June 2000     Vol 3      No 11     Reg No.SS-346

Publisher & Managing Editor:
Ikram-ul-Majeed Sehgal

Chief Patron
Air Marshal (Retd)
Mohammad Asghar Khan

Patrons
Lt Gen (Retd) SF Lodi
Brig (Retd)TH Siddiqi
Lt Gen (Retd) Imtiaz Waraich

Board of Editorial Advisors
Ardeshir Cowasjee
Arif Nizami
Ms Maleeha Lodhi
Ms Nasim Zehra
Hameed Haroon
Humayun Gauhar
Ambassador (Retd) Afzal Mahmood
Brig (Retd) Saeed Ismat, SJ

Panel of Contributing Editors
Air Marshal (Retd) Ayaz A. Khan
Vice Adm (Retd) IF Quadir
Dr Shireen Mazari
Farhan Bokhari

Panel of Columnists
Col (Retd) EAS Bokhari
Col (Retd) Abdul Qayyum
Dr. Matiur Rahman
Ms Amina Jilani
Capt (Retd) A.A. Jilani

Executive Editor
Ms Ambreen Jahangir

Vice President Marketing
Syed Tauseef  Muhammad Ali

Advertising Manager
Naushad Alam

Internet Coordinator/Graphic Designer
Rizwan Alam Khan

Cover Design
Shujaat Ali

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Ms Parveen Akhter

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PR/Advertising (Rawalpindi/Islamabad)
Brig (Retd) Asmat Beg Humayun

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Azizullah Goheer

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Dear Readers,

For the second consecutive year Pakistan faces a long, hot summer. This time our worries are more on the internal front, Kargil having taken up most of mid-1999. Unlike their basic teaching of not opening up too many fronts at one time, our generals have been forced to fight all over the place, in mostly areas in which they have no experience and unfortunately without adequate logistics support. And to help them they have requisitioned the services of people who have experience in corporate rather than the nation’s governance. Unfortunately we have no choice but to support the rule born out of "the doctrine necessity", the alternatives being too horrible to even contemplate. What one cannot understand is how the finest that the army has put forth in four attempts at national governance in over 50 years since independence have managed to get themselves embroiled in this morass? Some hard facts cannot be brushed aside, the economy badly needs documentation, at the same time we need accountability. For no result-oriented reason the military governance embarked on a human rights exercise that brought them into direct conflict with the religious activists on the anti-blasphemy law. Fortunately for us the Holy Koran and the teachings of the last Prophet (Peace Be Upon Him) act as a precedence to be suitably adjusted for governance in modern times. Taking lessons from our own heritage and history, combining it with the experience of other nations in the emerging 21st century, we can devise a workable modus operandi. The only thing which disturbs me is that some among those who govern us as civilian ministers have taken an oath on the Holy Koran to be faithful to Pakistan but may in fact have been compromised because of reason of their earlier careers. One can only wait and see if they will be faithful to the oath to Pakistan - or to other Princes! I had written an article for THE NATION entitled "WHOSE HONEYMOON IS OVER?" which I am reproducing with thanks.

There are widely diverging views on whether time has run out for the military regime or the clock is still ticking, mostly this assessment is derived from one’s perception of whether this  government has brought any change into the lives of the nation’s citizens. For the vast mass of the populace,  there is no perceptible change, the reforms are still in the proposal stage and change  as a result is still very much in the future. The untouchable elite have mostly felt the edge of the military’s sword, being held accountable for the inordinate wealth they have managed to accumulate through blatantly illegal means there is a change they would rather do without. Their vested interest lies in  creating a perception of growing frustration among the masses,  the "affected" are simply trying to stoke the population into the streets for their own sakes. On the other hand there are those who honestly believe it is in the supreme national interest to correct the deep malaise in the country but professional requirements, particularly in the face of a possible Indian-inspired "limited war" this summer, demand that the military be freed to attend to their primary mission of defending the country’s borders. One believes the Indians will keep the borders alive so as to keep up the pressure, the adventure threat is a hoax to perpetuate that feeling. However, we cannot take Advani and Co lightly.

If rumours are to be believed the military is expected to  replace the present technocrat government by a more representative national government which would include politicians and technocrats. Given the time taken for selecting the present "Dream Team", one would have expected the civilian cabinets to deliver on their reputations, unfortunately the country’s problems far surpasses the corporate capabilities of the civilian technocrats in the NSC and the Cabinets, most  of them have been exposed for what they really are, excellent corporate executives but having potential only at the corporate level, the solution of national problems is beyond their individual and/or collective abilities. Most possess a gift of the gab, unfortunately rhetoric alone does not translate into potable water, food, electricity, medicine, etc, above all good governance. Given a nation of skeptics,  without substance to back up your claims, you are a phoney. A country stricken with political and economic crisis cannot afford on-the-job training (OJT). Facing diplomatic isolation, a possible threat on the borders as well as a severe drought within a primarily agri-based economy, it is time to bring in street smart people having genuine roots in the land into government, pragmatism replacing theoretical assumptions and people-oriented home-grown solutions  sought rather than the seeking of satisfactory kudos from the IMF. The East India Company was extremely good to those natives who made profit for them.

It is true our politicians have let us down badly, some have been corrupt to the core, helped along by the outright corrupt in the bureaucracy who amassed illegal wealth along with them. However, one cannot label all politicians with one broad brush or for that matter all the bureaucrats. The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) could have done the country (and the Army) a great favour by undertaking a quick credit check for a 1,000 or so leaders at various levels in our society. By a computerised survey of the declaration of assets for the polls in 1988, 1993 and 1997 and their wealth taxes, one would have decided on the "credibility meter" as to honest politicians,  measuring bureaucrats and technocrats on the same scale we could get a national pool of talent having roots in the body politic and body economic in the country. When the previous political governments were looking for "Directors" from the private sector for banks, for many of the banks as many as 20-25 names were proposed in turn by the government for one seat but were rejected by the State  Bank of Pakistan (SBP) for having financial records that could not stand up to SBP scrutiny. While the Army has been very thorough in going through  individual records and reputations, a few bad fish are enough to make the whole pond dirty, particularly if they have the protection of mentors who fall for superficial stuff like well manicured CVs and suave manners rather than the actual track record of their achievements.

Politicians are a must in any national government, having links with the people they are better able to articulate the genuine desires of the masses rather than base analysis and/or decisions on drawing room gossip. National decisions cannot be taken on theoretical assumptions and then have them authenticated by well-orchestrated roadshows. A case in example is the concept of devolution of power, in its present form a disaster of unlimited proportions waiting to happen. Nothing wrong with the thought behind the concept, almost everything is wrong with the translation of the concept into reality  on the ground. Change is definitely required but it must be pragmatic and well thought out in consonance with good governance to reflect the mass aspiration, not an experiment based on  assumptions divorced from existing culture and practices.

In all the periods of military rule in Pakistan, the Ministries of Finance and Commerce have remained firmly in the hands of technocrats whereas in actual fact the heart of the country’s governance lies in having monitoring and control of incomes, expenditures, trade and commerce. This is vital ground for governance, that it has remained out of  military control has been our misfortune. Our technocrats have generally marched  to a different drum beat, looking to solutions from external mentors when not only the problems are home grown but  the need is to find home-grown solutions. The easiest route has been to raise the tax rate and/or increase the fuel price. The greater the tax the greater the misfortune for both the country and its people. High tax brackets are tailor-made for the corrupt, it gives them inordinate clout to extract money from the country’s citizens and into personal coffers rather than the exchequer. Similarly rises in utility prices may strengthen the balance sheets from going into the red but they stifle economic activity and in the final analysis lower the financial returns. To expand the tax base and cut down non-essential expenditure we have to separate the departments of income from that of expenditures by having two Ministries, viz (1) Economic Affairs and Finance and (2) Revenues. And put an Amjad or Zulfikar-type figure as head of the Revenue Ministry, with somebody like ex-Chairman CBR, Moinuddin Khan as the civilian whip, someone whose knowledge of CBR trench warfare  is invaluable in knowing the strategy and tactics that tax collectors use in the furtherance of their own selfish aims. Avoid "everybody’s friend, nobody’s friend-types" in any Ministry, their only loyalties extend to those with illegally accumulated wealth in "private banking" accounts abroad.

It may have been the CE’s destiny to rule the roost, but what a roost! Unfortunately he has narrowed his choice of civilian team players to a narrow base of yes-men, for the sake of the country he has to get out of this "Din-e-Elahi" syndrome and reach out to friend and foe alike in the national interest, there is a tremendous talent that is available in the manpower pool of our country. One may not see "the light" the same way the CE does but there are no two thoughts about praying for his success. He must succeed for the sake of Pakistan. The alternates are too horrible to even contemplate.