| 05 April 2004 | Monday | 14 Safar 1425 |
Achieving a consensus on the NFC
Bedtime stories of an embedded media
A forgotten test match
Singing in unison
Pulling off the 9th SAF Games without a (terrorist) hitch is nothing short of a security feat. Thrice it had been postponed in as many years because of security-related reasons.
And when a fireworks extravaganza finally opened the 9th SAF Games on March 29 amidst a tight security cordon, the Pakistan Army had just wound up a 12-day operation in the tribal areas against Al-Qaeda suspects and their local supporters. A few days before on March 25, a top Al-Qaeda leader had apparently threatened, over an Arabic satellite television channel, the president and the Pakistan army, whose personnel are the organizers of the 9th SAF Games.
The opening ceremony of the SAF Games may not have been quite as dazzling as the 2000 Sydney Olympics, the 2002 Manchester Commonwealth Games or the 2002 Busan Asian Games, although an Australian consultant associated with the organization of the 2000 Olympics was reportedly hired by the SAF Games organizing committee to make the opening and closing ceremonies comparable to the Sydney Olympics. Nevertheless, the SAF Games opening ceremony has certainly boosted hopes that Islamabad could possibly become a serious contender for hosting one of the above super sports events in the future.
However, two major complaints about the 9th SAF Games have stood out. One was by members of the general public who complained about being denied easy access to the games venues because of stringent security checks, particularly at the Pakistan Sports Complex, despite the fact that entry was free. The second complaint was by some ruling party members, who pointed out in parliament that no MNA had been invited to the opening ceremony.
Despite reiteration by the SAF Games Secretariat that there was no restriction on people wanting to watch the events held in different venues in the twin cities, complaints continued to appear in the press about invasive and grilling questioning of intending visitors by security personnel, as well as about the lack of customers and crowd by some 50 food and other stall holders who had set up shop outside the main venues, Jinnah Stadium and Liaqat Gymnasium.
One major reason for the poor attendance at the events is perhaps the fact that they are being held on working days: people tend to trickle in after office hours in the evenings. Another reason could be poor advertisement of the (free-of-cost) events themselves, in contrast to the much-publicized (money-earning) opening and closing ceremonies.
The organizers could have liaised with schools and educational institutions in the twin cities, informing them in detail about the individual events and inviting them to send busloads of students to watch the various events of the games. This would not only have helped to encourage students to indulge in sports but also provide moral support to the participants, especially the Pakistani participants.
Not only did some ruling party MNAs complain about not being invited to the SAF Games opening ceremony, but also to the recent one-day international cricket matches between India and Pakistan. In fact, the prime minister's absence at the SAF Games opening ceremony and the five ODIs, particularly the one in Rawalpindi, was conspicuous.
Also conspicuously absent was the role of the minister of state for sports, although much earlier on March 8 the prime minister himself had met Pakistani SAF Games athletes at Liaqat Gymnasium in Islamabad. During this meeting, the prime minister announced cash incentives for the athletes (Rs1 million for gold medalists, Rs0.5 million for silver medalists and Rs0.2 million for bronze medalists).
Interestingly though, on the day of the second ODI in Rawalpindi on March 16, a local newspaper reported that the prime minister would witness the game at the Pindi Cricket Stadium and also distribute prizes and awards afterwards. Next day March 17, it was reported that the president instead had watched the Pindi match and also invited both teams to tea.
On March 19, the day of the third ODI in Peshawar, the Pakistan Cricket Board chairman was reported to have said that the president of Pakistan had paid Rs4,500 for three tickets to watch the second ODI at Pindi. The PCB chairman was also reported to have said that the prime minister had requested for 15 tickets for the Peshawar ODI for his guests and that these would also be paid by the prime minister. The prime minister himself, however, did not witness the Peshawar ODI.
Coming back to the SAF Games opening ceremony, it was reported a few days before the games began that tickets for the opening and closing ceremonies at Jinnah Stadium (said to have a seating capacity of about 46,000) ranged from Rs50 (without seats), Rs100, Rs500 and Rs2,000 (executive enclosures) - all of which comprise about 43,000 seats. In addition there are about 3,000 Platinum enclosure seats, whose tickets are not for sale and thus are probably meant for invited guests.
When the topic of MNAs being neglected in the SAF Games opening ceremony came up in the National Assembly, one ruling party member remarked that members who wanted to witness the games should purchase the tickets themselves, while an MMA member said that such petty issues concerning members' privileges should not be raised in parliament as it tended to create a negative impact upon the people.
Whatever the reasons behind the MNAs' absence at the SAF Games opening ceremony, the latter certainly did not reflect the civilian-army/prime minister-president teamwork that was so vividly demonstrated at the Saarc summit in January. However, with the tabling, finally, of the controversial National Security Council Bill in parliament by the civilian government on April 2, it will be interesting to see who will or will not be at the SAF Games closing ceremony on April 7.
Achieving a consensus on the NFC
The recent meetings of the National Finance Commission (NFC) have seen efforts being made to iron out differences between the federal government and the provinces, and among the provinces themselves, with regard to the distribution of resources. While a consensus on the sixth NFC award is possible, discussions must be guided by a true spirit of give and take.
The NFC is a constitutionally mandated forum to distribute federally collected financial resources between the federation and federating units: Balochistan, the NWFP, Punjab and Sindh. The federal finance minister heads the NFC and the provinces are represented by their respective ministers of finance. The other four members of the commission represent the interest of their respective provinces.
The NFC awards process predates the 1973 Constitution. However, under the 1973 Constitution, the federation and the provinces have, in addition to their exclusive sources of revenue, a divisible pool comprising a certain proportion of the net of specific taxes to be shared by all constituents and the federation. The constitution spells out the taxes that constitute the divisible pool but the president has the authority to make changes.
Additional requirements of the provinces are required to be met through special transfers, grants-in-aid, subsidies, subventions, and relief charged upon the Federal Consolidation Fund (FCF). Under the very first Raisman Award (1951), the proportion of net proceeds going to the divisible pool with respect to income and corporate taxes, sales taxes, excise duties on tea, tobacco and export duty on jute were in the range of 50 to 62.5 per cent.
This proportion was raised to 80 to 100 per cent under the 1970 NFC award. The following additional taxes were added to the group of taxes designated for the divisible pool: export duty on cotton, estate/succession duties and capital value tax on immovable properties.
The 1974-75 NFC award had an 80:20 distribution ratio between the federation and provincial governments. The ratio was supposed to be revised to 65:35 by the 1985 NFC award but the commission could not finalize its recommendations.
The 1990 NFC award retained the 80:20 formula. In the 1996 award, the federation share in the net proceeds of the divisible pool was fixed at 62.5 per cent, with the remainder, 37.5 per cent representing the combined share of the four provinces.
Revenue from the divisible pool was given to the provinces on the basis of their population share in the 1981 population census i.e. Balochistan 5.3 per cent; NWFP 13.54 per cent; Punjab 57.88 per cent and Sindh 23.28 per cent. There was no separate allocation made to the Islamabad capital area and it is not clear to which province its population was added.
It has also been stipulated that the duty on natural gas levied at well-head and collected by the federal government as well as royalties would be paid to the province in which the well-head of natural gas was situated.
Net profits earned by the federal government, or any undertaking established or administered by the federal government, from the bulk generation of power at hydroelectric stations would be paid to the province where the hydroelectric station was situated.
Under the last NFC award signed in February 1997, the federal government transferred Rs. 96.15 billion to Punjab, Rs. 67.3 billion to Sindh, Rs. 22.3 billion to the NWFP and Rs. 17 billion to Balochistan - a total of Rs 193 billion to all the four provinces.
The challenges currently facing the NFC in its deliberations are many. The key issues are listed below:
• Should the distribution percentage between the federal government and the provinces remain the same as in the 1997 award i.e. 62.5 per cent and 37.5 per cent?
• If the ratio of distribution is changed in favour of the provinces, should the existing system of subventions and grants be abolished? Also, how should special grants normally related to law and order, natural calamities, police services, rangers, etc., be handled?
• Should the federal government continue to transfer 2.5 per cent of GST proceeds to the provinces in lieu of the abolished octroi and zilla taxes or should the newly established district governments be allowed to exercise their right to re-impose these or similar taxes to enhance their own sources of revenue?
• Under the last award, taxes on income and corporations, wealth tax, capital value tax, taxes on sales of goods, export duty on cotton, custom duties on imports, federal excise duty excluding excise duty on gas, formed part of the divisible pool. Wealth tax has already been abolished. Should any other taxes be made part of the divisible pool?
• Should the population numbers remain the sole criterion for distribution or should other factors such as poverty, unemployment, land area, collection of revenue, etc. also count? If a combination of factors is to be considered then how should each be weighted?
• What new approach should be adopted by the Provincial Financial Commissions (PFCs), of which we have heard nothing so far, to address the needs of local governments in order to sustain them over a long period?
• How can the provinces acquire more resources to meet the revenue needs of local governments. If provinces have to borrow then what should be the guiding principles to regulate borrowing levels within the provincial and consolidated budget deficit targets?
There are at least four fundamental issues that have an impact on fiscal federalism in Pakistan. The first is the question of responsibilities at the three tiers of government: federal, provincial and local. Discussion is required to determine the comparative advantages of each in delivering services.
Secondly, defence expenditures and debt servicing have left very little for the uplifting of the social and economic infrastructure in the country. It has been reported that Pakistan is seeking $56 billion in bilateral and multilateral aid over the next five to 15 years. Is this, the biggest aid package ever sought by the country, consistent with the debt reduction and management strategy of the country?
Thirdly, distribution and priorities in development budgets at the federal and provincial levels have not received proper attention.
Fourthly, in order to achieve the national target of the consolidated fiscal deficit at a desirable level, how can the quantum of provincial receipts from the divisible pool, revenues and borrowed funds under agreed stipulations be fully aligned to the federal government's deficit target and resource scenarios?
National public goods such as defence, external relations, monetary management for macroeconomic stabilization, inter-provincial trade flows, fiscal and trade policies, are generally handled by the federal government as in Brazil, India and Nigeria.
In view of the uneven distribution of natural resources such as oil, gas and mineral deposits, the central governments in India, Indonesia, Brazil, Nigeria and China handle the responsibility of exploiting these.
In the case of India, the constitution assigns to the state government the responsibility of irrigation, roads, agriculture, health and education. Concurrent state and federal government responsibilities relate to employment, social security, economic and social planning. But in practice, the extra-constitutional Planning Commission gives the federal government direct control over development expenditures.
In contrast, China offers a substantially decentralized fiscal federalism system. The central government share in total expenditure is less than half. Sub-national governments at the provincial and local levels provide health care and education services, welfare expenditures, etc. A fully functioning system of local provision of services and central supervision is in place.
Given that fiscal federalism is a dynamic concept, a true spirit of give and take must guide both the content and process by which the awards are made. It is more efficient to assign certain taxes to the central government such as income and corporate taxes, and other taxes such as excise duties, real estates, etc. to the sub-national tiers of government.
It has also been indicated that certain public goods such as defence, foreign affairs, monetary management should be the responsibility of the central government while quasi-public goods such as education and health care can be delivered efficiently by the provincial governments with the centre performing a monitoring role.
The share of provinces in the divisible pool need not be governed by the sole criterion of population. Other considerations such as backwardness, land area, level of revenue collection, proportion of agricultural workers, poverty and unemployment etc. may also be factored in.
In the context of the sixth NFC award, 75 per cent of the divisible pool could be governed on the basis of the latest population census, eight per cent on the basis of land area, nine per cent on the basis of poverty/unemployment and eight per cent on the basis of revenue collection.
The weightage would relate to the total share of provinces. In this context the capital area of Islamabad must be given a local self-government and made a part of the NFC award process.
While it may be desirable to adjust the provincial share in the divisible pool to a somewhat higher level, it would not be prudent to abolish grants, subventions etc. because of the role they play in addressing needs emanating from emergency and other situations.
Given the stickiness of certain issues such as the sharing of hydropower projects, resorting to the arbitration process may yield better and more amicable solutions. Besides holding official meetings, the NFC should also consider seeking the views of private sector professionals who are experienced in fiscal matters.
The writer is a former senior adviser to the World Bank.
Bedtime stories of an embedded media
Officially stage-managed press conferences remind me of school and our extremely popular history teacher, Mr Oscar Henderson. Whenever the principal was on the prowl, checking on how good a job the teachers were doing, Mr Henderson would invariably come out in flying colours. His trick was simple but ingenious.
He had given standing instructions to his flock: those who knew the answer to his questions should raise their right hand. The clueless ones were to lift their left hand. Naturally, his was the only class that had its full quota of raised hands, and it never failed to impress the principal.
Decades later, I have learned that raising one's hand at official press conferences does not always earn you any brownie points. That's because only the select, handpicked journalists, get to ask what tend to be officially sponsored questions. The chances of this increases in inverse proportion to the time slotted for a given press conference.
The usual pattern of late has been to allow two to three questions from both sides (the accompanying foreign journalists and the local media) when a visiting minister meets his or her Indian counterpart.
So well organized is this system that the encounters turn out to be tame exercises that allow room for only well-worn platitudes to be aired. There used to be this favourite journalist of the establishment who was always the first to be given the mike.
He would greet all the foreign ministers and heads of states like the chief of protocol. "Welcome to India, your excellencies. I hope you are enjoying your stay." This is how he would begin, before offloading questions, which had a certain predictability to them besides being acutely embarrassing on occasion.
"Excellency," he once asked Chancellor Helmult Kohl of Germany in the mid-1990s. "What is your position on Kashmir? My second question is: which side would you be on in the event of a war between India and Pakistan.
And finally, Excellency, now that you have East Germany with you, can you help us improve our Olympic standards?" Chancellor Kohl's pithy reply was withering: "I think you are mistaking me for Kaiser Wilhelm," he remarked wryly.
During a recent visit by French Foreign Minister Dominique Villepin to Delhi, one of the two assigned questioners squandered his opportunity by probing the supposed harassment of Sikhs in France who were not being allowed to wear turbans to school.
Any rookie would tell you that such questions are best addressed to the embassies, which are equipped to explain their positions on recently enacted laws and not wasted on a visiting foreign minister who may have just discussed an important arms deal with your country.
This brings me to the raging controversy over Mr Colin Powell's recent visit to India and Pakistan. Assuming, but not conceding the validity of New Delhi's argument that it was kept in the dark by Mr Powell about his intention of anointing Pakistan as a major non-Nato ally, would it not be prudent to ask whether it was also a media failure that the US secretary of state was not asked anything on the subject? Or was it that journalists who might have been troubled by the issue were not allowed to raise the issue? It is a damning indictment of journalists that Mr Powell was asked more searching questions by the schoolchildren he faced on a TV show in Delhi!
However, safe questions and pliant questioners are not an exclusive feature of Indian 'media management'. It is prevalent in every country, and scandalously so in the US which claims to have the freest press.
A senior Indian journalist recently returned from Baghdad, horrified that American troops had shot two Arab journalists just the day before Mr Powell was to pay a 'surprise' visit there. Al Arabia TV cameraman Ali Aziz died on the spot. Correspondent Ali Al Khateeb succumbed to his injuries the next day. Both were prime examples of yet another method used of late by relatively free societies to silence the searching questioner.
It seems from the Indian dispatch that when Mr Powell began to address the media, some Arab journalists stood up and told him about the murders. Getting no response, the Arab media walked out. They waited outside, perhaps expecting the rest of the world media to follow them in solidarity.
Not only did this not happen, a group of armed US soldiers quickly surrounded the protesting journalists, abused them and pushed them out. Was it naive of the Arab journalists to expect any moral support from their western colleagues?
The 'embedded' western journalist is not a new feature. The tradition goes back in America at least to the two media barons of the late 19th century who sowed the first seeds of jingoistic journalism, Randolf Hearst and Jospeh Pulitzer.
While journalists across the world hanker after the coveted Pulitzer Prize, they should not forget that it was Hearst's and Pulitzer's sensationalist campaign in their newspapers, known even then for their 'yellow journalism' that led to America's war against the Spaniards. The Spanish-American war was the first war of the correspondents. The journalists acted as scouts and spies, often clutching the gun in the battle.
And in other ways too American journalists like their counterparts elsewhere show little discrimination or dignity while dealing with their leaders. In a scathing dispatch from Washington last week, Sidney Blumenthal of The Guardian broke ranks with his colleagues who were fawning over President W. George Bush during a black-tie dinner they had hosted for him.
Taking potshots at his former counter-terrorism chief Richard Clarke, the president joked about the fact he hadn't found any WMDs in Iraq. The lights dimmed and Bush presented a slide show of himself peering out of windows and looking under the furniture in the Oval Office, wrote Blumenthal. "Those weapons of mass destruction have got to be somewhere ... nope, no weapons over there ... maybe under here?"
What is shocking is not that Bush joked about such a serious issue; the horror is that the audience of the media accredited to the White House loved it. Every gag, silly and inappropriate, was greeted with roars of approval. And the entire tastelessness of the proceedings appeared to have escaped Washington's media cream. Bush's performance came immediately after the widow of David Bloom, the NBC reporter who died in Iraq, had made her tearful appearance on the dais. How much lower can we sink?
* * * * *
It seems Indian film actress Shilpa Shetty was dancing in Lahore last week with the Indian and Pakistani flags in her hands. She finished the number by kissing the Pakistani flag. Everyone applauded. That the Indian establishment did not descend on her like a ton of bricks speaks volumes for the changed attitude of Indian diplomats.
It was not long ago, that during an India-Pakistan cricket match in Sharjah, popular Indian comedian Mehmood, who was watching the game from the VIP enclosures, picked up the Pakistani flag and was photographed waving it. Poor man. The next day the entire Indian embassy was breathing down his neck for the 'treacherous' act of holding the enemy flag.
Not only that, the very next day they got a leading Gulf newspaper to publish Mehmood's picture holding the Indian flag. That was when cretinism was sometimes mistaken for diplomacy.
A forgotten test match
On February 13, 14, 15 and 16, 1955, Pakistan played their first-ever Test match against India at Peshawar. In all, 395.3 overs were bowled during the four days that the game lasted. India could have won but for a fighting 69 by Imtiaz Ahmed and a stubborn 44 by Maqsood Ahmed.
Pakistan took 146.3 overs to score 188 in their first innings. Led by a hundred by PR Umrigar India made 245 in reply to gain a lead of 57. Batting again, Pakistan were all out for 182, setting India to make 126 for victory, a task clearly beyond them.
Pakistan were led by A H Kardar and India by Vinoo Mankad. The Indian spin trio of Subhash Gupte, Mankad and Ghulam Ahmed bowled 217.3 overs during the game. Read the scorecard below, particularly the bowling figures and see how Test cricket was played 49 years ago.
Pakistan
Hanif Mohammad c Phadkare Gupte 13 c and b Mankad 21
Alimmuddin b Ramchand 0 lbw b Ghulam Ahmed 4
Waqar Hasan c and b Gupte 43 lbw b Gupte 16
Maqsood Ahmed c Punjabi b Phadkar 31 c and b Mankad 44
Imtiaz Ahmed b Phadkar 0 c Punjabi b Mankad 69
Wazir Mohammad
hit wicket b Mankad 34 b Mankad 0
A.H. Kardar* b Gupte 11 b Phadkar 0
Shujauddin c Tamhane b Gupte 37 run out 11
Khan Mohammad c Mankad b c sub (P.Bhandari)
Ghulam Ahmed 4 b Mankad 3
Mahmood Hussain not out 5 st Tamhane b Phadkar 2
Miran Bux lbw b Gupte 0 not out 0
Extras: (B 5, LB 4, NB 1) 10 (B 8, LB 4) 12
Total: 188 182
Fall of wickets: 1-2,2-31,3-81,4-81, 5-96, 1-10,2-50,3-68,4-70,5-153,
6-111,7-171,8-176,9-188, 10-188. 6-156,7-176,8-177,9-182, 10-182.
India
P.Roy run out 16 not out 13
P.H. Punjabi b Khan 16 b Hanif 6
P.R. Umrigar run out 108 not out 3
V.L. Manjrekar run out 32
C.V. Gadkaric Maqsood b Mahmood 15
G.S. Ramchand c Shujauddin b Khan18
V.H.M. Mankad* not out 3
N.S. Tamhane run out 0
D.G. Phadkar b Khan 13
S.P. Gupte c Waqar B Mahmood 2
Ghulam Ahmed b Khan 8
Extras: (B 5,LB 4,W 1,NB 4) 14 (NB 1) 1
Total: 245 (1 wicket) 23
Fall of wickets: 1-30,2-44,3-135,4-182,5-210 1-19.
6-218,7-219,8-232,9-235,10,245
Pakistan O M R W O M R W India O M R W O M R W
Khan Mohammad 36 14 79 4 4 0 10 0 Phadkhar 24 14 19 2 182422
Mahmood Hussain 38 11 78 2 2 0 2 0 Ramchand 72 13121 3 0
Miran Bux 8 23 0 0 2 0 3 0 Gupte41.3 22 635 35 16 521
Kardar 19 6 34 0 1 1 0 0 Mankad 61 34 71 1 54 26 645
Maqsood 7 3 10 0 6 2 6 0 Ghulam Ahmed 137 121 13991
Hanif 4 3 1 1
* * * * *
Mr Nawaz Sharif, the former prime minister, has demanded the appointment of a parliamentary commission to look into the ramifications of the Wana operation. This is a jolly good idea but the question to be asked is: did Mr Nawaz Sharif appoint any such commission for any purpose when he himself was in power? After all, he has been prime minister twice. His opponents say that he had used parliament as a rubber stamp for many arbitrary decisions, especially during his second stint.
Anyway a parliamentary commission on Wana, as I have already said, is a splendid idea even if it comes from Mr Nawaz Sharif. Let us have it by all means. I am sure Prime Minister Jamali will endorse Mr Nawaz Sharif's proposal.
* * * * *
It is getting warmer by the day here in Lahore. Cold drinks are slowly getting back in demand. The other afternoon, my wife said it was very hot in the kitchen and that she needed something to cool down a bit. So I asked my man to bring a Dazon Twist from the bazaar at which my wife screamed: "No, no! I don't want that crazy drink. I would rather go without it."
Why? I asked her.
"Why, don't you ever watch that horrible ad on TV"?
"What about it"?
"They show a girl having that stupid drink and going bonkers. It is as if she has been possessed by the devil. If that is what a cold drink does to you, Na Baba Na, I will have none of it."
Disregarding my wife's warning, I called for a Dazon Twist for myself. When my man brought it, I took it in six big gulps. No sooner had I done that than I began to shake and shiver and twist and blabber all at the same time. The fit lasted through the night. When I returned to normal the next morning I called my man and told him never ever to bring me that drink again.
As the sun rose and it grew hot again, I saw my son having Dazon Twist and being none the worse for it.
"Has not this drink done anything funny to you?"
"No father. Actually, the drink is quite good it is the ad which is crazy". I tried my luck once again nothing happened to me. On the contrary, I found Dazon Twist quite palatable and came to the conclusion: don't go for that ad; go for that drink and the colder the better. I have been putting my TV set on mute whenever that unspeakable ad comes on and I have been happy ever since.
Singing in unison
Church choirs are coming into their own. Hamilton Mathew, choir director at the city's Central Brooks Memorial Church, says that his choir is very busy these days. "Yesterday we celebrated Palm Sunday.
Now we are making preparations for two equally important religious services: Good Friday and Easter. We have to put in a lot of effort. Regular practice sessions are conducted, and since we are a team it is imperative that all members are present during rehearsals," he says.
Choir practice sessions, though tedious at times, are generally a lot of fun. Youngsters gather in the church compound and play cricket as they wait for their companions to arrive. When all have gathered inside, the practice session begins with a prayer.
"It does get a little frustrating when all the choir members do not turn up on time, since little can be achieved without the rest. However, it's a blessing to be able to use the gifts God has bestowed upon us to praise Him. May our praise be acceptable in His sight," says Mr Mathew.
New director
The Germans have sent at least two women directors to head their cultural centre in Karachi following 9/11. Dr Marla Stukenberg became director of the Goethe Institut in early 2002. She was succeeded by Josef Bornhorst, who had mostly worked in South American countries. Now we have Dr Petra Raymond, who assumed office as director on April 1.
"I might have taken office on April Fool's Day, but I am very serious about my job," says Ms Raymond good-humouredly. Armed with a PhD in the history of the German language, Ms Raymond headed the German cultural centre in Ghana from 2000 to 2004. She is happy that she will have the honour of signing the rent agreement of the future premises of the Goethe Institut, which will be housed in Suman House right across the Chief Minister's House.
Goethe Institut officials point out that under German regulations the cultural centre must be housed in an earthquake- resistant building. They recall that they had a hard time finding such a building in Karachi. They heaved a sigh of relief when they found Suman House, which meets the requirement.
Enter Muttahida
The "clean sweep" claimed by the Muttahida Qaumi Movement in the recent by elections in Karachi and elsewhere in Sindh has brought to the fore a number of realities. First and foremost is the fact that the Muttahida now plans to be an active political player at the local level instead of opting out of the process like it did the first time round. This has its obvious repercussions for those who, in the absence of this key party in urban Sindh, claimed perhaps an undue share of seats.
More important still is the fact that unlike in the past, when office-bearers of participating political parties were required to resign from their party memberships before filing to contest the ostensibly non-political local body elections, no such restriction was imposed by the authorities vetting candidates' credentials this time round.
The byelections were held under the same laws that governed the conduct of the local body polls held two years ago, and this exposes the hollowness of the restriction.
Local governments in the democratic world are meant to be a nursery for political parties, enabling them to train their cadres at the grassroots level. Under the existing dispensation, it is a big anomaly that Pakistan's political parties are denied that advantage.
If any other political party had claimed open victory in the manner the Muttahida has done, it would have perhaps risked a wholesale disqualification of the successful candidates.
Whether by doing so, the Muttahida has flung the door open for other parties to follow suit and make the authorities re-think the non-political philosophy remains to be seen. The Muttahida's opponents will, of course, argue that one would have to be on the right side of the government to do so.
As for Karachi, one hopes that the city government, now with a good number of Muttahida members sitting on the opposition benches, will have more to show for its conduct than just putting up huge billboards with religious inscriptions, all at the taxpayer's expense.
Aali's national songs
Lyrical dohas may be the forte of Jamiluddin Aali, but he is equally popular for his national songs. And he has composed quite a few of them over the past 40 years. His latest poetic composition became the theme song of the 9th SAF Games, launched recently in Islamabad amid much fanfare.
"Three years ago, the chairman of the SAF Games organizing committee, Lt-Gen Syed Arif Hasan, asked me to compose a theme song for the major sporting event. Realizing that it was an honour for me, I readily agreed to compose a national song - a job which I have always enjoyed doing," says Karachi-based Aali.
"The song urges the participants of the games to transcend their national prejudices and adopt a sportsmanlike attitude," he explains. It was the 1965 War which got Aali to compose his first national song. Sung by the late Noor Jehan, Aey watan ke sajeeley jawanoon gained tremendous popularity.
Unhappy with the turn of events in 1971 and the imminent dismemberment of Pakistan, Aali composed his second national song, Jeeway, jeeway Pakistan, in 1971. Moved by the plight of the prisoners of war following the 1971 war, he composed Aey des ki hawaoin, sarhad ke par jao in 1972.
As the world celebrated Women's Year in 1976, Aali composed Hum ma-ain, hum behnain, hum baiteyan - a song that was banned by the Zia regime and was subsequently employed to good effect by the Benazir government.
Ten years later, Aali wrote a song, Jo nam wohi pahchan, Pakistan, at the request of former president Ghulam Ishaq Khan. In 1996, he composed another national song, Mera inam Pakistan, for the celebrated singer Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan. In 1999, former prime minister Nawaz Sharif got him to write a national song, Yaum-i-amn-o-baqa, commemorating the first anniversary of the detonation of the atomic bomb. Unlike the government that has repudiated most things redolent of atomic bomb celebrations, he still owns his song and the message it conveys.
email: karachi_notebook@hotmail.com.