Vox Populi, Vox Dei

Columnist M. ZAFAR talks about people power.

In his meeting with the press leaders at Lahore in September General Pervez Musharraf complained that public perceptions of his policies and achievements were different from reality. He held the print media responsible for this gap and in a moment of near exasperation more or less accused it of a conscious effort in this regard. Press barons were quick to respond and assert that whatever was published was based on actual events and public comment and if the cumulative effect was negative the messengers could not be held responsible. One result of this heart to heart talk was that within a week the two high stewards of Information Ministry were relieved of their jobs.

A particularly piquant moment arrived when a questioner asked the Chief Executive regarding his most important achievement during the last one year. The General had to search for an answer. He identified devolution as an achievement but later correctly retracted because achievements are completed actions and the process of devolution had not even been started. Then he described another intangible moral value as the regime’s memorable showpiece. Few would contest that.

To be fair General Pervez Musharraf’s achievements are by no means inconsiderable. Farmer friendly policies including cleaning up of water distributaries on a war footing contributed to a bumper cotton crop and good yields of wheat and rice. Textile industry, which accounts for over 60% for export earnings, is looking good. As a result the economy is likely to grow by over 5 per cent this year as compared to 3% in the last fiscal. It is generally admitted that the regime has reined in corruption at least at higher levels. Government departments are being made to live within their budgetary allocations. The perennially loss making public corporations are giving indications of a turnaround. Pakistan Railway is reported to be on its way to recovery. Pakistan Steel is perhaps already a success story and has demonstrated that given competent management, operational freedom and objective monitoring most of the public enterprises can be made to function profitably. For these gains General Pervez Musharraf’s regime deserves full credit.

However, despite all this common man has not received any relief. Prices of kitchen items, fuel and utility bills have maintained a steady upward trend. Job market remains depressed. Revival of 4,000 sick industrial units is promised but has yet to open up jobs. Similarly action plans for spread of information technology have yet to touch the needy segment of society. Combined with the massive layoffs in government departments, stagnation - more correctly negative growth -in industries and absence of mega projects to ease unemployment leaves little to celebrate.

On 12th October 1999, General Pervez Musharraf took over a nation, half of which lived below poverty line. No one expected him to turn it into a prosperous, healthy and educated nation overnight but some military solutions to some of the more pressing problems were justifiably expected. Instead what the people saw was increased employment of military personnel to reinforce with unlimited coercive power, a thoroughly discredited and corrupt system of administration.

Undoubtedly, this technique was brought in by Mr. Nawaz Sharif to prop up his regime which he had undermined himself through systematic destruction and denigration of institutions. Typically he betrayed total ignorance of the functioning of military system and hoped that illusions would work for real. He inducted droves of uniformed men into WAPDA but nothing dramatic in production, transmission or distribution of electricity happened. He brought in Military Courts to try terrorists. It didn’t work because the superior judiciary pronounced against their functioning. However, in the bargain the military legal system did come under public comment with an unsavoury fall out on the morale of troops.

General Pervez Musharraf’s strategic approach was, therefore, expected to be different. Instead of using military men to carry out non-military duties, a military methodology should have been employed to find solutions and work taken out of the staff trained and paid for the jobs. The best among the military rulers of Pakistan General Ayub Khan had left a lesson for General Pervez Musharraf. While referring to the problem of rehabilitation of refugees Ayub once said, -We made a simple law and then put Azam Khan on top.’ That in essence is the military method - a workable plan executed with vigour and sincerity.  General Ayub left the management of civil affairs to civilians and focussed on creation of environments wherein administrative and economic activity could go on unhindered. In that that he was a huge success. It was only when he branched out into metaphysics in search of the soul of the nation that he met with his nemesis.

With a little more reflection, the Chief Executive may have found that the instrument that he could count on, could have successfully impacted only on the tangible and the material. It could not have made a dent in fields of moral, social or political idealism. Idealistic goals were, therefore, better left to the idealists. An overwhelming physical effort within limited strategic parameters was needed to produce solid results in economy and administration. Now look back. Wherever Chief Executive’s Seven Point agenda was objective specific, results were visible on the horizon but in areas where it was rambling and idealistic there is nothing to report.

The single point agenda that was worth pursuing was establishment of environments for the revival of the economy and creation of jobs. Rest would follow. Tough decisions for removing multiplicity of rules governing economic activity, plugging of gaps and levelling of the playing field were expected from the military. The damage done to national credibility by the lingering disputes with IPPs and freezing of FCAs should have been undone at the earliest. This would require quick and bold decisions but then that is what the generals are trained for.

One single measure that could have produced immediate results relates to the control of smuggling. Troops in support of militia units could have been deployed along the borders to seal off the illicit trade routes. Then a harder look at the Afghan Transit Trade Facility could have been taken to stop the re-entry of the goods back into Pakistan market. If followed up with rationalization of baggage facilities, Duty Free Shops, Diplomatic Bonded Warehouses, the affliction would be cured to large extent. Such actions would be termed as properly military and patriotic and also generated public support. Another direct upshot would have been the resuscitation of a number of industries that had to go out of business because of the massive smuggling of competitive products. Probably Direct Foreign Investment would also have started trickling back.

The problem of power theft could also have been better solved through application of simple military methods.  Distribution System could be divided into small self-accounting units - the smallest sub-unit being a transformer. At each transformer the inflow and outflow of power is metered and the officer Incharge of the unit is made responsible to ensure that the power inflow is matched with the outflow and paid for. Incorrigible areas could be disconnected from the grid and mischief met with legitimate force. The experts in the trade could have worked out the details.

Such tangible achievements affecting the life of the people would not only have provided defence for the action of 12th October but also bestowed a legitimacy qualitatively superior to the one provided by the courts - Vox Populi Vox Dei.

The detractors of the regime, however, made its leaders bite a particularly vicious anti-people piece. They made the pitch that people in Pakistan were plain dishonest and did not pay taxes. If money could be extracted with the use of coercive force the Government would have its coffers full and all economic problems solved. There is a lot of trash in this. As any Sub- Lieutenant in the line knows that in Pakistan 90% taxes are indirect. The question of people not paying them just doesn’t arise. You cannot buy your bread till you have paid the tax; you cannot make phone call before making your due contribution to the treasury of the state. Of course a good percentage of direct tax assessees does find ways and means to avoid paying their dues by making use of the various exceptions provided by the law itself. This is common practice the world over. Then what is the hullabaloo about?

Vested interests wished to create imaginary ogres against whom the public wrath could be temporarily directed till it all blew over. These ogres are the feudals, industrialists, bank defaulters, former political leaders, former bureaucrats and retired generals. Is any category of upper echelons of the society left out? Who doesn’t know that all those who are accused of misdemeanor, are someway or the other related to the currently on duty bigwigs? Who is going to take action against whom? Obviously the exercise will help keep the people silent, bear their hardship and find solace in the hope that action against big thieves who are responsible for their misery will eventually be taken. In actual terms the campaign will achieve nothing. Wiser counsel would certainly have recommended an outflanking move to avoid frontal confrontation in a boggy patch of ground.

So much for problems of credibility. Now another. Higher commanders are constantly faced with the temptation to indulge in day-to-day tactical battles. Generals are taught to avoid that lure and concentrate on their own jobs. Only a few succeed. But those who do leave their mark on the sands of time.