A Wake up call

The most surprising finding of the Pakistan Institute of Legislative Development and Transparency latest survey about quality of democracy is the finding that former President Musharaf occupies fourth position in popularity after Nawaz Sharif, Shahbaz Sharif and Raheel Sharif. The three Sharifs are holding constitutional positions. One heading the federal government, another the Punjab government and the last is the head of Pakistan Army. They all are embodiment of power and are looking after the responsibilities of the state. They are in a position to positively influence the public opinion through actions, policies and also through use of media. Pervez Musharaf on the other hand is facing at least four legal cases including one for high treason, has no organized party to back him and except some speeches through video link and a few TV interviews is completely immobilized. As he is in no position to influence anyone his attainment of fourth position may look dubious to some or due to some mistake in the survey to some other. PILDAT is a respectable organization and it does not look possible that it is all due to mistake. In the circumstances it is obvious that people still remember Musharaf's good deeds and have either forgotten the unconstitutional acts of his tenure or they judge a person more by their own standards irrespective of it being constitutional or not or what government or politicians have to say about that. It also shows that they are least bothered by the fact that Musharaf is being tried for high treason.

It is a wake-up call for politicians who make policies according to their own priorities instead of finding what the real needs of people are and then making policies accordingly. They may influence people for some time either through some political gimmick, using public money for enhancing  personal image or by pointing out opponent's weaknesses and misdeeds, but ultimately people will be judging them according to their own standards of good work and also remember them when they are no longer in power.

The Mina Tragedy

With the passage of each day in the aftermath of the heart-wrenching tragedy at Mina the situation is assuming monumental proportions. Determining the reasons of this unfortunate happening may require time and it is better to wait for the final report of the inquiry ordered by the Saudi King. However, there is no doubt that the response to the tragedy left a lot to be desired. The number of deaths is rising and information about hundreds of people who are missing and the condition of those who are injured is hard to come. Here, in Pakistan the family members of those who died, injured or are missing and who are not in a position financially to go to Mecca are in a state of shock and helplessness with no government department or agency coming forward to help them in any way. It was really inhumane on the part of the Minister of Hajj, PM Advisor on law and Maulana Fazal-Ur Rahman to attend the grand reception hosted by the Saudi King instead of personally managing the aftermath of the tragedy. The right step would have been for the prime minister or at least the foreign minister to rush from the USA to Mecca  and provide succor to those affected according to their needs and the needs of their families in Pakistan as the case may be by coordinating with the Saudi authorities. It is time that the federal government rise from its criminal slumber of negligence and act immediately by empowering some government department or agency to contact the affected families and provide help and assistance according to their needs.

Tasneem Hameed

A BAD TASTE IN THE MOUTH

To me Ch. Nisar Ali Khan Federal Interior Minister is one of few upright political leaders of the country, but his reaction to Imran Khan’s call for resignation of NADRA Chairman in the wake of decision of Election Tribunal in NA 122 and declaring that NADRA reports were true have left a bad taste in the mouth. It appears that he has neither read the Inquiry Commission Report nor the NA 122 decision of the Election Tribunal containing observations and strictures passed against the conduct of NADRA Chairman otherwise he would not have made the remarks.

The Inquiry Commission in its report while discussing NADRA’s report about non-verification of thumb impressions on the votes and NADRA Chairman’s opinion that those votes were valid gave the remarks that he(NADRA Chairman) cannot declare them to be valid as reports sought from NADRA by the Election Tribunal was only on the verification of the thumb impression and not on the validity of the votes cast.

Coming to the Election Tribunal while discussing the unsolicited supplementary report by NADRA it pointed out that NADRA was required to make a record based report and it was beyond its allotted sphere to make conjectures that the members of the polling staff might have written wrong numbers of CNIC on the counterfoils on the polling day. Election Tribunal is not supposed to attach any importance to conjectural/concessional theory of statistical expectation brought on report by Chairman NADRA through his supplementary report/explanatory note. Chairman NADRA did not know what happened on the polling day so he should not have theorized without any factual/legal basis that members of polling staff might have been written wrong CNIC numbers on the counterfoils.

I hope and expect that the honorable minister would take necessary action against NADRA Chairman in accordance with law to clear the name of his own ministry from the acts of his subordinate institution. It may also be mentioned here that there were widespread news that NADRA Chairman is friend of Mr.Ayaz Sadiq’s son when NADRA’S supplementary report was submitted and that the news was never contradicted.

Tasneem Hameed

Misplaced Priorities

Syed Saadat in his article "Misplaced priorities" in Daily Dawn has succinctly portrayed the Shahbaz Sharif Governance Model. It is based on the rule of personal likes and dislikes, be it in policies, people or priorities. Most of the priorities are based the principle that Work should not only be done, but seen to have been done especially in the eyes of the voter. Even a person of average intellect can understand why Punjab, despite its big budget could not achieve a reasonable level of development. Short term, quick actions for public consumption that mostly peter out in the longer run are taken to project the image of a go-getter. The application of self-righteousness and self-aggrandizement have played havoc with the working of the government giving rise to a culture of abdication of responsibilities and to save one’s own skin at the cost of good governance. Bureaucrats who are in good books are given opportunities much beyond their capacity and seniority and protected even when exposed. Honest and upright officials loathe to work in the province and blue-eyed and yes men rule the roast.

Mr. Shahbaz Sharif is not known to like reading much, but in the interest of people of Punjab specifically and Pakistan generally I would request him to read the Maslow’s hierarchy of needs to at least get his priorities right.

Tasneem Hameed

Inquiry Commission report

After  going through the Inquiry commission report I was really surprised to see that the commission has neither discussed the evidence produced by PPP and PML(Q) nor given its finding on their arguments. On page 164 the report says as under:
TREATMENT OF THE EVIDENCE
As only the following parties listed below either
produced witnesses, cross examined witnesses, exhibited
documents by way of evidence in support of their case and in some
cases provided closing briefs and oral submissions only their cases
will be considered:
PTI, PML (Q), PPP, BNP (A) and (M), JI, MQM (H), PML (N) MQM
and ECP

The report then goes on to COMMISSION'S DETERMINATION ON PARTICULAR ISSUES on page 165.

It  then it goes on to discuss the evidence of PTI , Baluchistan parties, JI, MQM(H), MQM , PML(N) and ECP, but did not discuss the evidence and arguments of PPP and PML(Q) and then goes on to page 203 for COMMISSIONS FINDINGS IN RESPECT OF EACH TOR 

What to make of it? Why PPP or PML(Q) are keeping quite? Been a lawyer myself I am completely confused because it is an illegality that vitiates the whole inquiry because PPP and PML(Q) evidence/arguments if considered might have changed the mind of the Inquiry Commission.

Tasneem Hameed

Metros And Danish Schools

Metros and Daanish schools are the pet projects of Punjab Chief Minister and billions of rupees have been spent on them. Two recent news reports are showing another picture of these projects.

The title of first report is “Daanish school building crumbles within a year of opening”. According to the report within a year of its inauguration by Punjab Chief Minister in 2013, the building started crumbling, with major cracks in walls and beams and leaking pipes and roofs – forcing management to close down its two dining halls.

A report by the Chief Minister Inspection Team, which investigated the faults and causes says: “The errors (cracks) that have appeared in these buildings are of serious and unique nature and cannot be rectified with confidence. Precious lives are at stake, which cannot be left to chance”. Thus partial closure of the residential school has been ordered by the Daanish Schools Authority.

The report has also raised serious concerns about soil survey, building and structural design, material used in the buildings and non-supervision of the work, terming all these factors major causes of the start of collapse of the building that had cost the nation Rs698m within a year.

According to another report after recent rains the underground metro bus stations of Rawalpindi/ Islamabad Metro at 6th Road and I.J. Principal Road were inundated with rain water and created problems for passengers as escalators went out of order. Rain also exposed the poor drainage system on elevated roads.

At the Committee Chowk to Warris Khan Section of the metro bus, the contractor was still installing drainage pipes and work is still going on in the Liaquat Bagh Section.

The above reports show the manner in which projects are conceived and implemented in Punjab.  We remember what earlier happened to Sassty Roti project. Is there any authority in Pakistan that can take notice of robbing tax payers of their money on extravagant and badly conceived projects and stop the plundering of county’s resources.

Tasneem Hameed

In respose to an article of Bakhtawar Bilal Sufi in Dawn

 Hats off to Bakhtawar Bilal Sufi for having the courage although being himself a lawyer to point out the failure of lawyers to play their role  in the administration of justice in his article ‘Time to Introspect’. It is real fact that the lower judiciary is in a terrible shape after the lawyer’s movement. Lawyers having smelled power, encouraged by the former Chief justice of Supreme Court  Mr iftikhar Chaudhry started considering themselves above the law. One remembers the way they treated fellow lawyers Naeem Bokhari and Ahmed Raza Qasuri and assaulted Ministers Tariq Azeem and Farooq Sattar and when they were booked the honorable chief justice quashed the cases. Although the former chief justice used to take suo moto action on flimsy matters and was very sensitive about the dignity of superior court judges, he always looked the other way when lower court judges were being humiliated by the lawyers. Now lawyers are more found on strike than in courts on issues ranging from personal to international. They never use Sunday to strike for their noble cause. In addition to harassing judges they have started taking justice in their own hands by helping criminals escape after cancellation of their bails. Here, I am reminded of an abstract of my satirical article written three years back about the lower judiciary:

"These courts follow the Rule Of Law(ers). Lawyers have developed an effective system of overseeing that the law(er) takes its own course, followed by the courts. A system of collective wisdom of judges, lawyers, court officials and the willing case parties is successfully administering justice. The courts although constitutionally report to the superior courts, they have dotted reporting relationship with the Bar Associations/Councils".

I hope that the lawyer’s community will rise to the occasion at this important juncture of our history and devote themselves to the rule of law and become soldiers of justice instead of any chief justice.

Tasneem Hameed

The rule of lawyers

 Hats off to Bakhtawar Bilal Sufi for having the courage although being himself a lawyer to point out the failure of lawyers to play their role  in the administration of justice in his article ‘Time to Introspect’ in daily Dawn newspaper. It is real fact that the lower judiciary is in a terrible shape after the lawyer’s movement. Lawyers having smelled power, encouraged by the former Chief justice of Supreme Court  Mr iftikhar Chaudhry started considering themselves above the law. One remembers the way they treated fellow lawyers Naeem Bokhari and Ahmed Raza Qasuri and assaulted Ministers Tariq Azeem and Farooq Sattar and when they were booked the honorable chief justice quashed the cases. Although the former chief justice used to take suo moto action on flimsy matters and was very sensitive about the dignity of superior court judges, he always looked the other way when lower court judges were being humiliated by the lawyers. Now lawyers are more found on strike than in courts on issues ranging from personal to international. They never use Sunday to strike for their noble cause. In addition to harassing judges they have started taking justice in their own hands by helping criminals escape after cancellation of their bails. Here, I am reminded of an abstract of my satirical article written three years back about the lower judiciary:

These courts follow the Rule Of Law(ers). Lawyers have developed an effective system of overseeing that the law(er) takes its own course, followed by the courts. A system of collective wisdom of judges, lawyers, court officials and the willing case parties is successfully administering justice. The courts although constitutionally report to the superior courts, they have dotted reporting relationship with the Bar Associations/Councils.

I hope that the lawyer’s community will rise to the occasion at this important juncture of our history and devote themselves to the rule of law and become soldiers of justice instead of any chief justice.

Churchill Proved Right

White House spokesman at a regular briefing stated that Taliban is not a terrorist organization, but an armed insurgency. US also been trying to have some sort of talk with Taliban. It may be mentioned here that a couple of years after the fall of Taliban in Afghanistan, Pakistan implored US to differentiate between Taliban and Al-Qaeda as according to them Taliban leadership comprised ethnic Pashtun Afghans who grew up in refugee camps or religious boarding schools in Pakistan. Taliban were local people with local agenda and they were here to stay. On the other hand, Al-Qaeda had a global agenda which went beyond any particular country and was aimed at a kind of globalized Islamic jihad against the United States as a superpower and US was advised to open negotiations with Taliban for finding a lasting solution. But, the advice was looked upon with disdain and it was even propagated that Pakistan was playing a double game. Winston Churchill was prophetic when he said 'You can always count on Americans to do the right thing - after they've tried everything else'.