11-01-2008, 04:18 AM
<b>Are we underlings?</b>
By INAYATULAH submitted 6 hours 55 minutes ago
The fault, dear Brutus lies not in our stars but in ourselves that we are underlings. -Julius Ceaser - Shakespeare
Are we undergoing a process to become underlings? We are desperately running around all over the world carrying a big begging bowl in our grubby hands. Suddenly we have invented a group named The Friends of Pakistan. A notice has been issued to them to respond generously to our call. We are in the grip of a bizarre situation. Shaukat Aziz gave us a beautiful bubble. The bubble has burst. Shaukat Tarin another banker has been hired to rescue us from a dreadful disaster. Shaukat had boasted of breaking the begging bowl. His namesake successor is struggling to clear the mess. Never again shall we go to IMF, said the imported prime minister. IMF alone can rescue us from the jaws of default, says the new trouble-shooter. Night after night, we hear earth-shaking statements on the TV talk shows about the poor state of our economy. Tongues wag and sparks fly. No authoritative explanation has however come from the government about the worsening situation. What indeed was the new administration doing during the last 7 months? How serious and concerned was the prime minister and the Cabinet about the looming catastrophe? How come for most of the time, there was no full time finance minister? Sabotaging the world-acclaimed Lawyers Movement, reneging on solemn pledges, visits to Dubai and London and naming airports and educational institutions after the assassinated leader was much more important.
The gnawing worry today is, how to get dollars to overcome the deficits. To have enough to pay back the debt obligations and fund the unrealistic imports. There is no clear-cut overall policy. No vision. No holistic solution. Adhoc remedies are all that we are after. There is a school of thought which considers that all our internal troubles are because of "Mutrifeen" - a Quranic term denoting the elitists classes, the prosperous and the extravagant who lead a life of pleasure and plenty and who are not bothered about moral constraints. Our rulers in Islamabad fit this description. They dress like the tycoons, live in palatial houses, flaunt fleets of expensive cars and carry large entourages while travelling abroad. They indulge in high falutin rhetoric and make promises which they have no intentions to fulfil. They have stacked abroad tens of millions of foreign currency and high-priced property. Why don't they bring their dollars, pounds and euros back to Pakistan to help tide over the present financial crisis, asks Imran Khan. When questioned about this suggestion the other day, Mr Zardari smiled and moved on to another subject. Why don't our multimillionaires set an example by bringing their money home and encourage overseas affluent Pakistanis to tread the same path? Surely such a gesture would save the country from walking into the clutches of the International Monetary Fund?
A truly national leadership, worth its salt, particularly those in power have to show the way. Why is there no austerity drive to cut down consumption and achieve savings? In UK if one recalls correctly even eight years after the end of the second world war the citizens had to queue up to buy sweets and eggs. We are facing, as Zardari says, a war-like situation. We are severely short of funds, electricity and food. Not only is there no voluntary reduction in the use of these commodities, no serious effort has been made to cut out extravagance. We may rightly blame the dictator's regime for failing to add to electricity supply slowing down the wheels of industry and disrupting life in homes, offices, hospitals and schools. But can the present government be forgiven for its reprehensible acts of omission. Now, for instance taking up the issue of the flow of the Chenab waters earlier this year, when it was known that India would be resorting to storing it at the Baghliar Dam. Only after the water was stopped, did the government wake up and send a functionary to talk to his counterpart in India.
India has refused even to provide compensation for the default. All that Mr Zardari intends doing is to write a letter to Mr Manmohan Singh reminding him of an assurance orally given to him. One can well imagine how New Delhi will treat Pakistani protests on this account. (I recall prime minister Suhrawardy's warning to India in the late 50s that a stoppage of flow of waters would be taken as "an act of aggression." This warning was later put to an effective use by Suhrawardy's successor Mr Feroz Khan Noon). Should one expect much from the present government, in this behalf when President Zardari can go out of the way to please India by calling the peaceful protests of the brave Kashmiris as an act of terrorism. This indeed was sweet music for Indian ears. No wonder that there was a demonstration of widespread resentment by Kashmiris against these gratuitous remarks.
The exchange of a few truckloads of fruit and other goods between the two parts of Kashmir has been hailed as a great confidence-building measure. There is however no condemnation of the blatant violation of human rights in the valley where half a million Indian troops have let loose merciless state terrorism. Nor is there any indication of a serious effort to resolve the core issue of the Kashmir dispute, itself. Off and on reports hit our newspapers about active Indian (RAW's) involvement in acts of sabotage and terrorism in Balochistan and the North-West. Little action is taken to hold New Delhi responsible for such acts (while India immediately points a finger at Pakistan whenever there is a bomb blast anywhere in Bharat). More than even the economic crisis which we can manage if we have the will and the wisdom to use our resources and contacts sagaciously, it is the looming American intrusion into our country that needs to be addressed with courage and circumspection. Merely to say that we condemn such an act and tell the ambassador not to repeat it will not yield the desired results. It is a time a delegation of top senators visit Washington and meet Congressmen and senior State and Pentagon officials to convey the thinking and feelings of the government and people of Pakistan. The foreign minister too should impress upon his counterpart in USA to heed our reaction.
In my last column I proposed that the PPP should be pressed to implement the parliamentary resolution without delay. More than a week has elapsed and even the committee to ensure the expeditious implementation of the resolution has not been appointed. PML-N and specifically its leader Nawaz Sharif knows well from his experience of dealing with Zardari that PPP would only act if pressed hard. To expect a NRO-oriented government to take up the matter effectively with the US administration, to say the least, is quite unrealistic. Nawaz Sharif would be well-advised to take the lead and call an immediate meeting of the heads of all the major political parties and vigorously pursue the decisions contained in the Resolution. November 3 when the lawyers will be taking out rallies against the unconstitutional acts of an unrepentant military commander would be a good day to hold such a meeting. Too much is at stake for the matter to be treated in a routine manner. Let me end this column by referring to two pieces of good news, namely the resounding victory of Ali Ahmad Kurd despite government's massive support for the rival candidate and General Kayani's most welcome decision to defer the building of the new GHQ in Islamabad.
The writer is ex-federal secretary and ambassador.
E-mail: pacade@brain.net.pk
By INAYATULAH submitted 6 hours 55 minutes ago
The fault, dear Brutus lies not in our stars but in ourselves that we are underlings. -Julius Ceaser - Shakespeare
Are we undergoing a process to become underlings? We are desperately running around all over the world carrying a big begging bowl in our grubby hands. Suddenly we have invented a group named The Friends of Pakistan. A notice has been issued to them to respond generously to our call. We are in the grip of a bizarre situation. Shaukat Aziz gave us a beautiful bubble. The bubble has burst. Shaukat Tarin another banker has been hired to rescue us from a dreadful disaster. Shaukat had boasted of breaking the begging bowl. His namesake successor is struggling to clear the mess. Never again shall we go to IMF, said the imported prime minister. IMF alone can rescue us from the jaws of default, says the new trouble-shooter. Night after night, we hear earth-shaking statements on the TV talk shows about the poor state of our economy. Tongues wag and sparks fly. No authoritative explanation has however come from the government about the worsening situation. What indeed was the new administration doing during the last 7 months? How serious and concerned was the prime minister and the Cabinet about the looming catastrophe? How come for most of the time, there was no full time finance minister? Sabotaging the world-acclaimed Lawyers Movement, reneging on solemn pledges, visits to Dubai and London and naming airports and educational institutions after the assassinated leader was much more important.
The gnawing worry today is, how to get dollars to overcome the deficits. To have enough to pay back the debt obligations and fund the unrealistic imports. There is no clear-cut overall policy. No vision. No holistic solution. Adhoc remedies are all that we are after. There is a school of thought which considers that all our internal troubles are because of "Mutrifeen" - a Quranic term denoting the elitists classes, the prosperous and the extravagant who lead a life of pleasure and plenty and who are not bothered about moral constraints. Our rulers in Islamabad fit this description. They dress like the tycoons, live in palatial houses, flaunt fleets of expensive cars and carry large entourages while travelling abroad. They indulge in high falutin rhetoric and make promises which they have no intentions to fulfil. They have stacked abroad tens of millions of foreign currency and high-priced property. Why don't they bring their dollars, pounds and euros back to Pakistan to help tide over the present financial crisis, asks Imran Khan. When questioned about this suggestion the other day, Mr Zardari smiled and moved on to another subject. Why don't our multimillionaires set an example by bringing their money home and encourage overseas affluent Pakistanis to tread the same path? Surely such a gesture would save the country from walking into the clutches of the International Monetary Fund?
A truly national leadership, worth its salt, particularly those in power have to show the way. Why is there no austerity drive to cut down consumption and achieve savings? In UK if one recalls correctly even eight years after the end of the second world war the citizens had to queue up to buy sweets and eggs. We are facing, as Zardari says, a war-like situation. We are severely short of funds, electricity and food. Not only is there no voluntary reduction in the use of these commodities, no serious effort has been made to cut out extravagance. We may rightly blame the dictator's regime for failing to add to electricity supply slowing down the wheels of industry and disrupting life in homes, offices, hospitals and schools. But can the present government be forgiven for its reprehensible acts of omission. Now, for instance taking up the issue of the flow of the Chenab waters earlier this year, when it was known that India would be resorting to storing it at the Baghliar Dam. Only after the water was stopped, did the government wake up and send a functionary to talk to his counterpart in India.
India has refused even to provide compensation for the default. All that Mr Zardari intends doing is to write a letter to Mr Manmohan Singh reminding him of an assurance orally given to him. One can well imagine how New Delhi will treat Pakistani protests on this account. (I recall prime minister Suhrawardy's warning to India in the late 50s that a stoppage of flow of waters would be taken as "an act of aggression." This warning was later put to an effective use by Suhrawardy's successor Mr Feroz Khan Noon). Should one expect much from the present government, in this behalf when President Zardari can go out of the way to please India by calling the peaceful protests of the brave Kashmiris as an act of terrorism. This indeed was sweet music for Indian ears. No wonder that there was a demonstration of widespread resentment by Kashmiris against these gratuitous remarks.
The exchange of a few truckloads of fruit and other goods between the two parts of Kashmir has been hailed as a great confidence-building measure. There is however no condemnation of the blatant violation of human rights in the valley where half a million Indian troops have let loose merciless state terrorism. Nor is there any indication of a serious effort to resolve the core issue of the Kashmir dispute, itself. Off and on reports hit our newspapers about active Indian (RAW's) involvement in acts of sabotage and terrorism in Balochistan and the North-West. Little action is taken to hold New Delhi responsible for such acts (while India immediately points a finger at Pakistan whenever there is a bomb blast anywhere in Bharat). More than even the economic crisis which we can manage if we have the will and the wisdom to use our resources and contacts sagaciously, it is the looming American intrusion into our country that needs to be addressed with courage and circumspection. Merely to say that we condemn such an act and tell the ambassador not to repeat it will not yield the desired results. It is a time a delegation of top senators visit Washington and meet Congressmen and senior State and Pentagon officials to convey the thinking and feelings of the government and people of Pakistan. The foreign minister too should impress upon his counterpart in USA to heed our reaction.
In my last column I proposed that the PPP should be pressed to implement the parliamentary resolution without delay. More than a week has elapsed and even the committee to ensure the expeditious implementation of the resolution has not been appointed. PML-N and specifically its leader Nawaz Sharif knows well from his experience of dealing with Zardari that PPP would only act if pressed hard. To expect a NRO-oriented government to take up the matter effectively with the US administration, to say the least, is quite unrealistic. Nawaz Sharif would be well-advised to take the lead and call an immediate meeting of the heads of all the major political parties and vigorously pursue the decisions contained in the Resolution. November 3 when the lawyers will be taking out rallies against the unconstitutional acts of an unrepentant military commander would be a good day to hold such a meeting. Too much is at stake for the matter to be treated in a routine manner. Let me end this column by referring to two pieces of good news, namely the resounding victory of Ali Ahmad Kurd despite government's massive support for the rival candidate and General Kayani's most welcome decision to defer the building of the new GHQ in Islamabad.
The writer is ex-federal secretary and ambassador.
E-mail: pacade@brain.net.pk