| March 10, 2003 | Monday | Muharram 6, 1424 |
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Mugging at a crowded place
Groom 2002 programme
Hypocrisy about ‘terror’
PM’s plea to lawmakers
Widows’ plight
‘US media’s soft spot’
Mobile coverage needed
Exploiting children
Paving way for new talent
What ails the Economy
Improving traffic in Karachi
Use of indigenous iron ore at the PS
It is fine for Mr Rehan Siddiqui (‘Heads must roll from the top’, March 6) to blame the coach, Richard Pybus, for his abysmal performances with the team. I, too, share little sympathy for the man who has coached the team on three previous occasions with little by way of results. I, too, think that at $1,500 a day he is grossly overpaid. But to point out that he is a Jew is displaying the type of narrow-minded, petty and racist intolerance that gives Pakistanis a bad name.
How would Mr Siddiqui feel if someone were to ascribe the poor performance of our team to their religious belief saying 10 players in the team were Muslim, that is why they failed so miserably?
DR MOHAMMAD
SAMIUDDIN Karachi
THE remarks against the Pakistan coach made in the report on March 6 are disquieting. As a frequent reader of Dawn, I am appalled by the scathing attack on Mr Pybus’s religious background.
Being a Jew has nothing to do with the performance of the Pakistan team. Granted a journalist can criticize a sports coach for not doing his job well, but personal attacks on his religious background are uncalled-for.
Mr Pybus, on the other hand, has always come off as a sincere dedicated professional whose ideas and training are never truly implemented by our unmotivated players.
I have always regarded Dawn as a standard-bearer in the Pakistan media for liberal and unbiased news and thought.
AMAN HAQUE Via email
OUR team and the selection committee all have contributed to our poor performance in the World Cup. From the outset, they failed to focus on the game. Erratic decision-making showed lack of leadership and captaincy which might have resulted in the waned team spirit.
Watching the team playing all those games, it was obvious that there was something drastically missing from the team. And that was leadership.
Poor selection of the captain is a blunder on the part of the selection committee. A captain must be selected for his ability to lead, who has earned the respect and confidence of all his team-mates. Unlike coaches in other games, the role of a captain in cricket is very vital. In this respect, only the selection committee, particularly the chairman of the committee, is to be blamed. And there ought to be some accountability here. All members of the selection committee should resign.
The team, including the captain, the selection committee and the PCB, owe an explanation to our cricket fans. Individually also, the players have failed to discharge their duties — they all fumbled. It is time they started behaving, leaving their egos and self-interests aside.
MOBIN M. BAIG
California, USA
Constructive criticism of Pakistan’s performance in the cricket World Cup should be encouraged, but comments about the race and religion of the coach are totally unjustified. Such comments only serve to highlight the ignorance and narrow-mindedness of the writer.
NADEEM ULLAH
West Yorkshire, UK
MUGGING at a crowded place is the latest in-thing with criminals. This I speak from my own experience. Recently, I was mugged at a crowded place in Saddar, Karachi, with people walking to and fro, doing window-shopping at the various outlets selling electronic equipment.
I was on my way to a shop which repairs mobile phones when a man passing by tells me that someone is calling out to me from behind. I turn to see a young man waving to me. I proceed towards him as he, too, approaches me. He holds out his hand and I, involuntarily, extend mine to shake it. He has a very firm grip with which he holds my hand tightly. He then tells me, casually, that there has been an attack at his office and he is collecting “donations” to make up for the loss. He then wants to know how much money I have on me.
I look around and find on my left a shopkeeper standing in the doorway of his shop, barely a few feet away, taking care not to look in our direction. Also, 30 to 40 feet away there are four traffic policemen, chatting merrily. Behind me is a police mobile about 15 feet away. As I am surveying the situation, the man warns me against being smart, and motions with his left hand (now in his qameez pocket) that he has a gun pointed at me.
By this time his partner (the one who talked to me in the first place) joins us and stands behind me in such a way that I cannot move back. I am thus forced to part with my money (about Rs3,000), in plain view of the people walking past me. I am then told to turn around and keep walking without making an attempt to follow them. I walk a few steps in a daze and then turn to see if I can see where they are going but they seem to have disappeared.
F. SHAIKH
Karachi
LAST July the Pakistan Software Export Board launched a programme, Groom 2002, to promote IT students to the software development industry. For this, they held an entry test and selected 500 students from all over the country. Those selected were sent to various software houses in August 2002 for three-month internship. It was said that for those three months, the PSEB would pay us Rs3,000 stipend a month.
They got our bank account numbers and other required information and said that first month, stipend would be transferred within the next few days. We waited for two months, but later we were informed that we would get the stipend after the completion of our internship (November 2002). After the completion of the internship, we sent them internship completion certificates so that we could get our stipend, but they made us fool and continue to do so till now.
It is now over six months but no payment has so far been made despite reminders to the PSEB, which has maintained a mysterious silence. What a treatment to the professionals!
Why dis they play this great ‘Drama 2002’ with us? They provided professionals to sotware houses which enjoyed the talent free of cost. Is the PSEB listening to our complaint?
AAMIR BASHIR
Lahore
“I AM strongly in favour of using poison gas against the uncivilised tribes (Kurds and Afghans)” — Winston Churchill, 1919.
It would be fair to state that ‘terror’ should be attributed to any situation, where a climate of fear has been created by acts of violence against an innocent civilian population. Rationality would dictate that dropping of bombs from B-52s or the use of tanks and helicopter gunships against unarmed civilians is a more potent example of terror than the retaliatory actions of disgruntled individuals.
As the US recently unleashed its Daisy Cutters and B-52s in the name of fighting terror, are not those on the receiving end been terrorized? Why is it only when a western target has been hit, we get to hear about terror?
Despite the clear evidence quoted above, Winston Churchill was never described as a terrorist or a war criminal. Is it because it was the so-called civilized world exercising its prerogative, as repeated recently in Afghanistan and now Iraq is about to suffer the same fate? History is certainly repeating itself.
Similarly, when an Iranian passenger plane was shot down by the US, it was cast aside as a ‘mistake’ without any mention of terror. In contrast, the western media went into a state of frenzy for years seeking revenge for the Lockerbie bombing.
Clearly, the west applies the word terror discreetly keeping in mind the ideological affiliation of the perpetrator or his racial identity. Otherwise, it seems, the west has immunity regardless of the degree of violence it inflicts on civilian populations in the Middle East and elsewhere.
“The principle is that the United States has the right of terrorism and that right is inherited by its clients, and it doesn’t matter who they are.” —Noam Chomsky
YAMIN ZAKARIA
London, UK
I WAS surprised to read that the Prime Minister of Pakistan has urged the elected members to deal with local issues only, implying that he alone knew what was best for the country. He reminded the elected members that theirs was a graduate assembly and, therefore, they must follow the dictates of the government and should not make things difficult for him and General Musharraf.
I fail to comprehend how the MNAs speaking their minds will make things difficult for democracy. We have seen that there was a revolt in the British parliament over any possible attack on Iraq. Their members of parliament have even visited Iraq.
The elected members have the right to voice their feelings and those of the people of Pakistan. The government, too, is close to the US, and it appears that for the sake of a few dollars, it will side with America.
AKRAM MALIK
Gympie, Australia
I AGREE with Abdul Razzak, who, in a letter published on March 6, rightfully pointed out the flaws in the current policy governing the national savings schemes. I would like to add another aspect which has been ignored.
Widows who have invested in the NSS and run their expenses from the profit earned on these schemes are having a very tough time after the government cut profit rates for the NSS.
Inflation and increase in the rates of all utilities make life even more miserable for widows. The government has provided some relief its own pensioners but ignored the widows like me, who may also be senior citizens having no other means to support themselves. At least, we should be brought on a par with the pensioners immediately.
MRS SHAMSA AFTAB ALI
Lahore
THIS has reference to “US media’s soft spot for India” by Akhtar Mahmud Faruqui in the March 1 issue of your paper. Mr Faruqui, in his conclusions, has made an inadvertent point.
In Mr Faruqui’s words, India’s indigenous missile programme required the energizing of the entire Indian science and technology establishment to achieve the goal of deployable missile and space-rocket technologies. In contrast, Pakistan’s missiles, though equally capable in payload, range and accuracy, seem to have just appeared “fully formed” and ready for deployment.
By implication, is there tacit acknowledgment in Pakistan’s intelligentsia that this know-how was acquired from abroad?
S. RAMAKRISHNAN
New Jersey, USA
THE areas known as Terbela, Gadoon and Swabi (all in close proximity) have great importance because a number of important places are located here. The Terbela Dam and the Ghazi Brotha project, the Ghulam Ishaq Khan University, the Gadoon Amazai Industrial Area, all lie within this radius.
Despite the importance of these individual establishments and the large number of people who come from all parts of the country to work here, these areas have no proper mobile phone coverage. A couple of the services that do work have a very weak signal strength that cannot be received unless at a certain elevation in the open air.
The conventional telephony services of this region are not sufficient to provide to our individual telephony needs. As students studying far away from our home cities we need proper telephony services which cannot be provided through normal landline services.
Besides students, many people here have mobile phones which become useless because of lack of coverage. A large potential clientele exists because of the Terbela and Gadoown Industrial areas. As clients, we have tried to approach a couple of mobile companies to get their attention, but apparently they have no such channel to entertain such customer queries.
We hope to get attention to our problem through your newspaper and hope that the communication plight of students and the people of this area could somehow be resolved through proper mobile coverage.
UMER ASIF
Swabi
IN the 1950s and 60s schoolchildren were drawn up to line both sides of the road from Karachi airport to the Governor’s House on occasions of the visits of some foreign dignitary. They were made to stand in the sun and wind for several hours to wave flags and bunting and to clap their hands while the motorcade passed. This obnoxious practice, which was obviously a formal child abuse, has since been discontinued perhaps by orders of Z. A. Bhutto.
However, a new type of child abuse appears to have cropped up. I am dismayed to see children being drawn up into agitational activities. I refer to the pictures on Page 19 of Dawn of Feb 21 and Page 2 of Feb 25 showing children, perhaps between seven and 12 years of age, being made to carry banners having slogans ‘complete ban on deep sea fishing’, ‘down with war mongers’ and ‘no to war’. These children certainly do not even know the spellings or the meanings and purpose of the writings on the banners that they are made to carry and march on the streets.
It is not only improper but also a very dangerous trend to expose children to agitational activities. There should be some law to prevent children of raw age, say under 18 years, to be drawn into agitational activities.
M.B. KHAN
Karachi
IN reply to a question by Syed Naveed Qamar, Prime Minister Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali minister assured the National Assembly that the 67 persons who had been reemployed by the government after reaching the age of superannuation would be relieved gradually. This is by far the best move by the prime minister. There are many more who have been given such appointments.
Good governance demands that those who reach the age of superannuation are automatically relieved immediately to pave the way for new talent. There is already enough unemployment in the country. This policy should be followed in letter and in spirit and should apply to all.
AKHTAR KHAN
Karachi
THE article titled ‘What ails the economy’ by Ahsan Iqbal in Wednesday’s issue of Dawn is laudable for the fact that it provides the readers with clues to causes which ail our economy. Pakistan depends on foreign aid but it is not a permanent solution to our economy. We must create our sources to make the economy strong.
I think the first factor which ails our economy is corruption. If we examine government departments like the revenue department and Wapda through which the government collects money to run the country, we find that bribe is rampant while the legal transfer of money is stopped to the treasury. The people want to pay taxes and the just bills but they are being discouraged.
One such fact: my neighbour used to pay electricity bill regularly but after some time, he used to get excessive bill for what was in his use — one bulb and one fan.
This continued for some time to the great frustration of the man. As the amount went on increasing, the man stopped paying in that fashion and now pays Rs100 a month to the Wapda employee to overcome the problem.
This is just one example; there are thousands of others who are discouraged to pay the bills in a lawful manner. So, the government must eradicate corruption to strengthen the economy.
PEER MUHAMMAD
KHUAWAR
Larkana
ALLOW me to make a few comments and suggestions regarding the prevalent traffic network in Karachi. Installation of cat-eyes on Sharea Faisal is a good idea and seems to help in keeping the traffic within lanes (however, God knows whether they are for traffic management or for beautification purposes).
In most parts of the world a special lane is intended as an emergency lane which is reserved for emergency response vehicles such as ambulances, fire trucks and police, etc. But we see no sign of this anywhere in Pakistan. Also, the fact that there is no demarcation of lanes for cyclists, motorcyclists, autorickshaws and buses. Most buses opt for speed and there seems to be a competition among them to reach the next stop as quickly as possible, thus resulting in disregard for the extreme left lane meant for slow vehicular traffic.
The fundamental change, however, has to be in the mindset of the vehicle drivers. In our country, the prevalent mindset is to get out of a traffic jam by using any way possible, leaving behind a mess. In short, it can be categorized as: as long as I get out of this mess, everything is fine.
The state of traffic in Saddar is such that I think one-day vehicle entry will be banned. The state of our vehicle movement is of importance because it ultimately affects the lives of ordinary people, be it pedestrians, cyclists, motorcyclists, motorist or citizens travelling by bus. Smooth flow of traffic will cut down accidents, injury, travelling time and ultimately noise pollution as well.
Although there is some semblance of a plan for the vehicles, sorry to say the same cannot be said for pedestrians, perhaps because the section of society which matter most in Pakistan have their own means of transport.
The need of the hour is to identify the different bottlenecks around the city and to prepare a remedial plan. Sometimes amending the basic problem and simple things can be cause for a big change.
Going towards the Korangi industrial area by way of Chand Bibi Bridge, most of the traffic has to veer to the right and then to the left to avoid buses which stop at the end of the bridge.
The traffic signal of Korangi Road, where traffic passes from Hazara Colony to Mehmoodabad, is faulty and one can easily misunderstand the traffic lights. It is a potential hazard, which can easily be rectified by rearranging a few wires. The key word is awareness, if each of us sends our suggestions regarding ways to improve traffic — be it motorist or pedestrian — and worthwhile suggestions are listened to and action taken, a lot of improvement can be made.
I am no expert in traffic management but these are my observations by travelling on the roads of Karachi. I am sure many other people would have their own. So, how about expressing those views and perhaps some of them would be heard.
SALMAN. A. BUGVI
Karachi
The use of indigenous Dilband iron ore in Pakistan Steel is a step toward indigenization. Five year Agreement recently signed between Pakistan Steel and Bolan Mining Enterprise (a joint venture organization of Balochistan government) for supply and use of 100,000 tons of indigenous iron ore by Pakistan Steel (PS) will open a new door to development, infrastructure improvement, roads and means of communication providing job opportunities to local youth in Balochistan.
The PS could tap the tremendous potential in mineral sector by making optimum use of indigenous iron ore deposits at Dilband. The Pakistan import bill of mineral and its products has been on rise with the surge in their consumption in the country. Pakistan Steels cost of production could not be reduced due to import of iron.
The country’s first ever economically exploitable iron ore deposits at Dilband in Mastung District, Balochistan, were discovered in recent years. It is estimated that while the net value of the deposit is worth more than Rs10 billion, even 10 per cent blending will save the country at least Rs200 million per year in foreign exchange. This discovery is bound to play a pivotal role in future industrialization and economic development of the country.
The PS had a very bad image tarnished by the stories of mismanagement, massive corruption and huge losses. Around 5000 tons of iron ore were dispatched to the Pakistan Steel years ago. There was a strong lobby that fiercely resisted use of indigenous iron ore and other inputs, as it would slash their commission. The commission Mafia was dominating in the Pakistan Steel that opposed any move for using indigenous iron ore. Thanks to the military administration that recently finalized the terms and conditions for the sale of indigenous iron ore deposits of Dilband with Bolan Mining Enterprises (BME) to Pakistan Steel.
The Dilband ore deposits of Mastung region were sent to the Pakistan Steel for test use and reported to the federal government. It goes to the credit of the Musharraf government that revived this corporation. Pakistan Steel broke all previous records of quarterly sales by achieving sales amounting to Rs 5.13 billion in the first quarter of the financial year (July-September, 2002) as compared to the sale of Rs3.62 billion in the corresponding period in the last financial year. According to the statistics, the productivity rose from Rs 0.35 million steel sold per employee in the financial year 1990-91 to Rs 0.99 million sold per employee in the financial year 2001-2002. Pakistan Steel will utilize iron ore from Dilband by blending it with imported ores to an extent of 15 percent. It is worth mentioning that Pakistan Steel has been importing around 1.9 million tons of iron per annum from various countries like Australia, India, Brazil and Canada. It is estimated that after utilizing 100,000 tons of local iron, around 4 million dollars would be saved by Pakistan Steel.
Pakistan Steel requires 60-65 percent quality contents, while the present contents of Disband ore ranged between 35 and 40 percent. It is however contended that with the installation of upgradation or benefaction plant, the present quality of Dilbund ore may be increased to the required level.
Balochistan is rich in mineral reserves. Its tremendous mineral potential is yet to be tapped. The total estimated iron ore reserves are about 273 million tonnes in Balochistan. No serious efforts were made by successive government in the past to exploit huge mineral resources of this province.
Pakistan Steel should take full advantage of upsurge in the demand by increasing the production to the maximum of the capacity and by taking measures to reduce the cost of production. The cost of production may be reduced substantially by making maximum use of indigenous iron ore. The optimum use of indigenous minerals should be constitutionalized in the industry in Pakistan to reduce import bill and cost of production. In short, indigenization should be encouraged in this context.
The use of iron from Dilband reserves in Balochistan could reduce the cost of production of Pak Steel, but no step was taken to exploit Dilband Iron ore potential in the past. Pakistan Steel is using one million tones imported ‘cooking coal’. There is a need to explore the possibilities of using local coal in PS furnaces.
Syed Fazl-e-Haider
Karachi
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