The flour frontline
Friday, August 28, 2009
As happens every year, the advent of Ramazan has seen a hike in food prices. Many commodities, including atta and sugar, are being sold at inflated prices at most selling points. The Punjab government has indeed resorted to increasingly desperate measures to control prices in the province. Sugar millers have been warned to bring stocks to the market or face an open sale while a decision has reportedly been taken to flood the market with flour, by increasing the wheat release by up to 90 per cent, thus forcing down prices. But the situation is a rather complex one. The supply of atta by the government at cheaper rates to tandoors for the provision of roti at subsidised prices, and to Friday markets, means people have been buying sacks of the item at one point and selling them at higher rates elsewhere. Those living below the poverty line are said also to be engaged in this lucrative game, leading to suggestions that systems of checks against double and triple buying be put in place. The issuance of ration cards or of using indelible ink to mark buyers purchasing at subsidised rates is one suggestion – though this could mean other members of the same household could buy the flour, turn by turn.
The situation points to the complexities of controlling prices. Even schemes intended to assist the poor appear to have indirectly contributed to rising market prices. Ordinary people, especially the middle-class, reluctant to accept what they see as government 'hand-outs' suffer worst. During a time of year when expenses rise in many homes, they must also keep up appearances. It is quite clear that the issue of commodity pricing and measures to enforce the rates set by the government is one that needs to be taken up as a priority, so that some rationality can be introduced and the current uncontrolled rate of inflation checked.
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Dirty deeds
Friday, August 28, 2009
The statement by former ISI chief Lt-Gen Asad Durrani before the Supreme Court that he had transferred large sums of money to named politicians, to bolster the IJI election campaign in 1990, is another reminder of the close nexus between agencies and political happenings. Nearly 15 years after the event, excerpts from the statement have been broadcast by Geo TV. While the involvement of the then army chief and president in the effort to weaken the PPP, ousted in 1990 and defeated in the elections that followed, is hardly news – the revelations regarding funds which went into selected accounts will embarrass a number of politicians. Most significant at this time, among the names given out by Durrani, is that of Mian Nawaz Sharif. Even if the stories that have suddenly started to emerge are motivated by an attempt to silence Sharif as he continues to demand the trial of ex-president Musharraf, they do inflict on him considerable damage. The PML-N has long been seen as the 'front' for the establishment; there are those who believe its victory in the 1996 polls was also 'assisted' to ensure for it an overwhelming majority in parliament. The role for the party in opposition to the military since 1999, when Sharif was ousted, was an unusual one – and in some ways at least remains so.
But this factor aside, the evidence emerging of the extent of agencies' involvement in political events is telling. It brings into question the very nature of our democracy; we must ask how much of the expensive electoral process we go through is in fact tampered with or manipulated. Even politicians who have repeatedly taken the moral high ground on various issues have been named on the latest list. They can attempt to justify accepting the money which, ostensibly, came from the Karachi 'business community'. But the hard fact is that bribes were accepted and there is no way of getting around this. Now that these details have begun to surface, there is a need to ponder certain issues. Somehow we need to distance the military from politics. Its involvement makes the use of money to lure politicians even more damaging then the corruption involving electoral funds that exists in so many nations. Perhaps the fact that past misdeeds have now come out into the open is also a reminder to politicians that they cannot expect to get away scot-free with wrongdoing. This may serve as some kind of lesson for the future and introduce an era of greater accountability in our politics.
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Bugti's legacy
Friday, August 28, 2009
Nawab Akbar Bugti leaves behind a curious legacy. Through much of his life he was a figure seen associated with the Pakistan 'establishment', opposed to Baloch nationalism and those who stood for it. In the months before his death, and especially after it, he has been turned into a martyr representing the Baloch cause and indeed giving up his life for it. The strike observed in parts of Quetta and in several other districts of Balochistan on the Bugti's third death anniversary testifies to this. The anniversary also saw protests and rallies condemning his killing and demanding autonomy for Balochistan. The present government came in for harsh criticism at some of these meetings for failing to live up to promises regarding addressing the grievances of the people of Balochistan and for doing nothing to bring the killers of the late tribal chief to justice. These calls are a reminder of the feelings that run through Balochistan. The people of the province are obviously in no mood to either forget or forgive those who they believe murdered Bugti. There can be little doubt that the policies that saw Bugti being killed and the military operation during which this happened, have done nothing to dampen the demand of nationalists. Indeed their cause has grown bigger and assumed more force.
The failure of such tactics needs to be acknowledged in the context of evolving a wider strategy to address the needs of Balochistan. This can be effectively achieved only if people are involved and all the Baloch groups that represent them engaged in the peace process. It is unfortunate that this effort has not already been initiated. As a result, goodwill has been lost and mistrust has grown. This will make the task of ending bitterness in Balochistan harder. To achieve this, the unresolved issues stemming from the mysterious death of Bugti, ostensibly in a mountain hide-out, should be inquired into by an independent commission. The truth must come forward. Only then will it be possible to construct a new relationship based on greater trust and a willingness to work together to build a stronger nation.