April 05, 2013
M A Niazi

The nation is now hurtling towards the polls. Hardly have the caretaker governments come in place, that they are preparing to move out. Though they are governing, attention is not so much on them as on the political parties, which are depending on manifestoes or performance to be elected.

Only those parties that have been in office have performances to show, but that covers the two main contenders; for while the PML-N was in opposition at the centre, it was ruling the country’s largest province, and the ANP was not only a junior partner in the Centre, but held the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa chief ministership.

It seems that only the Tehrik-i-Insaaf was in office nowhere, and thus depends on its manifesto to be elected. However, even the PPP has prepared a manifesto that is more a defence of its record, rather than a set of promises for another term. The PML-N manifesto consists of promises for re-election.
It is thus interesting that the Hizbut Tahrir has chosen this particular juncture to launch a series of public position papers. It is interesting because it is a banned organisation and thus unable to contest the election. But even if the ban was to be lifted, the Hizb would still not contest because it is one of those Muslim groups, which hold that taking part in the elections to a Parliament that can make laws and which is thus sovereign, is unIslamic because the only legislator is the Almighty himself.

But the Hizb does not oppose elections as such, only because the body for which it is being held does not acknowledge the sovereignty of the Almighty, and His legislative prerogative. It thus not only makes sense for it to issue a manifesto, but these public position papers, which consist of discussions of specific issues that are very relevant to what is happening in Pakistan today.
In fact, these are issues that the parties are supposed to address in their manifestoes, not out of any abstract reason, but because these are the issues around which the elections will be fought.

Another reason that is self-evident for the issuing of these papers is that the Hizb is banned. It has resisted this ban vigorously, and even now has a court case against it pending. However, these papers make it the only banned organisation to take a position on such issues as loadshedding, Balochistan, Indian aggression and education.

The Hizb itself is evident that Islam is not a religion of violence. However, the ban is also evidence that Islam is seen as a threat to the government, and the original ban by President Pervez Musharraf was not rescinded by his successor. A good piece of evidence that the Shahbaz government can produce that it is not the supporter of terrorists, which it is alleged to be by its opponents, is that it has maintained the ban, and has not given the Hizb any relief.

However, there are strange things happening, as people feel the increasing pressure, and thus turn away from the existing political parties, or the existing political solutions, and turn to out-of-the-box ideas. Thus, the unthinkable is now being thought. Perhaps, military takeovers do not provide the solution. Perhaps, democracy is not the answer. Certainly, the outgoing government has failed to solve the problems of the common man, such as inflation, loadshedding and a subservient foreign policy.

One of the imponderables has been the effect of the Arab Spring. Elections are heightened in importance, but it seems to have been ignored that Pakistan already has elections, and thus while democracy may be a solution in the Arab world, it cannot be in Pakistan. When this is put together with the need for an out-of-the-box solution, the success of the JUI-F rally at Minar-i-Pakistan is, perhaps, not as much of a surprise as it was for some.

Though the JUI-F is the quintessentially traditional religious party, unlike the Hizb, it does not have any objection taking part in the elections, and Maulana Fazlur Rehman’s late father, Mufti Mahmud, was not just one of the signatories of the present constitution, but was leader of the opposition of the Assembly that passed it. Its attraction is not because of a sudden discovery of its ideology, but because it may well provide a different alternative to the PML-N, which is seen as the flipside of the same coin as has the PPP on one side.

It is noteworthy that all parties, and not just the PML-N, are burnishing their pro-religious and anti-American credentials. It should be noted that the electorate is disturbed by the pro-Indian tilt shown by the outgoing government, and does not seem hopeful that the PML-N will be particularly different.

Thus, the issue for alternatives will be foreign policy. The Hizb has issued two connected position papers, one on Indian aggression, and the other on military doctrine. In both, it discusses how the USA relies on Pakistan, particularly its armed forces, to pursue its aims in the region. It also discusses how the Caliphate will carry out the twin aims of dawah wal jihad as its foreign policy.

How is the Caliphate supposed to control the armed forces? Through control by civilians. That is supposed to be how it is done now, though there is the interesting addition that the Caliph will make all appointments to the level of brigadier.

It should be noted that the Hizb is an Ummah-wide party with a presence in most Muslim countries. Thus, these policies are not just for Pakistan, but involve other Muslim countries. Therefore, an important element of both policies is the need for the Caliphate (or rather, Khilafah state) to unite all the Muslim lands. There is a copious quoting of the draft constitution, which implies that the Pakistan constitution (and any other Muslim countries’ constitutions) is to be replaced.

In this respect, the Hizb is, probably, the most radical of all the parties on the Pakistani political horizon. Perhaps, it can afford to be; indeed, is obliged to.
Any party that goes beyond one country has to call for the ending of at least one constitution, probably more. It is unfortunate that the shenanigans of the outgoing government have made the present constitution face, perhaps, its lowest ebb ever.

The Hizb sees this, and is offering solutions even while staying out of the poll. As it does not intend to use the poll to come to power, it could be accused to avoiding the commitment a manifesto is supposed to represent. However, worldwide, one of the problems with democracy is that parties winning office seem to ignore their manifestoes.

Another aspect that needs to be considered is whether Pakistanis can meet their aspirations, individual or collective, within the framework of their present country, or whether meeting them needs a bigger unit. There is also the alternative of revising those goals to conform with Pakistan’s size.

The Hizb clearly believes in having a bigger unit. Whether or not they are right, it should not be shut out of the debate any longer. It is in that exclusion from the national debate that the nation loses more, perhaps, than the members of the Hizb do.

The writer is a veteran journalist and founding member as well as executive editor of TheNation. Email: maniazi@nation.com.pk

http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-ne...s-of-manifesto

April 05, 2013


Although it is but natural for the Supreme Court to question the passive role that the PPP and the PML-N have adopted regarding initiating cases against General Musharraf, this should give them sleepless nights.

People are perturbed as well; they must be thinking now that he is right here in the country what stops anyone from taking him to the court. Besides, the parties’ reluctance is giving birth to new rumours that could impact democracy and the evolving political culture in Pakistan. As the court rightly observed, it cannot do ‘everything’ itself. The silence of these two major parties is quite surprising. After all, they kept giving the excuse that since the general was out of the country, different cases where his presence was needed could not be initiated. In making that observation, the Supreme Court also seems conscious of the fact that this time around, it should wait for some aggrieved party to initiate proceedings, mainly because, it is facing a tremendous backlog of cases. The other reason could be that the judiciary has been oftentimes obliged to step into the domain of the executive to make up for its sluggishness. The PML-N is opposed to Musharraf and so is the PPP whose leaders make no bones that he is their enemy number one. However their reluctance to put him on trial would reflect that their criticism was a sham.

http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-ne...ons/editorials

April 05, 2013

It is not only beyond the mandate of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to dictate the presence of a blank column, or just as the ECP calls it ‘none of the above’ column, to signify that not a single candidate listed on the ballot papers of a particular constituency is acceptable to the voter, but it is also against plain common sense. If the special column is supposed to serve the purpose of ascertaining, as the ECP has given out, whether 51 percent of the electorate in the constituency does not wish any of the candidates to represent them in the legislative assembly, it could easily be calculated from the number of votes cast. If they happen to be less than 50 percent of the total numbers the intended result would be known. One might ask the ECP that in case none of the candidates appeals to a voter to be good enough to represent him, why at all should he bother about queuing up at the polling booth? In fact, there was no need for such an innovative practice that is hardly in vogue anywhere else in the world. Article 218(3) of the constitution that enjoins upon the ECP to hold free and fair elections reads: “It shall be the duty of the election commission to organise and conduct the election and to make such arrangements as are necessary to ensure that the election is conducted honestly, justly, fairly and in accordance with law and that corrupt practices are guarded against.” We believe that the issue has not been thought through and suggest that the idea of making a reference to the caretaker Prime Minister to advise the President to issue an ordinance in order to give the concept legal cover should be dropped. Candidates have been complaining against returning officers asking uncalled for personal and religious questions.

The ECP that met under the chairmanship of Chief Election Commissioner Fakhruddin Ebrahim on Wednesday also discussed two important proposals: satellite surveillance of sensitive polling stations to be done with the help of the Pakistan Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission; and computerised record of these stations to be maintained with the technical assistance of the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA). These ideas seem to be sound and both the Suparco and the PTA should extend full cooperation in the national exercise of holding elections. Nadra has developed software for voting by expatriates and soon consultations would take place to take the matter further. Besides, the ECP has decided to reopen the cases of 24 MPs who had fake degrees but, somehow, were filed. Out of the total number of 27 such MPs, three have passed away and the remaining 24 have been summoned to appear before the ECP; already, 189 MPs whose degrees had remained unverified have been asked to have them duly verified by today.
We sincerely hope and wish that the high-pitched activity that one witnesses today pays off and the country finally succeeds in holding elections on time that are, at the same time, free, fair and transparent. But the precedents being set are not legally sound and are not indicative if long term benefit to the country.

http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-ne...ons/editorials

By:Kunwar Khuldune Shahid

Will help filter out the righteous in the country

Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) implementation of Articles 62 and 63 of the Constitution deserves a 10-minute standing ovation all over Pakistan, for it has aptly demonstrated how the two articles can be used to filter out the righteous in the country. The articles showcase who warrants a place in the Parliament and who deserves to be given the boot, in turn telling us who is fit enough to be a politician and who isn’t. ECP’s viva voce ensures that only the able rise to the top.

I am amazed that no one has thought of implementing these articles in other professional realms. If you have such a foolproof mechanism in place to sift the competent from the inept, you pretty much have a one-pronged solution to ascertaining that only the deserving get a chance to serve the country. Here’s how application of Articles 62 and 63 can enhance professions in Pakistan by making them go through various tests…

Scientists

Candidates will be tested for their ability to use water as a fuel. Furthermore, special preference would given to those applicants who can prove that the covalent bonding between Hydrogen and Oxygen molecules in Aab-e-Zamzam ensures that the shared electrons align themselves in such a way so as to read “Allah,” according to the Arabic text. Those who can elucidate that smart phone technology was conjured by the Arabs 1,400 years ago, thanks to divine inspiration, will have front row seats in science workshops.

Viva voce question: Name any five Muslim scientific discoveries stolen by kafirs.

Doctors

Candidates will be tested for their ability to prove that all medicine has been derived from religious scriptures, wherein all medical solutions can be found. They will be asked to enlist the most common diseases in Pakistan and the corresponding duas that cure them.

Viva voce question: Enumerate the 7,419,263,419 health benefits of praying five times a day

Barbers

Candidates will be tested for their ability to crop out various beard styles, like for instance the Muhammad Bin Qasim cut, Sultan-e-Room chop and the Mawan II strip. They will also be asked to give a presentation on various beards and their corresponding level of piety.

Viva voce question: What was the average length of Mahmoud Ghaznavi’s beard?

Journalists

Candidates will be tested for their ability to chicken out of debates involving religion. Those aspiring to be a part of the English speaking media would be asked to showcase hypocrisy and refusal to be brutally honest when commenting on matters pertaining to religion. Their ability to write emotionally arousing pieces on terrorism without addressing its root cause would be well-appreciated.

Viva voce question: What is the most effective way of blaming everything that is wrong in this country on the US?

Social Workers

Candidates will be tested for their ability to be easily offended. They will be asked about the methods of orchestrating mobs to burn down the houses of infidels and of those that insult religion. Feminists will be asked to prove how there is no better means of ensuring gender equality than allowing a man to marry multiple times. Human rights activists will be asked to prove how homosexuality is unnatural despite its presence in a plethora of animal species.

Viva voce question: How many days have passed since YouTube was banned in Pakistan?

Fashion Designers

Candidates will be tested for their ability to make shalwars for men that never slide below the ankle. They will also be asked to take instructions from male guardians to design clothes for women that ensure the men’s honour and dignity. Those designers that design burkas, hijabs and abayas that don’t make women look like Ninja Turtles would be disqualified.

Viva voce question: Give examples of the type of clothes women wear that can justify them being raped.

Cricketers

Candidates will be tested for their ability to prostrate before the deity after the most minor of achievements. Aspiring bowlers would undergo a checkup to see if they pray sufficiently enough to ensure that their line and length is good, while budding batsmen would be asked to recite Dua-e-Cover-Drive and Dua-e-Slog-Over-Midwicket. Those failing to thank Almighty Allah in mock post-match interviews would be dumped out.

Vice voce question: Which angel was sent down to help Javed Miandad hit ‘that’ match winning six against India at Sharjah?

Economists

Candidates will be tested for their ability to prove that the only way to bridge the national fiscal deficit is by imposing jizya on non-Muslims. They will also be asked to demonstrate how Muslims should only engage in commerce with the Dar-ul-Islam and avoid any trade ties with Dar-ul-Harb. Those that can break the back of capitalist economic models, by showcasing the atrociousness of interest-bearing (Riba) and speculative (Gharar) trading, will have a part to play in the national Bait-ul-Maal.

Viva voce question: Give reasons to support the argument that shifting from rupee to riyal would solve Pakistan’s financial crisis

Linguists

Candidates will be tested for their ability to give Arabic words fallacious double meanings when they are cornered by reason. They will also be asked to prove that unlike every other language it is virtually impossible to translate Arabic accurately. It would also be examined whether or not candidates can prove that those who read Arabic scriptures regularly have more of a tendency to misinterpret it than those who virtually never go through them.

Viva voce question: Why is Arabic the easiest language to take out of context?

Marketers

Candidates will be tested for their ability to market outdated brands and making them appealing to consumers in the 21st century as well. They will be asked to hide the controversial side of their products and mould them into appearing different to what they are. Those passing the test will be asked to promote the most popular brand in Pakistan on their own TV show.

Viva voce question: Would you prefer Peace TV or QTV?

Historians

Candidates will be tested for their ability to portray imperialist Arabs as national heroes and the guardians of our territory as our enemy. The skill of always proving Muslims right and non-Muslims wrong throughout the course of history would also be examined. Rage and irritation while dealing with hard-hitting questions would be a plus.

Viva voce question: Was Sikandar-e-Azam, Zulqarnain?

Judges

Candidates will be tested for their ability to count the number of female testimonies that would sum up to being equal to that of a single man. They will also be asked about the number of lashes various social and religious deviants deserve, and the reason behind ensuring that atheists, apostates, and homosexuals are stoned to death while child rapists are not.

Viva voce question: How many witnesses does a woman need for her to fight a case if she is gang raped in the Arabian Peninsula?

The writer is a financial journalist and a cultural critic. Email: khulduneshahid@gmail.com, Twitter: @khuldune

http://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/2013...r-professions/

By:Aziz-ud-Din Ahmad


The ongoing scrutiny of the nomination papers raises important questions. Before the forms reach a Returning Officer they are already vetted by over half a dozen departments that include FBR, State Bank, Ministry of Housing and Works, Pakistan Telecommunication Authority, Capital Development Authority (CDA), Sui Southern Gas Pipelines Limited (SSGPL), National Telecommunication Department, Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) and Estate Officers who deal with the Punjab, Sindh, KP and Kashmir houses in Islamabad. No tax-evader, defaulter of loan, utility bills and government dues, or a beneficiary of written-off loans or a NAB convict can get through the net unless he is able to perform a Houdini act. If the idea behind the scrutiny is to cleanse the system and ensure the candidate’s financial integrity this should be enough. All those passing the test should be declared eligible.

But there comes another test then. The threat of Article 62 looms ahead. The way the Article is being applied indicates that the idea is to keep those with liberal view out of the political arena. This was in fact the purpose behind its inclusion in the constitution by General Ziaul Haq.

Clauses (d), (e) and (f) of the Article can be stretched to any extent by an interpreter. Clause (d) requires that the candidate is “of good character and is not commonly known as one who violates Islamic injunctions.” This begs several questions:

Are card and chess playing, kite flying, betting on horse races or pigeon flights to be considered worthy of moral turpitude? Are going to films, hearing or playing music and shaving the beard violations of Islamic injunctions? Even the ulema are divided over what really constitutes a violation of Islamic injunctions. Keeping dogs as pets is considered un-Islamic by the Saudi Salafis. They have also banned women from driving cars on the same ground. The Afghan Taliban banned football by young males wearing shorts. The TTP considers singing or listening to music and viewing videos as violation of Islamic junctions. It also puts shaving the beard in the same category. The extremist network has torched scores of music and video shops and barbers’ saloons. Who will determine what constitutes Islamic injunctions – the Taliban, the Supreme Court or the Parliament?

According to Clause (e) a candidate must have adequate knowledge of Islamic teachings and practices, obligatory duties prescribed by Islam as well as abstain from major sins.

The clause needs to be eliminated altogether as it puts quite a huge chunk of Pakistanis out of the electoral race. The clause ignores that non-practicing Muslims as well as nonconformists and nonbelievers also live in this country. A cursory survey of attendance in mosques would show that many more people fail to offer prayers than those who do. Offering prayers five times a day is an obligatory duty. Interestingly while Article 62 makes all these requirements from the politicians, it excludes the judges, bureaucrats and military officers from its purview.

Clause (f) requires a public representative to be “sagacious, righteous and non-profligate, honest and ameen, there being no declaration to the contrary by a court of law.” Again all these terms are relative and subjective. They leave too much to the interpreter.

The way the ROs are interpreting the provisions of Article 62 should be an eye opener.

Media reports show that the questions put to politicians amount to a religious studies examination. Excerpts from a newspaper would make an entertaining study.

“In Lahore, aspiring candidate Tayyaba Sohail Cheema was told by the provincial election commissioner Punjab that she didn’t look her age. “You don’t seem to be 35, show your face to all around so that people can see that you seem much younger,” the judicial official directed her.

“Another candidate, Saadia Sohail, who was accompanied by her husband Shahid Sohail, got a lesson in parenting. “When your wife will become MNA or MPA, all the arrangements at your home will be ruined and no one will be there to attend your children and they will be ruined,” the same gentleman told her husband.

“On the other hand, aspiring candidate Shoaib Khan Niazi of NA-121, used the occasion to profess his love for his wife. When asked by the Returning Officer…if he had any children, Niazi replied that he did not. He went on to tell the court that he had a wife whom he loved very much and who loved him in return. “I am nothing without my wife,” said Niazi. Seemingly satisfied with this response, the RO then asked him if he offered prayers to which Niazi candidly replied that he did not.” The reporter commented that the scrutiny of electoral hopefuls has seemingly turned into a theatre of the absurd.

Article 62 was the brainchild of military dictator Ziaul Haq as were several other laws militating against women and minorities. The idea behind these “Islamic” provisions was to project the dictator as a champion of Islam and thus provide legitimacy to his military rule. Zia miserably failed to achieve the aim. Even his ardent supporters like the Sharif’s stopped attending his death anniversary after a couple of years. They are now apologetic about the support they extended to the dictator.

The so-called ‘Islamic’ provisions however created an environment conducive to the spread of extremism and militancy. Musharraf’s legacy continues to play havoc in the country.

The candidates of the previous ruling party and the opposition who are being grilled deserve the treatment. The PPP and PML-N could have removed the controversial Article 62 and Article 63 or drastically amend them. They brought about a number of constitutional amendments but shrank back from touching the two Articles. They pandered to the extremist sentiments. Perhaps they also hoped to use them against their political opponents.

Opportunism still runs deep in the political elite irrespective of which party they belong to. In 2007, Imran Khan declared that only angels could pass the test of Article 62. He now supports it as it hurts the PTI’s opponents.

While the constitution is to be implemented, being a part of the basic law does not make a provision sacrosanct. There are enough black laws on the statue book: the notorious FCR being one. The same is the case with Article 62. There is a need to replace it with a more judicious amendment in sync with the spirit of the times.

The writer is a political analyst and a former academic.

http://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/columns/

With the wounds of the Joseph Colony attack in Lahore barely filling up, Punjab has witnessed another attack on the Christian community. A Muslim mob attacked a Christian neighbourhood in Gujranwala and, as with the Joseph Colony attack, the charges and the police response appears frivolous. With Shahbaz Sharif out of the picture, the ‘good governance’ narrative towed by the younger Sharif is being untangled and the brunt is falling on the current caretaker Chief Minister Najam Sethi.

As details have emerged of the frivolous nature of the accusations that led to the mob attack in Gujranwala, it appears that Punjab, if not Pakistan as a whole, is headed for a much more polarized future. The reported clash was between a Christian boy and a local prayer leader over the ‘accusation’ that the boy was playing music on his mobile phone outside a mosque. The prayer leader raised clamour over Christians “disrespecting Islam” and one of those ever ready mobs ransacked nearby Francis Colony. The police, as is now habit, stood by and watched until things got serious. This was despite the new Inspector General of Punjab Aftab Sultan assuring the Supreme Count that “no such incident would occur in the future.” He said there had been 50 arrests for the Joseph Colony arson, while the responsibility had been fixed on one SP, a DSP and two SHOs. However, apparently the message is not going down deep enough in the police ranks who have stood by and watched as another gruesome mob attack was undertaken on Pakistan’s Christian community.

While the Muslim mob attack on Francis Colony in Gujranwala may have nothing to do with Sethi, who has barely stepped into his new hot seat, but the pressure will be on him to act meaningfully. Sethi of course has much more to deal with. The Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), which originally nominated him for caretaker CM, appears to have turned about face. Former PPP prime minister Raja Pervaiz Ashraf has cast aspersions on Sethi’s neutrality for his refusal to fire retired bureaucrats on key positions in the Punjab hierarchy. It is the PML-N Senator Pervaiz Rashid that had to come to Sethi’s defense and vouch for his impartiality. Perhaps it is the Gujranwala incident that Sethi’s benefactors would see as closer to his heart, but the shrewder Sethi would do well to weather the political storm brewing about his caretaker CM-ship. Having criticized politicians and governments for their inaction in the casting couch a number of times, Sethi now sits in a seat of power, with the authority to make an impact. All eyes are now turned to the orator par excellence, if he can deliver for the minorities of Punjab and shrug off the political storm hovering around his temporary perch.

http://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/editorials/

The election countdown has begun and the caretaker governments are making all effort to ensure free and fair polls; but they are badly neglecting the economy which needs equal attention of the caretakers to ensure a seamless power transfer.

The economy was already at its worst when the caretakers took over for under 60 days. One can understand the reluctance of the caretakers to make policy changes. This should be left to the next elected government. However, they could at least take some bold steps to improve governance. As a first step, all those appointed without merit or adopting laid down procedures should be shown the door. Merit should be made the basis for all appointments.

The inefficient public sector companies should be strictly warned to improve efficiency in all spheres at least by 25 per cent in one month. The politically appointed heads of these enterprises should be replaced with competent persons appointed through proper procedures. The level of bad governance in the public sector companies is evident from the fact that after the dissolution of the assemblies, names of so many former legislatures have been made public that are defaulters of power and telephone bills.

The recoveries from them would surely be made as they would not be able to eligible to contest elections because of an independent and neutral election commission. However those officers of the utility companies that let the bills rise to millions should be apprehended. Were these ex-ministers and the assembly members above the law? Such bad governance should not be tolerated. These elected members feel no shame. They have set an example which justifies loot and plunder. Some of them have fallen so low that they did not return some petty articles they obtained from the ministries while they were in power. Former Prime Minister Raja Pervaiz Ashraf has not returned a photocopy machine that he took home as Minister for Water and Power. Some former ministers and advisors have still not returned items like fax machines, desktop computers, LCD TV sets and even official cars. Ofcourse, ultimately they would be obliged to return these articles, because some section officer in the ministry would have written them a letter to return these items and sent a copy to the Election Commission of Pakistan.

At the time of writting, the federal government is being run by the prime minister alone without a federal cabinet. There are many issues that need immediate attention and for this we do need a federal cabinet.

The power outages have increased tremendously during the first 8 days of the caretaker government. As the temperature goes up, the power shortages would further increase. Everyone is fully aware that 50 per cent of the power shortage is due to bad management of the sector and 25 per cent due to corruption. The real shortage is not more than 25 per cent which may be tolerable in view of past experience.

The government should appoint a strong and competent water and power minister immediately to streamline the system by the time it hands over the power to the elected government. If full and dedicated attention is paid to the power issue it would ensure relief during the summer. It will also put pressure on the next elected government to further improve governance to make the power sector manageable. The interim government should spell out the criteria for postings and transfers and put that on the web so that everyone could monitor the postings and transfers in this sector. In the meantime it should uproot all those from the posts if they do not comply with the criteria of posting and transfers.

Bad governance in the power sector is mainly due to postings granted on political grounds to incompetent people. When the power sector was under Water and Power Development Authority its chairmen used to resist political meddling and refused postings and transfers on recommendations of the water and power ministers. This was the reason that former WAPDA chairmen LT General Zulfiqar Ali Khan and Tariq Hameed were not on the best terms with their ministers. They could afford to resist the pressure because chairman WAPDA is a constitutionally protected tenured post. Now the power sector is directly under the Ministry of Water and Power and the minister could arm twist the bureaucracy for postings and transfers. Any bureaucrat who resisted could be immediately transferred to any other ministry. The caretakers should ensure that sanity is restored in the power sector before they leave office.

Another important task for the caretakers is to ensure the food security of the country. This is, perhaps, the first time that a caretaker government would be in power when the wheat is harvested in the country. Wheat is the staple food the country. Each province procures wheat to keep reserve stocks when the commodity is not available in the open market. This stock is released to the flour mills at almost the purchase price of the government to ensure stable prices of wheat flour through the years. The federal government also separately procures wheat and stocks it as a buffer stock for emergencies.

Procuring wheat, however, is the basic responsibility of the provinces. You have to make arrangement for millions of jute and polypropylene bags. Provinces, particularly the Punjab and Sindh, set up procurement centers from where they buy wheat from the farmers at the officially announced procurement price. Any mismanagement in this regard is harmful for the farmers and the country's food security. It is absolutely essential that provinces procure enough stocks at official rates to ensure stability of the procurement price. The caretakers should ensure that they handover power to the elected government with adequate wheat stocks to carry though the next crop. Otherwise this single issue could consume most of the energies of the next government.

Another important matter is the preparation of the budget for the next financial year. Our financial year ends on June 30. The elections are scheduled for May 11, and the transfer of power could take place in 7-14 days. The new government would not be able to prepare the budget in a short time. The basic budget documents of both federal and provincial governments should be in place when the new governments come to power. They could then fine tune the budget documents before placing them in the assemblies for approval. The caretaker could show the future political governments the way towards austerity and savings.

http://www.weeklycuttingedge.com/

The electioneering in the entire country has gathered momentum after the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) announced the polls schedule. All the major political parties have announced to take part in the elections, including those which boycotted the 2008 general elections.

In this situation, Muslim clerical groups, the so-called religious parties, have also come out in the open to contest elections. This is, indeed, a very positive sign to note for the promotion of democratic culture in the country. Albeit there are certain reservations regarding the way certain clerical parties are trying to win polls

The participation in electioneering by the mainstream clerical parties suggests that they still believe in the pursuit of power through political struggle. At a time of large-scale violence and terrorism perpetrated by the self-proclaimed Islamist groups, the alacrity with which the clerical parties and their candidates have entered the electoral fray is also very heartening. The reason is that the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), which has adopted terrorism as its modus operandi has its main agenda of overrunning the state and its political structure. That is why it has been deprecating everything political. On the other hand, the participation of the clerical groups in elections means they believe in the political system and want to promote their agenda within the parameters of the country's constitution and its political system. This is despite the fact that these Muslim clerical parties are extremely critical of the political system and the mainstream political parties. This has largely been due to the frustration of these clerical groups because of their failure in attaining full-fledged political power despite contesting elections repeatedly since 1970.

In 2002, when the Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal (MMA), an alliance of six mainstream clerical parties, won a majority in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and Balochistan provincial legislatures, and formed the government in the former, and coalition government in the latter, they tried to impose their fundamentalist agenda but could not. For instance, the MMA bid to promulgate Hisba Bill into a law. There were several reasons for that. The central government controlled by the General-President Pervez Musharraf did not allow it to do whatever it wanted, despite facilitating the MMA to win a majority in the KP and Balochistan. Moreover, there were serious internal schisms among the component parties of the MMA. For instance, the Jamiat-e-Ulema-e-Islam Sami (JUI-S) had separated itself from the alliance during its
rule and the reason was not at all religious or ideological but secular. The two major parties the Jamiat-e-Ulema-e-Islam Fazl (JUI-F) and the Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) were reluctant to give more governmental and ministerial positions to the JUI-S. Then there were serious ideological differences among the parties that formed the MMA.

In 2008, the MMA had fragmented and the JI had boycotted the elections. The JUI-F which then contested the elections with full force could only manage to win 14 seats in the 100 member KP assembly, while it won 10 seats in the Balochistan Assembly. Due to the peculiar situation of Balochistan, where no party had a majority, the Pakistan People's Party's (PPP) bizarre leader, Aslam Raisani, exploited the situation and along with the JUI-F formed a coalition government.

It is also important to note that the JUI-F has been preparing for the coming elections for the last couple of years. In this connection it has been displaying its strength through "Islam Zindabad" conferences all over Pakistan. The participation in these conferences has been huge but mostly comprise of students of madrassas, who don't have any right to vote because of their age. Although the JUI-F only have a realistic chance of winning a dozen provincial assembly seats, each in the KP and Balochistan, as it does not have any standing in the rest of the country. However, the JUI-F has adopted an elaborate election strategy. The foremost strand of this strategy is creating an impression in both the provinces that it is winning. The natural consequence of the first part of the strategy is to attract as many as possible winning candidates or 'electables' from other parties. The third strand of the strategy is to portray that the keys of peace, extensively disturbed by the violence of the TTP, are in the JUI-F leadership's hands. The fourth and most reprehensible part of the strategy is that the JUI-F leaders are trying to browbeat potential winners and opponents by taking along Taliban lookalikes during the election campaign.

As far as the last part of the JUI-F strategy is concerned these suspicious people could be seen roaming with the JUI-F candidates during electioneering. Whether the JUI-F strategy would be able to work or not it remains to be seen, but at the moment it seems to be working at least in the KP where several parliamentarians of other parties from the last assemblies have joined the JUI-F. These include Munir Orakzai, who was the leader of FATA parliamentarians in the outgoing National Assembly; Istiqbal Khan, a ANP MNA from Buner; Fazil Shakor, an MPA from Charsaddar from the ANP, among others. This has created an atmosphere depicting the JUI-F emerging as a majority party in the KP, Balochistan and FATA. However, keeping in view the track record of getting votes, the JUI-F has a fixed quota of votes which it has always been receiving. Only in the 2002 elections it was due to a twist in the voters' tilt towards the religious parties, support from the Musharraf regime and alliance of the religious parties, which won the JUI-F many seats.
This writer could recall the obvious official support to the MMA during the October 2002 elections, while working as an analyst for the European Union Elections Observation (EUEOM) in Pakistan. This time the JUI-F and other parties do not have any of these advantages. Thus, on this basis it could be argued first, that the JUI-F would not win a significant number of seats and if it does it would be due to its successful strategy of intimidating opponents. Moreover, unlike the previous two elections the JUI-F this time has to face a very stiff challenge from the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) in the KP and Balochistan as well as FATA, where the PTI, according to many surveys and observation of general voters' tilt, is far ahead of the JUI-F.

The JI has announced that it would contest on all the National Assembly seats across the country. This is unrealistic, but at the same time the fact cannot be denied that JI has a slim but steady vote bank in all parts of the country, sans Balochistan. However, the strength of the electoral support has never won the party many parliamentary seats. Realizing it, the JI has entered into an electoral alliance with the PTI. This would help the PTI in the Punjab, KP, FATA and Karachi to add to its tally of seats besides helping the JI to save face by winning around ten NA seats.

As far as other religious parties are concerned, the JUI-S may win a couple of seats here and there while the disparate parties of the Brelevi sect may win a few seats in the Punjab and Sindh through seat adjustment with major parties like the PTI, the PML-N and the PPP. The banned Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan (SSP) now renamed as Ahle Sunnat Wal Jamaat and headed by Muhammad Ahmed Ludhianvi is already in an electoral alliance with the PML-N. The Shi-ite Tehreek-e-Islami also may win a couple of seats. Here it is important to mention that the Shi-ite vote, which traditionally has always gone to the PPP, this time is seemingly diverging from the party. Because during the last PPP government, Shi-ites have been mercilessly killed in every part of the country but the PPP could not do anything to protect them. Thus, Shi-ite leaders are openly saying that this time they would not vote for the PPP but they don't say for which party they would vote. Their likely choice would be PML-Q or the PTI because of Imran's stand against Shi-ite killings in Balochistan and the condemnation of Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, which accepted responsibility for the attacks, apart from Khan's liberal credentials, his old pro-negotiation stance with Taliban notwithstanding.

Insofar as the unity of religious parties is concerned, although the JUI-F managed to revive the MMA sans the JI and the JUI-S, but the present MMA is nowhere to be seen. On the other hand the so-called Defence of Pakistan Council, which comprised religious and ultra-right wing parties, miserably failed to translate itself into an electoral alliance unlike the MMA did before the 2002 elections. Moreover, the alliance also completely failed to stop the US drone attacks on Pakistani soil and supplies to NATO troops through Pakistan.
As always, clerical parties would play their role in the elections, but they on their own connot win many seats, but could help major parties add to their tally of seats.

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Recently, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has rightly observed that if all other state institutions also ensure holding of free, fair and peaceful elections in Balochistan like other provinces, it will go a long way allaying the reservations of the estranged elements. The observation came from Secretary ECP Ishtiak Ahmad Khan during a discussion with the media. The observation is based on the recent visit of Chief Election Commissioner Justice (R) Fakhruddin G. Ibrahim and Election Commission Member Fazalur Rahman to Quetta, where they met the leaders of different political parties including the Baloch nationalist groups.

This is a very apt observation of the situation in Balochistan because the only way to address the issues in the province is empowerment of the people. Empowerment in Balochistan, in turn, is possible only through holding free, fair, transparent elections. Importantly, empowerment in the context of Balochistan has to be multidimensional and participatory. The roots of the Balochistan crisis are in the denial of the political, socio-cultural and economic rights of the people. Elections directly is about politics and indirectly about everything, whether economic or cultural.

It goes without saying that the security and political situation in Balochistan today is very similar to the 1971 crisis in East Pakistan, which led to the dismemberment of the latter from the mother country. Here it is important to note that why different governments and state-initiatives have failed to put an end to the unrest in Balochistan despite making allocation of billions of rupees. The foremost reason is that these initiatives could not empower the people in any way let alone meaningfully. The federal government and the state authorities have been claiming implementing a number of development programmes in Balochistan.

However, if one physically travels in the province, nothing is visible; even in Quetta one cannot see any worthwhile development. If it is supposed that development has taken place in Balochistan then at the same time no one can deny that the impact of 'development' is nowhere to be seen. Again the reason is the non-participatory nature of the development initiatives taken by the state in the troubled province.

Apart from that the impact of the development is not visible because whatever development interventions have taken place they have been through a top-down approach instead of the desirable bottom-up approach process. In other words the demands for development programmes and areas of development should have come from the local and grass root communities instead of from the bureaucracy, which has been the case in Balochistan.
In the above-mentioned context, the importance of free, fair and transparent elections in Balochistan become critically important. Secretary ECP was also quoted as saying to the media that "if the state institutions cooperate in holding the elections in peaceful and transparent manner in Balochistan, it will not only facilitate real public representatives reaching the legislatures but also have a pleasant impact on the country's solidarity and security." He aptly described the situation in Balochistan by saying, as quoted by media, that Pakistan stood at the crossroads that underscored the need for the national leadership to take a decision to put, what he called, balm on the seething
wounds of Balochistan.

This observation from the ECP suggests that the onus of holding free and fair elections in Balochistan entirely rests with the state institutions. This could only happen if there is a fundamental change in the country's strategic mindset. Here one could only request the powers-that-be that as it is an issue of the very survivability of the state, therefore they should have a completely hands off approach during the next elections in Balochistan. The state institutions should not worry who gets elected from the province.
Because given the opportunity, the people of Balochistan would elect those people who would initiate a real development process and once development in Balochistan takes places, its natural corollary would be peace, end of conflict and human and state security. This needs to be realized by all the state institutions, in spirit as well as in letter.

Keeping in view the pro-democracy record of the present Chief of Army Staff General Ashfaq Pervez Kiyani, one has full faith that the support from the most important state institution for fair elections in Balochistan would be total. Here the role of the mainstream national political parties is also very important. Historically these parties have colluded with the Khans and Nawabs of Balochistan and made them their candidates in elections.

It is heartening that the largest of the Baloch nationalist parties, BNP-M, chairman and former chief minister, Sardar Akhtar Mengal, has announced to take part in the next elections. Mengal has justified his decision in face of stiff resistance from within his party and other Baloch nationalist groups, which want a complete boycott of elections, by arguing that the party considers it the last chance to get the rights of the people of Balochistan within the constitutional and political framework of Pakistan. He further argued that if the party would not be able to get the rights of Baloch people that it will have no other way but to abandon the struggle within the constitutional confines of the country.

Therefore, he also stressed on the need of ensuring an atmosphere in which free and fair elections could be held in the province. The state authorities must take this very seriously as Mengal's words have a lot of substance. The state can ill-afford to let the genuine political leadership of Balochistan go the other way. Here it is important to note that fair and free elections are also a very important litmus test of those political groups who claim to be the champions of Baloch rights. If they come to power and will not carry out development in the way they have been claiming, they would get exposed and people would reject them in the next elections.

On the other hand, if these forces are able to initiate real development programmes and also implement them meaningfully, it would result in an enhanced standard of living, education, health and civic facilities. This would defeat fissiparous and centrifugal tendencies as only the frustrated and insecure indulge in such activities.

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Blood shedding and demagoguery are at its peak in Pakistan nowadays. Militants are killing innocent people without any fear and hesitation. The TTP and other terrorist organisations are wreaking mayhem across the country, especially in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan, Karachi, and certain areas of the Punjab.

They have declared war against the state and our government, security agencies, including the army and police, have utterly failed to crush these anti-state elements. The policy of protecting "good Taliban" and "crushing bad Taliban" has proved very costly for Pakistan and its poor people. So far more than 40,000 people have lost their lives in the war on terror and number of killings are rapidly increasing every day.

The recent suicide attack on the paramilitary Frontier Constabulary (FC) Commandant Abdul Majeed Khan which killed around 12 people, including four security personnel, shows clearly that nobody is safe from these terrorists in Pakistan. The FC Commandant Abdul Majeed Khan survived this deadly attack, which took place near the US consulate and the army check post. Around 35 innocent people wounded.

On August 4, 2010, the militants killed Sifwat Ghayur, the former FC commandant, in a suicide attack outside the FC headquarters. This time the FC Commandant Abdul Majeed Khan has a narrow escape.

On 31 March, two people were killed and six injured in Bannu as a roadside bomb exploded near an election rally.

"Former member of the dissolved Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly Adnan Wazir received injuries, while two others died in the remote-controlled bomb blast near militancy hotbed North Waziristan. Adnan Wazir's convoy was hit near Noor Wali, 20 kilometres north of Bannu district. It was a remote-controlled blast and the target was the former MPA's convoy near Janikhel area," said Bannu police chief Nisar Tanoli.

The TTP has claimed responsibility for this attack. Talking to the media offices, the TTP spokesman Ehsanullah Ehsan said: "He (Adnan Wazir) has affiliation with Awami National Party and that is why he was the target. It was the beginning of what we promised - attacks on the ANP. We claim responsibility for the attack. We are against the ANP and Adnan Wazir was a part of the ANP government for five years. We have directed our associates in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to target ANP election rallies and all its leaders". On March 30, a policeman was killed and five others were injured in Mardan.
"Police signalled two people riding a motorcycle to stop. One of them opened fire on police instead. Police retaliated and one of the injured bombers blew himself up after falling from the motorcycle. The other suicide bomber was chased and shot dead in the Katlang area. Additional Sub-Inspector Khushdal Khan died and two policemen were injured," the police official told the media. Separately, a bomb blast damaged a non-governmental organisation office in Peshawar, on the same day.

Many thinkers believe that the Taliban have inflicted the first blow to the election campaign in Pakistan. Keeping in view the failure of our civil and military authorities to crush this impending threat, we can easily predict that bloody days are coming in the near future.

The Daily Times writes: "The inability of civil and military authorities to strategise a plan that could be formulated into a cohesive policy to combat terrorism on its multiple, complex levels, and the practice of stop-gap measures seem to be incredulous keeping in the view the constant threat of terrorism on any given day. No substantial counter-terrorism policy has been implemented, which could be instrumental in prevention, and the eventual cessation of terror-related chaos in a country, reeling under the effects of spillover of war on terror and its multi-faceted consequences. The apparent lack of co-ordination between different intelligence agencies, the paucity of trust between various law-enforcement agencies, the incapacity of police to work in a systematic manner on city-to-city basis, and the courts' reluctance to give verdicts in terrorism cases, all these factors have become an amalgamation of what would only be termed an almost complete breakdown of law and order in areas that need round-the-clock vigilance to keep the militants at bay... The attacks on the FC and other security agencies are retaliatory actions in a blatant attempt to seek 'vengeance' for the attempts to eradicate militancy in the tribal regions of Pakistan, and the relentlessness of the same has become a horror story for the people of these areas, and in the perpetuation of fear all over Pakistan. This latest attack is another indication of the failure of the ANP government as well the central government to impose even a semblance of order in the terror-afflicted region. The caretaker cabinet's apprehension that the threat of terrorism will be the biggest sword hanging in the province as the election 2013 approaches is very valid, but the fear of sabotage has come at a time when all that is done will be nothing more than an exercise in 'too little too late'. But keeping in consideration the very real menace of terrorism as a top priority, some comprehensive programme has to be implemented before the elections, thereby ensuring the safety of campaign rallies of different political parties, and the Election Day gathering of huge numbers of people at polling stations. The failure to do so would bring about consequences that would be too horrific to be borne in a country that as soon as emerges from the aftermath of one terrorist disaster is hit by another one. The coming days would be conducive for militants looking to unleash more terror, targeting assembled groups of people in the wake of preparation for the elections, and it is imperative that all such ambitions be quashed in time. It is time for the intelligence agencies to work in unison with the law-enforcement bodies and civilian administrations. Any lapse to do so would prove too costly for a terror-worn Pakistan today, catapulting it into more chaos".

On the other hand, all our corrupt, venal and incompetent political and religious leaders are showing their demagoguery during poll rallies. They are feeling no shame to use catchy slogans and religion for gaining their own partisan interests. All these leaders have deceived the people again and again. The PPP leadership is still using the words like Roti, Kapra aur Makan (Bread, Clothes and Shelter), Shaheed Benazir and Shaheed ZA Bhutto's mission, after its very dismal performance in the government. Everybody knows that the PPP has not solved even a single problem of the people during its five-years rule but its leadership is still greedy for getting power yet again.
The PML-N has also failed the people of the Punjab, but its leader Nawaz Sharif thinks he can change the fate of people by becoming the prime minister the third time.

"Last time we carried out nuclear explosions. Now we will carry out economic explosions," Sharif pledged before the crowd in Mansehra.

During his address, Nawaz promised that if his party was elected a third time, he would build a motorway from Lahore to Karachi. "I am not fond of power, I only want to see my country progressing and my people prosper". "Give a vote for Quaid-e-Azam not for Wazeer-e-Azam".

On March 31, Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazlur Rehman (JUI-F) Chief, Maulana Fazlur Rehman, stressed that Pakistan must be acknowledged as one of the region's most significant states.

Addressing a rally held under the title 'Islam Zindabad Conference' at Minar-e-Pakistan, Fazl said "No one has the right to strip us of our independence."
A News report says: "Spelling out his party's manifesto, Maulana stressed on judicious utilization of the country's resources." "We want to pull people out of the mire of humiliation and coercion," he stressed, adding at the same time that he accepts the legitimate rights of a landlord. He promised to transform the country into a welfare state where labourers will be given their rightful status in the society. "We don't need to buy gas from any other country," the JUI-F chief argued, saying the problem of load-shedding can be resolved through sensible decision making.

The MQM's Dr. Farooq Sattar has claimed that the next Sindh chief minister would be from the MQM. On March 31, Sattar said that "only people of Sindh could save Pakistan as its provincial assembly was the first to adopt a resolution in favour of the new country". He also said that the MQM did not just belong to Karachi but it is a party of Pakistan. Everybody knows that the MQM uses every method, including violence, to keep its hold on Karachi.
Syed Munawar Hasan, Ameer of Jamaat-e-Islami (JI), has said: "There is a dire need to call a spade a spade now and boldly unveil the dishonest politicians and their corruption". On March 31, addressing the participants of "Umeed-e-Pakistan Youth Convention", Syed Munawar said that people should use the power of votes to get rid of corrupt parties. JI did not take part in the previous elections.

History shows that all these political parties and their leaders have failed the people of Pakistan again and again. The people of Pakistan now have a golden chance to get rid of corrupt leaders by using the power of their votes. The PTI has a golden chance to get power, as its leader Imran Khan has not yet been tested in politics. The PTI's leader Imran Khan has vowed to bring a sweeping change in the country by establishing peace and establishing justice. Time will tell about the fate of Imran and Pakistan.

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