthy.
But this cannot be said about his domestic policies. His seven-point agenda has not been implemented. The common man’s problems remain unsolved. Millions of people are living below the poverty line. Because of frustration, suicide cases are on the increase. The law and order situation has deteriorated and terrorists are active. The Defamation Ordinance is a blow to the freedom of press.
HAKIM BANGLANI
Karachi
WHEN a natural disaster occurs, like the collapse of a building, the immediate need is to attend to human suffering, then to investigate its causes and then to go into any underlying causes in order to avoid recurrence of such a disaster.
When the twin trade towers in the United States were hit, the first concentration naturally was on the human component. There was a swell of worldwide sympathy with the affected people. The perpetrators of the crime were identified and a punitive war was launched against them. The glaring omission is that the underlying causes were ignored on purpose.
If the causes are not acknowledged, no remedial measures can be taken. The attack on Afghanistan killing thousands of innocent men, women and children has only multiplied those ignored causes. If the anti-American voices in the Third World previously were one in 10, today they are five in 10 or even more. The attack on Iraq will only add more fuel to this fire.
With this blinkered logic, an open invitation is being sent as ‘to whom it may concern’ for future disasters. Perhaps not this year or the next, but surely as night follows day, the attacks will come unless better sense prevails and a sincere attempt is made to eliminate or at least reduce the causes of this burning hatred of the Third World against the First World.
Bill Clinton quite rightly wants an inter-dependent world to be guided to become an integrated world, where ‘them’ and ‘us’ would become ‘we’.
KHURSHID ANWER
Lahore
THIS refers to the news item, ‘Gold imports not notified yet’ (Oct 6). As a member of the jewellers’ community, I can say that jewellers were excited and warmly welcomed trade policy announced in July this year.
Withdrawal of the condition of being a licence-holder to import gold was a good step under the new policy as it would help the jewellry manufacturers bring in their own gold. However, as rightfully stated in the article, no notification has been issued to the beneficiaries. Nor have the jewellers been provided with the rules for the import mechanism.
We request the concerned ministry to announce the procedure as per the new trade policy.
SYED AMIR ALI
Karachi
GENERAL elections are being held in the country today. I am astonished to see a large majority of the voters intending to cast their votes in favour of the nominees of politicians notorious for their corruption.
Let me remind them that while the self-exiled leaders of the two major parties were in power, the economy went from bad to worse, the law and order situation deteriorated and every workable institution in this country collapsed. It is time for us to wake up and smell the coffee.
I think we should do our utmost to encourage honest and clean politicians, of whom there is no dearth. If they are at the helm of affairs, our country may find itself on the path of progress and development, which is the cherished desire of all of us.
OSMAN A. KHAIRI
Islamabad
PAKISTAN has about 12 per cent of the population of the world with 28 per cent irrigated area of the Islamic bloc. Since we depend largely on irrigated agriculture for our food/fodder and fibre crop production to an extent of 85 to 90 per cent, the role of sweet water assumes special significance for the national economy.
We are blessed with perennial rivers of sweet water which are albeit fed by glaciers that melt only for about 70 days in a year flooding the rivers which run low for the rest of the year due to relatively low rainfall.
As such, our only source of sweet water both for irrigation and drinking as also for industrial use is water stored in dams or ground water pumped out by spending energy.
Unfortunately, the water arithmetic which is a complex issue as to its resource development, proper use and storage has not been comprehensively studied or taught to our agriculturists and irrigation engineers and policy makers have been at a loss to decipher the intricacies of sharing water resources.
The job has been left to evolve formulae by bureaucratic committees to work out shares and so-called net profits of hydro-electric dams that at best remain unworkable.
It is time the Punjab government which has been credited with launching a number of new universities also established a university of water to integrate the subjects of irrigation and agriculture to research and educate the nation about development and optimum use of available sweet water that according to an authoritative estimate is only 0.25 per cent of the 2.5 per cent of global sweet water.
DR M. YAQOOB BHATTI
Lahore
A RECENT article in the New York Times, focusing on the street dentists (quacks) in Pakistan, says that these quacks don’t have even a scant regard for hygiene and sterilization. The point is understandable but the remarks by the Assistant Secretary of Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC), who justified the quackery and the lethal presence of the quacks, are unpardonable.
The PMDC official has been quoted by the newspaper as saying that Pakistan does not have the luxury of eliminating street dentists as “they provide dental care that, if crude, would otherwise be unavailable.”
At the least, this can only be classified as a classic case of justifying rampant and evil wrongs under the doctrine of necessity whereas even such a wronged necessity is not necessary at all.
The gist of the problem is that our health education planners, including officials of the PMDC as well as federal and provincial health ministries, don’t have any concrete and specific short/long term medical and dental health plan to work on. They rely heavily and only on ad-hoc measures resulting in such societal ills.
As in most other fields, qualified dentistry is in total disarray now, even and more so with mushroom growth of numerous private dental colleges in monetarily fertile cities like Karachi.
Notwithstanding the present blow hot, blow cold relationship between these private dental colleges and the PMDC, these purely commercial dental colleges keep on blindly churning out hundreds of dentists each year in our mega cities — sadly with no future prospects for these qualified but unemployed new dentists due to the absence of specific health plan.
On the one hand we have an army of the newly qualified jobless dentists and on the other a mafia of street dentists and quacks looting the innocent illiterate.
With Pakistan’s as high as over 10 per cent prevalence rate of a fatal and lethal disease like hepatitis-B, and also hepatitis-C and AIDS, the frightful reality is that anywhere between 10 to 20 per cent people are infected with these diseases. The dental quacks are literally and ruthlessly sentencing hundreds of people to very certain but an agonisingly painful and slow deaths every day by their disease transmitting, flamboyant dental quackery ways — sadly all this in full view and knowledge of our callous health officials.
Instead of justifying presence of these quacks in our society, our health officials should make all out efforts to eliminate the quackery.
DR MAHMOOD SHAH
President, Pakistan Dental Association,
You can also send letters to the Editor
Just send your message to the following address:
Make sure you include your full name, postal address, e-mail address, and in the case of Pakistan your day-time telephone number.