Saving PIA
Sir,
This is apropos media reports about PIA passengers being mishandled by airline staff. They allegedly paid for Business Class seats but were denied their preferred seats because the aircraft was a leased A320 with full Economy seating. Those who accuse PM Nawaz Sharif and his government need to evaluate the state of the national airline that started its descent in 2002 when despite escalating oil prices was breaking even at the time. It was the vultures who by 2008 had managed through their networking and political contacts to cunningly maneuver to be nominated PIA MD and DG CAA Pakistan. This government can only be blamed for not having political will to appoint qualified and experienced executives with integrity at the helm, but not for the over Rs230 billion in accumulated losses it inherited and the corrupt mediocrity that dominated its executive corridors.
By the time PIA was handed to the PML-N in 2013, all prime time slots in the Gulf had been surrendered to the advantage of airlines owned by Gulf states. Almost half of PIA’s fleet was grounded because of gross irregularities in the procurement of essential technical spares, while its human resources which were once its asset were eroded by burdening the already surplus employees of this loss-making white elephant with over 300 persons with fake degrees. What else could be expected from the cronies of AAZ who had been earlier found guilty of grievous financial irregularities in recruitment by AVM Mushaf Ali Mir.
PIA’s GSAs and GHAs all over its network were changed and replaced by parties with dubious backgrounds. Having purchased long range aircraft like B777, it was shocking when in the garb of code-sharing the airline was to be reduced to become a spoke carrier of Turkish Airlines for its routes to Europe, America and even key sectors in the Far East. PIA has lost millions of dollars in paying more than the current market prices for leasing aircraft and in the induction of B777, A320 etc because of the greed of kickbacks by its top executives. How can smuggling of heroin be stopped on PIA flights when the catering company based in the UK is owned by a former MD was allegedly involved?
Zaman,
Pehawar.
Medically (un)fit
Sir,
I do not think it is ethically appropriate to seek bail on serious health issues or seek a court’s permission for medical treatment abroad. In my view, our hospitals will not meet international standards unless our president, prime minister, parliamentarians and state officials do not set an example by being treated in them.
It is strange to see VVIPs come up with serious health issues when they risk going to prison. I want to see a hospital in Pakistan where all treatments are offered. It would be in the best interest of the country if we framed a fair and just policy for people who tend to be medically fit while in office (where they enjoy all the powers and perks) but who suddenly become ill when they need to seek bail.
Advocate Khalid Mustafa,
Islamabad.
Pakistan forests
Sir,
The Sindh government is working on educational reforms. The opening of the first women’s cadet college in Nawabshah must be appreciated. The biometric attendance for teachers, and an MoU with the University of London for the approval of Pakistani law degrees in the UK should be appreciated. But no one is thinking about educating people about our forests. Forests are being destroyed in Pakistan every. We need a forest institute in the provinces. The Pakistan Forest Institute is the only one in Pakistan and it is located in Peshawar. Lot of students travel from Sindh to study here. It is my humble request to the chief minister of Sindh to open a campus in Sindh.
Mir Taqi Abbas Talpur,
Khairpur Mirs.
Karachi roads
Sir,
I would like to draw the attention of the relevant authorities towards the bad conditions of roads in Karachi. The potholes and breakages cause traffic jams. Bad construction also leads to road accidents. Many times, holes, dips and cuts or blocks jutting out damage vehicles. The people of the city pay huge amounts to the government in vehicle tax. So it is their right to have better and smoother roads for their vehicles. Piles of garbage are left on the roads and sewage connections burst, flooding them often.
Fizza Irfan,
Karachi.
Blood donations
Sir,
Thousands of people need blood transfusions each year. There are many benefits of donating blood: it reduces heart disease, risks of some types of cancer, maintains iron storage levels. It even helps you burn calories. However, there are certain myths about donating - that it causes weakness etc. Some people believe it reduces haemoglobin levels, which is not true. According to research, a healthy person can donate blood with a minimum interval of three months between donations. Moreover, it is important to donate blood in a hospital, clinic or professional environment so it can be screened properly before being used.
Hadia Aziz,
Islamabad.
Flooded Karachi
Sir,
The city of Karachi has received heavy rainfall this monsoon season. We often crave things that we don’t have – it’s human psyche. Rain is one of the most desirable things, and more so here because it comes for short intervals. Rain beautifies the atmosphere around us. The sound of rain charges everyone, and children, in particular, enjoy playing in the puddles created by rainwater. While people want to enjoy the smell of rain, stress takes over once the downpour becomes unpredictable.
For Karachi it means water on the roads and streets, floods, power breakdowns, electric shocks, fallen roofs, deaths, injuries. The first spell of monsoon rains lashed the port city this month and a large area plunged into darkness as hundreds of feeders of K-Electric tripped. There were reports claiming that at least 10 individuals were killed during the first night of rain and many others were injured in rain-related accidents.
Residents of hundreds of buildings have been served evacuation notices due to fears of structural damage that were caused or exacerbated by heavy rain. Power has been down for hours and life has pretty much come to a standstill, particularly in low-lying areas.
Adil Ali Rajput,
Karachi.
Culture of sports
Sir,
Recently I accompanied my father to a hospital in Rawalpindi. I was astonished to see the number of people who were scurrying around. If you did not see some being pushed in wheelchairs and stretchers, you could be forgiven for thinking that you were at a railway station. It’s the same most everywhere, government offices, grocery stores, classrooms, on the roads—there are too many people, and not enough facilities or resources. While we need more facilities that provide quality services, it would be impossible to catch up with the population’s growth rate.
Already the sixth most populous country in the world, we are set to become the fourth largest in the next two to three decades. This is an emergency we better attend to in a hurry. Population control is also imperative given the adverse effects climate change and global warming would have on our resources; numerous studies have projected Pakistan to be one of the worst affected countries by climate change, and we may already be experiencing these effects, with unusually hot weather in recent years, glaciers melting at a faster rate, and rising sea levels.
While we think of strategies to control the population growth rate let’s also consider those who are already here, a large number of whom are out-of-school children. How could they be given the opportunity to live better lives? The obvious answer is to have more quality schools, universal education, and viable employment. But thinking a bit out of the box, there could also be other ways of keeping an overgrown population busy with something positive, or at least a proportion of it. Organized sports could be a great way to have millions of young men and women engaged in a healthy, worthwhile activity.
I would love to see a vibrant Pakistani soccer league, based on city teams. Who wouldn’t want to see a soccer match between Lahore and Karachi or Rawalpindi and Peshawar. Promoting the beautiful game shouldn’t be too difficult—all you need is an open space and a soccer ball. In terms of equipment it is probably the cheapest sport on the planet. Developing a culture of soccer, however, would also require investing money in stadiums and grounds and promoting the sport on electronic and print media. The successful launching of PSL could be studied to set up the soccer league;, except it could have a longer season and could have many more teams in the league. Bringing Brazilian legend Ronaldinho, and other soccer stars, for exhibition matches, was a great initiative, and I hope more such events would be organized. Let the next soccer superstar emerges from those out-of-school children languishing, and being prayed upon by self serving forces of extremism and crime.
Truth is, Pakistan has had an impressive culture of sports and I have always thought of Pakistanis as natural sportsmen. Our legacy in squash and field hockey is still unmatched. Time was when Jehangir Khan remained unbeaten for five and a half years, and won ten British Opens, the most prestigious tournament in the world of squash, in a row. Those who have played squash know how tough a game it is and these feats are superhuman. After Jehangir Khan retired from the sport Jansher Khan took over and ruled the world of squash for the next ten years; some call him the finest squash player to have ever graced the court. About a year ago I ran into the Egyptian squash great, Rami Ashour, on the streets of New York. He is probably the most accomplished player since Jansher Khan. I said to him, “Do you think you could have taken Jansher Khan?” His humble response was: “Oh no… I don’t know, it’s difficult to compare players in different eras. It would have been a great honour to play him.” And before Jehangir and Jansher was Hashim Khan, the ageless wonder, who started playing professionally at the age of thirty-five and won seven straight British Opens. Many call him the greatest athlete, in any sport, to ever have lived. Currently the highest-ranking Pakistani squash player sadly sits at fifty. Considering the kind of pedigree we’ve had in squash, this fall is astounding. Our fortunes in hockey have been similar. While once we reigned the sport, we now struggle to qualify for international tournaments. I am reminded of the fates of Pakistan Railways and Pakistan International Airlines, which were great success stories, but are now case studies of how successful endeavors can become failures.
But we can get back to a culture of sports, instead of only a culture of cricket; after all we have the shoulders of giants to stand on. We just need to establish the necessary infrastructure that would allow for local and nationwide competition. Other sports flourishing would not come at the cost of cricket; its place in Pakistan will always remain secure. The crackling sound of cricket bat hitting the ball, in streets all over Pakistan, testifies to that fact. Not many things can bring a people together like sports, and I cannot think of a better and a quicker way of getting our young population busy with something productive than developing a culture of sports. The training and discipline that sports require would mean more physically fit and active young people enjoying the benefits of vigorous competition. A healthier population would also mean less people in hospitals. And let us not forget the unbridled joy sports can bring—just transport yourself back a few weeks when a young Pakistani cricket team took the field against India in champions trophy final and walked out with a thumping win and the trophy, and we are still celebrating!
Ali H. Moni,
Via email.
July 5, 1977
Sir,
In the early hours of July 5, 1977 a misery struck the Pakistani nation when a group of self-serving, interest-seeking generals ousted the then prime minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, imposed Martial law on the pretext of restoring law and order and promised to hold free and fair elections in 90 days. This was promised by Gen Ziaul Haq.
In the years to come the world saw that not only did the usurpers try to prolong their time in power but they also changed the entire course of Pakistani society and history. The general was beyond doubt the most cunning tyrant of recent times. His gang successfully altered the course of politics in Pakistan by introducing handpicked, incapable, shoddy leadership from sections of the Pakistani establishment, the results of which still haunt present-day Pakistan. The military, junta dominated by a non-cultural unit of the Pakistani federation, pounced on the opportunity to bring about fundamental changes in the make-up of the Pakistani federation by injecting faith through seminaries across Pakistan.
Pakistani society which was otherwise tolerant, accepting and populous in nature was transformed into a rigid and intolerant society. The general took every opportunity to strengthen his dictatorial rule; he bowed to his masters in the White House and plunged Pakistan into a never-ending conflict in Afghanistan. An entire generation of young Pakistanis succumbed to that narrative of holy war which was so shrewdly constructed and whose impact is still being felt.
The media, the education system and clergy were all lethally used by the despot to achieve his nefarious designs. Mendacity of spirit was the order of the day under the general. The space for dissent shrank and rigidity filled it up; it’s been 40 years now since that fateful day of July. There is a need to correct history by forming a judicial commission on the incident and holding those responsible accountable; some of them are still alive.
Malik Atif Mahmood Majoka,
Melbourne, Australia.
Please resign
Sir,
As time passes, the prime minister’s cronies begin to realize that it won’t be long before they are sent home. They start making strange and desperate statements. The latest one is a gem from Railways Minister Khwaja Saad Rafiq. According to him, his boss is being victimized because he was the one who made Pakistan a nuclear power. He doesn’t explain why whoever is victimizing him waited almost two decades. Surely those behind the so-called “victimization” are powerful enough to have arranged his removal from the scene long ago?
It is also becoming clear that Nawaz Sharif doesn’t have any control over his minions. Why should the railways minister have to explain why the prime minister is being treated unfairly? We have a minister of state for information to do this job. Then there is Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar, who believes he is also the foreign minister. Why did he have to criticize the US for “speaking the language of Indians” after the Modi-Trump meeting? That’s what the foreign minister should do; unfortunately our prime minister has never thought it important to appoint one. Since Nawaz Sharif cannot ensure that his ministers do only what they’re supposed to do, he should resign and hand the government over to someone who is more capable than him.
Shakir Lakhani,
Karachi.