| 30 July 2004 | Friday | 12 Jamadi-us-Saani 1425 |
Who invented ORS?
'Good' and 'bad' drinks
Official car number plates
Devolution review
Large dams
Hepatitis prevalence
Jinnah Hospital
Coordination mess
Doctors' posting
Airport charge
Road shows for PPL
Traffic lights
Bank charges
Bush-Blair syndrome
Good news, bad news
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The recent announcement of extremely unrealistic import duties for cars is a typical example of how the bureaucracy subverts and sabotages any benefit from reaching the citizens of Pakistan.
While Prime Minister Shujaat Hussain and Finance Minister Shaukat Aziz are both busy in the bye-election campaign, the bureaucracy has once again struck by announcing extremely high fixed duties for import of cars announced in the latest budget by the finance minister.
On behalf of a large number of associations and citizens we would like to lodge our protest against this collusion between automobile manufacturers and the officials who have announced the high import duties for various categories of cars in US dollars. Attempts to deny citizens benefits arising out of the new auto import policy are deplorable.
The duties announced start from $4,000 for cars up to 800CC and are a non-starter because the price differential becomes excessive. While we as citizens realize that government servants especially in customs, taxation and the police need to have higher salaries commensurate with the times and their status, they (the government servants) should also understand that such citizen unfriendly actions only serve to increase resentment and bitterness towards the bureaucracy.
We would like to appeal to the prime minister that the positive steps taken in this year's budget should not be allowed to go waste. The facility of importing cars extended in the 2004 budget should be taken to its logical end by announcing a reasonable import duty which should facilitate import of cars, providing a reasonable alternative for citizens.
This will not only result in creation of more jobs but will also show that the prime minister is a alive to the needs of ordinary citizens.
AZIZ SUHARWARDY
General Secretary, Defence Association Co-ordination Committee, Karachi
Who invented ORS?
This is to clarify a point raised in the letter 'Who invented ORS?' (July 9) questioning the invention of oral rehydration solution (ORS) in Bangladesh. I am quoting some references to defend what I said.
One is from the Asiatic Society of Bangladesh. The author, Dr Ziauddin Ahmed, has written that the International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research was established through an act of the Bangladeshi parliament on June 26, 1979.
The most significant research accomplishment claimed by the centre is its contribution towards the development of ORS, one of the most important discoveries of the 20th century.
After gaining independence, Bangladesh achieved major successes in tackling the widespread incidence of water-borne diseases. The invention of ORS by the centre and the widespread dissemination of information by NGOs on how to make ORS has made a major difference in the people's ability to cope with diarrhoea.
In South Asia, rock salt with cooked rice in a thick gruel was used to treat diarrhoea as long as 3,000 years ago. Researchers at the Cholera Research Laboratory in Dhaka during 1964-1968 learned that adding glucose to a solution of salts greatly helps the intestine's ability to absorb water and electrolytes, and that the intestine could absorb them during acute diarrhoea.
In 1994, Bangladesh's ministry of health and family welfare celebrated 25 years of ORS. In a brief ceremony, awards were presented by UNICEF to the Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee and the government of Bangladesh in recognition of their contributions to the development of ORS
It is beyond doubt that ORS is a Bangladeshi invention.
DR HUSSAIN BUX KOLACHI
Jamshoro
'Good' and 'bad' drinks
Recently there has been an advertisement which should be a cause of concern for all. It shows three brothers. The first one drinks tea, the second one drinks the traditional 'laal sherbet' while the third one drinks the beverage advertised.
Time passes by and the two brothers who drink tea and 'laal sherbet' grow up to be stupid idiots while the third one becomes a pop star. His brothers are even denied entry into his concert. In the end a question is asked "What do you want to become? Decide yourself."
This will have a very negative impact on children as they tend to believe what they see. This is also an insult to those millions of people who drink tea regularly. If by consuming certain things one could achieve the heights of prosperity, the miseries of this world would have ended long before. Such advertising gimmicks should be checked by the government.
The traditional red drinks are made up of floral and fruit extracts which are good for health. Similarly, the therapeutic effects of tea are only now coming to light. On the contrary, soft drinks contain carbon dioxide, phosphoric acid, sodium benzoate, caffeine, food colours and alarmingly high sugar content.
Much is being said and done to prevent smoking. Efforts should also be made to reduce the consumption of paan, chhaalia, gutka and soft drinks. Various medical organizations, consumer rights' bodies and civil society should play their due role in this regard.
TAHIR MAQBUL ZUBERI
Karachi
Official car number plates
A brand new car with government registration number "GA 100 Islamabad" was recently observed cruising the streets of the federal capital. Whoever the bureaucrat to whom the car has been assigned, and who wrongfully assumes that this official car is his personal property, is perhaps not aesthetically satisfied with the computerized number plates being issued by the Motor Vehicles Department of Islamabad.
So, he has ordered the installation of golden-bordered number plates, with registration numbers embossed in bright gold letters on a bright green plastic background.
This is just one example of the mentality that has afflicted our bureaucratic elite. They must make every effort to look different from the masses, whose hard earned money provides them with these luxurious facilities.
Alas, with government servants like these, Pakistan will never be able to become a progressive, law-abiding state. Law enforcers must first apply the laws unto themselves, before imposing it on the hapless citizens of this country.
If we solve the small disciplinary inadequacies, then the bigger problems will most likely take care of themselves.
KHALID HYDER
Islamabad
Devolution review
Having failed to come up to the aspirations of the people, the local government system enforced under the devolution plan is showing signs of cracking. The success of any system of governance is determined by the benefits it gives to citizens.
If the system was successful, various segments of our society would not have asked for its improvement or even closure. Members of the Pakistan Bar Council feel that the system is standing on very fragile ground and is likely to crumble soon.
The provinces are inching forward to plead for certain changes in the local government laws. Having lost important positions like that of deputy commissioner and others, the DMG group is also seeking to restore its lost position in the civil bureaucracy.
The government is now said to be thinking of making amendments to the system before the next local elections. The proposed revival of defunct municipal committees with a new nomenclature of 'city councils' indicates that the government is fully aware of the deficiencies of the system.
The municipal committees looked after the administration of cities and were abolished in August 2001 to facilitate the formation of district governments under the devolution plan.
If the government made a mistake in introducing the worthless devolution plan, there should be no harm in abolishing it and reverting to the old system.
RAFI NASIM
Lahore
Large dams
Sometime back the National Geographic channel telecast a documentary on the history of large dams in the world. One pointed observation the programme made was that large dams were built only by strong central governments since they could withstand the pressure of regional or provincial forces opposed to such projects.
Our own history would show that our only large dams at Tarbela and Mangla were built by a strong man, President Ayub Khan, in spite of reservations from the provinces. We have been going around in circles in the past three decades on this use.
It is really surprising that whenever a usurper takes over the country by force it is decreed to be done in the national interest and even regularized by the courts under the doctrine of necessity but when it comes to storing water which is everyone's basic right we fall back on the need for consensus.
It is hoped that decisiveness will be shown in the building of a large dam.
Dr MUHAMMAD YAQOOB BHATTI
Lahore
Hepatitis prevalence
It is indeed alarming to learn about the sharp rise in the number of hepatitis cases in Nawabshah district this year (Dawn, July 12). Although it has not been specified as such in the news report, the cases include both the acute and chronic varieties.
I am not aware of any epidemiological study conducted in Pakistan on this subject but my feeling is that the incidence of chronic viral hepatitis in particular is grossly underestimated.
Having worked in a number of reputable medical gastroenterology/hepatoloy centres in England for 13 years, and now back in Pakistan I am naturally interested in this issue.
Some senior doctors in Karachi informed me that the estimated prevalence of chronic hepatitis C in Pakistan is about four per cent. However it became clear to me pretty soon that this was a gross underestimate.
Then I came across a news item recently which said that after investigating apparently healthy policemen in Hyderabad, around eight per cent were found to be carriers of hepatitis B and/or C. However, my feeling is that even this figure underestimates the actual situation.
The main source of this infection in the UK is intravenous drug use, and there the prevalence is around two per cent. In Pakistan, the problem is worsened by the presence of 'quacks' or fake doctors who use recycled syringes and needles.
Sadly, as reported to me by many patients and doctors, many 'qualified' doctors in rural areas can also be accused of the same crime. Some blood banks also do not properly screen transfusions and, therefore, play their part in spreading the illness.
As for the Sindh Blood Transfusion Authority, it seems to be too busy with other matters. I say this because I am privy to the fact that a blood bank wrote to it asking for guidelines and even after passage of a month the authority did not respond to the blood bank's request.
Barbers also do not always use new blades for each customer and therefore add to the problem. A few exceptions aside, I have also not seen safe disposal of blades even in many of the better hospitals, many of which do not have incinerators. Perhaps the environment protection and other agencies concerned need to work harder in this regard.
The report quoted a doctor saying that cirrhosis was a "pre- cancer condition and no treatment was available for it worldwide". This is only partly true. Very briefly, the treatment of cirrhosis includes monitoring and identifying patients at risk of developing liver cancer as well as its various other complications, and treating them in the early stages of the disease.
Talking specifically of liver cancer, the treatment options are different for different patients and include partial hepatectomy (surgically removing part of liver), injecting various chemicals selectively into cancerous areas, and liver transplant, which is not yet readily available in Pakistan.
DR. S. ZAFAR ABBAS
Consultant gastroenterologist, Muhammad Medical College & Hospital Mirpurkhas
Jinnah Hospital
The chief minister of Punjab, Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi, has announced a grant of Rs10 million for the airconditioning of Jinnah Hospital in Lahore (Dawn, May 20).
This decision is welcome and patients will certainly be comfortable in air-conditioned rooms but I would like to suggest that instead of spending money for the comfort of patients, it may be utilized for building a hospital in an area where it is badly needed.
One example that comes to mind is the rural areas of Gujrat tehsil which have no government hospital for a population of about half a million people. The amount of Rs10 million sanctioned for the airconditioning of Jinnah Hospital should instead be used to build a 25-bed hospital in the Jalalpur Jattan Town of Gujrat district. Everything should not be concentrated in Lahore.
MUSHTAQ AHMAD
Lahore
Coordination mess
This is to bring to public notice the mess created by Wasa, MCL and the LDA in Lahore. On the pretext of laying pipes, much of Lahore's traffic flow has been adversely affected.
There seems to be no coordination at all between these departments. For the past two months roads at various places have been dug up and left with no follow-up work.
The worst hit areas are Gulberg, GOR and Cantonment. The work seems to be proceeding without any planning. To make matters worse, the monsoon rains are just around the corner. The planning and efficiency of these departments will be exposed to everyone soon.
JUSTICE (retd) TANVIR AHMAD
Lahore
Doctors' posting
I want to bring to the notice of the government the following facts about the poor performance and working of the Sindh health department. The Sindh Public Service Commission recommended the names of doctors as specialists for posting on September 26, 2003.
However, so far the doctors have yet to be given a posting. It would be relevant to point out here that 80 per cent of hospitals in Sindh do not have medical specialists. For example, your newspaper reported on July 17, 2004, that the health adviser was told that in Thatta district, 58 of the 70 posts of specialist doctors were lying vacant.
Could the secretary health please explain the reasons for this inordinate delay.
ALI ANWAR
Karachi
Airport charge
This refers to the imposition from August 1 of an airport development charge at Rs150 per passenger departing on international flights. The Civil Aviation Authority should know that Kuwait Airways and Ethiopian Airlines discontinued their flights to and from Karachi mainly because of decline in their passenger traffic.
Effective from mid-October this year, it is said Swiss Air (currently operating four flights a week to Karachi) will also stop their flights. Large-sized families will be affected as will be frequent international travellers. There might be a need to collect an airport 'development charge' for the maintenance of the Karachi, Lahore, Islamabad and Peshawar airports but it should not be more than Rs50.
A FREQUENT TRAVELLER
Karachi
Road shows for PPL
Given that the PPL shares were offered to the public for Rs 55 and the company's existing stock traded on the stock exchange for around Rs 110 it was inevitable that the share offering would be heavily oversubscribed.
That being the case, there seem little justification in the Privatization Commission wasting millions on holding so-called 'road shows' to publicize the share offering.
PROF M. YASIN KHAN
Hyderabad
Traffic lights
The Defence Housing Authority in Karachi has embarked on a programme to install new traffic lights at all intersections in its limits. While this is a good idea, there are several problems that have cropped up.
First of all, lights have been installed on intersections that have very little traffic and where Stop signs would have sufficed. Here, the drivers tend to ignore the traffic lights and this causes accidents.
Then there are traffic lights installed on intersections where one road is very busy while the other is not so busy. But the timing is such that each side is given equal time for traffic to move and this again causes problems as drivers ignore the lights.
Finally, traffic lights have not been installed where they are needed most. For example where the Gizri market is, there is an intersection where at almost all times there is a traffic gridlock. The DHA has not installed a traffic light there.
NADIM NAQVI
Karachi
Bank charges
I recently filled out a few share subscriptions, and each company had specified the amount per block of shares subscribed for. I have an account in Muslim Commercial Bank, and my brother has his account in Habib Bank. While MCB accepted cheques for share subscription in the amount specified on the forms, Habib Bank insisted on charging Rs10 extra as bank charges.
Some of my friends have accounts in other banks, and none charged anything extra above the amount prescribed in the forms. Why does Habib Bank charge extra? They did this both in the case of Bank Al-Falah shares and Pakistan Petroleum Limited shares.
FARAZ HAIDER
Karachi
Bush-Blair syndrome
Your editorial of July 16 on intelligence failures in Iraq was thought-provoking. Washington and London have connived together to further their political agenda against a weak adversary like Iraq and Saddam Hussain. God forbid what might happen if they launch a similar exercise against more significant world powers such as Russia or China.
SHIRAZ SACHEDINA
Karachi
Good news, bad news
July 17's good news: Foreign currency deposits go up by $375 million, America writes off $495.3 million of Pakistan's debt. Now for the bad news: Gas tariff raised by 10 per cent.
DR. ALI AKBAR M. DHAKAN
Chairman, Sindh Development Foundation, Karachi
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