06.06.2013

Many a tall hurdle

Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif, chief of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, has made history. He becomes the first person to serve for the third time as the prime minister of Pakistan. Returning to the National Assembly after an interval of 13 years and nearly eight months, Nawaz Sharif claimed his place in the prime minister’s office with style, claiming 244 votes out of the 342 available. As he has already said, the simple majority won by his party in the lower house will make the task of governance easier than if coalition formation had been involved. But we speak only in relative terms. There can be no denying the fact that running the country will not be an easy business. In his first speech to the house after claiming the most votes, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif referred to some of the problems that lay ahead – mentioning the drone strikes, and issues of extremism and law and order. Undoubtedly, unravelling the web that entangles our country will be no easy affair. The federal cabinet, which will assume its role as the chief decision-making body of government, under the stewardship of Nawaz who brings with him plenty of experience, will undoubtedly face a difficult time.

We can, however, take heart from some of the spirit shown in parliament. The air was generally one of camaraderie, with representatives of parties congratulating Nawaz Sharif and wishing him well for the future. A slightly sour note was struck by the Pakistan People’s Party’s Makhdoom Amin Fahim, who seemed to suggest that the ‘agencies’ had also played a role in the PML-N’s overwhelming victory. Such conspiracy theories are unlikely to be believed by many, and certainly other leaders stayed clear of them, with many looking to PM Nawaz to set the country on the right track. Whether he will be able to do so or not is something that remains to be seen. There are many tall hurdles standing along an endless track. But the PML-N leader seems more committed than ever, a reflection of which was the sombre way he conducted himself at the ceremony. The prime minister’s speech too indicated a sincere desire to change the fate of the country. We hope the government he forms will be able to put together the plans required to achieve this, and then begin moving forward to usher in real change. The process is undoubtedly strewn with multiple challenges. But Nawaz Sharif has spelled out much of what is required in the first sequence of events. We can only hope that for the sake of Pakistan and all of us, now that he has taken oath, PM Nawaz Sharif can embark on this difficult journey as quickly and effectively as possible.

Price of war

Many factors contribute to the enfeebled state of the nation, and the entire blame for our current condition cannot be laid at the door of the last government. Since 9/11 Pakistan has been drawn ever deeper into the so-called ‘war on terror’ and the full cost of our involvement in a war we did not seek to fight is beginning to emerge. The figures – not yet finalised – will in all likelihood be included in the upcoming Economic Survey 2012-13. Over the course of the last 12 years, the various sectors of the economy have experienced losses that might be close to $100 billion – a staggering sum. Equally staggering, but in the other direction, is the size – or lack of size – of the recompense that Pakistan has received, totalling about $15 billion or around 14 percent of what was actually lost from the economy up to fiscal year 2010-11.

Two years ago the US government estimated that the war in Afghanistan was costing about $300 million a day, a figure that will reduce dramatically as the draw-down continues. It does, however, put into perspective the compensation Pakistan has received. In purely fiscal terms the war costs the US about $2 billion a week, or $8 billion a month. Over a decade Pakistan has received slightly less than the value of two months of war fighting from the US. And this sum is no reflection of the human costs – the thousands of lives lost, and a casualty list that outweighs that of the combined coalition forces over the entire duration of the conflict, with little sign these are going to drop in the short-to-medium term. The war has put the brakes on our economic growth. Foreign investment has been adversely affected proportional to the deterioration in the security environment and western governments have limited travel to Pakistan by potential entrepreneurs and investors. The cost to the economy in the fiscal year 2010-11 is estimated to have risen to $17.8 billion. From that perspective the US has managed to use Pakistan’s services very cheaply indeed. It will be many years before the conflict subsides, if indeed it ever does completely fade away. The price of a war we never wanted will be a burden for decades, and mere money never adequate recompense.

School tragedy

At a time when summer camps are in full swing at schools and other places across the country, the tragic death of a 12-year-old student as a result of drowning at a camp run by a private school in Lahore should make everyone, notably the authorities, think about key issues of safety and the monitoring of activities of private institutions. Though the details are still somewhat scanty, with the management of the school in question maintaining a silence, it would appear Suleman Manzoor Bhatti died as a result of criminal negligence. From what we know, boys in the pool were not properly supervised. Worse still, no one at the institution seems to have been familiar with CPR. By the time the child was taken to a hospital he was already dead and, in an act of gross insensitivity, his parents were not informed till his mother came to collect him from school.

Yes, accidents occur. Some may indeed be no one’s fault. However, that is not always the case. Proper safety precautions, the hiring of trained staff and recognition of the need to put safety – not profit – first can prevent such mishaps. Schools and other institutions taking care of children need to exercise particular responsibility. Sadly this is not the case at present. Privately-run institutions are largely able to do as they please, exploiting parents who only want the best they can afford for their children. An enquiry has been initiated into this incident and it is hoped those responsible are not be allowed to get away scot-free. The explanation offered so far – that this was an ‘accident’ – is not enough. A proper follow-up is important to prevent other similar tragedies.

Success story

The remarkable success story of the Sharif brothers continues. A day after his elder brother took the office of prime minister, Mian Shahbaz Sharif was voted in – by a huge majority of the 341 members who have taken oath in Punjab – to serve as chief minister of the province for a record third time. He claimed 300 votes as the assembled house split into lobbies, with only 34 going to his rival from the PTI. The PPP had opted to stay out of the poll. The massive margin of victory for Shahbaz Sharif was largely anticipated, and cheers rang out in the Punjab Assembly even before the speaker had read out the results of the counting. Besides possessing experience in running the affairs of the country’s largest province, Shahbaz Sharif, this time round, comes in backed by a huge majority and faces none of the hurdles he did during his last stint in the same office, when a hostile governor and threats of in-house change frequently thwarted his efforts. Many hope that the decisive mandate he and his party received on May 11 will also enable him to act from a position of real strength. People in Punjab, notably Lahore, will be hoping that the projects initiated by the PML-N government will now be successfully completed.

In his first speech to the new Punjab Assembly, Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif stressed his desire to improve things as quickly as possible, speaking especially of the power crisis that has become the main concern of tens of thousands of people scattered across a province currently experiencing up to 12 hours or more of loadshedding every day. The pledge to do all that can be done to overcome the situation will undoubtedly go down well with the people of Punjab. The chief minister will also be supported by the centre. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has already called a meeting to discuss the energy crisis. The fact that this time the federal and Punjab governments will be working in tandem, with the Sharif brothers expected to work together, should certainly stand us in good stead and help improve administrative capacity. For now at least, the massive vote in favour of Shahbaz appears to have injected a new element of optimism in the people. CM Shahbaz Sharif will now need to demonstrate that he is able to deliver and offer people the competent leadership they yearn for and which has so far been denied to them.

Education follies

Pakistan is a country starved of educational facilities at every level, from the primary and most basic to universities and higher education generally. Successive governments have failed to prioritise the educational needs of the nation and the poverty of the education system matches the poverty of the common man. It now emerges that the last government has left as many as 40 universities, many of them in far-flung areas and established in the last five years, in desperate financial straits. Not only did the last government cut the allocation for higher education, it also rejected a staggering 95 percent of development projects presented by the universities – a major contribution to their spiral of decline. They struggle to pay their staff salaries, are unable to fund research or equip laboratories and libraries and some run the risk of closure in the near future. If that happens opportunity will be snatched from the grasp of young people in places as far apart as Gilgit, Swat, Bahawalnagar and Rahim Yar Khan, making a travesty of any promise that was made.

Eight percent of the population of Pakistan has access to higher education compared to 12 percent in Bangladesh and 18 percent in India. During the last tenure 72 public sector universities made requests for allocations of 350 development projects none of which were beyond the bounds of being perfectly reasonable, but 334 were turned down and 16 approved. Funds that should have been used to bolster the higher education sector were diverted for political reasons, with former PM Raja Pervaiz Ashraf directing billions away from the universities for his pet road-building projects. Over five years the PPP government allocated Rs87.08 billion for higher education but only released Rs66.94 billion. Standards set by the UN recommend that the budget for higher education should not be less than a quarter of the total budget. In Pakistan it is less than one-tenth. Pakistan now has a new prime minister who has a lot on his plate. The power crisis may be paramount but the education crisis runs it a close second. The country needs to hear a loud, clear and unequivocal message from PM Nawaz Sharif – there must be education for all, no more raiding of education budgets and a lifeline thrown to our universities before we start losing them.

__________________
Yes We Can Do It!

Justice calling

The verdict is in; and the rich and the powerful in our country should take note. In what some may term an important precedent, the two accused – Shahrukh Jatoi and Siraj Talpur – in the Shahzeb murder case have been awarded the death sentence by an Anti-Terrorism Court in Karachi. Two other persons, Sajjad Talpur and Ghulam Lashari have been awarded life terms in the murder case. The tragic murder of 20-year-old Shahzeb Khan led to outrage and increasing pressure on authorities to move against a manifestation of the culture of impunity practised by those ‘privileged’ enough to get away with anything – even murder. The fact that so many people rose up to stand by the family of Shahzeb can be taken as a reflection of the desire and will on the part of society to change this state of affairs. Shahrukh Jatoi too had fled to the UAE in an escape which has still to be fully explained given that he was on the Exit Control List. The decision by the ATC will come as a shock to those unaccustomed to justice taking its course and Shahzeb Khan’s sister has already stated that their family has been under acute pressure for weeks for some kind of settlement to be reached. Of course, there will be an appeal and the matter may linger for some months – to whatever end.

And meanwhile it will do us no harm to step back and recognise a few sombre – very dark – realities that go way beyond pointing a finger at ‘feudalism’ or privilege as something that exists in a void. The fact that the murder took place in Karachi – a city driven to madness by the violence that takes place every day – must be taken into account when looking at the reaction the Shahzeb case elicited. We must ask ourselves how many killings we have turned a blind eye to in a city where assassins have confessed to murdering more than a hundred people and have managed to get away despite that. This is not to say that Shahrukh Jatoi and Siraj Talpur should not pay for their crimes – they must – but a gentle reminder that there are people in this city of death who get killed merely for existing, for being bystanders at a shoot-out, for living in a ‘dangerous’ part of town, for being on the ‘wrong’ side of ‘political’ gangs and mafias, and sometimes for trying to bring the truth to the people. Call it indifference or another kind of (societal) patronage, but it is there, and it has survived years and decades of killings and murders done under the patronage of – or instigated and even perpetrated by – ‘political forces.’ Maybe the spirit of protest moved by the Shahzeb incident could become more inclusive and meaningful if we were able to acknowledge that there are many others – nameless victims – killed by forces we refuse to stand up against or even name. So it is hoped that this verdict is taken in the spirit it should be: not in a hysterical celebration focussed on the micro but as an occasion to explore the larger picture.

Pondering power

That Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, only hours after taking oath, took on the country’s energy crisis head-on and chaired a high-level meeting on the issue is a positive sign showing how much significance should be attached to a problem that is foremost on the minds of the people and has come to dominate virtually every aspect of life. According to a new World Bank report, some 15 million Pakistanis are among the 1.2 billion persons around the world with no access to electricity. The issue in Pakistan, though, is that even those who have ‘access’ to power face 12 hours or more of loadshedding daily, which cripples industry and creates severe despondency and rage among domestic consumers. We have already seen power riots in the country as people resorted to protests in the face of outages in temperatures well above 40 degrees Celsius.

At the meeting in Lahore, attended also by Punjab CM Shahbaz Sharif, incoming finance minister Ishaq Dar and other senior PML-N leaders as well as energy experts, the power crisis was noted as one of the top priorities for the new government. The prime minister announced the removal of the chairman of Wapda and the heads of power distribution companies, while emphasising that incompetence or power theft would not be tolerated. Nawaz also called on officials to evaluate all existing power projects, assess the finances required and use any and all resources to help fix this crisis. Such swift decisions offer at least a glimmer of hope to those who have lived an energy-deprived existence for a long time. This first step by the new government suggests to them that someone is at least attempting to so something to address the problem – and to many this alone offers a bit of hope. We must remember, though, that we should not expect instant solutions. The PM has already urged people to be patient, warning that it will take time to sort out these matters. The power crisis has grown over the past decade and today stands before us – a well-fed monster. Vanquishing it is essential for the sake of our economy and the welfare of the people. But a sensible and viable strategy will need to be devised. Sadly, there are no magic wands that can just wave away loadshedding in the blink of an eye. But we can take heart from the fact that some efforts are at least being made and priority being accorded to a problem that has become chaotic. We hope these will eventually pay off so that we can at least have before us the vision of a future where power cuts are not so regular a feature of our lives and see that work is underway to achieve this.

__________________
Yes We Can Do It!

New team

We now know the team that will be leading our nation over the coming years. A 25-member federal cabinet, including 16 full-fledged ministers and nine ministers of state was sworn in on Friday, setting in place the new government in the centre. Some portfolios awarded were already known, while in other cases younger people have been appointed to chalk out the way ahead. As we had already been told, Ishaq Dar takes over the critical portfolio of finance. His attempts to resuscitate a dying economy will determine much about the nature of the years ahead. Others who will play a decisive role in how matters are run include Chaudhry Nisar Ali who takes charge as interior minister, Khawaja Asif who will handle water and power, Ahsan Iqbal who is to run planning and development, Pervaiz Rashid who will handle information, Khawaja Saad Rafique who must get the railways running again, Shahid Khaqan Abbasi who is to manage the petroleum ministry and Zahid Hamid who will be the new law minister. Veteran economist Sartaj Aziz is to advise on foreign affairs and national security and Tareq Fatemi will serve as a special assistant on foreign affairs. For now at least the prime minister has opted to keep both the defence and foreign affairs portfolios himself. A few other key appointments are expected later.
The new cabinet has certainly wasted no time in springing into action. With the annual budget due to be announced in a few days time, Ishaq Dar has already been working from his Lahore residence on key issues concerning our dwindling finances. Immediately after being appointed, Chaudhry Nisar Ali has convened a meeting to obtain a full briefing on the very troubled law and order situation, and promised to work closely with the provinces on this issue. The devolution of many functions of governance to the provinces under the 18th Amendment calls for some adjustments at all levels and close cooperation between the centre and all federating units. The new information minister, Pervaiz Rashid, has also spoken of his plans – promising that secret funds will not be used for political purposes, that the media will continue to be briefed on key issues and its advice will also be sought. Yes, there has been some criticism of the cabinet selection, with at least 20 of its members hailing from Punjab and no woman appointed as a full-fledged minister. But what people really want to see now is performance – other factors are relatively irrelevant and it is this that will determine how the next government is seen. Certainly, we need it to work well to rescue a floundering country.

The trophy jinx

In the lead up to the ICC Champions Trophy which exploded into action in Britain on June 6, Pakistan was seen as one of the favourites for the coveted title. But within a span of a single match, the Pakistanis have dropped from being major contenders to a team that is in clear and present danger of falling at the first hurdle. Their narrow two-wicket loss against the West Indies in a low-scoring thriller at The Oval on Friday has put Pakistan in a must-win situation as they cannot afford to falter in their remaining group matches against South Africa on Monday and arch-rivals India on June 15. A loss in either of the two games, both to be played in Birmingham, will most probably bring Pakistan’s campaign to a grinding halt.
It is a bit of a gloomy scenario but captain Misbah-ul-Haq still managed to put up a brave face following his team’s morale-shattering defeat against the Caribbean side, stressing that the Pakistani team has a history of countering such difficult situations. He urged his troops to remain positive and give their best, adding that the team has the guts to bounce back with a vengeance. But Misbah might be overestimating the Pakistan side, which has never won the Champions Trophy. The veteran batsmen himself is in fine nick, something he proved again with an unbeaten 96 in the lost cause against the West Indies. But most of his other batsmen have been far from convincing. Even senior pros like vice-captain Mohammad Hafeez or former skipper Shoaib Malik have exhibited sheer ineptness against quality bowlers in the rather challenging English conditions – an alarming sign for Pakistan. This shows that despite having hired so-called qualified international coaches, the batting problem – which has been Pakistan’s Achilles heel for quite some time now – remains unresolved. Pakistan’s bowlers are looking sharp but unless the batting line delivers it will be really tough for the team to produce the sort of results it needs to progress to the Champions Trophy semi-finals. At a time when the attention of the entire nation is focused on our cricket team, it is really important that Misbah and his men put up a fight. Only our bowlers did that in the first match. Otherwise, their Champions Trophy jinx will stay unbroken.

Turkish turmoil

Much of Turkey is in ferment, with the anti-government protests that started on May 28 gradually spreading. The nature of the Turkish disturbances is complex, but at their heart is an attempt by Prime Minister Erdogan to convert Turkey from a parliamentary democracy to a presidential form of governance and to preserve his own hold on power. At first the protesters – mostly young and secular – were angered at what they saw as the desecration of the Taksim Gezi Park, with the demolition of walls and the uprooting of trees attracting the ire of environmentalists. The demonstration became violent on the night of May 30 as the demonstrators were joined by members of the opposition Republican People’s Party, and the complexion of the protest changed from being environmentalist to an expression of anger against the ruling Justice and Development Party.
Prime Minister Erdogan blamed the protests on ‘wild extremists’ and at one point railed against Twitter and other social media sites as being dangerous and trying to undermine the state. He did admit that the police used excessive force against the demonstrators – which did not stop 5,000 protestors stoning the PM’s office in Besiktas in Istanbul on June 1. The Turkish PM is not without his supporters, but the government’s stance is increasingly exposing the polarities in Turkish society as well as the vulnerabilities of the ruling regime. The protesters see the government trying to undermine the principles on which the modern state of Turkey was founded by Attaturk – a government set on modifying the liberal secular nature of the state to one that is more authoritarian. For the moment there is no real threat to the Erdogan government. The protesters number in the tens rather than the hundreds of thousands, and encompass a relatively narrow demographic – the young. That dynamic could shift were this anti-government movement to gain strength and numbers and begin to infiltrate areas where the government has typically held exclusive sway. All of this comes at a time of general regional unrest and also at a moment when Turkey is absorbing the fallout from the Syrian conflict on its eastern borders. But a ‘Turkish spring’? Not yet.

__________________
Janoon say or Ishq say milti hay AAZADI

The plot thins

A report in this newspaper says the law ministry has stopped the process of allotting expensive plots in Islamabad to some of the bureaucrats who were working with or were posted close to former prime minister Raja Pervaiz Ashraf. As though an emperor holding court, Ashraf had rewarded those officers – his courtiers – he was pleased with. After the former prime minister’s exit the law ministry woke up and found that the allotment of these plots was unconstitutional and illegal. The ministry said that this system of promoting coteries, cronies and sycophants must be banished and buried. This kind of allotment of government plots is against all norms of good governance. Initially eight key officers of the past regime – the then principal secretary to the PM, the military secretary, the PM’s personal physician, the deputy military secretary, the director security, the ADC, the security officer and the additional security officer will lose their allotted, state-owned plots.
These are unlucky men indeed, since many officers in the past have received similar rewards and have never been questioned. The last PPP government doled out a huge number of plots to bureaucrats, journalists and judges during its tenure. But this is a highly objectionable practice and must be stopped. Using government land, money and resources to please civil servants and personal staff is gross corruption. Why should any officer be singled out because he was posted at any VIP residence or office? The big question, however, is that the objections raised by the law ministry have to be approved by the new political masters and, in our political culture, no person in power would like to give away such a lucrative tool to please cronies or buy the bureaucracy’s loyalties. It will be a test of the sincerity of the Nawaz government to uphold and authenticate the law ministry’s decision. This, however, will be quite a bitter pill to swallow. But in the early days of the government, when such decisions bring laurels and praise, it could be managed. Any delay in this is in no one’s interest except the royal beneficiaries of the last emperor’s court.

Buttering bobbies

As a starter the new Information Minister Pervaiz Rashid has made a laudable decision – only if it is truly implemented and made a precedent. He has announced that the heads of the Motorway police and the National Bank of Pakistan will have to pay the amounts spent by their organisations on newspaper advertisements welcoming Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. These two organisations had used public funds to buy media space in which Nawaz Sharif’s victory was lavishly praised. It was by far the most visible example of how bureaucrats and technocrats try to cover up for their weaknesses by buttering the egos of people in power – praising their real or imaginary qualities of leadership and vision, and offering them support and unsolicited assistance when none is needed.
In these particular cases, the inspector general of the Motorway police explained that he had issued the ad because the media had so demanded and that it was meant to educate the people about the use of the facility – and that since Nawaz Sharif had built the road his effort was also mentioned. The National Bank of Pakistan also tried to offer a similar explanation, saying the costly ad was solicited by the newspapers. Of course it is the job of newspapers and media outlets to try and get as much business as they can – on whatever issue. But spending public money to achieve personal objectives is highly inappropriate behaviour. It is pretty obvious what these people wanted to achieve, but the same media they say solicited their business came after them and caught them red-handed. Now the new information minister has promised that the two johnies will be made to pay for the ads from their own pockets. This will send the right message to all sycophants and cronies who are, or were, looking to use the media to buy some favour or get into the good books of the new rulers. Advertisements welcoming the president, the PM or a minister are a common sight in the media and this practice must stop. An organisation that achieves something praiseworthy must get due publicity, but spending good money for bad publicity is no way to do so. The fear, however, is that the minister may have gone a bit too far in his claim and once the initial excitement of taking the federal minister’s oath subsides, he may not be interested in pursuing these brownnosers. Being human after all, they may feel that anyone praising them or their ‘superhuman’ qualities – with public money or private – cannot be ‘that bad a person’.


As the chief law officer of the country, the attorney general should be a man committed to rule of law. Munir A Malik, appointed to this post by the president on the advice of the prime minister seems a man well suited to fill this criterion. He replaces the controversial Irfan Qadir who had been served a contempt of court notice and whose appointment was opposed by the Supreme Court. Malik has earned his place at the top. He is best known as the brave lawyer who led the 2007 struggle to restore the judiciary ‘dismissed’ by Pervez Musharraf. Malik faced arrest for his action, complained of severe mistreatment while in detention and also suffered a variety of health complications. Despite these, he stood steadfast in his mission, acting also as the chief lawyer for the deposed Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry after his illegal removal from the office of chief justice of Pakistan. Malik has also served as the president of the Supreme Court Bar Association.
He has stated that his main endeavour as AG will be to uphold rule of law – emphasising that any argument or dispute between the executive and the judiciary can best be settled by resorting to the constitution. These are wise and true words. Judging by his record and commitment, Malik should make a good AG – bringing to this job the dignity and respect it deserves. We wish him well for the future and congratulate those behind his appointment. Legal matters in the country might now move in the right direction without any more of the chaos we have witnessed too often in the past. This would be a huge service to the nation – and Malik has the capacity to deliver it.

__________________
Janoon say or Ishq say milti hay AAZADI

Fund facts

The moves we are seeing being made – away from secrecy to greater openness in the running of state – are welcome. It appears they also come in reaction to the many scams that tainted the PPP’s tenure in power, leaving people demanding greater transparency. Indeed the blatant misuse of public money as well as other scams were a factor in the electoral defeat of the former ruling party. The newly formed governments, both in the centre and in other places, appears determined to change things around. In Islamabad, the finance team headed by Ishaq Dar has announced that it will be doing away with the multi-billion rupee discretionary development fund available to the prime minister for the upcoming 2013-14 budget. This fund had swollen to a whopping Rs42 billion under ex-PM Raja Pervaiz Ashraf. Much of the amount, we are told, was used in his own constituency – not that this did him much good as far as electoral success goes. Under the new plan of action, while development schemes run by parliamentarians will continue, the money allocated to the PM as discretionary funds will be used elsewhere. This is no doubt good news, given the dearth of resources available to us.
In Balochistan too, Chief Minister Dr Abdul Malik Baloch has, on taking oath, immediately spoken of ridding the province of the corruption which has plagued it in the past. As part of an effort to set up a cleaner, more open government, he has said that ‘secret’ funds will be abolished. This is a crucial step in a province where there has been so much misrule and so much has been kept hidden from the public eye. The efforts of Dr Malik to change things around will undoubtedly play a role in building trust in his government. Certainly, the whole matter of funds maintained in secret needed to be dealt with. We have already heard that many ministries keep such funds. Some, like the information ministry, have refused to account for them even before the Supreme Court. This is a matter that needs to be taken up aggressively. That the first steps towards this have already been taken gives us cause for hope. The process should continue step by step so that we can have a truly transparent government – as should be the case in any democracy.

A ‘civil’ strife

In recent years Anita Turab, a career civil servant, has fought to protect civil servants from the wiles and predations of politicians of all parties and the government of the day in particular. She has struggled for the depoliticisation of the bureaucracy. The Supreme Court gave a landmark ruling in 2012 in her favour, directing that the government cease and desist forthwith the practice of inserting political placemen in the bureaucracy. Turab has been the target of assorted vested interests ever since. Suspended for five months, originally by the Raja Pervaiz Ashraf government, her suspension was extended by the provisional government and she has now been told that she is issued with a show-cause notice for dismissal from the civil service – this being entirely contrary to the findings of the investigating body of her case which found that... ‘she does not attract harsh treatment for her unreasonable act of doing more than what is required’. In other words: a rap on the knuckles for being out of line, but nothing more than that. Dismissal not the recommended option.
The ‘crime’ that Turab has been found guilty of is that she acted in a private capacity as a concerned citizen and wrote to the chief election commissioner protesting at political appointments in government departments in the waning days of the PPP regime – appointments made with the clear intention of somewhat influencing the elections. In writing privately she did not use her official title nor sought to exploit her position – she made the separation between her post and the people’s right to know. But she aroused the ire of any number of powerful people who would have her silenced. That the SC subsequently ruled in her favour rubbed salt in the wounded egos of those whose bubbles she had pricked, and now they seek their revenge – and preferably her head on a plate. Anita Turab is a woman of whom this country should be proud. We rightly called her a one-woman squad. She stood against corruption and bad practice. She deserves the support of all those who seek to make this country a better place, while those who seek to consign her to oblivion deserve little more than our collective contempt and resistance.

PTI problems

The chief minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa continues to work alone. It has not been possible to swear in a new cabinet in the province, allegedly due to serious differences – mainly within the PTI itself. However, differences with the coalition partners in the province seem also to have emerged to complicate matters even further and make it harder to let things fall in place. One problem arises from the fact that the Jamaat-e-Islami seeks the education ministry which it had apparently been promised before the PTI backtracked from this after fierce criticism by its supporters and others in the mainstream and alternative media. Following this, the JI is demanding that it, at the very least, be given the health ministry. But this too is a key post that the PTI wishes to retain for itself.
More serious problems may be emerging within the PTI over the allocation of ministries. Allegations that Chief Minister Pervaiz Khattak is attempting to bring in his own cronies have not helped matters at all. The problems are perhaps due to the party’s lack of experience, but the situation in KP will not do very much to build faith in the PTI’s ability to offer good governance to the people. It must put its house in order first, and quickly. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa poses some of the most serious internal problems facing this country and it urgently needs a government in place to sort out its affairs. There should be no further delay in this.

__________________
Janoon say or Ishq say milti hay AAZADI

Daring facts

In his first head on media briefing to launch the Economic Survey 2012-13, Finance Minister Ishaq Dar has given some basic data of the economy and the ruins it is in after the five-year disaster that was called the PPP government. His data is mostly what had been continuously reported by the media and experts but never admitted by the PPP. The figures are mindboggling and need detailed comments which will come later. But, in short, what the finance minister has revealed is the very grim picture of the economy in a shambles. Some round figures he gave are eye-opening. Growth rate was 3.6 percent and not 4 percent. The budget deficit is not 4.7 percent but over 8 percent. Debts have increased from Rs3.2 trillion to almost Rs14 trillion. Savings and investments shrank during the last five years to 14.2 percent as against 19.2 percent in 2007-08. Current account deficit is $2.9 billion. Circular debt is over Rs500 billion. Inflation is 8 percent. Subsidies given were Rs1400 billion. Tax to GDP ratio is 8.9 percent. The country’s Foreign exchange reserves are down to $6.2 billion. There was no financial discipline at all. Supplementary budgets took almost 25 percent over the actuals. These were some of the ballpark facts the finance minister gave. What he conveyed, in essence, was a failed economy in all sectors.
He, then, made some promises: the government would control budget and current account deficits which Dar said was the key to a disciplined economy. No ruthless profiteering will be allowed to the private sector. Circular debt will be controlled in 60 to 75 days. Growth target will be 4.7 per cent in new fiscal year. The public-sector white elephants will be auctioned. Competent and honest corporate heads for PIA, the railways, the Pakistan Steel and other such organisations will be chosen transparently and strictly on merit – with Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif personally overlooking all this exercise. We must hope that the coming months and years see this vision materialised and not sacrificed at the altar of political opportunism. Dar has made a bold beginning and appears to be undaunted by the huge challenge he faces. His energy and confidence are encouraging. If he performs what he has promised and does not get swayed by special interests in the weeks and months to come, some quick improvements can be expected. But it is just the beginning for the new government and Mian Nawaz Sharif. And it is laudable that this beginning has been made by looking reality in the eye. The task now is to change it.

Words and ways

So accustomed are we to seeing democracy interrupted in our country that witnessing what should be the norm leaves us somewhat overwhelmed. Over the past weeks there have been a number of events that have led to such a reaction – the smooth transition from one elected government to another being the most central of these events. The process continued Monday as Asif Ali Zardari became the first president of the country to address parliament for the sixth time, promising as he did so to work with the newly elected house, pointing out key constitutional changes made by the PPP government and asserting the need to stick to the constitutional path so that dictatorship could be avoided at all cost. In a 20-minute address, the president also stated that the new government needed to do all it could to stop drone attacks and devise a policy for this.
The drone issue, which is beginning to loom larger in the national discourse was also taken up by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif at the first meeting of the newly formed federal cabinet. Sharif said policy on this matter was being devised. For the main part, though, the PM stressed on the need for economic revival in Pakistan – referring also to institutions that are making losses. Sharif said these would need either to be reformed or sold off, keeping in mind national interests. What some may find encouraging is that in their respective addresses, both the president and the PM spoke of the need to better the country’s future. In this context, President Zardari also mentioned the need to protect minorities and women and do away with unjust laws. Certainly, these are issues the new parliament will need to take up. But the fact that the PML-N leadership and the presidency have expressed a readiness to work together suggests we may finally have acquired the level of responsibility and maturity required to run a democracy. It has been a long journey – and lessons have been learnt the hard way. In the process, the nation has suffered a lot. It is time now to make sure this spirit of cooperation continues so that genuine gains can be made – and people can benefit from a constitutional government willing to serve and find a way to put the country on the path to progress. If this is to be made a reality, all stakeholders in the system must cooperate over the coming months.

Can Karachi hope?

Elections 2013 led to sweeping change in many parts of the country. But in Karachi, it would appear nothing much has changed after all. The city has continued to see violence almost on a daily basis since the elections took place – with people killed in gang-related, political, ethnic, and sectarian fighting. There have been other acts of sporadic violence, including targeted killings – which have almost become the hallmark of this chaotic city.
Should one even hope for any kind of change then? The re-election of a PPP government in Sindh, as well as of Qaim Ali Shah as the chief minister of the province once more means that many people are despondent. Many tall promises had been made to the people of Sindh the last time around, with Qaim as CM then too – and none of the promises were fulfilled. This time around, things are not much different; some might even say they may be a lot worse, with the MQM not there to offer even symbolic help. All the same, those old pledges are being heard once again. Information Minister Sharjeel Memon has said that the new government will ‘leave no stone unturned’ to bring peace to Karachi. Happy thought, indeed, but the fact is that such clichés will do us no good at all. We need a definite strategy and a whole lot of will – and we seem to be short of both at the moment. In the absence of a clear plan, there is a real fear that Karachi will collapse in the same kind of bloodbath we have seen before. While it is the provincial government’s task to restore order to the city, it is hoped the centre tries to help bring about some semblance of order in this city of such commercial significance. But how much change will come is still to be seen. It certainly does not appear to be in sight right now, with things apparently no different than they were before.

__________________
Janoon say or Ishq say milti hay AAZADI

13.06.2013

Budget 2013-14

Finance Minister Ishaq Dar hit all the right chords – at least on paper – as he presented the first federal budget of the newly-elected PML-N government exactly seven days after it took charge of the country’s battered economy. To begin with, the mood and tone of the budget speech should give hope and confidence to Pakistanis – from the man on the street to corporate gurus, investors and businesspeople – that the new government means business. Dar managed to give a strong signal that, ‘right or wrong’, the new government at least has an economic vision, a plan and a team that enjoys the confidence of the ruling party. This stands in stark contrast to the previous PPP-led government, which operated on borrowed economic experts who, despite saying all the right things, always failed to sell their economic agendas to the political bosses. As Dar pointed out, the economy had been on auto-pilot. Given the past five years of misrule and economic paralysis, the cohesion in the ranks of the new ruling party on the economic programme should be a source of relief. Moreover, coming up with the budget for fiscal year 2013-14 (July-June), reflecting the ruling party’s economic vision just one week into power, is in itself no mean achievement. This shows that the PML-N’s economic team had done its homework well in advance and managed to weave it into the budget plans for 2013-14, for which the exercise was started by the caretaker government. This again should be taken as a positive signal – for when it comes to the economy, often the sentiments and perceptions of the investors work as the key driving forces that help policy-makers achieve their targets. Coming to the nitty-gritty of the proposed budget – having an outlay of 3.591 trillion rupees – one can easily say that it appears realistic in its targets and remains devoid of any big pleasant, or unpleasant, surprises. The proposed budget appears to be aimed at stabilising the economy along with triggering growth with a series of steps that include, on the one hand, some massive cuts and austerity steps in the government expenditure, and on the other, a nearly 50 percent increase in the development budget to Rs540 billion rupees from Rs360 billion.

This is an attempted high-wire act by the PML-N economic team, and is also the need of the hour, for no country that has remained caught in the vortex of low growth and double-digit inflation for five years can hope to revive economic activity and push its GDP up without the public sector taking the lead through a series of big infrastructure projects. In that sense the PML-N appears to be on the right track; constructing new motorways, reviving the Pakistan Railways, building houses for the poor, completing unfinished water and power projects including new dams – these initiatives are all part of the PML-N’s plans. If implemented, as announced by the finance minister, they will not just create new jobs but play a major role in triggering growth. As expected, the energy sector, hard-pressed by the more than Rs500 billion circular debt, attracted much-needed attention of the new policymakers, who proposed to allocate Rs225 billion in the budget to fix its structural flaws and boost power generation. The budget proposed to fix the fiscal deficit – known as the mother of all troubles for an economy – at an achievable 6.3 percent of the GDP from the highs of an estimated 8.8 percent in the current fiscal year. The government aims to slash it to 4.0 percent as part of its mid-term plans. If the government manages to achieve this target it will indeed be a commendable job for which multilateral donors including the International Monetary Fund had been pressing Pakistan all through the PPP-led government’s rule. In a welcome step – in symbolic terms – of austerity, the proposed budget aims to slash the expenditures of the Prime Minister’s Office and the PM House by 45 and 44 percent respectively.

The scrapping of the discretionary funds for all ministries, including the prime minister, are also among those proposals that should be hailed. On the revenue collection side, the budget proposes to collect 21 percent more revenues to Rs3,420 billion in fiscal year 2013-14 compared to the revised figures of Rs2,837 billion for the current financial year. The government hopes to achieve this unprecedented target by taking steps that range from reforming and simplifying the tax-collection system to fighting corruption, tweaking various tax slabs and raising the general sales tax from 16 to 17 percent. Some of these plans are likely to have inflationary impact. It can be said that the budget speech did not come up with any radical steps, but despite the economic constraints and limited options, the policymakers have managed to come up with a plan that aims to set a corrective direction. In terms of setting priorities, the policymakers appear to be on track since fixing the energy sector, boosting industrial output, reforming loss-making public sector entities and attracting investment – all appear high on their list. At the start of its innings, we must wish the best of luck to the new government and its economic team and hope that they manage to translate their intentions into reality. The task of fixing the economy and putting it back on track is indeed a gigantic one and can only be achieved by setting the right policies and walking the talk. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s government can make history if it does that. Let’s hope that when Dar presents the budget for 2014-2015, he manages to highlight achievements, and not wasted opportunities and missed targets, which he did this year when talking about the performance of the last government.

__________________
"Nay! man is evidence against himself. Though he puts forth his excuses." Holy Qur'an (75:14-15)

14.06.2013

Not a simple matter

At ‘The News Education Conference 2013’ organised by the Jang Group in Islamabad, we heard some significant views on education voiced by various experts who attended the event. Among these were suggestions made by the Minister for Planning and Development Ahsan Iqbal, who supported the idea of a national curriculum taught uniformly across the country, and suggested that the 18th Amendment might need to be revisited for this. Under the bill, passed by the previous government, education is among the long list of subjects devolved to the provinces. The minister’s proposal is not new and has been suggested before as well. What it needs though is to be taken seriously enough for research and debate before any decision is made – especially given the fact that repeated changes in education policies have frequently done more harm than good.

Iqbal also stressed that the PML-N’s focus on education had helped it win the 2013 election. Certainly education is one of the issues many across the country are most concerned about – an uncertain future will be the fate of their children in the absence of a well-planned education system in the country. Budget 2013-14 has focused on higher education, allocating Rs18 billion to the Higher Education Commission – whose combined outlay is now Rs57 billion. Two thousand scholarships are to be offered for higher education and the laptop scheme for students has been extended to the entire country. Anything that shows commitment and may lead to improvement is welcome because that is what we need most of all . But education is not a simple matter – curriculum reform, career-development, and knowledge production are all areas that need to be kept in mind when formulating a comprehensive education policy. And it is important to remember that this also ties in with the issue of employment and the creation of jobs. What seems to have been forgotten in the middle of setting up universities and charging exorbitant fee for high school education is that knowledge and critical reasoning should be an integral part of the education system. This rather obvious fact is unfortunately most neglected in our rote-based system of learning. This, and much else, needs to change and for that we need reform and sound planning.

Achakzai in office

Balochistan’s ruling setup is now fully in place, with the highly respected Muhammad Khan Achakzai appointed governor by President Asif Ali Zardari on the advice of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. The appointment follows the formula agreed on in Murree between the PML-N, the Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party and the National Party, under which the chief minister was to be from the NP and the governor from the PkMAP. Both Dr Abdul Malik Baloch and Achakzai have already been sworn in as CM and governor respectively. The new governor – a former bureaucrat and economist – who has studied in Quetta and Glasgow is known as a man of integrity and commitment. He belongs to one of the most illustrious political families of Balochistan. His father, the late Khan Abdul Samad Khan Achakzai, is a political icon in the province while his brother is Mahmood Khan Achakzai, a veteran politician who heads the PkMAP.

The change in the province – from a corrupt administration to one that is widely respected – offers us some hope. Achakzai’s standing may help overcome accusations of nepotism in his nomination by his brother. He should make every effort to serve his home province well because, more than anything else, Balochistan needs leaders and representatives in the mainstream who are committed to its people and determined to stand by them through the many hardships they face. We expect that, even in a mainly ceremonial role, Achakzai will endeavour to support the CM in serving a province on whose future there is much uncertainty. The issues there – complex and deep-rooted – have been made worse by inept handling and misgovernance. We must hope that the people now coming in to office can help bring calm to this deeply troubled part of our country. Failure will only lead to further chaos.

A wet June

Rain, dust storms and high winds have arrived and are blowing across much of the country. As part of the weather havoc, at least six people died and over 60 were injured in Lahore and there are reports of multiple pile-ups caused by irresponsible driving in poor conditions on the roads that lead to Murree and Bhurban. The rain finally reached Karachi late Wednesday and Thursday morning, but it was relatively light and there are not yet any reports of deaths or injuries. Although such weather in June – which is normally regarded as a dry hot month – is not unprecedented, it is to say the least unusual.

Pre-monsoon activity started very early this year with first reports coming from the south-eastern parts of Sindh on June 4. Much of Punjab has now felt the lash of inclement weather, and even dusty Bahawalpur reported a deluge. Huge hailstones have battered Peshawar in the last two weeks as well – all in all a very atypical set of weather patterns. As usual, local authorities and city administrations have been caught napping. Going by past experience, we can easily expect houses to collapse on their occupants and poorly maintained drainage systems to overflow. Further destruction can be caused by badly secured billboards falling on passing pedestrians, trees toppling and there is a very real fear of electrocution as well. Nullahs have not been cleared, drains are clogged with refuse and there will be the annual replay of the ritual chaos in Karachi once the rains begin in earnest there. There is an almost wilful lack of preparedness across the land and hands will be thrown up in horror and mystification that it has, once again, rained in the monsoon season. The deluge will arrive, lives will be lost in addition to those already buried in the last 24 hours and there will be promises not to allow this to happen next year. It will, of course, because truly some things never change.

__________________
"Nay! man is evidence against himself. Though he puts forth his excuses." Holy Qur'an (75:14-15)

15.06.2013

Cap in hand

A large number of economists remain unimpressed by what is being dubbed as an ‘accountant’s budget’ presented by Finance Minister Ishaq Dar on Wednesday. They say it fails to address the structural reforms that are necessary if Pakistan is to have an equitably and fairly-taxed population. Unpicked, the budget is long on the talk but gives little to indicate that walking and talking will be matched. The ‘austerity’ measures, of which much has been made, are a political move rather than a fiscal one and the savings to be made in real terms are paltry in the context of the budget overall. The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has now been authorised to gain online access to information about bank accounts in an attempt to net up to half a million tax dodgers. Written-off loans will be tracked, ‘suspicious’ transactions examined in an attempt to prevent money laundering and credit card activity is also to be monitored. Quite apart from the matter of whether or not this is an invasion of individual privacy there is the question of how much revenue will be generated for the national treasury, the answer being speculative at best. The half a million people thought not to be filing tax returns will not be identified until December, which kicks the subject into the long grass for the time being.

Then there is the tricky subject of the IMF. With Forex reserves dwindling by the day, the bowl is being dusted off – despite the reality that any new loan will be taken with the intention of paying off the loan Pakistan defaulted on the last time it went cap-in-hand. Prior to the elections, the Sharif brothers were strident in their condemnation of international lending agencies and decrying Pakistan’s dependency. Scroll forward to June 10, 2013 and a meeting of donor agencies and bodies at Punjab House in Islamabad – and a different spin. The donors were asked for support and cooperation, and no doubt the representatives of the World Bank and the British Department for International Development (DfID) wondered where they had heard that song before. Unpacked, the 2013 budget tells us that there remains a fundamental resistance to taxing the rich and in that respect it is no different to virtually every other budget since the state came into existence. There is going to be no sequestration of tax-evaders’ assets, there is going to be no substantive broadening of the tax base – although the burden of taxation once again falls disproportionately on the poor – and presumptive and minimum tax regimes are going to prevail. Just as turkeys do not vote for Christmas neither do the very rich vote to tax their own selves. There is cursory – even derisory – compliance with tax legislation and the political will for reform is no more evident now than it was two months ago. For Pakistan it may, rather worryingly, begin to look like ‘business as usual.’

‘New’ moves

Ups and downs will keep coming our way as they always do, but right now is when the formation of new governments, new alliances and also new opposition setups may offer a sense of optimism about the future. As the wheels continue to turn after the polls in May, a 14-member cabinet has taken oath in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Of these members, senior ministers Sikander Hayat Sherpao, the provincial head of the Qaumi Watan Party, has been allotted the ministry of irrigation, power and energy, while Sirajul Haq, the deputy leader of the Jamaat-e-Islami, will take over finance. There has been criticism that the 14-member cabinet includes no women, but this may be rectified as new advisers are inducted. At any rate, far more significant than anything else will be the performance of the ministers as they begin their governance of the restive province. The way they go about it will be closely watched.

Elsewhere too the business of running the system continues. In the centre, the opposition parties – the PTI, the PPP and the MQM are reportedly engaged in talks on forming a joint opposition in parliament. This can be seen as a positive step towards a healthy democracy indicating that after a long struggle spanning some six decades, our political leaders seem determined to make democracy work this time. But whether it will really turn out to be so is the question. We wish these parties success only if they are not acting out of political opportunism; the noise emanating from the MQM-PTI conflict in Karachi has not exactly died down. The MQM still seems to be in an aggressive mood in the city, coming out strongly against the Amn Committee and accusing the PPP of harbouring and protecting murderers and extortionists. Ironically, the MQM stands accused of the same by the PTI which seems to have no love lost for the PPP either. Adding more to this interesting tale is former interior minister Rehman Malik who has, reportedly on the instructions of President Asif Ali Zardari, invited the MQM to join the PPP government in Sindh. He has also insisted that the party has nothing to do with the controversial People’s Amn Committee. It goes without saying that Malik’s credibility is rather low. The turbulent relationship between the PPP and the MQM has long been the subject of reflection and speculation, and it has yet to be seen what the final shape of things will turn out to be.

__________________
"Nay! man is evidence against himself. Though he puts forth his excuses." Holy Qur'an (75:14-15)