‘Companies Ordinance, 1984’

THE Companies Ordinance, 1984, is one of the most comprehensive laws of our country ensuring growth of corporate enterprises, protection of investors and creditors, promotion of investment and development of the economy.

Until recently, The Corporate Law Authority (CLA) was the administrative body for this law which for several reasons, could not perform commendably and was consequently replaced by the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) w.e.f. 1st January, 1999, which has so far produced positive results and a remarkable change has been noticed in the promotion and development of the corporate sector and stock markets.

Having no attachment with the ministry of finance, the SECP now warrants amendments and modifications in relevant laws or altogether fresh legislation in different areas to streamline the corporate affairs of the country for which it was created.

One of the areas which requires fresh legislation, is the recovery of outstanding amounts of penalties imposed by the CLA.

Presently, section 479(4) of the ordinance, provides for recovery of any sum adjusted, fine imposed or directed to be paid, as arrears of land revenue.

The experience has shown that this mere provision of law is practically unfeasible and infractuous. It has failed to recover corporate fines under the Land Revenue Act, as promptly as their own arrears of land revenue from defaulters.

Another reason is that the land revenue authorities adopt outdated measures in recovery of such amounts forwarded to them.

Moreover, a lot of time is consumed in co-ordination between the two agencies.

In spite of not being a “revenue raising authority”, the SECP must possess adequate powers like these authorities. Reference is invited to Income Tax Recovery Rules under Part-IX of Incometax Rules, 1981 inserted in the income tax rules in spite of provision of recovery of arrears of income tax dues through the hierarchy of land revenue Code already existed therein under section 94 of Income Tax Ordinance, 1979.

As all the theories of motivation, effective management and administration are based on the element of punishment and reward, let the Commission (SECP) inculcate fear and sense of dire consequences in the minds of obdurate and die-hard corporate offenders on the one hand and reward genuine and law abiding companies by, for instance, issuing the Good Governance Certificates and giving some rebate in statutory returns filing fees etc., on the other.

Z.R. ABBASI

Karachi

‘A very costly government?’

THIS refers to the article, ‘A very costly government?’ (Dec 19), by Sultan Ahmed. The writer has correctly stated that in the new set-up, “the cost of running government has been increasing in Pakistan irrespective of the quality of governance”.

The most alarming development in this regard is the government’s policy to allocate huge sums of money annually to each member of the National Assembly, provincial assemblies and, later on, the Senate. Such a practice existed in the past, too, but only a few development projects were launched and completed. In most cases, billions of rupees went into the pockets of members of the assemblies.

It seems that the Jamali government, given its fragility, wants to ensure its continuation in power by giving hefty amounts to legislators in the name of development.

As our economy has not recovered from crises yet, the government must not distribute precious resources among assembly members. It should encourage legislators to bring funds from the private sector and other sources for development rather than use taxpayers’ money or foreign loans.

The prime minister and his cabinet should also be mindful of the fact that the lavish lifestyle which they have been following since they came to power is an affront to the poor and a waste of taxpayers’ money.

Why cannot the prime minister and his ministers travel in commercial flights and in economy class instead of using air- force planes? And why cannot they live in modest houses instead of the glamorous PM House and Ministers’ Colony in Islamabad?

They need to remember the fact that the biggest charge against previous civilian governments in the country was that they were corrupt and incompetent. The new civilian government should prove that all such perceptions about politicians are wrong.

PROF MOONIS AHMAR

Karachi

THE recent cabinet decision to allocate Rs10 million development fund annually to every member of parliament will lead to corruption and encourage rivalries between lawmakers and local government officials.

There are now 342 members of the National Assembly and 728 members of all the provincial assemblies. After Senate election in January, we shall have 100 more members entitled to this fund. Thus, the total development outlay comes to eight billion rupees. At the end, it will be the people of this country who will eventually bear the burden of this illogical decision in the form of increased taxes and soaring prices.

It would have been logical if the funds were allocated to the provinces which could have distributed the funds among local governments. These funds would have been then utilized for different projects with the mutual consent of the area lawmakers and local government officials.

In the past three years one good thing that the Musharraf government did was to limit corruption by cutting down the size of divisions and by closely monitoring the working of senior government officials. But it seems that the new government is taking a totally different course.

It would be advisable for the government to focus its energy on developing the country, instead of legitimizing corruption among parliamentarians for political expediency.

KHURRAM MUSTIKHAN

Karachi

Live and let live

“ALL the ills and curses that afflict mankind come from London,” said Napoleon Bonaparte in the 17th century and now, in the 21st century Indian Foreign Minister Yashwant Sinha has declared that Pakistan is the centre of all evils.

India had a statesman by the name of Jai Parkash Narain (nicknamed JP) whom Hindu fundamentalists used to address as Jewey Pakistan Narain.

The story goes that once school children were celebrating a cricket match victory by India against Pakistan. JP rushed to Jawaharlal Nehru and asked him to stop that display of hatred between the two neighbouring countries which had emerged on the map of the world by mutual consent and agreement. These were his sentiments which have been brushed aside by the current Indian leadership who happen to be extremists.

The Bhartya Janata Party has allocated billions of dollars for the defence budget to become mightier than Pakistan. This money could have been used to feed the poor who do not get even two square meals a day.

Pakistan has been trying to resolve the issue of Kashmir. Let us not forget that dialogue is the only logical way to solve issues. But one has to rise above one’s own and party interests for the sake of over one billion people who live in these two countries.

Power at any cost is the motto of the BJP which is being held hostage by extremist politicians like Lal Krishna Advani who could not stay back in Pakistan because of his fundamentalist views and has now found a fair field in India. This is evident from his utterances on the election victory of the BJP in Gujarat.

At the international level, India is still considered to be a secular state only because of what is written in the Indian Constitution and not due to what the majority of Indians practice. India is out and out a Hindu fundamentalist state which is out to eliminate every single non-Hindu.

Live and let live must be the motto of every nation if we want Asia to lead the world in the 21st century with the remarkable human and natural resources of the continent.

ALI ASHRAF KHAN

Via e-mail

Medical students’ problem

THE students of suspended medical colleges in Karachi are suffering badly. Their batch has not been updated with the WHO and no one is paying heed to this matter. The newly-graduated doctors are so depressed and dejected that I fear that some incident of suicide might happen.

I request President Pervez Musharraf and Prime Minister Zafarullah Khan Jamali to look into this matter and not let this future batch of doctors from private medical colleges suffer like that.

If these colleges were not up to the mark, why were they allowed to exist? The Hamdard College of Medicine, in the days of Hakim Mohammad Said, was given a go-ahead signal and no one objected at that time, but now after five years the PMDC wants to check the standard of these colleges.

It is a matter of shame that, instead of punishing the colleges for their poor standard, the PMDC is punishing the students and graduates of these colleges.

I request the Pakistan Medical Association and the ministry of health to look into this matter immediately and bring relief to the doctors so that they can apply for higher studies abroad.

AISHA MADIHA CHAUDHRY

Karachi

Appeal to MMA leaders

I WOULD like to bring an important issue to the notice of the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal leaders, specially Maulana Fazlur Rahman and the NWFP chief minister — that since the formation of their government in the province, some of their workers have started harassing political opponents.

Islam and the constitution of Pakistan give every citizen the right to vote according to his free will. However, in some areas of the NWFP, MMA workers are victimizing those who did not vote for MMA candidates. They must know that a vote against the MMA does not mean a vote against Islam.

One such incident happened with my domestic servant who belongs to the NWFP and did not vote for an MMA candidate. His act, according to the local extremist wing, was a vote against Islam. He was threatened with dire consequences.

The matter has been brought to the notice of the administration and if no one comes to his rescue, the poor, terrified man has no option but to say goodbye to his native town for the sake of his life and the security of his family members. I hope the MMA leaders will take notice of this matter.

NAEEM MUJTABA

Karachi

More about KBCA

ACCORDING to a Dawn report (Dec 9), Rauf Akhtar Farooqui has been appointed to conduct an inquiry against eight KBCA officers who are alleged to have demanded bribes.

Mr Farooqui was himself once suspended from the post of chief controller of buildings of the Karachi Building Control Authority because he permitted construction of a host of illegal buildings. How is it that he has been appointed to conduct an inquiry?

The man who has made this appointment is KBCA chief Brig (Retd) A. S. Nasir, who probably knows little about building laws, has apparently no requisite technical qualifications, behaves arrogantly and is inimical to the English language as reflected in his letter, reproduced by Ardeshir Cowasjee. Taxpayers will be justified in asking why he has been appointed chief controller of buildings.

Will any answers be forthcoming or should one presume that the only qualification that a retired man in Pakistan needs for appointment to head an organization is the uniform he once wore.

QAZI FAEZ ISA

Karachi

IN his rejoinder to Ardeshir Cowasjee’s column, KBCA PRO Mirza Yousaf Ali left out a significant fact that was hitherto unknown to Mr Cowasjee.

While they, in their naivete, believe that the KBCA’s aim is to control and improve Karachi’s built environment, Mr Ali officially declared for all and sundry that KBCA’s raison d’etre is only fund raising for the KDA and the Sindh government. The city be damned!

The PRO then accused Mr Cowasjee of being a supporter of an NGO. That, of course, has to be one of Mr Cowasjee’s worst crimes. Imagine what it will feel like being a supporter and collaborator of people who continually upset the apple cart by persistently pointing out corruption, injustice and apathy that prevail in our society.

HUSNAIN LOTIA

Mississauga, Canada

Burning of refuse

FOR the last many years, most of the refuse collected in Karachi is burnt at Surjani Town. This has released pollutants into the atmosphere and a serious health hazard to the area people.

In Surjani Town and 60 villages around where about 500,000 people live, cases of chronic bronchitis, respiratory tract infections, inflammation of eyes and pneumonia are on the rise.

The smoke produced by the burning of this refuse in the morning is so thick that visibility is reduced to a few yards, thus creating difficulties for motorists on the busy Shara-i-Madinat-ul-Hikmat which is used not only by the vehicles carrying students and employees of the Hamdard University but also by heavy trucks. Serious accidents may occur at any time.

The problem has been brought to the notice of the authorities concerned, but no action has been taken yet.

DR MURAD QADIR

Karachi

Motor vehicle tax

A FEW months back it was announced that from January 2003, all types of vehicle taxes would be abolished and petrol and diesel prices would be increased.

We are away only 10 days from the deadline but no final decision has been announced by the department concerned yet. Car owners do not know whether or not they have to pay the tax.

Many of them have paid the tax up to June 2003, and nobody knows how the money will be refunded.

It is suggested that, to avoid police harassment in January 2003, the department concerned clarify this matter immediately.

FARHAD DAVAR

Karachi

War for oil?

IS the US really getting ready for war against Iraq because it wishes to stop the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, or is there another reason? This is the subject of a big debate around the globe.

In the name of the ‘war on terror’, the US has established many military bases. What they have in common is their proximity to major oil production facilities. The real issues involved in this effort go far beyond the simplistic claim that the Bush administration is trying to make the world safe for oil companies. The real situation is more complex than that but oil, it seems, is still at the bottom of everything.

While Russian, French, and Chinese firms have positioned themselves to benefit from Iraqi oil once sanctions are ended, it is US companies, left in the cold so far, that stand to gain the most from a regime change in Baghdad. Rehabilitating those facilities will be a lucrative job for the oil industry, including US Vice-President Dick Cheney’s former employer company, Halliburton.

But US policymakers have bigger fish to fry. A successful invasion of Iraq might get enormous leverage for Washington over the world oil market. It will fatally weaken OPEC and limit the influence of other suppliers such as Russia, Mexico and Venezuela. Controlling Iraqi oil will allow the US, among other things, to reduce Saudi influence over oil prices.

In Colombia the stage is set for the United States to get drawn deeper into the country’s civil war. The Bush administration has decided to provide training and equipment to Colombian troops. Why? It is not, as one might think, solely because of the country’s drug exports to the United States. In reality, these US-supported troops are also protecting an oil pipeline against frequent bombings by rebel forces.

RAHIM PANJWANI

Karachi

MPA’s arrest

I WAS amazed to see the picture in Dawn (Dec 15) showing Mohajir Qaumi Movement MPA Younus Khan being arrested on the premises of the Sindh Assembly building. He was being dragged by policemen who were pulling him by his shirt and hair. Never in a civilized country would an MPA be treated in this manner even if he were a convict.

The question arises, if the police had any case against him, why was he allowed to contest the election? It appears that the only reason for his arrest was to deprive him of his vote in the provincial assembly. Does this also mean that there may be cases against other MPAs but they were allowed to contest the election so that they could be blackmailed later?

Is this the “real” democracy that Gen Musharraf promised to us? If an MPA can be humiliated in such a manner, I wonder what the fate of the common man who does not have any influence will be. Article 14 of our constitution safeguards the dignity of man but I wonder as to who will protect the dignity of a man from the police who treat people like serfs.

ANIL KHAN LUNI

Karachi

Smoking, a deadly killer

ACCORDING to a new ambitious accounting by the World Health Organization, half the premature deaths worldwide are caused by 20 health hazards and smoking tops the list.

Smoking is now considered a habit that kills and advertizing cigarettes in the West is either banned or controlled.

The recent decision of the Indian Supreme Court to ban all cigarette advertisements was courageous and humane. It was a recognition that the real victims of these advertisements are usually the youth and the dispossessed of society.

I was shocked during my recent visit to Bahawalpur to observe countless cigarette advertisements on government-owned places like railway stations, parks and PTDC motels, all displaying large posters of famous brands of cigarettes.

The government’s double standard with regard to this issue needs to be urgently addressed.

Sport stars who are usually heroes of the youth should refuse to be a party to cigarette advertisements.

MRS A. ABBASI

Karachi

PPP leadership

IT is sad to see the present political set-up ignore and sidetrack the PPP which struggled hard for democracy for more than a decade and whose members were once considered heroes by most Pakistanis.

It seems that the fault lies within the party leadership itself as, of late, they have been making inconsistent decisions and policies. There is clearly a lack of proper leadership in the party. The selfish attitude of its leader, too, is making all its members suffer.

ARISH TAREEN

Windsor, Canada

Remission in jail sentence

ACCORDING to a news report, the interior minister has pardoned the remaining jail sentence of a cousin of Prime Minister Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali. He was serving a 38-year sentence.

If this is true, the government is morally bound to give remission to all prisoners, including Asif Ali Zardari.

MAJOR (RETD) ANWAR PASHA

Lahore

Mossad and Black Tuesday

ACCORDING to reports from Washington, former secretary of state Henry Kissinger has resigned as chairman of the Blue Ribbon Commission on Americans failure to prevent the 9/11 terrorist attacks. The reason he gave was that his ownership of the international consultancy firm, ‘Kissinger Associates’, could have conflict of interests with the chairmanship of the commission.

Kissinger who is a Jew enjoys a high profile among the top American Zionists and the Israeli government. He is also highly knowledgeable on world events. So, he could be in the know of Mossad having a hand in the terrorist attacks. Obviously, he could not have disclosed this and that could be the real reason for his resignation.

There are several reasons which make the official version of the incident suspicious. One of these is the fact that the identity of the person who filmed the attacks on the twin towers of the WTC was not only not disclosed by the media but also nothing was said about what made him to be present on the terrace of the multi-storied building in the neighbourhood of the WTC at that time.

Also, initially there was mention of a fifth aircraft but nothing was said about it subsequently in the electronic or the print media. All this seems highly intriguing.

Prince Naif of Saudi Arabia was reported to have blamed the Jews for 9/11 attacks. He was quoted in an interview by Kuwait’s Al Siyasa as saying: “Who committed the events of September 11? .... I think they (the Zionists) are behind these events. It is impossible that 19 youths, including 15 Saudis, carried out the operation of September 11”.

An objective and dispassionate observer of world affairs may ask a question, who are the real beneficiaries of the Sept 11 events? And the answer can only be: the countries whose highly talented professionals meticulously planned the events with utmost precision and used the 19 youths as pawns.

If Arab youths had the ability to plan and execute various procedures wholly on their own, the Arabs would in all probability have been ahead of the Americans in making space probes instead of helplessly watching the Jews of Israel terrorize the Palestinians.

JALAL AHMED

Karachi