| 25 February 2004 | Wednesday | 04 Muharram 1425 |
Civic problems and Karachi city govt
Letter of right shares
Refusal of exam visa to doctors
Converting park sites into plots
Pakistan: two questions of great concern
Monitoring jails
Female literacy
Robert Fisk
Complaint to PTCL
DHA Sunday bazaar
PPP leader's statements
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While addressing a gathering of clerics in Islamabad on February 18, President Musharraf stressed the need to purge society of religious extremism. One couldn't agree with the president more, but the big question is: what has he done so far to curb this menace?
I am afraid that the president has taken his case to a crowd whose ability to help check extremism can be easily questioned. In the past, the president issued a directive to subject the blasphemy law cases to a special scrutiny before these cases could be registered.
The objective of the directive was to eliminate the possibility of misuse of this law. But the ink on this directive had not yet dried when, under pressure from the clerics, some of whom were perhaps present in the above-mentioned gathering, the president withdrew it.
Before the 2002 elections, General Musharraf issued an executive order to quash the separate electorate. Despite this order, the bureaucracy excluded a religious minority from the joint electoral rolls.
Now, just a few days ago, the chief elections commissioner announced that the electoral rolls would be prepared separately, for Muslims and all non-Muslims, after all.
It is clear that the government feels helpless against the pressure from those who, according to the president, are just a few among us. The problem is that those who are in a position to make the real difference talk but do not perform.
The leadership and initiative in the drive against extremism must come from the government without further delay, with courage and the full force of the tenets of human equality. The game of appeasing the few must end.
The government of the NWFP has the authority to function according to its perceptions. However, under no circumstances can it override the rights and liberties provided by the Constitution.
When a gang, under protection of the NWFP law-enforcement agencies, stops a bus and forces the driver or the passengers to stop playing music, or attacks a video shop burning down someone's source of livelihood, the provincial government is in direct contravention of the Constitution and is guilty of extremism.
The office of the president cannot absolve itself of its responsibility in this matter by simply having General Musharraf deliver eloquent speeches. A few months ago, a group of fanatics went on rampage, painting over female pictures on advertising billboards, from Peshawar to Karachi.
The billboard owners' right to hold property was violated in full view of those whose bounden duty was to protect it. Why were the perpetrators of this extremism allowed to commit this crime with impunity?
When the president did not control the government, he was able to step forward and rid the country of a corrupt and an incompetent prime minister. Now that he has this ascendancy and all the related powers, why can he not act against the extremist few?
Mr President, the time for talk has long passed; now is the time for concrete action.
SIDDIQUE MALIK
Louisville, KY., USA
Civic problems and Karachi city govt
The concept of devolution of power to grass-roots level has not been a success as far as Karachi is concerned. The city government has not been able to deliver and has miserably failed to solve the civic problems. In fact, nazims have caused more sufferings to the people.
Things have gone from bad to worse during the last two-and-a-half years or so. Battered roads, broken footpaths, heaps of garbage, overflowing gutters, open manholes, water shortage, unhygienic water supply and many other civic problems continue to haunt the citizens of Karachi unabated. Even the roads damaged during the rains have not been fully repaired.
Many roads and service lanes around the city are still lying unattended. Strangely enough the president's warning to the city government to repair complete repairing work of damaged roads within 15 days went unheeded.
Nobody took this warning seriously and, as a result, a lot of work still remains to be done. Especially the roads and by-lanes around Bahadurabad Chowrangi, Hasan Centre, Hasan Square, University Road, Baitul Mukarram Masjid and Gulshan-i-Iqbal blocks 8, 16 and 17 require immediate attention.
The two-track road in front of the Baitul Mukarram mosque, starting from University Road and up to the water reservoir point, has been lying in a shattered condition since it was dug up a long time back.
The footpaths have been occupied by fruit sellers, vegetable vendors, newspaper dealers, meat and burger sellers, pan-wallas and many others with permanent stalls.
Moreover, electricity and telephone poles are covered by publicity banners. An army of beggars and drug addicts is seen around the mosque in the evenings, creating a pathetic sight. The councillor's office is in the same vicinity, very close to the mosque, and he must be seeing all this day in day out, but he behaves in a manner as if it were none of his concern.
The rivalry between the city and provincial governments is going on openly. The incompetence and/or corruption concerning councillors cannot be ruled out altogether.
All these factors combined together have ruined the civic life in Karachi. The higher authorities concerned should take notice of this grave situation to lessen the hardship being faced by the people.
JAMIL SIDDIQUI
Karachi
Letter of right shares
I would like to inform the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) that I am a small shareholder of M/s Gammon Pakistan Ltd., a listed company of the Karachi Stock Exchange. For the last three years this company has not paid cash dividend or stock dividend (bonus) to its shareholders. Because of this the shareholders are much worried.
Recently this company announced it would issue right shares to its shareholders. Accordingly, they issued three right shares against seven shares to those shareholders who are already registered with the company.
In my name 2,500 shares were registered and, accordingly, I was issued letter of right shares for 1,071 shares which consisted of only one letter of right shares.
Since the market lot of Gammon Pakistan Ltd shares is of 500 shares, according to the general procedure of stock exchange, I am entitled to get two letters of right shares of 500 shares each and another letter of right shares for the remaining 71 shares.
Since letters of right shares are eligible for sale in stock exchange, the sale/purchase of these letters of rights shares starts one-and-a-half months before the due date of these letters in stock exchange, because those shareholders who do not want to accept letters of right shares can sell them and those who want to purchase can deposit the amount in the bank accordingly. Since they have issued one letter of right shares for 1,071 shares to me, it will not be sold in the stock exchange.
I request the SECP to conduct an inquiry into this matter and take alternate measures to compensate those who suffer on this count.
I also want to bring to the SECP's knowledge that the company has not posted the letter of rights through registered post whereas other companies send their letter of rights shares to us through registered post. They have also made corrections at several places but they have not put correct stamp or the company stamp anywhere. this is against the rule.
It is hoped that the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan will take necessary steps to resolve all these problems and provide relief and safeguards to shareholders like me soon.
ABDUL HAMID
Karachi
Refusal of exam visa to doctors
I am registered with the Medical Council of Ireland. For the registration of the TRAS exam (temporary registration assessment scheme) part-I, I submitted a fee of 105 euros to the council. The exam was to be held simultaneously in Dublin and Oman on February 11. The seats were available to the doctors on a first come, first served basis.
I, like most other doctors, decided to take the exam in Oman as it is cheaper to go there. The exam was arranged at the Institute of Health Sciences, Wattayah, Muscat, Oman.
I contacted the Oman consulate located in Defence Phase 2, Karachi, before paying the exam fee, about the visa procedure and the exam visa for doctors. I was told by the Oman consulate staff that it was a four-day procedure and I had to bring my admit card and the admission letter sent to me by the Medical Council of Ireland. I was also told that I would be given a visa form to be filled and submitted with a visa fee of Rs1,150 and I then would get a visa.
When I and a number of other doctors went to the Oman consulate with our admission letters and admit cards, we were told to wait outside the gate for an hour. But we were not given any visa forms by the consulate. We insisted on seeing a higher rank officer but were not allowed to meet the consul general of Oman.
Many doctors like me missed the exam and had to forfeit their fees to the medical council as per the rules. I fail to understand what purpose doctors like me would have other than taking an exam in a country like Oman and the function of a consulate. Why were we refused the visa without any reason? If they do not wish to give visas and meet people, why in the first place they bother to open a consulate?
I hope Pakistan authorities will take up this matter with the higher authorities in Oman.
AFFECTED DOCTOR
Karachi
Converting park sites into plots
According a news item published in your esteemed daily (February 13), the district officer (parks), City District Government Karachi (CDGK), has confirmed the illegal conversion of about 100 parks into commercial plots in Gulistan-i-Jauhar.
It is painful to note city administration high-ups's craving for commercialization. If this menace is not checked, it is feared that the remaining park sites will also be grabbed by the land mafia.
Since 1994 we, residents of Block 15 of Gulistan-i-Jauhar, have been making efforts to develop Park No. ST 22 in our area. A letter was sent on November 28, 1994, to the then Sindh minister for housing and town planning who ordered development of the park in a month's time on a priority basis.
The city nazim was also approached several times in this regard. For nearly 10 years we have been running from pillar to post, but so far no action has been taken in this regard by successive city administrations.
It is regretted that not a single park in Block 15 has been developed yet. The abandoned park sites have become hideouts for criminals and undesirable elements. Moreover, many of the park sites have been encroached upon by the land mafia. If Park No. ST 22 is not developed shortly, it may also be encroached upon.
Since the matter requires a top priority, the Sindh chief minister and the governor are requested to direct the city nazim to develop this park without any further delay.
The Sindh High Court chief justice is also requested to take suo motu action against those who have illegally converted the park sites into commercial plots. Persons involved should be given exemplary punishment so that such irregularities do not happen again.
S.W.A. MAULAI
Karachi
Pakistan: two questions of great concern
History is the best teacher, for it teaches by examples and warnings. A thought-provoking article "Pakistan mirrors Iraq" published in the NYT (February 8) forces one to re-visit history.
The analogy drawn by David E. Sanger in the aforementioned article is stunning. He has equated Pakistan with Iraq and has termed the Bush administration's approach as "poles opposite" in dealing with similar cases.
It was the Iranian revolution that soured US-Iran relations, and the US and Britain decided to encourage Saddam. The purpose was to kill two birds with one stone (destruction of Iran and portraying Saddam as a man of evil who not only killed Iranians but his own people by using chemical and biological weapons). Saddam was also given visions of being the leader of "Greater Arabia". The story reached its climax when Iraq was destroyed twice - completely last year.
Is a conspiracy brewing against Pakistan? Is the campaign by US opinion-makers against Pakistan's nuclear deterrence a war cry? Are the friendly overtures of the US administration enmity in disguise? Was the confession by Dr A. Q. Khan evidence to be used later? Secretary of State Colin Powell has already said: "The US needs a full understanding of what the A. Q. Khan network has done."
The US policy regarding nuclear weapons is quite clear: it doesn't want anybody else to acquire them, especially the Muslims, for obvious reasons. During the Cold War era the US used the policy of "carrot and stick " in the form of aid and sanctions to prevent states from going nuclear. The policy worked as far as South Africa and Brazil were concerned but failed to achieve results in case of Pakistan.
It is a general feeling among Pakistanis that the current campaign against Pakistan will culminate in sanctions if not in an attack on Pakistan's nuclear assets.
The US is friendly towards Pakistan because it needs its support in its pursuit of Al Qaeda and the remnants of the Taliban. The feeling is that Pakistan will have to face the music when its help is no more required.
The following are two questions of great concern for Pakistan at this juncture: what will be the approach of the new American administration vis-a-vis Pakistan if Bush suffers a defeat in November? What will be the policy of the US when the war in Afghanistan is over?
TAHIR ZAMAN
Karachi
Monitoring jails
The Pakistan Prison Rules contain a provision for appointment of official and non-official visitors whose functions are elaborately defined in chapter 38. To our dismay, no care seems to have been taken to implement the rules.
During my service tenure in Balochistan, the official visitors, especially judges of the high court and sessions courts, would regularly pay visits to the jails, which resulted in quick disposal of cases.
The high court would issue directives for submitting lists of under-trial prisoners by every jail every month, with a copy to every court. Explanation from the courts inordinately delaying the cases was called by the high court.
In order to combat the evil of delayed cases of under-trial prisoners, the chief justice of Sindh is requested to adopt the above system in the province so that the evil of overcrowding can be checked.
I also request the adviser to the chief minister on home affairs to appoint non-official visitors, instead of citizens' bodies, who must be adequately literate and devoted to doing justice to this important responsibility.
However, a retired inspector-general of prisons or a superintendent of jail needs to be made a non-official visitor who should assist in monitoring/unearthing ills of the administration, while paying visits to a jail.
SHAIKH Y. MURTAZA
Retired Superintendent of Jail, Balochistan
Female literacy
This refers to your editorial "Female literacy" (February 23). It is quite disturbing to learn that primary school enrolment for girls stands at 60 per cent as compared to 84 per cent for boys.
Regular school attendance for female students is estimated at 41 per cent and that for male students at 50 per cent. Similarly, secondary school enrolment is 32 per cent and 46 per cent for girls and boys, respectively. All this shows the gender gap in Pakistan is increasing year after year.
It is very unfortunate that our government spends less than two per cent of the GDP on education. The government needs to spend a minimum four per cent of the GDP on education and should place more emphasis on opening girls' schools with the objective of increasing the literacy rate among the female population of the country.
SUMAIYA MUNIR GICHKI
Turbat
Robert Fisk
On Sunday (February 22), while reading Dawn I stumbled upon a rare gem - Robert Fisk. Because Mr Fisk is the only journalist with a most intimate and first-hand knowledge of the Middle East and is the most objective and frank analyst, his comments are the most authentic.
Dawn would be doing a great service to its readers if it could publish Mr Fisk regularly.
S.G. JILANEE
Karachi
Complaint to PTCL
I want to lodge a complaint with the Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL) through these columns.
My phone numbers 4384556 and 4385271 have been giving me a lot of trouble for the past two months. There is a lot of static and noise in both these lines. Internet connectivity is very poor and disconnects every five minutes. At times I can't hear the person on the other end at all due to the noise.
I have made over a dozen complaints on 18 and also lodged complaints at the PTCL exchange in Block 6, PECHS, during the months. They just send a helpless lineman who checks the wiring and is not able to do anything. All the linemen that have come so far have told me there is a fault in the cables, but no one at the PTCL is bothered.
I hope the high-ups and the relevant cable SDO will look into this matter and rectify the problem.
ATIF KHAN
Karachi
DHA Sunday bazaar
This refers to the letter by Cdr (retired) Khalid Durrani on February 12, narrating an incident in a DHA Sunday bazaar.
We would like to inform the public that no such incident has ever occurred in the DHA Sunday bazaar. In fact, the police authorities, along with the management of the Sunday bazaar, are very cooperative in maintaining peace and order on the occasion. The incident mentioned in your paper is of a Monday bazaar near PNS Shifa (Gol Market), being arranged by the Navy, and not the DHA.
RANA JAVED ALI KHAN
Sunday Bazaar Management, DHA, Karachi
PPP leader's statements
The recent statements of Ms Benazir Bhutto should come as no surprise to those who have watched her over the years. All is fine with Pakistan and its institutions as long as she is in power. Once out of power, she sees nothing right with the country. Power makes the difference.
T. M. HAYAT
Lahore
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