| 22 January 2004 | Thursday | 29 Ziqa'ad 1424 |
Checking security lapses
President's address to parliament
HBFC's loan policy
Garbage burning in industrial area
Updating school textbooks
Cricket team's performance
Pakistan-India relations
Diversion of PIA flights
Joint electorate
Bursting of water mains
Traffic mess
Training in US
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We Pakistanis are saddened by the recent attacks on President Musharraf. However, this should not be taken as an indication of support for a military ruler. We would like the democratic institutions to be restored, implying that the army should not in any way overshadow the working of a civilian government.
The political void that has led to the growth of hardliners in the country must be checked. We believe that only those leaders who are elected by the people are sincere to them. The little good we believe that this government has achieved is discussed below.
Societies are judged by their tolerance towards other societies and their acceptance of new ideas. The policy of candid leadership with a dialectic approach is what is essential towards making Pakistan a more open-minded and tolerant society. Diversity leads to creativity and brainstorming leads to solutions. This government has a diverse team of highly skillful people and is willing to consult with other intelligentsia before taking any major decision.
We are glad that our government has adopted a forward-looking approach towards the Middle East crises and the Kashmir dispute. We need to think about what will happen if the Middle East crises are resolved? As a nation, how are we going to approach this? And should all our generations bear the burden of the British fallacy, i.e. Kashmir?
We are fortunate not to have defaulted in October 1999. Otherwise our rupee would have depreciated about three-folds making our debt of $32 billion to $100 billion. The poverty stricken would have been forced into further poverty. September 11 put us in a very dire situation. The international pressure was immense. It was this government that led us through this challenging time.
Our stock market has improved. Pakistan has introduced a $500 million eurobond with ABN AMRO, Deutsche Bank and JP Morgan. We support the policy of the Higher Education Commission to bring back to Pakistan intellectual capital by offering them a higher pay and support.
In the end, how can we as individuals contribute towards this movement of prosperity? By doing whatever little we can - be it teaching someone how to read or by contributing Rs10 to a social cause. All women should work with whatever potential they have. It will benefit us greatly if we increase our work-week by one hour. This makes 52x140 million hours of more work done in a year. This will increase our GDP by a huge amount.
Let us join hands in making Pakistan a more productive society. Let us not waste our time and emotional energy in negative thoughts. We are in no way implying that ideologies do not matter. Islam is a beautiful ideology and a practical religion.
WAJIHA MALIK
via email
Checking security lapses
Thanks to the bureaucrats, every terrorist attack is utilized to frighten the rulers to seek more powers, foreign courses, privileges and luxurious equipment for the police, at the cost of the poor taxpayers.
So far, the net result is only an impressive display of security measures, and a worsening law and order situation in the country, including Islamabad and Rawalpindi, where daily armed robberies, car-jackings and murders are now accepted as a matter of routine. Consequently, even the president of Pakistan is no longer safe in these cities.
As we learn from history, an effective security of life and property demands thorough knowledge of the local ground realities, and professional competence to devise effective measures accordingly, instead of foreign courses, draconian police powers, expensive equipment of ornamental value, etc.
These security measures are supposed to be developed primarily by think-tanks in the ministry of interior. So far, it has been proved beyond any doubt that the ministry is incapable of doing so, which indicates the poor quality of its officers.
As a concern of national interest I appeal to the president to form a high-powered committee to examine the working and intellectual output of this ministry during the last four years, and to look into the problems of the provinces and those of the general public received and solved by it during this period.
Furthermore, it should recommend criteria suitable for selection of officers for posts to the ministry which is responsible for the formulation of policies and procedures relating to the security of life and property in the entire country.
For this, the committee could seek the assistance of the provinces and the general public, particularly of those well versed with the modus operandi of professional criminals and terrorists, including former criminals and terrorists.
GHULAM MUHAMMAD
Rawalpindi
President's address to parliament
I watched the president's address to the joint session of parliament on television and then read the coverage in your newspaper. It was a worthwhile address. It showed us where we are headed, and I for one agree with the vision of Pakistan that the president spelled out.
I was happy to note that the right to dissent, an integral part of democracy, is alive and well in Pakistan. This was amply demonstrated as all of us saw and read about this right being availed of in the house. What I did not understand was what the dissenters were yelling in chorus about.
Is slogan-shouting by our politicians all that democracy has to offer in the name of democracy? If so, then it's Pakistan's tragedy that we elect the same self-seeking professional politicians who believe that once your party is a major one, then it is your right to come into power at any cost and by any means.
They vote for maximum benefits for themselves without legislating any other business for one obscure reason or another. They don't deserve the salaries and perks due to them. Surely they cannot pretend to represent us in parliament by such behaviour.
When will Pakistan matter to our political leadership? When will their personal ambitions take a back seat for the betterment of the country? When will they learn that dissent is healthy and necessary because it is constructive and not destructive or infantile?
Incidentally, I wish I could agree with your reporter regarding the closing statement by the president who did not raise both his fists at the opposition but he raised them whilst saying "Pakistan har waqt paindabad". It was meant to emphasize what he was saying and not threaten the people he was facing.
FAZAL HABIB CURMALLY
Karachi
HBFC's loan policy
The House Building Finance Corporation's loan of Rs390,000 was given to me in August 1998, through Noble Builders for their project Sohoni Chalet, in which I had booked a small house. Monthly instalments of Rs6,005 were required to be repaid to the HBFC with effect from August 1, 1998.
I commenced repayment with effect from August 1, 1998, and by August 8, 2000, I had made 60 monthly instalments to the HBFC; an amount of Rs360,300 leaving an unpaid balance of less than Rs30,000 through oversight.
I am surprised to be told that the balance against my account is still over Rs211,000 - as interest on a negligible amount of unpaid loan. At what rate does the HBFC charge interest? Is it simple or compound? I wrote to the office concerned with a copy to the chairman asking for clarification, but no response has been received so far.
I dispute this amount strongly and invite your attention to the following facts:
a. At no stage were we apprised of the chargeable interest rates and rules pertaining to the HBFC loan, except for being given a deposit book, indicating the GNAB NO., Account No., monthly instalment amount and the commencement date.
b. Charging usury is totally un-Islamic, and it does not behove a government-owned organization to exploit the people seeking loans for house building.
I have no alternative but to go public with my grievance as no explanation is forthcoming from the HBFC.
AGGRIEVED LOANEE
Karachi
Garbage burning in industrial area
We want to draw the attention of the authorities concerned to a lurking danger. There is a vacant plot behind the row of factories bearing numbers 1114, 11/6, 11/7 and 11/8 in sector 17, Korangi Industrial Area, Karachi, over which cactus trees and wild bushes have grown. This has encouraged the people from nearby areas to dump garbage there and then burn it.
Recently someone burned the garbage, and soon it turned into a horrible blaze becoming unbearable for those inside our factory. At times the flames were so high and so strong that we had to turn off our electricity because there is an electric line right in front of the bushes. On one such occasion, work at our factory remained suspended for several hours, affecting production. It took firemen some time to put out the blaze.
When this incident was reported to the Korangi Association of Trade and Industry, they ignored the plaint, saying they would conduct an investigation into who owns the plot. Our complaints to the Pakistan Hosiery Manufacturers Association and the Environmental Protection Agency did not draw any response either. The plot with its filth also poses health hazards.
We request the authorities concerned, once again, to clean the plot and construct boundary walls around it, before any loss of money or human life is caused.
WAQAS
Karachi
Updating school textbooks
I endorse Mr Ardeshir Cowasjee's opinion (January 11) that books used in the public-owned "non-elite schools" are full of disinformation and errors. These need immediate reform. Of all the subjects the one distorted most is history, as has been rightly explained by Mr Cowasjee.
In order to bring our curriculum at par with the present-day world education system, and also to remove spurious information from it, I suggest that a high-powered board should be constituted with eminent educationists, scholars and historians, both local and from abroad, if need be.
They should be assigned the task to analyze our system of education and the curriculum taught in the schools. Their commendations/suggestions must be implemented without any reservation, forthwith.
MANZOOR H. KURESHI
Karachi
Cricket team's performance
As a Pakistani expatriate living in New Zealand, I have been appalled by the conduct and behaviour of the Pakistan cricket team management and, as a consequence, the team's performance in New Zealand. Although we won the Test series 1-0, the team could have well squandered this result through sheer ignorance of the rules of the game.
Required only a few runs for victory at the end of the fourth day's play in the second Test, the captain, the management and the coach didn't avail of the extra half an hour allowed in the event of a result being imminent. This might have cost us the win, as weather could easily have washed out the fifth day's proceedings.
All Miandad could offer at the post-match press briefing was something to the effect that it was an oversight which didn't matter in the end. This nonchalant and callous attitude was carried forth to the five-match one-day series. First, Shoaib Akhtar, our most valuable asset, was injured for two matches as he had been in the nets, batting without a groin protector. This is a grave matter of negligence and unprofessional conduct.
Then there is the matter of not treating the opposition with due respect and underestimating their potential (and over-estimating ours). Since I was following the series very closely from all perspectives, I observed a great difference in how the Black Caps management, the coach and the captain would focus and prepare for all matches, and in comparison what little thinking went into how the Pakistani team prepared.
The Pakistani team's outcricket was absolutely amateurish, and we must have gifted the Black Caps 20-30 runs in each match. The final icing on the cake was the manner in which Shoaib Akhtar got run out in the last match; it seemed he was strolling on Mall Road in Murree on a public holiday.
Javed Miandad's non-serious approach to the coaching assignment, compounded by Inzamam's self-acknowledged lackadaisical attitude and collective lack of match preparation have eroded our global one-day rankings, almost ruined a Test series result and have let down all the younger players in the team, as well as thePakistani nation, both at home and abroad.
Winning and losing is all part of the game, but you are judged by your conduct in the face of battle, and our conduct was less than awe-inspiring, to say the least.
I hope Mr Shahryar Khan, the new PCB chief, will take a serious note of this laissez-faire attitude of Miandad and company.
NAVEED AKHTAR BALOUCH
Albany, Auckland, New Zealand
Pakistan-India relations
Indo-Pakistan relations have always been prey to suspicion and scepticism. The seeds of animosity can be traced back to the emergence of both states. Having fought several wars, cordiality between them has been elusive.
Now that India has recognized the Kashmir issue as a dispute between India and Pakistan, there must be a change in the state policy at the highest level in both countries. If the rulers are determined to bury the hatchet and usher in a new era of cordiality and harmony, then a two pronged strategy should be adopted:
a) Both Pakistan and India are developing countries. If they strive to enhance their trade ties, it will definitely provide a fillip to their economies. This in turn will result in social uplift, harmony and prosperity.
b) Another crucial aspect is that of people- to-people contact. Decades-old enmity has engendered a kind of distrust and prejudice on both sides which is very disruptive. People on both sides of the border share a lot. They must look at the positive aspects and forge friendly ties with each other.
M.JAVAID AZHAR
Malakand
Diversion of PIA flights
On January 17, flights PK-362 from Karachi and PK-356 from Lahore were to land at Islamabad at 7:25am and 8:20am, respectively, but both were not allowed to do so.
The flight PK-362 was first made to land at Lahore and was then diverted to Multan. The flight PK-356 carrying over 210 passengers, including a 10-year-old boy suffering from acute diabetes, was delayed at Lahore for 80 minutes. Then it took off and landed at Islamabad, but the passengers were not allowed to disembark.
It took off from Islamabad after 75 minutes, landed at Peshawar at 11:28am and remained there till 1:48pm. After that the passengers were flown to Islamabad.
Throughout this approximately seven-hour, nerve-wracking journey, the passengers remained clueless as to why the delay. Will the relevant authorities let the passengers know why they had to endure this mental agony?
IFTIKHAR AJMAL BHOPAL
Islamabad
Joint electorate
According to reports in the vernacular press, the provincial governments have endorsed the suggestion of joint electorate for the elections of local bodies.
If this report is correct, the joint electorate this time must be real and clear unlike the general elections of 2002 in which almost five million Ahmadis were still treated as forming a separate electorate. As a protest against that, they refused to take part in the elections.
I urge the president and the prime minister to make sure that the elections of local bodies are now held on the basis of a real and genuine joint electorate.
M. ISHAQUE SOOFI
Rabwah
Bursting of water mains
Bursting of water mains is a constant problem in Karachi. Dawn has given two such instances - "Pipeline burst disrupts water supply, damages road" (January 7) and "Water leakage ruins road" (January 8).
Although this problem is so common, the relevant authorities have never tried to tackle it. The reason is simple; the pipes are bought from cheap sources without any quality control. This cheap purchase, in turn, becomes expensive because the mains have to be relaid, roads have to be repaired, and if we add all this to the total cost, it goes up considerably.
I fail to understand why our city administration does not buy water mains from those manufacturers who supply their material to the cantonment areas where pipes burst very rarely.
I remember one such factory is located near Tin Hatti, Lasbella, which is known to manufacture quality cement pipes. Although this may be slightly expensive compared to the ones bought by the city government, in the long run they are economical if we consider relaying the pipes, repairing the damaged roads, etc. I appeal to the Karachi nazim to look into the matter and take corrective measures.
AKHTAR ALI SIDDIQI
Karachi
Traffic mess
Every now and then I am witness to a number of avoidable accidents in Karachi's DHA areas, which are caused as a result of negligence on the part of the DHA. Barring a few, most intersections in the area do not have traffic lights. As a result, there are collisions among motorists who think that theirs is the right of way.
One wonders, considering the millions that the authority spends on uplift of the area, why no attention has been paid to this particular problem. I would like to know what jurisdiction the DHA has of lifting wrongly parked cars in the Zamzama area, disallowing certain buses from plying routes that have been allotted to them by the RTA and also employing their guards as traffic policemen in Sea View. Does the traffic police have no jurisdiction in Karachi's most posh locality?
MAHFOOZ HUSSAIN
Karachi
Training in US
This refers to a news item (January 8) that says the US ambassador and our educational minister have given air tickets to a lady teacher from Dadu, Sindh, for training in the US.
This looked normal as can be between two friendly countries, but this perception changed after reading another report the same day from Amman which said: "Many MPs and other important people in Jordan, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait are advising their governments not to bow to US pressure as to what is to be taught in their schools." It all looked to be a part of their oft-repeated agenda of re-making of the Arab world.
Z. A. KAZMI
Karachi
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