| 09 October 2004 | Saturday | 23 Shaban 1425 |
Fokker flight operations
Female literacy rate
Delivering timely justice
'Soldiers who died for lies'
Where's Khanewal forest?
Public safety commissions
Banking courts
Request to Sindh CM
Drigh Road railway station
Appeal for remission
Waiting for CNIC
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Pakistan's corporate culture needs to be reformed in terms of the accountability of management and payment of taxes. Private companies and multinationals are motivated by profitability and competition. The board of directors has a direct stake, and any bad decision is liable to affect their investments.
Unfortunately, this is not the situation in government-owned semi-autonomous corporations. Taxpayers who have a stake have no role. The government at best can be defined as a custodian and, therefore, cannot be seen as having absolute powers of decision-making.
This power vests in a legitimate democratic government which is accountable to an elected assembly. The powers of semi-autonomous corporations' CEOs, therefore, has to be limited within defined corridors and regulated by a powerful regulatory body. These organizations have been and continue to be a tool in the hands of various regimes to satisfy their constituencies.
Since the CEO is appointed by the sitting government, they are responsible for all his deeds. A non-professional CEO tends to hold the view that professionally qualified men and women from universities are not a pre-requisite for a good manager.
Such outdated notions continue to be in vogue and manifest themselves in various appointments made by PIA, Wapda, railways, KESC, etc. Multinationals all over the world recruit talented and qualified men. These men and women are trained and they dominate decision-making in their organizations.
In Pakistan, on the other hand, these appointments are made on the recommendations of sitting governments or on the personal whims of CEOs. Such abuse of power was not confined to the two earlier civilian governments alone, but is continuing today. The federal government has pumped in billions of dollars into PIA and yet the so-called turnaround was a hoax when we gauge the value of the airline's shares.
Taxpayers' money is at stake in public sector entities. Nominated boards of directors should be held accountable for all the losses incurred as a consequence of any decision.
The CEO should abide by rules and regulations that govern recruitment, appointments, foreign postings and executive assignments. Matters like seniority and basic educational qualifications should not be within the discretionary powers of a management.
International practices by major organizations in the developed world should be followed, instead of our home-brewed concoction, which has failed miserably and is responsible for our corporate mess.
The corporate culture of Pakistan needs a surgical revamping. Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz can and should contribute, because of his vast experience in the corporate world.
RIAZ CHAUDHRY
Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
Fokker flight operations
Fokker flights between many remote areas in Pakistan constitute a blessing for their residents. They connect areas which are separated by mountainous terrain and vast deserts and have no metal roads.
A flight which linked Zhob with Dera Ismail Khan across the Suleman mountainous range was suspended in 2001 and has not been resumed yet. The flight service that began in 1983 had been operational until 2000.
There was a regular flight between Quetta and Peshawar via Zhob and Dera Ismail Khan thrice a week. For the remaining four days, the route was linked by another flight between Multan and Dera Ismail Khan via Zhob. The journey took 30 minutes and the fare was reasonable. But after the US invasion of Afghanistan in 2001, four airports (Zhob, Jacobabad, Dalbandin and Khuzdar) where Fokkers landed were closed for all commercial flights, and no one is now allowed in their vicinity.
Zhob airport was made operational for a regular Fokker service early this year (Quetta, Zhob and Peshawar), but not Dera Ismail Khan. The mountainous areas between Zhob (Fort Sandeman city) and Dera Ismail Khan are linked by a partially shingle and partially metalled road originally built by the British in 1907 under the Frontier Forward Policy.
The 188-km road is still of great geo-strategic importance as it links the two remote districts of Balochistan and the NWFP. Its completion can boost commercial and cultural activities in the two districts and provide a short-cut from many areas of Balochistan and Sindh to the NWFP.
It has been under construction by the Frontier Works Organization for the last four years without much of a fair chance of completion in the next few years. It normally takes six to nine hours by road to travel between the two areas, depending on the vehicle one is using. In the rainy/flood season, the road is impassable.
Resumption of the Fokker service between Zhob and Dera Ismail Khan can facilitate residents in large numbers. The government/PIA should consider resuming the flights on a priority basis.
DR MANSOOR AKBAR KUNDI
Quetta
Female literacy rate
Mr Omar R. Qureshi ("Real issue is female education", Oct 2) has rightly pointed out a major problem in our country, i.e., female illiteracy. Seventy per cent of women in Pakistan are illiterate.
Tribal and feudal lords are a main hindrance to women's education. Since women are caretakers of their families, their education should be given more importance. On the contrary, the ratio of boys and girls schools is 2:1.
The main problem is to motivate women in the rural areas, who tend to be very conservative, towards education. Socio-economic conditions and customs are another great hindrance to their way to school. The aim of female literacy is not only to teach reading and writing, but also to create awareness among women about different aspects of life.
Education of women is immensely important for a number of reasons. In Pakistan, women equally contribute to farming. Their agricultural efficiency will improve if they are literate. Literacy will make them aware of the importance of health, nutrition and sanitation, and they will follow the principles of childcare.
Pakistan has one of the highest rates of infant mortality. Women's education will help lower the mortality rate. They will understand the need of immunization, the importance of hygiene and causes of diarrhoea and other diseases. Educating women will create awareness and understanding of national problems such as population planning, pollution, drug addiction and AIDS.
Violations of women's rights are very common in Pakistan, as compared to other countries. If our females are educated, they will realize their rights and fight their exploitation.
The spread of literacy among females will also revolutionize their thinking, which will have a positive impact on future generations. They will know the importance of education and educate their children as well. This will increase the overall literacy rate in Pakistan.
NASIM SHAH
Karachi
Delivering timely justice
Failure to get timely justice is becoming a serious problem. It is usually poor, middle class and/or illiterate persons who suffer most. The chief justice of the Supreme Court has recently said that hundreds of cases have piled up in the superior courts and cannot be disposed of simply by increasing the number of judges. He has called for reviewing the judicial system for imparting easy and quick justice.
There are numerous cases which run on through generations. In many cases dates are extended on frivolous grounds. Evidence is not led and/or recorded for years together. The client is made to bear the brunt.
In certain criminal cases, the accused is made to suffer detention for a longer duration than prescribed in the law for the offence itself. On minor pretexts, our lawyers move an application, and pending its disposal the main case cannot be taken up, thus contributing to the delay.
Although everybody is equal in the eyes of the law, the practice is otherwise. A few years back I visited the Sindh High Court and saw a man standing in a corner of the courtyard. I asked him the purpose of his being there.
The man, a dashing section officer of yesteryear and then under suspension, narrated ordeal: he was implicated in cases of unfair employment and had to come all the way from Islamabad to attend each hearing. He and his family had suffered much. His only fault was that while in service he had complied with the orders of his superiors.
I request the chief justice of Pakistan and the authorities concerned in the federal and provincial governments to give serious thought to the problem and consider appointing a commission to suggest ways and means to remove all impediments in the way of speedy justice to everyone and to streamline the judicial system.
M. SHAFIQ
Karachi
'Soldiers who died for lies'
Ms Rose Gentle's story about the loss of her 19-year-old son in the Iraq war is very touching (Dawn, Oct 1). Thousands of mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, husbands and wives have lost lives in Iraq at the hands of the coalition allies. Let other parents also express their grief. One gets very scared to learn from newspapers and TV channels about the casualties that are still taking place in Iraq.
Now that it has been proved beyond any doubt that Iraq never possessed WMDs nor did it have the capability to produce them and Iraqi president Saddam Hussein has been deposed by the allies, his two sons have gone unwept, an interim government has been imposed in Iraq and the UN secretary-general has stated, albeit belatedly, that the attack on Iraq was unlawful, it is abundantly clear that Iraq has been a victim of the mere whim of the superpower.
Iraqis should now be left to take care of themselves. The US, if it cares so much for Iraq, should help rebuild Iraq and not try to escalate the war on one excuse or another. Let the Iraqis live in peace.
British Prime Minister Tony Blair and US President George W. Bush deserve to be tried by the International Court of Justice for their hasty action and feeding the world on mere lies.
Their action instead of curbing terrorism has given an unprecedented rise to terrorism in the world. If Iraqis are left to manage their affairs, it may possibly produce a good effect and stop the daily killing of innocent men, women, children and Iraqi soldiers at the hands of the Americans. The OIC should play an effective role in bringing peace in Iraq.
M. SHAFIQUE AHMED
Karachi
Where's Khanewal forest?
Apropos of your editorial "Where's Khanewal forest?" (Sept 20), I have the following to say:
I have been associated with the ammunition depot and the forest since 1977. When I first saw the forest, it was lush green and full of life. Wildlife was abundant and the forest also produced a large amount of honey. The problems then were theft of timber, including firewood, and poaching.
Over the years, the rot set in through theft and mismanagement of water. To overcome this, tubewells were dug all over the forest and things started looking good again, but water thefts did not stop and over a period the rot once again set in due to poor maintenance.
The forest consisted of a large variety of trees, including shisham, mulberry and acacia. It was also host to a large number of herbs and bushes and grasses. A sudden change from shisham to eucalyptus in the entire country was a severe blow to the forest.
A good idea was conceived by the administration to remove settlements of workers and block officers and allied forest staff to colonies made on the edge of the forest, as these people were blamed for theft, poaching and grazing livestock.
I got a great shock when I learnt that the forest was being handed over to the army. The depot had 1,800 acres in the east. Recently 5,000 acres in the west were handed over to the army after the forest department cleared off the land. Water to this section of the forest completely stopped, and mesquite started taking over.
However, the 5,000 acres were reclaimed from mesquite and the water supply was restored. Tubewells were also installed. The land is now ready for use for any project, including forestation, which could not have started till it was under cover of mesquite. It was wrong to blame the army for the destruction and sale of trees in these 5,000 acres.
As in other parts of the country, the population explosion around the forest has had a devastating effect on resources. Grazing of cattle inside has also greatly increased with obvious results.
The railway sleeper factory could also have been sited away from the edge of the existing forest, whose sanctity should have been ensured. Plenty of barren areas are available for such projects.
A committee should be formed to inquire into the circumstances leading to the destruction and deterioration of the forest. This committee should comprise members from the army, forest and wildlife departments and political representatives and a naturalist having insight into the past and future of the environment.
COL WASIM
Khanewal
Public safety commissions
By virtue of the Chief Executive's Order No. 22, August 14, 2002, a Police Order-2002 was issued for the reorganization of the police department. To protect the general public from police excesses, provision for public safety commissions was made.
National, provincial, Islamabad district, capital city districts and district public safety commissions were envisaged. However, the government is facing difficulties in putting them in place and making them fully functional.
Sindh is without provincial and capital city district public safety commissions, so are the districts of Ghotki, Sanghar and Dadu. There appears to be some political problem in setting up these commissions. The government, due to lack of operating expenses for infrastructure such as office building, staff, office equipment, machinery and furniture, is hesitant.
On the other hand, the police loot at these commissions as adversaries. This system of checks and balances for the safety of the public does not suit them. The internal system of checks and balances of the police has totally collapsed. The incidence of corruption has also not been contained. Senior police officers are worried about VVIP duties and chasing and catching terrorists.
The president and the prime minister must intervene to ensure that all public safety commissions are immediately made operational if they want the people to have faith in the government. The police are not meant to protect the interest of the elite; they must protect the life, property and honour of the common citizen.
MUBASHIR KARIM GORA
Karachi
Banking courts
I agree with the views expressed in these columns (July 26) on banking court working which needs to be streamlined in the adjudication of recovery suits that have been pending for many years.
Persons with bad briefs of default just avoid appearing in banking courts to delay the proceedings so that defaulters may have the benefit of bank money and use them as overtime. Proceedings in banking courts drag on for at least two to three years while bankers have to cool their heels to the defaulters' delight.
Banks remain deprived of depositors' money to be recycled for productive purposes. For improving the working of banking courts, the following measures are suggested:
a) Banking court judges must be senior bankers, with a legal background.
b) Each banking court judge should be appointed for only one term.
c) Every recovery suit must be disposed of within three months after the filing of a "leave to defend" application by defaulters/borrowers.
d) Banking courts must advise the chief justice, Sindh High Court, about disposal of pending cases on a monthly basis, with a copy to the law secretary to evaluate and monitor performance of banking courts.
YOUNIS AHMER
Karachi
Request to Sindh CM
This refers to the letter "Request to Sindh CM" (Sept 30). I, too, bearing Roll No. 887, passed the PCS Combined Competitive Examinations 2003-2004 conducted by the Sindh Public Service Commission three months back.
I also appeared for an interview but have not received my final result. I request the Sindh chief minister to look into the matter and do the needful.
REHMAN ULLAH KHAN
Karachi
Drigh Road railway station
Since independence, the Karachi Cantonment and city railway stations have been catering to the needs of the public travelling to and from the city. These stations enjoyed the status of being centrally located for a long time.
However, with the passage of time and the expansion of the city, the situation has now changed. Now people have to travel more than 25km from many areas to reach these stations. This costs considerable time and money.
At present Drigh Road has become a central place for a great majority of people. Although the Drigh Road railway station is a junction but very few trains stop there. Even those that stop do so for a very short time, with the result that it is almost of no use for people travelling with families.
It is proposed that the Drigh Road railway station be given the status of a junction and all up and down trains be made to stop there for at least 10 minutes. This will not only facilitate a large number of passengers but also reduce the pressure on the city and cantonment railway stations.
SHAHABUDDIN
Karachi
Appeal for remission
The Punjab government has granted remission to under-trial prisoners (UTPs) for the period spent in confinement during trials. This has benefited many UTPs, thereby lessening the burden on jails.
Are prisoners in Sindh any different from those in Punjab? Why have they not granted such remission? It is time the IG (prisons) took up the matter with the authorities and fought for the rights of UTPs in Sindh as part of jail reforms. This will help lessen the burden on provincial jails, especially Karachi Central Prison which is alarmingly overcrowded.
UNDER-TRIAL PRISONER
Karachi Central Jail
Waiting for CNIC
My daughter applied for a CNIC on March 6, 2004, on an urgent basis (form number EX00402537, token number 150, dated March 6, 2004, issued by Nadra at the Awami Markaz, Karachi).
When she did not receive the CNIC after 15 days, she made a complaint No. 5918 on May 13. She received no reply. Inquiries were made on the telephone and "early action in the matter" was promised.
After waiting for two months, she made a written complaint to the director-general, Nadra headquarters, at Karachi and Islamabad on July 22 and July 24 under registered cover. No response to the complaint was received. Again, a reminder was sent to these offices on August 20, but she is still waiting for her card.
ABDUL HAMEED
Karachi
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