| September 14, 2007 | Friday | Ramazan 1, 1428 |
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Politics of revenge
Area Study Centre for Europe
Whither Sindh Bank?
Investment in education & health
Northern Bypass
Shoaib Akhtar
PTCL broadband line
Interference in others’ affairs?
Petroleum dealers’ commission
Readers are requested to restrict their comments to a maximum of 400 words. We reserve the right to edit letters for reasons of clarity and space. Letters, including those by e-mail, should carry the complete postal address of the sender. The views expressed in these columns do not necessarily reflect the views of the newspaper.—Editor
AS Ramazan begins on Friday, many people will be offering prayers, specially ‘Traveeh’, in mosques, with the danger of terrorist attack lurking around.
Mosques and shrines were targeted by terrorists many times in the past. In 2004, a suicide bomber blew himself up in the Hyderi mosque in Karachi. Then in 2005, the Shrine of Bari Imam in Islamabad and Madinatul Ilam mosque in Karachi were targeted, claiming many lives.
The bomb attack in Rawalpindi on Sept 4 shows that terrorists are now frustrated and looking for soft targets. Thus a mosque congregation may present an easy target for terrorism. Such an attack will not only kill many people, it may also become a ground for sectarian violence.
An attack on a mosque may take one of the many forms of terrorist attack, such as the terrorist (s) might open indiscriminate fire in a hit-and-run method, plant a bomb with timer inside the mosque or explode it with a remote-controlled device, hurl a handgrenade or send a suicide bomber inside to blew himself up.
Although one or two policemen are normally deployed at the entrances of big/prominent mosques during Traveeh prayers, such an arrangement may not be adequate enough to guard a mosque from all sides. However, employing too many policemen/Rangers is also not feasible for each and every mosque unless there is some specific threat to a certain mosque.
Here are some measures to protect mosques during the holy month:
a. Every mosque should form a mosque watch committee on a voluntary basis to look after its security aspect.
b. A team of young volunteers (unarmed) should be organised by the mosque watch committee to work as mosque ‘razakars’, who should be given the responsibility of maintaining round-the-clock watch of their mosque. Services of private security agencies can also be hired for this, if required.
c. The mosque should be searched before and after every prayer, especially before Traveeh prayers, to ensure that no suspicious object, unattended bag/parcel, etc, is lying or concealed anywhere inside or around the mosque. If something suspicious is found, the police should be called immediately without touching it.
d. All entrances of the mosque should remain locked, except the main entrance which should be manned either by the policemen if deployed or by the mosque ‘razakars’. However, other entrances should be opened during the prayer timings but should be guarded.
e. All windows and openings of the mosque should be provided with iron grille with wire-mesh covering to prevent intruders and to stop anything if thrown from outside, for example a handgrenade/explosive device, etc.
f. If the prayers are held on the mosque’s open space/ courtyard, the open space should be covered with tents ‘from all sides to stop anything being thrown by someone from outside. The mosque area should be well lit at night.
g. Installation of close circuit television (CCTV) surveillance cameras, with videocassette recorder, in prominent mosques to monitor internal and external areas of the mosque by the police during prayer timings should also be considered by the government.
h. The imam and members of the mosque watch committee should advise worshipers from time to time about their responsibilities that if they suspect someone or see something suspicious they should immediately inform them or the police.
i. The mosque watch committee should also organise a neighbourhood watch system in coordination with shopkeepers, hotel/restaurant owners, hawkers and residents of the area around the mosque to inform them if they suspect anyone or see any other abnormal activity in their area.
SQN LDR (r) S. AUSAF HUSAIN
Karachi
HOW can one eradicate the menace of extremism and terrorism when people sitting at the helm of affairs are involved in the politics of extremism and revenge?
The politics of extremism and revenge started when the first prime minister, Liaquat Ali Khan, was killed. And then another prime minister, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, was hanged, followed by Gen Zia’s death in a plane crash.
Another two-time elected prime minister, Nawaz Sharif, was sent into exile to Saudi Arabia in 2000 after Gen Musharraf seized power.
Mr Sharif remained in exile for more than seven years and before coming to Pakistan on Sept 10 he held several press conferences in London and every time he made it clear that in any case Gen Musharraf was not acceptable to him. This is also politics of extremism and revenge.
Then on Sept 10 Mr Sharif landed in Pakistan but was sent back to Saudi Arabia on the same day to complete the remaining period of his exile. This is also politics of extremism and revenge.
Another self-exiled prime minister, Benazir Bhutto, has also said that she is going to come back to Pakistan to gear her political party. Is she also going to get the same treatment? Will she also become a subject of politics of extremism and revenge? Will she also be sent back to Dubai or London? Or will she be accorded a red carpet welcome?
In most of the cases we quote the examples of the US and the UK. In the US an outgoing president becomes the adviser of the sitting president.
In Britain, the last outgoing prime minister has become the envoy of the Middle East. But what respect do we give to our former presidents and prime ministers?
My advice to the present rulers: what you sow, shall you reap. If today you respect your predecessors, you will also be respected by your successors and vice versa.
SYED A. MATEEN
Karachi
APROPOS of the letter (Sept 6) about research journals recognised by the Higher Education Commission (HEC), I should like say that the Area Study Centre for Europe is a federally-funded institute of the University of Karachi, devoted to teaching and research on European affairs.
For the past many years the Centre has successfully run an MPhil/PhD Programme in European Studies. It has published several authored and edited books and has held many seminars, workshops and international conferences.
The European Commission, Brussels, sponsored three projects at the Centre, one of which is ongoing. The Centre has published its biannual Journal of European Studies since 1985.
To date 44 issues of the journal have been published. The Journal is peer-reviewed, it is meticulously edited, is abstracted by the world renowned International Political Science Abstracts, Paris, and is widely circulated at home and abroad.
Apparently, owing to an error in the HEC website the Journal of European Studies has been listed among the journals not recognised by the HEC which has justifiably caused concern in the Pakistani academic circles, as pointed out by Dr Arifa Farid, former Dean, Faculty of Arts, University of Karachi, in a letter in this column.
We have clarified the matter with the HEC, which has confirmed at a recent meeting in Islamabad that our journal is amongst the HEC-recognised journals. In fact, it has been recently upgraded by the Commission.
PROF (Dr) NAVEED AHMAD TAHIR
Area Study Centre for Europe,
University of Karachi
THIS has reference to Dr Ali Akbar M. Dhakan’s letter, ‘Whither Sindh Bank?’ (Aug 24). I agree with the contents of the letter and suggest that ‘making Sindh Bank functional’ is a statutory requirement.
The Sindh Bank Act was promulgated on Oct 30, 1995 in respect of creation of the Bank of Sindh, but after about 12 years this bank is not operational.
The government may take a step in the interest of the province of Sindh as well as of Pakistan and make the Bank of Sindh operational, which is a statutory requirement.
The Bank of Sindh requires appointment of a president, managing director and chairman, as well as nomination of a board of directors and allocation of fund(s) for the Sindh Bank. It will be a remarkable job and will be remembered by the people of Sindh as well as in the history of banking in Pakistan.
According to the preamble of the Act, the Bank of Sindh has been established for providing all types of commercial banking and/or investment banking services in the whole province of Sindh. Section (1) sub-section (3) of the Sindh Bank Act says that “the Act shall come into force at once”.
According to the provisions of the Sindh Bank Act, the authorised capital of the bank will be Rs2.5 billion and the head office of the bank will be in Karachi. Highly professional senior bankers may be appointed chairman, managing director, president and directors of the bank whose branches may be established in every district, city, town and taluka of the province.
By virtue of a Sindh government circular all provincial departments may be directed to open their accounts in the bank and all transactions/payments in respect of the provincial government may be disbursed through the ‘Sindh Bank’.
All loans/grants relating to the Sindh government may be distributed through the Sindh Bank through cross-cheques to the accounts holders and not in cash to avoid wrong distribution of loans, grants to the poor and farmers as well as others. A viable portion of the 45 per cent non-government shares may be subscribed through public subscription or issues through stock exchanges of Pakistan.
I further propose the establishment of ‘Bank of Balochistan’, to be established by the government of Balochistan on the same lines for welfare and uplift of the people of Balochistan.
SAALIM SALAM ANSARI
Karachi
THE fast declining rate of female education pointed out in your editorial, ‘Gender inequality in education’ (Sept 10), is an apt reminder as to which direction our society is headed.
Here I would like to add that in Sindh the investment in education and health sectors is much less than in other areas. Every year, in real in terms, under these vital sectors the utilisation of funds is declining considerably (except salary and other expenditures).
Although the allocations made for both the social sectors in the annual budget are substantial, the actual release and utilisation of the funds at the end of the year is much less.
The senior Sindh minister for finance while presenting the budget of 2003-04 in the Provincial Assembly had announced Rs500 million for making the dormant educational institutions like schools, colleges and technical institutions functional and to fill 9,355 vacancies of teaching/ non-teaching staff (created during 2003-04).
Similarly, in the health sector Rs200 million was allocated for reviving 188 dormant health units and filling 890 vacancies of doctors and paramedics created to run the same.
But neither the educational institutions nor the health units were made operational and the funds allocated were allowed to lapse. As a result, the poor people were deprived of education and health facilities.
Again while presenting the budget for 2006 an amount of Rs1,000 million as grant was kept for the refurbishment of all hospitals in Sindh.
Similarly, Rs1,100 million was also made available for bringing the salaries of teachers in rural areas at par with those posted in urban areas.
This step would have encouraged availability of teachers in rural areas.
However, the disbursement of this amount was made conditional on clearing the test to be conducted through the third party.
The provisions kept for health and education also lapsed because no such test was ever conducted.
The budget for 2007-08 also reveals an amount of Rs500 million was set apart for the improvement of 260 health units and creating 1,050 vacancies for doctors and paramedic staff.
But keeping in view the past record nobody knows whether these health units and dormant educational institutions will be made functional or the people will have to wait for another generation for revival of these dilapidated infrastructures.
MANSOOR UL HAQUE SOLANGI
Karachi
WITH the bridge on Northern Bypass collapsing, here is a chance for the media to come out at two levels and truly show how independent they are. The public should know the following and the media should bring it into the open:
— Who were the contractors involved and what were their roles?
— How much were the contracts for?
— Who funded the construction?
— Which officials from the NHA approved the contract?
— How many other projects are these contractors doing with the government and what are these projects?
— Were there feasibility plans for this contract and are they publicly available?
The media should also get hold of the senior management of the NHA and the contractor and interview them about why the tragedy happened.
At the second level the media should be investigating the numerous development projects going on around the city and the country.
What are the feasibility studies? Who are the people involved and how much are these contracts for? Journalists then need to editorialise on the feasibility of these projects. As Robert Fisk said that the job of the media is to monitor the centres of powers.
They do this to give voice to the people who stand to be affected by the powers that be who make decisions to benefit their own position rather than benefit society.
SAQIB KHAN
Karachi
SHOAIB Akhtar’s troubled career has taken yet another twist following a decision by the Pakistan board to send him back from Pakistan’s 15-man squad for the ICC World Twenty20 after a dressingroom scuffle in which he was alleged to have hit fellow fast bowler Mohammad Asif with a bat.
I think it’s time we stopped treating him like a VIP and just get rid of him altogether. He has been able to get away with so many things but now is the time to put an end to it.
He is not indispensable. After all the usual pattern for him is to play one match, pull his thigh muscles after four overs and be off for a month.
Of course, I would definitely recommend a psychiatrist for some reality testing as he definitely has lost touch with it.
SHARJEEL AHMAD
Morgantown, WV, USA
I HAD applied for a DSL line on July 13. I was given a landline connection on June 25, the number being 5654920.
After a few days an IT engineer from the PTCL visited my site on Aug 8 and activated the DSL facility. On the said number, while I was waiting for the first bill to come, the department disconnected my telephone on the grounds of non-payment of the bill on Sept 2.
I am now without the landline and DSL facility and the department must certainly be charging me the DSL facility rent of Rs1,200 a month which I am not going to pay for the period my telephone remains closed.
This is a perfect example of incompetence and they deserve to be taken to the court of law for playing with the subscribers.
Through these columns, I give one week’s notice to the department concerned to send me the first bill for payment and also to instruct the accounts department to deduct the DSL charges for the period my telephone remained disconnected for none of my faults, failing which the matter will be handed over to my lawyers for knocking the doors of justice.
MOHAMMED IQBAL
Karachi
IT is being proudly announced that some leaders were exiled on the guarantee of foreign countries.
The first question arises as to whether those countries would accept such meddling in their countries’ affairs from other countries, as and when required.
Then such meddling will make the constitutions and laws of their lands invalid and prejudiced to do justice with the people of their countries because execution and implementation of their laws and rules cannot be ensured properly.
In order to avoid such laws and rules, the influential people will try to get relief through such meddling or intervention into the affairs of other countries.
So, it will be in the interest of all to practise according to the laws and regulations of their own countries and allow other nations to act according to the constitutions of their countries, providing justice to all strata of people living in their countries.
In case of such interference, the rulers who interfere in other countries’ affairs should be taken to task and made ineligible to remain as rulers of their countries.
DR ALI AKBAR DHAKAN
Chairman, Sindh Development Foundation
Karachi
THE government fixed the dealers’ commission at four per cent of the value of the invoice, that is, the price at which the dealers buy the product.
Later, guided by the IMF, the government imposed a 15 per cent sales tax as a formality, which was introduced in the invoice by keeping the final value of the product exactly the same as before, so that the price of the product and the dealers’ commission remained the same. Petroleum development levy (PDL) has always been a part of the invoice price.
This formula was correct as the sales tax, PDL and other indirect taxes on all products are collected from the final users/consumers, which does not include oil marketing companies (OMCs) and their dealers.
The collection mechanism is very simple. Sales tax and PDL are collected by the OMCs from their dealers before delivery of fuel and deposited with the government every two weeks.
Also, while decanting Super from the tank lorries into underground tanks and then from the pumps into cars, one per cent of the product evaporates and is lost. This is not taken into account by the government when charging sales tax.
Last year the government went against the agreement when it decided to deduct the sales tax before calculating the commission of the dealers/OMCs.
This was not justified due to the reasons cited above, and led to decrease of about one per cent, taking the commissions from four per cent to three per cent. This year, on Aug 24, the government took out PDL before calculating the commissions. This decreased the commissions of the dealers from three per cent to two per cent.
The commissions of the OMCs also went down in the same proportion. These two moves are unjustified. The government needs to rectify these mistakes and revert to the original formula for calculating commissions for petroleum dealers as per agreement.
All petrol stations are faced with falling sales due to conversion of most of the cars to CNG, increased competition due to the rising number of stations and the high cost of maintenance of new vision stations.
Together with rising wages, electricity tariff, clothing, and basic food items to name a few, this business is becoming difficult with each passing day.
USMAN BUX
Rawalpindi
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