| November 17, 2002 | Sunday | Ramazan 11, 1423 |
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Pensioners’ woes
House job doctors’ duty
The process of justice
University’s real assets
Musharraf versus politicians
Maths not taught at madaris
Cable TV in Mansehra
A foreigner impressed
Muslims & Western media
Village without electricity
Best choice for PM
Unsung but not unlamented
IN the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks in the US and several incidents of terrorism in Karachi, the city people, particularly those who need consular services of various foreign missions here for a visa or for trade, have to face great hardships.
US visa rules became more restrictive after the Afghan war. The European Union member countries, too, have recently introduced rules that make obtaining of visas quite difficult.
Britain, too, wants passports to be sent to Islamabad. Even Saudi Arabia has made it cumbersome to get an Umrah visa. Some countries have appointed courier services to act as middlemen for their visa functions.
So, the question arises: if the consulates are neither issuing visas nor handling trade matters and are making it difficult for any Pakistani to visit them within their premises, what is the necessity of their being located in Karachi?
Of course, as we read in the ‘social diary’ of some newspapers, diplomats do host parties, attend dinners and get their names printed in newspapers. But do they have to perform any solid work or just eat, drink and be happy?
We know that some small countries, which cannot afford to have a full-fledged mission here, have appointed Pakistanis as their honorary consuls. So, why don’t big countries that feel so concerned about the security of their diplomatic personnel, also appoint honorary consuls? They would at least do some useful work.
If the big countries decide to close down their consulates in Karachi, we will have two advantages:
The large buildings now occupied by them for offices could be used for housing the Rangers who are at present housed in the buildings of educational institutions, disrupting the education of many promising young men and women; and with all the foreign diplomats gone home from Karachi, the local law-enforcement agencies would have less to worry about and, instead, might do something to protect our own citizens.
KHADIJA KARAMALI
Karachi
A NUMBER of letters have appeared in these columns where senior citizens and retired people have voiced their concerns against the continued and unexplained failure of the government to grant relief from the burden it has imposed on them by reducing the rates of returns on National Savings Certificates.
While the prices of essential goods are rising fast, the reduction in returns on savings schemes by 50 per cent by the government is a very cruel act, to say the least.
The State Bank’s argument that “higher domestic burrowing by government will invariably result in an increase in the level of lending interest rates, which would bankrupt firms and business enterprises,” is both misleading and fallacious when applied to the grant of sectorial relief because any reversion to the old rate of profit of 16 per cent would only be confined to pensioners and widows who make up a tiny percentage of our population.
This would in no way adversely affect either banks or oth-er business enterprises that would continue to benefit from the low rates now available to them.
Surely, neither the World Bank nor the IMF would look askance if some relief was given to the old people who are facing the awful conundrum of increasing prices and falling incomes.
Is this the legacy our military generals wish to bequeath to the senior citizens of their country?
S. ASIF MAJEED
Karachi
I WELCOME the recent statement of President Gen Pervez Musharraf, directing government functionaries to solve the cases pertaining to the financial matters of retired officials.
For the last 10 to 12 months, at least 25 professors of the Hyderabad district’s education department have been waiting for payment of 180 days in lieu of preparatory retirement leave.
The officers have met many times the executive district officer to receive their dues, but to no avail.
The officer always comes up with an excuse that an adequate budget has not been released yet by the Sindh finance department.
It is apprehended that if the retired officers do not receive their amounts before Eid-ul-Fitr, their families are likely suffer.
I, therefore, appeal to the president to ensure that the retired professors get their amounts without any further delay.
PROF ABDUL SAMAD ANSARI
Hyderabad
I READ Prof S. H. Shafqat’s letter, “House job doctors’ duty” (Nov 7), with great interest, but I found the tone of the letter rather disapproving of the current lot of house officers. Yes, his house job must have been rigorous during the 1950s, but the recent times are not very easy either.
I recently completed my house job and I could not find any ward with a “comfortable room to sleep during duty hours”. This is in fact asking for too much when we do not even have chairs to sit on!
These days a house officer reaches his ward by 8.30am. The round starts at the whim of the professor — it may be at 9.30am or at 11.30am or there may be no round at all because so many times the professor will not turn up.
There is an absolute lack of communication between the house officers and the seniors. If the seniors do not show interest, how do they expect us to be at par with our work? Not many professors know about the house officers working in their ward.
We do not have a proper place to sit, clean water to drink or a decent bathroom to use. And the equipment — that’s the most exasperating part of all. During our nights, even simple procedures like drawing blood for routine investigations sap our energy because there are no syringes around. So what we do is that either we make the attendants go to the stores or we walk all the way to the casualty (no matter how late it is) and either beg the people there or simply ‘steal’ the stuff we need, as we have no other option. The Nebulisers and ECG machines are non-functional and by the night there is usually no oxygen in the oxygen cylinder. So, how do you expect us to work efficiently?
All I want to convey through this letter is that professors should realize the problems that we face and should take steps to rectify them as they have the power and resources to do so and help create a better working environment. All we need is a little guidance and appreciation from them that could do so much to boost our morale.
A HOUSE OFFICER
Karachi
DURING an interview on a private television channel just before election 2002, MQM chief Altaf Hussain said that when Benazir Bhutto had been in power, she used to ask him to return to Pakistan and to face courts to seek justice. Nawaz Sharif, too, after coming to power, advised Mr Hussain to return to Pakistan and face courts.
The MQM chief went on to say that both the leaders were living outside the country and did not intend to go back despite the forthcoming general election. He then asked as to why the two former prime ministers did not return to seek justice. Mr Hussain made more points than just his own single one.
An efficient system of justice is not only the foundation stone of a civil society and democracy, it is also a prerequisite for economic development in any country. The lack of recourse to justice for prominent as well as common citizens is the root cause of most ills, exploitations, inefficiencies and despair in our society.
Special courts, military courts and anti-terrorism courts are not a solution to the problems that common people have been facing for decades now. The presence of such ad hoc arrangements emphasizes the fact that the system to provide justice in the country is not only inadequate, it is also deteriorating.
But the question is: what have Benazir and Nawaz Sharif, or for that matter, even Altaf Hussain and their respective political parties done to establish an independent, efficient and accessible judiciary? And what has the present government done to establish a truly independent judiciary in the country for providing speedy and inexpensive justice to the poor?
IMTIAZ PIRACHA
Via e-mail
THIS is with reference to the interesting letter (Nov 7) by a distinguished teacher (and a friend) Dr Abdul Qadeer, enumerating the expanse of Karachi University, its buildings as “assets”, as well as its reputation and image.
Privileged as I was to have served the KU in a senior administrator position for over 31 years, I should like to state that the real assets of a nation (or a university) are not the bricks and mortar, size, area and structures but the quality and calibre of its manpower (teachers and scholars).
The University of Karachi has on its rolls about 250 full professors, most of whom don not conform to the conditions prescribed for that status, i.e, 15/18 research publications in journals of international repute, but have attained the status by virtue of canvassing, compassion contacts and even coercive methods.
How many Salimuzzamans, Attaur Rahmans has the university produced since its birth over half a century ago?
It has earned “reputation or image” in a few recent years and, specially, months by agitation, black days, strikes (right or wrong). The proof of the pudding is in the eat-ing.
I am reminded of a legend I read during my college days at Aligarh.
A vast area was devastated by natural calamity in early times; some survivors went to a sage lamenting about the tragedy.
The sage inquired, “What happened to that old teacher who lived in the distant hut? When told that he had survived, the sage replied “then nothing is lost”. Perhaps there is a moral in this story.
S. A. HAMEED
Karachi
WHY do we need democracy in Pakistan? What did Nawaz Sharif and Benazir Bhutto give us during their two regimes each? Rising corruption and poverty, mounting debts and increasing injustice and insecurity?
On the other hand, what has Musharraf delivered so far? During his three-year tenure as chief executive of the country he has never been found involved in any malpractice or corruption.
The country’s debt has been lowered by two billion dollars, its credit rating has improved, its foreign exchange reserves have risen to unprecedentedly high levels and the inflation rate is low.
Another big achievement is his liberal policy towards the electronic and print media. No government ever had the courage to allow free and open talk shows on television. Let us hope that no future government will reverse this policy.
It is now more than a month since the general election was held. Every day we see on television top leaders of the major parties embracing each other with broad smiles, but they have failed to cooperate with each other in order to form a government. Isn’t then their show of friendliness just hypocrisy?
ASAD RIZWI
Karachi
FOLLOWING the recent election, senior MMA leaders have shown a respectable transformation from an outlook of fanaticism to that of flexibility, their hasty remarks about co-education and women’s dress code notwithstanding.
However, they still cannot perform basic mathematics. They have captured about 15 per cent of the National Assembly seats, but they want to be given the office of prime minister.
I suppose mathematics is not one of the subjects taught at madaris.
SIDDIQUE MALIK
Louisville, USA
AS far as I know, according to Pemra regulations and the directives of the government, there is a ban on the transmission of Indian channels on the cable network. However, in Mansehra, a leading cable operator is openly flouting these regulations by showing at least four Hindi channels, including those banned by the government.
Another point that I should like to bring to the notice of PEMRA is that a minimum of 20 channels are to be offered to viewers so as to qualify for a charge of Rs180 per month, whereas this cable operator is showing only 16 channels, including those, which are available free.
It is requested of PEMRA to take notice of this situation.
FATIMA C. HEWITT
Mansehra
DURING my visit to Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital, Lahore, on Oct 23, I was impressed with the standards of medical care, cleanliness and patient care.
This is a shinning example of what can be achieved despite difficulties, and should be recognized by the international community as a benchmark for cancer treatment.
ELAINA COHEN
Former Conservative MP,
UK
IN a recent interview, Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah accused the Western media of hurting the feelings of the Muslims the world over by launching a propaganda against Islam.
Allah Almighty has endowed many Muslim countries with the wealth of oil, but most of the income generated from this oil is deposited in the banks owned by Western countries.
If that wealth were utilized in modernizing agriculture and establishing industries in poor Muslim countries, it would not only alleviate poverty in those countries, but would also pave the way for economic development of the Ummah.
But the fact is that all the oil-producing countries, including Saudi Arabia, have not achieved that level of economic development, which could ensure that their gross domestic products continue to increase, should their oil wells dry up by the middle or the end of this century.
It is time all Muslim Arab countries learnt some lessons from their bitter experiences, and launched some joint programmes to improve economic and social conditions in the Muslim world.
MUBEEN RASHEED
Lahore
I HAVE sent several emails to the chairman of Wapda to complain that my village has not yet been electrified, but to no avail.
This is very regrettable that Pail Bina Khan, Sohawa tehsil, Jhelum district, Punjab, has not been electrified, though surrounding villages, which are less than one kilometre from my village, were electrified 20 years ago.
The people of the village suffer from heatwaves and spend sleepless nights in summer due to the absence of electricity. Besides they cannot watch television programmes. Students, too, cannot use computers in this modern age of information technology.
I request the chairman of Wapda to urgently look into this matter and ensure electricity supply to the village.
KHURSHID PERVEZ
Coventry,
UK
IN THE political melee for the election of prime minister and formation of a new government, I would like to suggest that all the political parties reach a consensus.
As for the election of prime minister, I think the best choice is Zubaida Jalal, MNA-elect from Balochistan.
I believe, in the present scenario, the majority of Pakistanis at home and abroad want her as their new prime minister. She has a vision and the will to serve the poor, as she has proved the same in the last few years.
I, with other like-minded Pakistanis, request all the major political parties to give her a chance.
ABDUL SATTAR
Karachi
THE death of Jon Elia has left many of his admirers in deep shock. His was truly an epochal personality who left indelible imprints on the minds of those who speak sense in society.
His poetry emanates from the existential issues begotten by the modern age, which reduced the status of man into a cog in the capitalist machinery.
He laboured on a variety of issues, from mundane affairs to the complexities of the contemporary philosophical and political thought. His poetry was informed by the existentialist philosophy of Jean Paul Satre and Kierkegard on the dilemma of a being thrown into the world, who is obliged to give meaning to his life.
Jon Elia underwent much mental upheaval as a consequence of his internalization of trends of thoughts across the philosophical spectrum vis-a-vis changing socio-economic and political realities of his era. He went to the extent of tormenting his own fellows, ever stinging out of lethargy into a life exhibiting the bitter realities that remain unexplored because of the bad faith of intellectuals.
His age experienced an unprecedented litany of political expediency and opportunism on the part of stereotypical liberal intelligentsia to the great disillusionment of his countrymen.
Elia despised the commercialization of art in vogue in a market-oriented society where human passion and creativity are commodified.
An atheist with Marxist leanings, Jon Elia sharpened the sword of wisdom on the whetstone of reason to use it against the forces of obscurantism. Man was central to his philosophy.
To eulogize a man who was more a complex phenomenon than a personality would be a travesty of sorts. In composing a conventional elegy for him, one would be forced to reduce everything he stood for to platitudes, which might be grandiose, but would be transient. For those who lament his death, the comforting option of erecting memorial edifices just does not exist. Jon Elia has left us the bequest of his rich oeuvre. He has condemned us to eternal, untiring and brutally critical examination of our self and our circumstances. This is a sentence we will gladly, if a trifle uncomfortably, bear.
AAMIR HUSSAIN NIHAL AND AZIZ ALI DAD
London
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