| May 02, 2007 | Wednesday | Rabi-us-Sani 14, 1428 |
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Expressway to concrete paradise
Where is the MMA now?
Powerless
Putting Pakistan first
Of hats and shawls and dubious deals
Causes of chaos
KCR
A plea to Sonia Gandhi
A unity government
Readers are requested to restrict their comments to a maximum of 400 words. We reserve the right to edit letters for reasons of clarity and space. Letters, including those by e-mail, should carry the complete postal address of the sender. The views expressed in these columns do not necessarily reflect the views of the newspaper.—Editor
PAKISTAN unfortunately has multiple backlog of crises and acute problems regarding power, water, silting, salinity, drainage, 60 per cent surface water wastage, food, rivers and canals’ pollution and polluted drinking water, besides the great incoming environmental calamity due to pollution, global warming and glacial melting.
The crises are accumulated due to administrative mismanagement resulting in poor governance of each government. Moreover, large-scale corruption since 1960 has destroyed conscience, efficiency, ability and the spirit to develop the nation. The cross-border interference by the vote- and power-seeking politicians are hindering merits, justice and development. The attitude of bureaucracy is that no one feels responsible for the economic development of the country and the prosperity of the people.
All are interested in self and not in the state. Law and order problems render development difficult. Recently, the minister for water and power has complained that his order is not obeyed by the Wapda chairman. This type of attitude is common in bureaucracy. Such conflicts have created crises as above that lead to the point of no return.
Due to regressive attitude no intelligent suggestion for economic development is passed on to the president for action. The valuable suggestions submitted are disposed of by the section officer, who functions as post office and passes on the papers to the relevant department at fault for disposal on behalf of the president. The suggestions go unattended and the papers go to the dustbin. It is for sure the multiple crises would bring doomsday by the year 2030. The president, the prime minister, the cabinet, the bureaucracy and parliament are urged to take notice of these crises to avoid doomsday.
The problems of water, power, silting and food can be solved by the construction of Katzarah dam. Katzarah has storage capacity up to 35maf, power generation up to 15,000MW and irrigation facilities for crops and forestation to cover millions of acres. Katzarah will help to control superflood and save 35maf of floodwater that goes to waste into the sea. Katzarah would function as watershed management dam to prevent silt by stopping rapid soil erosion in the highly erodible soil of the Skardu valley. This would prolong the life of the Basha dam from 80 years to more than 1,000 years. Katzarah has a lifespan of more than 1,000 years.
The replacement of the 150-year-old obsolete supply-based canal irrigation system by the lined demand-based canal irrigation system would save 60 per cent of the surface water that goes to waste.
The provision of surface and sub-surface tile drainage would reclaim 60 per cent of the saline, saline-sodic and waterlogged lands in the Indus basin, besides increasing crop yield. Subsurface tile drainage would maintain salt and water balance and control water table.
There is dire need to stop pumping of 45maf of the highly injurious saline drainage effluent accumulated as groundwater and used for irrigation of land in Punjab. This illegal practice is invisibly destroying land and by the year 2030 the Indus basin would become saline waste if the practice continues.
The pollution of rivers and canals by toxic waste has contaminated surface and subsurface fresh water. It produces toxicity in crops, vegetables, fruits and milk, besides polluting drinking water that causes diseases.
The environmental pollution and global warming is the greatest calamity. It would reduce surface flow of rivers by 45 per cent due to glacial melting. All these crises need the implementation of integrated comprehensive water management.
The politically-wangled Wapda's programme of ‘vision-2016 dams’ is farce except the Basha dam as the Kalabagh and Akhori dams are not feasible and the Kurram Tangi and Munda dams are local dams with negligible storage capacity of about 0.6 maf each.
ENGR FATEH ULLAH KHAN
Former chairman, IRSA,
Peshawar
IT is not in fashion to write in favour of the government and expect it to be published too, but I will still endeavor to comment on the article by Zofeen T. Ebrahim (April 27). I am not sure where the writer lives, but I invite her to seek the views of people like me who regularly use many of the overheads, underpasses, bypasses, lifelong roads, etc, that have been recently completed.
Only the perennial pessimists will say they are unable to save precious minutes while driving on the new roads. The writer mentions that the urban planner and architect Arif Hasan has argued that Karachi should be a city for people and not cars. As if cars are not driven by people. The writer quotes Mr Bilgaumi as saying that those using Sharea Faisal under the KEE "will not be able to see the sky or some of the finer buildings of Karachi and instead they will have continuous view of dark, dreary, lit round the clock by sodium lights, KEE's concrete underside, denying the residents and office workers access to the sun, uninterrupted views and fresh air".
One wonders about the motives of people like Zofeen Ebrahim, Arif Hasan and Mr Bilgaumi when they say such things so dogmatically. The people of Karachi, like it or not, speak through their local body elections and have given Mustafa Kamal the mandate to develop Karachi. While I agree that the people of Karachi also deserve greenery, who can deny that the sitting city government is handing over one beautiful green park to the citizens almost every month.
If according to Ms Ebrahim, 1,100 trees (which seems like an exaggerated figure) have to be cut, tree lovers like me would like the city government to give us 10 times more trees on roadsides, parks, street sides, etc.
After all, planting trees and developing bus rapid transit, KCR and KEE are not mutually exclusive projects. The learned writer’s assertion that "the developed fast emerging countries are turning expressways into public space or housing” is nothing short of a misstatement.
I am eagerly looking forward to cutting my commute time on Sharea Faisal by several minutes. And I appreciate the city nazim's efforts in this regard. Karachi's weather is extremely hot for eight out of 12 months and I will be glad to have shade on top of Sharea Faisal, while the greenery on the roadside stays exposed to sunlight. I am sure pedestrians, cyclists, motorcyclists, and car owners, and others will welcome a pleasant change on Sharea Faisal.
M. AASIM MAQBOOL
Karachi
THIS is in reference to your reports 'Anti-polio campaign thwarted by clerics' (April 26) and '70 lady health workers quit jobs' (April 27). It is disheartening to know that such forces are at work in Pakistan, a country that has been trying to eliminate polio for the past 19 years and which sadly remains one of the last four in the world that still harbour the virus.
According to a WHO report, the above-mentioned cleric was also active during the last anti-polio drive held in September 2006 and had succeeded in persuading residents of 60 localities in the NWFP and Fata not to get their children vaccinated. He has managed similar results this time around as well.
Looking at these statistics, one cannot help but wonder why the MMA government there, which uses every given opportunity to criticise the federal government, cannot assist the government in this national cause.
A report recently published in a national newspaper stated that a meeting was held between Unicef 's representatives and some clerics a week before the recent campaign to help promote the immunisation drives.
The Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam's Maulana Fazlur Rehman was also present on the occasion. I would like to ask him what his role was, in his province, during the recent anti-polio campaign and why this cleric and his illegal use of the radio are still effective in creating propaganda against polio eradication.
DR FATIMA
Rawalpindi
TO my knowledge, there is no area in Karachi (inhabited by the middle and lower classes) that does not face, on an average, at least three to four hours of power outages every day, plus the additional time it takes for what we are told is “repairing cable faults." This altogether amounts to almost three to four days per month without electricity.
The other day the federal minister for power, Liaquat Jatoi, was quoted by various news outlets as meaninglessly stating that "there is no power crisis in the country" (or something like that). Even more unwisely, he advised the people of Karachi to conserve energy (or what little is left of it after these power outages) in order to lessen their own sufferings. Interestingly, the minister is also reported to have blamed the chairman of Wapda for not listening to him.
Is there no limit to the brazen lies told by our politicians and ministers who so audaciously distort the truth? Does their conscience ever bother them?
DR AAMIR NISAR
Karachi
ONE person in our history who was ready to lay down his life for Pakistan and would not compromise his integrity and principles was Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar. Addressing the plenary session of the First Round Table Conference in London in 1930, Maulana Jauhar said: “I want to go back to my country as a free man.
“If you cannot accept it, you will have to give me a piece of land for my grave”. His words proved to be true, and he died in London a few weeks later.
The slogan ‘Pakistan first’ is attributed to President Musharraf. I wonder if this also means that he is ready to sacrifice his own integrity and principles to make sure he can ‘save’ the country. I hope he read Mr Cowasjee's latest column (‘Of hats and shawls and dubious deals’, April 29) wherein he wrote: "Now that Musharraf reportedly is about to allow Benazir off the hook in the courts of Pakistan and in courts of other land does not speak well for his commitment to justice and the rule of law. If she has committed crimes, she must be held answerable for them in courts of law.
The dropping of cases against her merely to satisfy Musharraf’s expediency is another disgrace and a shame for this nation."
President Musharraf's principles and his commitment to justice seem to be only second to ‘saving’ a piece of land wherein he, his generals and chosen corrupt politicians hold sway to power.
DR OWAIS FAROOQI
Memphis, USA
THIS is with reference to Ardeshir Cowasjee's column ‘Of hats and shawls and dubious deals’(April 29) in which he writes: "The legal brigade is parading the streets, exercising its member’s right to violence, to foolish behaviour and to childish pranks-wielding staves and beating up suspected masqueraders, bashing up the car of a senior lawyer appearing for the government, tearing down the signboard outside another lawyer's office, and removing the Jadoogar of Jeddah's photograph from the Karachi Bar Association's room".
It is indeed unfortunate that Mr Cowasjee has failed to appreciate the role played by the lawyers following the suspension of the chief justice. The lawyers of the country do not consider the chief justice of Pakistan as above the law. The lawyers, including myself as being part of legal fraternity, are protesting and coming out on streets not because the chief justice has been removed but because of the manner in which he has been removed.
It is an open secret that Naeem Bokhari had written an open letter against the chief justice under the direction of GHQ. The fact that the executive authority had conspired to remove the chief justice of the country deserves condemnation and provides sufficient ground for lawyers to come out on the streets and protest. The matter was further aggravated by the government by isolating the chief justice and by treating him in a disrespectful manner.
Mr Cowasjee admits that the treatment handed out to the chief justice was not appropriate but writes that "this does not justify the behaviour of legal fraternity and their total irresponsibility towards the rights of their clients".
It appears that Mr Cowasjee is much more concerned about Gen Musharaff rather than the rights of the ‘clients’. The single incident of pulling of hair of the chief justice of Pakistan by a low-ranking policeman completely justifies the reaction of the legal community. The reason as to why the chief justice was treated in such a manner was because the government had underestimated the reaction of the legal community. The lawyers through their protest have set up a good precedent and in future no government will dare think of treating a judge in a similar fashion.
Furthermore, the institution of the judiciary has been strengthened by the role played by the lawyers and which will ultimately benefit the ‘clients’ that Mr Cowasjee is so much concerned about. The fact that in Sukkur there were only two High Court judges to greet the chief justice and a day after there were 15 judges of the Sindh High Court coming to hear the chief justice in Hyderabad shows that the High Court judges are growing in confidence due to the support of the lawyers and in their own way have protested against the government by attending the addresses of the chief justice.
Mr Cowasjee concludes his article by writing: "It should be lonely at the top. But the problem with Musharaf is that he seems to be surrounded by imbeciles whom he heeds. His and our bad luck". It appears that Mr Cowasjee wishes to leave an impression in the minds of readers that Musharraf is sincere in bringing about reforms in the country and if it was not because of imbeciles surrounding him, he would have achieved his goal.
What Mr Cowasjee does not write is that Musharaf, just like any other leader which the country has been made to tolerate, is an opportunistic person, hungry for power and it is precisely because of this reason that he himself prefers to be around imbeciles. A person himself chooses the company he wishes to be with and not the other way round. It is our bad luck that we have to tolerate military men every now and then and articles by journalists who try to give an impression that we have no alternative but to tolerate them.
ANIL KHAN LUNI
Lahore
ONCE again Pakistan is hit by a crisis. But when was the last time it was not hit by crises? Since its inception, the history of Pakistan has been characterised by perpetual turmoil.
To name just a few, there was the sacking of the NWFP Assembly in 1947 through the tussle between secularists and Islamists; the tussle between true federalists and centrists; martial law in 1958; Ayub Khan's mismanagement; the break-up of Pakistan in 1971; the Balochistan insurgency during the 1970s; the Zia dictatorship and the hanging of Bhutto; the massive corruption of Benazir and Nawaz during the 1990s; now the Musharraf dictatorship and the worsening relations with Afghanistan; the discovery of the Qadeer Khan network; the current judicial crisis and full-fledged insurgencies in Balochistan and Fata.
Pakistan, if it is to stay intact, has to have real federalism with the centre retaining the minimum powers, real democracy whereby the parliament is supreme, the subordination of the army to civilian authority, strict adherence to the Constitution, complete freedom of the judiciary, substantial economic reforms including radical land reforms, an end to feudalism, focusing on putting internal house in order rather than pursuing grandiose foreign policy objectives, ending the perpetual Punjabi majority by dividing the province of Punjab into several provinces, giving all languages including Pushto, Punjabi, Balochi, Sindhi and Seraiki the status of national languages and, finally, the amalgamation of Pushtuns living in the NWFP, Punjab, Balochistan and Fata into a single province.
The above are the factors which are creating chaos in Pakistan. As long as the above steps are not taken, one does not see much hope for the future of the country.
ZARGHUN KHAN
Istanbul, Turkey
THE KCR was running quite well since its introduction, and the journey used to be very comfortable, particularly for office-goers from Landhi to Tower and eventually to Wazir Mansion. It was a perfect example of government-private sector cooperation.
All of a sudden the KCR was derailed on April 1 with the announcement that the ticketing would no more be managed by the private sector.
Since then, passengers almost travel free as there are few or no officials to collect fare. Moreover, trains do not maintain their schedule.
GHOLAM MOHAMMAD
Karachi
I WAS much delighted on the day when you entered politics and once again I was glad when your party won the elections, defeating the fundamentalist BJP. I felt glad because your party is liberal and secular.
I also thought that India and Pakistan would enter a new phase of better relations against the bad ones in the past.
But I was shocked on that day when your government proclaimed to increase the defence budget. Due to this our country will also increase the defence budget and this will lead to an arms race.
I think India is more powerful than any other country in this region. Therefore, I suppose there is no need to raise the defence budget. In fact, you should make an agreement with Pakistan that both should decrease their defence budgets.
In this age of communication it is not easy to attack any country and win the war. As you can see, America is still not successful in Afghanistan and Iraq though it is the sole superpower.
As against this, our countries’ one-third population is living below the line of poverty. So this money should be utilised for these people.
Famous writer Kirshn Chandr says in his book Ghadar: “Rifle never bestows a life, rather it takes away life that could be ever of the rifle holder.”
I hope you will rather work to change the lives of the people for the better.
DR JAIPAL CHHABRIA
Karachi
THIS is with reference to M. Ziauddin's report from London about Benazir Bhutto’s potential deal with the Musharraf government (April 26). Almost 20 years ago Ms Bhutto came to power with a clear majority. I was 70 then.
I had suggested to an influential member of the PPP, who is a professor in a university, to use his good offices to persuade Benazir Bhutto to try and form a national government by inviting Nawaz Sharif to join her on the pattern of the joint Conservative and Labour government during World War II in Great Britain.
The learned professor pooh-poohed the idea. In doing so he might not have thought of collecting millions because he was too transparently honest to covet the people’s money. He did so because he was too loyal to the PPP.
Maybe he had lost sight of the greed of the powers-that-be in the PPP.
JALAL AHMED
Karachi
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