| 26 February 2005 | Saturday | 16 Muharram 1426 |
Khokhrapar-Munabao link
Spread of a skin disease
The president has indicated a welcome change in the federal government's hitherto waffling position on the National Finance Commission Award and the issue of provincial autonomy.
In an extensive interaction with the media at the inauguration of a president's house website in Islamabad on Thursday, Gen Pervez Musharraf said he had asked the government to finalize a new NFC award on the basis of a 50:50 share between the centre and the provinces and also to do away with the concurrent list.
He qualified this by ruling out a horizontal distribution of resources or making revenue generation or the level of development of a province a yardstick for sharing the divisible pool.
He said this was not 'doable' or practical. Both the capacity to generate revenues and economic disparity are a sound and legitimate basis for a division of resources and should not be ruled out for consideration at a later stage in consultation with the provinces and parliament.
It is also fairly evident that the president's remarks on resource sharing and the concurrent list have been made with the Balochistan situation in mind. Realization appears to be dawning on the military leadership that the discontent in Balochistan is linked to the province's persistent economic and political neglect, and these areas need to be urgently addressed as against the current policy of relying on force and bluster.
Whatever the motivation, if we are finally moving towards addressing issues of federalism, political as well as economic, that should be considered an advance. The proposal to do away with the concurrent list is specially significant.
Some flexibility is also seen in the approach to the country's current political crisis. After having earlier scorned and bypassed the PPP and the PML-N, on Thursday the president said: "We need to discourage extremist elements by working with moderate political parties, including the PPP."
He confirmed the vibes coming out of the opposition camp that what he has in view is not early elections or an immediate compact with the PPP/PML-N but an agreement relating to the post-2007 scenario.
The present is no longer 2003 or 2004: the government's credibility has been hurt by the acts of political engineering carried out in the past two years - acts that have often recoiled on the government.
The cracks in the artificially put together coalition are already beginning to be visible. It is too early to say whether the military has lowered its sights and is not looking beyond 2007 for a continued role in governance. But the existing arrangement is untenable, and normal democratic processes should be allowed to come into their own. The folly of having bucked up the religious right to gain acceptance for an undemocratic structure has cost us dearly in every way. Every attempt should be made before the next election to bolster the position of parliament and for the military to recede from the scene.
Where Gen Musharraf was clearly out of court was in his remarks on the Sui rape case. A judicial inquiry is in progress amidst widespread suspicions of a cover up. The general had no business to suggest that the army officer who is under investigation in the case may not be guilty.
This will only add to the misgivings about the way in which the whole affair has been handled from the start. Since an army man is under investigation, it is even more important for those in uniform to refrain from any public comment till the inquiry in progress comes to a definite conclusion, either way.
The disturbing Sui incident has had deep and far-reaching consequences. It should be cleared up without further delay and justice should not only be done but seen to be done.
Khokhrapar-Munabao link
The Sindh governor and chief minister's visit to Khokhrapar on Thursday raises hopes that the government is at last serious about re-opening the Khokhrapur-Munabao railway link.
While the restarting of this cross-border link has been mooted several times in the past, nothing much came out of it all as, for some inexplicable reasons, the government seemed to be dragging its feet on the issue.
For its part, the Indian government has repeatedly assured that it has made all the arrangements for resuming the link which was closed in 1965. Pakistan's indifference on this can be gauged from the fact that the railway track on its side is yet to be upgraded and the required offices and buildings needed at the crossing have still not been completed despite passage of several months given for this work.
Trains on the present railway line from Khokhrapar to Mirpurkhas can only travel at 35 kilometers an hour and an upgrade is needed for them to travel at over 70 kmph. The new date set for re-opening the Khokhrapar-Munabao link is October 2005 and one hopes that by then all facilities will be in place.
The reopening of Khokhrapar augers well not only for people from Sindh and Balochistan but also for trade prospects between India and Pakistan. Keeping in mind that the Karachi port is closer than Mumbai for some industries in Rajasthan and parts of Gujarat state, this route can be developed for transit trade for these states.
At the same time, with trade between India and Pakistan expanding rapidly, the cross-border link will provide cheaper movement between Karachi and various western states in India.
Two other confidence-building measures that should also be followed up are the proposal for a Mumbai-Karachi ferry service and the reopening of the Indian consulate in Karachi. It is only after these steps have been taken that the people of Sindh and Balochistan will benefit from the on-going normalization of relations between India and Pakistan.
Spread of a skin disease
The skin disease, leishmaniasis, has once again reared its ugly head in upper parts of Sindh, particularly Larkana, where there is a severe shortage of medication needed to help those afflicted.
Leishmaniasis is a contagious parasitic disease caused by the bite of the sand fly. Once bitten, a person develops skin wounds, and, in some cases, skin lesions, which can often disfigure the body, particularly the face.
Its rapid spread in rural Sindh is a cause for serious concern. As with any infectious disease, early diagnosis is key as is spreading awareness about its prevention and cure. This is particularly important in rural areas where poor people rely on quacks.
It is useful to remember that the first reported outbreak of leishmaniasis occurred in February 2001 when the disease was thought to have originated in remote parts of Balochistan.
The health officials then, as even now, remain ill equipped to deal with the problem and relied heavily on the services of international organizations which stepped in and offered treatment and assistance. Their help must be sought this time too.
This time round, those afflicted in Larkana are finding it difficult to even get an injection of Gulcantine, which has proved to be the most effective treatment. Although its actual price is Rs 30, because of the shortage, people are being forced to pay Rs 150 for it.
Given that the number of patients is growing, there is an urgent need for this injection to be made adequately available. In order to tackle the problem, provincial health officials need to find ways to spray the affected area with pesticides as that will prevent the spread of the disease.