POOR FOOLS: The manifesto issued by the Pakistan People’s Party is quite impressive, but the words will only carry some meaning if the party leadership (read, family) sells its properties to show its sincerity to the cause of poverty alleviation. All revolutionaries sacrificed their wealth, belongings and even family life to achieve their mission. Pakistani ‘revolutionaries’ should follow that oath. The same yardstick needs to be applied to all the other parties in the fray. Everyone is desperate to serve the masses, but without putting on the line the wealth one has amassed over the years. People want to see some sacrifice on the part of their leaders. Mere words and false promises will not convince them. Poor people are, well, poor, but they are not fools. Or, are they?

Khayyam Durrani
Karachi

CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM: This is with reference to the editorial ‘Lawless city’ (Jan 1). Bashing the police alone can lead to nowhere. The criminal justice sys- tem (CJS), involving the police, the judic- iary and the prisons, needs to be subjected to structural reforms. The chief minister should call a meeting of the CJS components, direct them to coordinate with each other and submit a short-term, medium-term and long-term reforms plan for effec- tive implementation. A provincial public safety and police complaints commission, under the chief minister or the interior minister, should be set up and activated to monitor the exercise, assisted by the Citizens Police Liaison Committee (CPLC).

Nazim Haji
Karachi

RAWALPINDI WOES: The streets in Rawalpindi have been dug open for laying gas pipelines for the last four months. The work is carried out at a snail’s pace, causing trouble to the residents of the city. Unreasonable water bills are another problem. Those with bigger houses pay considerably less amounts than those with small houses. There has been a lot of encroachment on the state land, especially along the Leh Nullah. Several complaints have been lodged in this regard, but no action has been taken by the authorities.

Name withheld on request
Rawalpindi

Published in Dawn, January 28th, 2024