Taliban in charge?
February 14th, 2011
Sometimes one is forced to wonder who is in control of this country. A few days after Shia and Sunni tribal elders from Kurram Agency reached a peace agreement in Islamabad, the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) chief in the agency, Fazal Saeed, told a press conference (addressed from a secret location) that his organisation would ensure that the peace deal was respected and would punish violators if the government or the jirga failed to do so. Coming from an organisation that is banned and guilty of crimes of the most horrendous nature, the whole thing seems a little high-handed, to put it mildly — as if the TTP is presiding over a government which is subservient to it.
The situation should not be taken lightly. The authorities need to assert the writ of state. We should not need a militant outfit to enforce peace agreements or act in other ways to keep order. The situation also demonstrates that, many months after the task to wage war on them began, the TTP remains an active, confident force, able to make its voice heard and impress on people the notion that it is fully in command of swathes of territory and, as such, in charge of their lives, determining whether or not it agrees with certain peace deals and warning that it is willing to mete out punishments under ‘Sharia’, or rather its interpretation of it.
All this is farcical. We have lost control of our country to a band of thugs. The territories they hold need to be wrested back from them. The government needs to ensure that it is the force in charge of affairs rather than a redundant entity with no real ability to influence events in large tracts of the country. This would amount to chaos — and we seem to be descending towards it at a perilous pace.
A novel measure
February 14th, 2011
The Sialkot Tehsil Municipal Administration (TMA) has said it will be using eunuchs to collect outstanding water supply charges as a measure to recover at least some of the Rs20 million outstanding in dues, due to the failure of the staff to collect them. The community of eunuchs has welcomed the decision and expressed confidence that they will be able to bring in every paisa the people have failed to pay, presumably over a period of some years. The Sialkot TMA’s decision falls in line with a December 2009 Supreme Court suggestion, while giving directions for eunuchs to be given the same rights as other citizens of Pakistan — that eunuchs be employed to recover outstanding sums of money.
The court had noted the considerable success of this measure in India. There is every reason to believe, given the similarity in social traditions, that the move will work here too. The Sialkot experiment should prove interesting. Eunuchs can create embarrassment by raising a commotion and fear of their ill-will is deeply rooted in our society. But beyond the issue of employment for eunuchs, the court had also ruled that their inheritance rights and constitutional rights be protected. This includes the right to vote and to hold identity cards. We wonder what has been done to deal with this aspect of the issue.
There is also a need to create wider social acceptability for eunuchs. The loan recovery idea is welcome, as it offers them some means of earning an income other than by begging. But the stigmatisation of the community, which leads to them being prevented from using public transport and venues, needs to be dealt with. The loan recovery drive is largely based around the fear eunuchs generate. There is also a need to eradicate this fear and make attempts to mainstream the group which currently occupies an awkward place on the outskirts of society.
Working on contract
February 14th, 2011
The interest taken by the Supreme Court bench hearing the Hajj scam case in the long-standing issue of retired officers being rehired on contract is encouraging. The re-employment of officials on this basis holds up the employment of others available to fill posts, who could also, perhaps bring new skills to the jobs assigned to them. It also, of course, allows favours to be meted out and encourages nepotism.
The court has been told by the attorney-general that there are currently 152 such employees. Of these, 15, including the director-general of the FIA and the inspector-general of Sindh police, are to be removed. The court also inquired as to why retired army officers were being appointed as secretaries and what qualifications they possessed to make them suitable candidates for these posts.
The questions raised by the bench are highly relevant ones and need answers. The unfortunate tradition of re-employment on contract has grown more and more deeply entrenched over the years. It has disrupted the system of promotion within government departments and thwarted career opportunities for promising mid-level officers, while the practice of bringing in army officials to fill posts previously held by civilians amounts to an act of injustice against those who have devoted their careers to the civil services. Military officers receive substantial perks, which should mean they do not require ‘rewards’ in other forms.
The apex court’s observations help focus attention on a crucial issue. We must hope it will lead to the situation being remedied. Merely ordering the exit of a few officials hired on contract is insufficient. What we need is for a policy to be put in place against such hiring and the system of promotions laid out within departments to be fully implemented. Unless this happens, nepotism and ad-hocism will remain in place and, as a consequence, our administrative set-up will continue to grow weaker and less able to serve the interests of the people. We have already seen this happen over a period of years. The process needs to be halted before it completely corrodes the mechanisms used to run the state.