THE memo commission report says: “He [Husain Haqqani] was ‘the originator’ of the memorandum which sought ‘American help’ to avert a possible ‘military coup’ in the aftermath of ‘Osama bin Laden’s death’.” Why would Osama bin Laden’s death cause a military coup against the civilian government? This simply reflects our martial-law phobia.

If by some stretch of imagination, there was such a threat, then ‘to avert a possible military coup’ would be a valiant effort towards preventing an act of treason, because that is what a ‘military coup’ is, according to our Constitution. How could that be unpatriotic?

Let’s assume that a ‘military coup’ was looming overhead. We are surrounded by ‘theocracies’ and ‘autocracies’ in our neighbourhood except for a hostile India. So, who do we ask for help to save our beloved democracy? I will leave this question for the commission to answer.

Mansoor Ijaz is a US citizen by birth. He flaunts his immense wealth and goes out of his way to profess his loyalty to America. He openly expresses his contempt for Pakistan in American newspapers.

Even if Husain Haqqani was the ‘originator’ of the ‘memo’, this was still not a word for word dictation signed and sealed by him.

Mansoor Ijaz actually composed it from his Blackberry recordings. He was the last handler of the ‘memo’. The details of Husain Haqqani’s alleged divisiveness regarding national security etc., must be right there, staring him in the face. Why then did he pass it on to Admiral Mike Mullen?

This was a ‘sting operation’ pure and proper. That an ambassador of Pakistan was summarily dismissed on grounds created by a foreign wheeler-dealer even before the investigation began is despicable.

An ambassador is supposed to gain favour and trust of his host country even feigning loyalty to get things done for his country. While doing this he expects to retain his country’s trust.

Members of the Jewish lobby, some with dual nationality, wear their loyalty to the American flag on their sleeves but are completely devoted to Israel. They have literally put the United States in Israel’s pocket. This is how the American system works.

“Mr Haqqani’s only attachment to Pakistan is a small bank account,” says the commission report.

Thousands of Pakistani expatriates make an honest living across the world. Their remittances sustain our economy. From the taxi driver in Manhattan and the doctor in Westchester County to the labourer in the Middle East, there wouldn’t be a single Pakistani whose heart did not beat for his country. Most don’t have a bank account anywhere.

But we do have worthies who have bloating bank accounts in Pakistan. They have never earned a single ‘dollar’ in their entire lifetime and have nothing whatsoever outside the country, yet they maintain ‘dollar’ accounts abroad. They are the ones we should keep an eye on.

CAPT S. AFAQ RIZVI Karachi