Unemployment in Sindh and Pakistan Army

Unemployment in Sindh and Pakistan Army

From: Mansoor Hallaj

This is with reference to World Bank and IMF sentmandarins working in our midst i.e. Pakistan StateBank Governor Dr. Ishrat Hussain and Prime MinisterShaukat Aziz as both of them have been beating thedrum of Good Governance, Transparency, MonitoryDiscipline, Growth Rate and Trickled Down Theory sincelast five years as of now the Karachi Stock Exchangeis crashed, Inflation is again up, Foreign Debt is ona rise, Fuel Prices are rising on routine basis, GasPrices are on a constant rise on the orders of WorldBank, 45% of population are below poverty line,Electricity Tariffs raised 25 times since 12 Oct 1999,Wheat/Sugar/Lentils and other such commodities are outof reach of those who are poor {they all must die orcommit suicide}. Above all the National Unity can beseen only on National Day on the State Managed Floatsand Tableau presenting Folk Dances in Tradiotionaldresses otherwise it is no more there. But for Mr.Musharraf, Army and Shaukat Aziz, Pakistan is on thepath of prospertiy. No Sir, only Generals and ArmyOfficers are on the path of Prosperity.

INTRODUCTION:

As per State Bank of Pakistan second quarterly report2004-05 on economic performance released last week. The overall unemployment rate inthe province has increased from 5.2 per cent in 01-02to 5.97 per cent in 03-04. The rise in joblessnessrate is much more pronounced in rural areas where itgrew by 1.15 per cent to 4.38 per cent in 03-04 from3.23 per cent in 01-02. In urban areas, thecomparative unemployment increased by 0.47 per cent to7.56 per cent from 7.09 per cent. In sharp contrast,the national employment scene has somewhat improved by0.6 per cent as jobless rate dropped down from 8.3 percent in 2001-02 to 7.7 per cent in 02-03. Thisimprovement has mainly come from Punjab whereemployment opportunities increased by about 1.15 percent. A big majority of the new 2.9 million jobs werecreated in Punjab. Despite an increase of 1.8 millionin the overall national labour force, there wereenough job opportunities to absorb the additionallabour force and employ from the pool of carry-overs.There are reasons to believe that the labour continuesto migrate from Punjab and NWFP into Sindh. Thisprovincial migration aggravates employment situationin Sindh and is resulting in transfer of resources.Out of an estimated 40 million population, six percent or a huge army of two million are jobless. Theyare roaming in the cities and villages in search ofjobs. At least a quarter of this unemployed force-halfa million-is educated and many of them are graduates,post graduates, technicians, engineers andprofessionals trained in accounting and management.Sindh boasts of 49 per cent urbanization and 54 percent literacy in the urban areas.

Almost $6 billion (Rs 360 billion at the rate of Rs 60a dollar) industrial investment is said to have beenmade in Pakistan during last five years, as evident bythe increasing import of machinery and raw materialevery year. Investment flows have apparently notreached Sindh's industrial estates. The report quotesan official survey which reveals a drop of 2.5 percent in industrial employment from July 2001 to March2002 in the province. Industrial production growthduring this nine month period was only 0.3 per cent. Persisting drought, crippling tax structure imposedunder the influence of World Bank and the IMF,fluctuations in exchange value of rupee, breakdown ofinfra- structure facilities and growing lawlessnesswere blamed for the closure of industries. Located atthe extreme end of Indus Basin, Sindh suffers from ageographical disadvantage. It gets plentiful waterwhen there is no need and suffers water scarcity whencrops are being planted or are growing and need water.It has only one source of water and that is IndusRiver. Three barrages are now more than 40 years oldand are in a state of extreme disrepair. During theperiod 2000 to 2002 the share of Sindh's river waterwas cut down drastically in four seasons. In the year2003, heavy rains and floods devastated crops,livestock and property. Reduction in river water flowshas led to sea intrusion in Badin and Thatta whereover 1.2 million acres of farmland is now totallysubmerged under sea waters. A rough estimate putsSindh's agricultural losses in last four years at Rs42billion. While Sindh suffered heavy losses from a cutin river water share, and was forced to cut down itscultivated area, the cropped area in Punjab increasedsubstantially. This is the reason for a drop in ruralunemployment in Punjab but a rise in Sindh.

While an over centralised and insensitiveestablishment at Islamabad cannot be absolved of therut that has set in Sindh, the land-holding structurein the rural areas of the province and the quality ofpolitical leadership from both urban and rural areasare also equally to be blamed.

"Sindh has the highest incidence of absolute land lessness'' discloses the Annual Review Report for the year2004 by the Social Policy and Development CentreSPDC). It says that 62 per cent or nearly two millionrural households in rural Sindh are absolute landless. Hardly 26 per cent or about 700,000 ruralhouseholds have the share of land ownership which isthe lowest in Pakistan. Sindh has the highestpercentage of farm holdings of over 100 acres and suchfarms are 15 per cent of the farm area.

The SPDC report entitled 'Combating Poverty: Is GrowthSufficient' makes it clear that the concentration ofland holding in the hands of land owning elites leadsto control over other rural markets as well. Thishappens, the report explains "because of theinterlocking nature of transactions in the ruralmarkets for land, labour, agricultural inputs, credit,output and the commodity markets''. The monopolisticcontrol that such interlocking provides to the landedelite generally results in the capture of publicresources thus compounding poverty. Jehangir Tareen, afederal industries and productions minister who isalso a progressive farmer prepared a detailed reportfor the State Bank of Pakistan to point out how thebig landlords hijack the bank loans for farms. A vastmajority of small farmers depend on the big farmers togive them credit on 100 per cent and even higher rateof interest. In Sindh, the majority of the legislatorscome from the elite big farmers who own amongthemselves 15 per cent of the provincial agriculturalland but encroach upon big tracts of state farms. Thekutcha area between the two banks of river Indus istheir popular hunting ground. There is no cleardemarcation of farms in kutcha area. This isconsidered to be the most fertile area. All biglandlords have their illegal farms in this area andthey construct their comfort homes. These also serveas sanctuaries for the criminals and a prison forthose who are abducted for ransom. As far back as 1992 and 1993, the late Chief of StaffGeneral Asif Janjua made an attempt to demarcate thekutcha area with plans to construct police stations,schools, dispensaries and health units. But the bigfeudals came out ferociously against such an attemptand the plans were dropped. Political leadership fromelite farmer families remain oblivious of the needs ofthe people. They are in the government and are in theopposition. Their main interest is to get a share inthe public sector development funds. Pakistan Peoples Party can rightly claim to have takena big initiative in introducing third generation ofland reforms and introducing tax on agriculturalincome. Late Zulfikar Ali Bhutto announced landreforms and imposition of tax on agricultural incomein 1977. It was made part of 1977 budget. But beforethe land reforms could be implemented, General ZiaulHaq took over and the first act he did was to repealland reforms and tax on agriculture without making anyformal announcement. He won over the loyalty of allbig feudals. The same feudals and their children areagain with the government. If they are in theopposition they have the same attitude. The PPPleaders now feel shy of discussing the land reforms.With such a stranglehold of the feudals in theprovince, social justice, poverty alleviation and jobsfor all remains an illusion. {1}

CORPORATE INTEREST.

With the formation of the all-powerful NationalSecurity Council, Musharraf has enshrined in theconstitution a permanent political role for themilitary and it is crucial for him to have thoseofficers by his side who will fully subscribe to hisviews and policies. "Musharraf has ensured that he andmilitary will continue to call the shots and maintainfirm control on the levers of power. "Musharraf'sstrategy is to maintain a façade of democracy and toretain control for himself and for the army,”. Fiveyears of Musharraf's rule has enabled the military tospread out so widely in civilian institutions of stateand society, that its presence is now firmlyestablished in all walks of life. "The military underGeneral Musharraf has undergone a majortransformation, particularly in the outlook of the topcommanders. They are no longer satisfied with theprotection and advancement of their professional andcorporate interests from the sidelines," says HasanAskari Rizvi, a leading defence and security analyst.The presence of the military is invasive. It hasextended its role in the public and private sectors,industry, business, agriculture, education andcommunication. Like other states where the militaryhas experienced long periods of military rule, inPakistan too the military has become the ladder forlucrative jobs. Since coming to power, the Musharrafgovernment has placed some 1200 active and retiredofficers in various ministries and state corporations.Retired generals are now serving as vice chancellorsof the Punjab and Peshawar universities. The situationhas not changed after the installation of a civiliangovernment, and the private sector is encouraged toaccommodate army personnel. Most analysts agree thatassigning military personnel into lucrative civilianjobs, coupled with the distribution of the rewards ofpower, has far reaching political consequences andcarries a long term impact on the military'sprofessionalism. "The military has expanded itsnon-professional interest to such an extent that ithas developed stakes in most areas of policy makingand management," says Rizvi.Military rule has also helped consolidate thesocio-economic conditions of officers through theperks that come with power. The military controls fivefoundations that are among Pakistan's largest businessgroups. They run banks, insurance companies and majorindustries such as fertiliser and cement. They evenown agricultural farms, dairies and gas stations. Themilitary's burgeoning industrial and business empireis indicative of its growing stake in the economy. Several military welfare organisations like, FaujiFoundation, the Army Welfare Trust and Shaheen andBahria Foundations, have become large industrial andbusiness conglomerates. They are involved in variedbusiness and commercial activities that includebanking, running universities and schools in theprivate sector, real estate development and trading.Fauji Foundation, the largest, is now trying toacquire Pakistan State Oil ( PSO) and Ufone. Theprivatisation of PSO, that controls more than 70 percent of the oil distribution business in the country,has been delayed to allow the organisation to searchfor a partner. The acquisition of these two companieswith assets of more than one billion dollars may turnFauji Foundation into Pakistan's biggest industrialconglomerate. The military's land grabbing for theestablishment of Defence Societies in Pakistan's maincities has been scandalous. In Lahore alone themilitary has acquired more than 100 miles of land ,extending from the new phase six, starting from Burkiroad to the BRB canal and across. According to aleading Pakistani economist, the value of this landalone is estimated at billions of dollars. This figureis multiplied manifold if land controlled by themilitary in other cities like Karachi is included.According to one estimate, around 35 per cent ofKarachi's prime land comes under the cantonment board.The military says they acquire the land at marketprices, but the evidence contradicts the claim. " Itis a institutionalised corruption," says Lt General(retd) Talat Masood. Musharraf's decision to hold onto his post and perpetuate the military's primacy isbound to strengthen the military's growing economicinterests. With the political and economic stakes sohigh, the military is unlikely to relinquish theirprivileged position even after the restoration ofcivilian and constitutional rule. The more themilitary entrenches itself in non-professional fields,the less freedom political governments will be allowedin formulating domestic and foreign policies. {2}

WHAT IS ‘NATIONAL SECURITY OR INTEREST’?

Public schools here are little more than warehouses,grim concrete shells lacking libraries, sportsfacilities, sometimes even teachers. Classes have asmany as 60 students. But the children of Pakistanimilitary officers almost certainly are not among them.For them, there is Army Public School O Levels. Gearedtoward preparation for the competitive O Level examsrequired by British universities, the handsome schoolis an educational showpiece whose computer, physicsand biology labs would not seem out of place in anAmerican suburb. Teachers make three times as muchmoney as their public school counterparts. The officerclass in Pakistan has always had a strong sense ofentitlement stemming from its dominant role indefending the country and in running it, directly orfrom behind the scenes, for most of Pakistan's 55-yearhistory. As the military's accumulation of lavish perks, andits growing encroachment on civilian institutions andthe economy, cause many Pakistanis to ask whetheruniformed leaders -- like the corrupt politicians theyreplaced -- are confusing the national interest withtheir own. Why else, they wonder, would officers'children at the seven-year-old army school enjoybasketball courts, fields for cricket and soccer, evena petting zoo stocked with ducks and deer. "The armyconsiders itself a privileged class," Khayyam Durrani,a retired officer who is principal of the school, saidwith a smile. "The fact is that the actual rulers inPakistani society are the army people, so they wanttheir children to go to a privileged institution." Critics go a step further, accusing the military ofdeliberately stoking tensions with India, particularlyover Kashmir, to justify its hold on resources andpower. "Peace would be a disaster for the military,"said Pervez Hoodbhoy, an anti-nuclear activist andMIT-trained physicist who teaches at Quaid-i-AzamUniversity in Islamabad. There is no denying themilitary's dominant role in Pakistan. The militaryowns the best farmland and several of the largestindustrial conglomerates. Retired or active-dutymilitary officers run the ports, postal service,electric utilities, sports federations,telecommunications authority, culture ministry,mineral development agency, anti-drug police,railroads, civil aviation authority, national shippingcompany and Pakistan's biggest steel mill. They holdtop administrative posts at the best universities.Many ambassadors are retired officers. While Musharrafhas vowed to restore "real democracy," he also hastried to institutionalize the army's role in politicswith recent constitutional amendments that he says donot need parliamentary approval. One of them creates anew National Security Council to oversee parliament.The council, chaired by Musharraf, will include themilitary service chiefs as well as the chief ministersof Pakistan's four provinces. Another amendment givesMusharraf the power to dissolve the assembly.

The military's primacy is reflected in the nationalbudget, about 22 percent of which goes for defense,compared with 16 percent in the United States and 15percent in India, according to the CIA World Factbook.The high proportion of defense spending has come atthe expense of social programs in this impoverishednation of 147 million, which spends 42 percent lessper capita on health care than other countries at thesame income level, according to the World Bank.Whatever the hazards faced by Pakistani officers, theyalso inhabit a kind of parallel universe thatinsulates them from the hardships endured by otherPakistanis. Many live with their families inmanicured, colonial-era "cantonments" with goodschools, well-maintained roads and reliable power andwater supplies. One of the fanciest clubs in Karachiis the Defense Housing Authority County and Golf Club,a sparkling new facility with lush fairways, atwo-story driving range and a gracious stone clubhouseoverlooking an inlet of the Arabian Sea. Active-dutymilitary personnel can join the club for an initiationfee of $16, compared with $9,166 for civilians,according to the club's fee schedule. Under an arcanepoint-based system that dates to the British Raj, themilitary also rewards its senior officers by allowingthem to purchase agricultural and urban land from thearmy's vast inventory of real estate at prices farbelow market value. A number of these properties aregrouped into "defense societies" in tony suburbs ofKarachi and other major cities. The societies areadministered by the Defense Housing Authority, whichensures the provision of municipal services. Officerswho acquire such land often develop it as rentalproperty or sell it for hefty profits. One of Pakistan's most coveted addresses, for example,is the blandly named Army Housing Scheme II, which isbuilt on the site of an old antiaircraft battery inthe upscale Karachi suburb of Clifton. A gatedcommunity protected by paramilitary troops, thedevelopment consists of spacious, Mediterranean-stylevillas grouped around a playground and an elaboratelylandscaped Japanese-style garden. Nearby are clothingboutiques, jewelry stores, restaurants and a yogastudio. Property owners in the neighborhood includeseveral army corps commanders, Interior MinisterMoeenuddin Haider, a retired general and Musharraf,who rents his large stone house to a German businessexecutive and his wife for $1,416 per month, accordingto a local real estate agent. Musharraf owns sevenpieces of property in all, including six residentialplots and a piece of agricultural land, according tothe asset list he disclosed shortly after seizingpower.

Individual perks aside, the military presides over anetwork of businesses and industry that ensures it adominant role in the economy. In the 1980s, forexample, the military government of Gen. Mohammed Ziaul-Haq set up the National Logistics Cell, whichferried supplies to Islamic rebels fighting to oustSoviet forces from Afghanistan. The organization isnow the largest freight company in Pakistan, grabbingbusiness from railroads and private trucking firms,according to Hasan Askari Rizvi, an academic andauthor who has written widely on the Pakistanimilitary. In a similar vein, the military afterindependence established several charitablefoundations to look after the welfare of retirees.They have since grown into huge business empires. Thearmy's Fauji Foundation, for example, is Pakistan'slargest industrial conglomerate with assets of $133million in 1996, including sugar and cereal mills,cement plants, fertilizer factories and a powerproject, according to Rizvi. Installing men in uniform in civilian businesses andinstitutions did not begin with Musharraf. In 1980,Zia established a 10 percent quota for militarypersonnel in civilian government jobs. But Musharraf,by all accounts, has taken the process further thanhis uniformed predecessors, dispatching military"monitoring teams" to key civilian agencies andreplacing top officials with senior officers. Hecontends that corrupt and incompetent management bycivilians left him little choice. Durrani, theprincipal of Karachi's army school, acknowledged thathe is troubled by the military's gradual encroachmenton civilian institutions. At the same time, however,he has big plans for the school, including a newauditorium and perhaps even a swimming pool. "I justhave to convince the general," he said, referring tothe school's chairman. "If the general wants toarrange for funds, he can." {3}

JOBLESS CIVILIANS ‘MUST’ COMMIT MASS SUICIDE!

The armed forces personnel heading the departmentsunder the administrative control of the CabinetDivision exceed the 10 per cent quota of the defencepersonnel in the civil services , record placed beforethe National Assembly recently revealed. The record,placed before the house in response to a question byMNA Dr Abul Khair Muhammad Zubair, showed that sevenof the 15 departments and organizations under theadministrative control of the cabinet division wereheaded by retired generals and air marshals, some ofthem holding only graduation or honorary mastersdegrees. In contrast to the qualifications held by theretired armed forces officials, the educationalqualifications of the civilians were either fromabroad or they had specialisation in the relevantfield. However, the only exception in civilianappointments was a BA degree holder, MuhammadRiazuddin, appointed as head of the stationary andforms Karachi.

Following are the names of the officials heading thedepartments under the administrative control of thecabinet division: Chairman of Federal Land Commission Maj-Gen (retired)Inayatullah Khan Niazi (MSc), Chairman of NationalElectric Power Regulatory Authority, Lt-Gen (retired)Saeeduz Zaman (MSc Hons), Chairman of Alternate EnergyDevelopment Board Air Marshal (retired) Shahid Hamid(BSc Engineering), Executive Director of FrequencyAllocation Board Brig Iftikhar Ali (MSc ElectricalEngineering), Chairman of National AccountabilityBureau Lt-Gen Munir Hafeez (MSc War Studies),Additional Director-General of Department ofCommunications Security Brig Riaz Arshad (MSc WarStudies), Chairman of Pakistan TelecommunicationAuthority Maj-Gen (retired) Shahzada Alam Malik (BETelecom and MSc War Studies).

Just compare the degree civilians hold: Controller of Stationary and Forms Muhammad Riazuddin(BA), Chairman of Sheikh Zayed Hospital Prof AnwarKhan (MMBS, FACP, FACG etc), Director-General ofNational Archives Raja Muhammad Ikramul Haq (Msc, MPAfrom US); Chairman of National Language Authority ProfFateh Muhammad Malik (MA Urdu gold medalist), ManagingDirector of Printing Corporation of Pakistan NawazAhmed Sheikh (MA Economics, MA Development andAdministration), Chairman of National Commission forHuman Development Dr Nasim Ashraf (MBBS), Chairman ofOil and Gas Regulatory Authority Muhammad Munir (MScPetroleum Geology), Chairman of Abandoned PropertiesOrganisation Azam Rathore (MA, LLB, MDS from Holland).

There can be numerous reasons why the Pakistan ArmyGenerals would not transfer power to the electedrepresentatives of the people of Pakistan. But onevery obvious reason is the civilian positions ofauthority now under their clutches. Thousands of others in lesser positions, who have beeninducted under a quota system, have not yet beencounted. But their presence makes it clear what stakesthe army has developed in controlling the politicalsystem of the country. The corporate face of the armyalso enjoys the full facilities and backing of thearmy establishment, whether their businesses run intoprofits or losses.

The key positions identified aregiven under:

General Pervez Musharraf (President, Chief executive,Defence Minister, Army Chief and Chairman of NationalSecurity Council);(The COAS slot has been includedhere just to show the hats Gen. Musharraf wears. Thisjob will naturally remain with the Army).

Major General (Retd) Muhammad Anwar (President of AzadKashmir);

Lt Gen (Retd) Khalid Maqbool (Governor Punjab);

Commander Khalil (Governor NWFP);Lt General (Retd) Javed Ashraf Qazi (Federal EducationMinister);

Col (Retd) S.K. Tressler (Federal Minorities & CultureMinister);

Lt Gen. Hamid Javed (Chief Executive’s Chief ofStaff);
Lt General Muneer Hafeez (Chief of NAB);
Major General Usman Shah (Deputy Chief of NAB);
Major General Shujaat Zameer (Deputy Chief of NAB);
Major General Abdul Jabbar Bhatti (Chief, RegionalAccountability Bureau, RAB,Punjab);
Air Vice Marshal Zakaullah (Chief of RAB NWFP);Major General Tariq Bashir (Chief of RAB Sindh);Major General Owais Mushtaq (Chief of RABBalochistan);Lt General (Retd) Hamid Nawaz (Secretary Defence);Air Marshal (Retd) Zahid Anees (Secretary DefenceProduction);Lt General (Retd) Saeedul Zafar (Secretary Railways);Major General (Retd) Fazal Ghafoor (Ambassador toNorth Korea);Brigadier (Retd) Abdul Majeed Khan (Ambassador toTajikistan);Major General (Retd) Salimullah (Ambassador to UAE);Major General (Retd) Muhammad Hassan Aqeel (Ambassadorto Thailand);Lt General (Retd) Asad Durrani (Ambassador to SaudiArabia);Vice Admiral (Retd) Shamoon Aslam Khan (Ambassador toUkraine);Air Marshal (Retd) Najeeb Akhtar (Ambassador toBrazil);Major General Syed Mustafa Anwar Hussain (Ambassadorto Indonesia);Lt General (Retd) Muhammad Shafeeq (Ambassador toBahrain);Major General (Retd) Agha Masood Hassan (DG of PostalServices);Major General Farrukh Javed (Chairman National HighwayAuthority);Rear Admiral Ahmad Hayat (Chairman Karachi PortTrust);Rear Admiral Sikandar Viqar Naqvi (Chairman Port QasimAuthority);Vice Admiral Tauqir Hussain Naqvi (Chairman NationalShipping Corporation);Major General (Retd) Muhammad Hassan (Chief ofNational Fertilizer Corporation);A Lt. General (Chairman Pakistan Steel Mills);Lt Colonel (Retd) Akbar Hussain (Export ProcessingZone Authority);Major General Shehzad Alam Malik (Chairman PakistanTelecommunications Authority);Air Vice Marshal Azhar Masood (Chairman NationalTelecommunications Authority);Brigadier (Retd) Muhammad Saleem (Chairman NADRA);Brigadier Mirza Babar Aziz (DG NADRA);Brigadier (Retd) Muhammad Anwar Khan (DG NADRA NWFP);Major General Raza Hussain (Chairman SUPARCO);Major General Sabihuddin Bokhari (Surveyor General ofPakistan);Brigadier Javed Iqbal Cheema (DG National CrisisManagement Cell);Air Marshal (Retd) Shafeeq Haider (Chairman FederalPublic Service Commission);Lt General Arshad Hussain (Member Federal PublicService Commission);Lt General (Retd) Jehangir Nasrullah (Chairman PunjabPublic Service Commission);Major General (Retd) Arshad Chaudhry (Member PunjabPublic Service Commission);Major General (Retd) Arshadullah Tarar (Member PunjabPublic Service Commission);Air Vice Marshal (Retd) Aliuddin (DG Civil AviationAuthority);Air Vice Marshal (Retd) Arshad Saleem (Deputy DG CivilAviation Authority);Major General Zafar Abbas (DG Anti-Narcotics Force);Major General Syed Haider Javed (DG National LogisticsCell);Major General (Retd) Inayatullah Khan Niazi (DGAuqaf);Major General Pervez Akmal (MD OGDC);Brigadier (Retd) Rizvan Ashraf (General Manager OGDC);Brigadier (Retd) Ishtiaq Ali Khan (MD Pakistan MineralDevelopment Authority);Major General (Retd) Hamid Hassan Butt (ChairmanPakistan Railways);Lt General (Retd) Syed Shujaat Ali Khan (RectorEngineering University Lahore);Lt General (Retd) Arshad Mehmood (Vice ChancellorPunjab University);Air Vice Marshal (Retd) Sardar Khan (Vice ChancellorEngineering University Peshawar);Captain (Retd) U.A.G. Isani (Vice Chancellor IslamabadUniversity);Lt General (Retd) Sardar Ali (DG National Institute ofPublic Administration);Brigadier (Retd) Maqsoodul Hassan (DG Directorate ofEducation);Brigadier Muhammad Ejaz (Home Secretary Punjab);Brigadier Abdur Rehman (Director Health NWFP);Brigadier Shadab (Secretary C&W Punjab)Brigadier Anees (Chairman Punjab PrivatisationCommission);Colonel (Retd) Shahid Qureshi (DIG SindhTelecommunications);Colonel (Retd) Ghulam Hussain (Secretary S&GAD NWFP);Brigadier Mukhtar (Home Secretary, Sindh);Brigadier Zaheer Qadri (DG, KDA, Sindh and notSecretary C&W NWFP);Brigadier (Retd) Akhtar (Secretary to Governor Sindh);Major General (Retd) Imtiaz (Chairman PakistanAthletics Federation);Brigadier Saulat Abbas (DG Pakistan Sports Board).Brig. Khalid Javed, DG Projects Directorate, NADRA,IslamabadCol Talmeez Abbas, DG Dataware Housing, NADRA,IslamabadMaj Tahir M. Alvi DDG, Project Directorate, NADRA,IslambadBrig Safdar Husain Awan is the Secy (C&W) NWFP Brig Qadri is DG KDA;Brig Mohtarim is Home Secretary SindhMajor General (Retd) Hashmi, Registrar, PakistanEngineering Council; Major General (Retd) Anis Bajwa, Chairman PTDC;Major Genera (Retd) Asif Riaz Bokhari, NRB;Brig Muhammad Toseef Uz Zaman Khan, Civil AviationAuthority;Brig Saeed Ahmed Malik, WAPDA Head Qtrs Lahore;Brig Muhammad Iqbal, WAPDA HQ Lahore;Brig Mushtaq Ahmed, WAPDA HQ, Lahore;Brig Khalid Sohail Cheema, DG Pak PWD;Brig Shamshad Khan, GM NWFP NHA;Brig (Retd) Zareen Khan, Project Incharge Ghazi BrothaWAPDA;Brig (Retd) Mukhtar Ahmed Tariq, GM Admin OGDC;Brig (Retd) Muhammad Hamayoun Khan, GM ProcurementOGDC;Brig (Retd) Sardar Javed Ashraf, MD KW&SB;Brig (Retd) Nisar, IG Prisons (Sindh);Brig (Retd) Zafar Ahmed Malik, Karachi Building &Control Authority;Brig (Retd) Aftab Ahmed, DG PHA;Brig (Retd) Dilbar Husain Naqvi, MD NationalConstruction Company;Colonel Rauf, IG Prisons, NWFP;Colonel Asif Jamal, MD, Multan Development Authority;Colonel (Retd) Najam ul Hasan Malik, TMO Rawalpindi;Colonel (Retd) Hafiz Abdur Rehman Malik, MD WASA,Rawalpindi;Colonel (Retd) Kanwar Muhammad Sherbaz Khan, GM CS&EOGDC;Lt Col Muhammad Azim, GM NHA;LT Col Naqeeb Amjad Malik, Manager CS&E OGDC;Lt Col (Retd) Aziz ul Haque Mirza, Member (Operations)NHA;Lt Col (Retd) Hafeezullah Awan, MD WASA Quetta.Major General (Retd) Shujaat Ali Khan, Ambassador toMorocco;Major General (Retd) Badruddin, Ambassador to Brunei;Vice Admiral(Retd) Khalid Mir, Ambassador to Lebanon;Brig (Retd) Muhammad Nisar, Ambassador to Argentina;Brig. Sikandar Ali, Director, Anti Narctics Force;Brig (R) Saeed Ahmad Rafi, Director General, Ministryof Foreign Affairs (He was inducted by Gen Musharrafinto Foreign Service as incharge of overseas pollingfor Presidential Referendum in April); Brig (R) Mian Khalid Habib, Chief of Protocol, M/oforeign Affirs;Brig Tipu Sultan, Director General, Ministry ofForeign Affairs;Group Capt (R) Khalid Aziz Babar, Director General,M/o Foreign Affairs; Naval Lt (R) Ghalib Iqbal, Consul General, Toronto(son-in-law of former Air Chief Anwar Shamim) {AnwerShamim is a Quadiyani and had served General Zia{Ameer ul Momineen as per Jamat-e-Islami}, AnwerShamim has huge ranches in California, USA, which heand his brother in Law Khursheed Anwer Mirza madethrough trafficking Narcotics during so-called AfghanJihad {the Time Weekly that carried the this news wasbanned in Pakistan in 80s}.Naval Lt (R) Qasim Raza Mutaqqi, Counsellor, Rome;Col (R) Salik Nawaz, Deputy Chief of Protocol, M/oForeign Affairs; Capt (R) Masood Akhtar, Deputy Chief of Protocol, M/oForeign Affairs; Capt (R) Shaukat Muqaddam, Counsellor, Dublin;Capt (R) Zaighamuddin Azam Khan, Counsellor, Berlin;Capt (R) Sohail Ittehad Hussain, Director General,M/oForeign Affairs; Capt (R) Khalid Durrani, Director, M/o ForeignAffairs. General ® Jahangeer Karamat, Ambassador of Pakistan inUSA.Brigadier ® Ejas Shah, Director General IntelligenceBureau.

The above list was of 2002. In 2003, as many as 104serving and retired Lieutenant Generals, MajorGenerals or equivalent ranks from other services areamong the 1,027 military officers inducted on civilianposts in different ministries, divisions and Pakistanimissions abroad after Oct 12, 1999 military takeover.The number of army Brigadiers or their equivalentranks from the Navy and Air Force is even higher at160, according to an annexure placed before the Senatelibrary.

There have been 14 ambassadors and a high commissionerfrom the military ranks during this period. Of these 1,027 military officers inducted on civilianposts, 27 military officers have been given the prizedgrade of 22 while 62 officers have been adjusted ingrade 21. A whopping figure of 150 officers occupycivilian positions in Grade 20. There are 276 officersbetween grade 20 and 22 alone. The nature of theirjobs varies from deputation, secondment, re-employmentto contract basis. These military officers occupycivilian posts in a situation where, according toIncharge Cabinet Division Raza Hiraj, there are 700'unabsorbed' surplus civilian employees. There are 33officers on special duty (OSD) just in grades between19 and 21. The range of fields where military officers areworking on civilian posts encompasses every sector ofhuman endeavour including communications, education,diplomacy, water and electricity management,information, post office, jails, local bodies, thinktanks, industrial production, shipping, minorityaffairs, population welfare, health, agriculture,railways, highways, housing, labour and manpower,social and women development, law and justice andsub-sectors of sports from cricket to hockey. A close look at the figures shows that these militarypersonnel occupy 13 posts in the cabinet division, 5posts in the commerce ministry, 98 in communicationsministry, 113 in the defence division, 52 in thedefence production division, 9 in the educationministry, 16 in the establishment division, 24 in theministry of foreign affairs, 6 in the ministry offood, agriculture and livestock. There are 88 militaryofficers working in the ministry of interior, 2 in thehealth ministry, 6 in the housing and works ministry,29 in the industries and production ministry, 3 in theinformation and broadcasting ministry, 58 in theministry of Information Technology, 25 in the Kashmiraffairs and northern affairs ministry, five in thelabour and manpower division, 17 in the ministry ofminorities affairs, 39 in the ministry of petroleumand natural resources, just one each in the ministryof population welfare, the planning and developmentdivision and the ministry of religious affairs. Thereare two military officials working in the revenuedivision (CBR), 21 in the ministry of science andtechnology, 72 in the ministry of railways/railwayboard, 37 in the ministry of water and power, 5 in theministry of women development, 6 in the WafaqiMohtasib. There are another 37 officers who have beeninducted under the military's 10 per cent quota incivilian posts over and above these appointments. In the Foreign Affairs 13 Lieutenants and MajorGenerals were appointed as ambassadors in differentcountries, while one Brigadier and a Major also gotambassadorial positions. Lt-Gen (retd) Asad Durraniwas appointed as ambassador in Riyadh (contractexpired on October 2002). Vice-Admiral (retd) ShamoonAlam Khan was appointed as ambassador in Kyiv (up toAugust 28, 2003), Vice-Admiral (retd) Khalid M Mir wasappointed ambassador in Beirut (up to July 2003),Lt-Gen (retd) Nasim Rana as ambassador in Kuala Lumpur(up to July 2003), Air Marshal (retd) Muhammad FarooqQari as ambassador in Tripoli, Lt-Gen (retd) AghaJehangir Ali Khan as ambassador in Mexico, Maj-Gen(retd) Shujaat Ali Khan as ambassador in Rabat (up toSeptember 2003), Maj-Gen (retd) Fazal Ghafoor asambassador in Tashkent (contract expired on April2002), Maj-Gen (retd) Salim Ullah as ambassador in AbuDhabi (up to June 2003), Lt-Gen (retd) MohammadShafique as ambassador in Bahrain (contract expired onOctober 2002), Maj-Gen (retd) Muhammad Hassan Aqeel asambassador in Thailand (up to June 2003), Maj Gen(retd) Syed Mustafa Anwar Hussain as ambassador inIndonesia (up to August 2003) and Maj-Gen (retd)Sultan Habib as ambassador in DPR Korea (up to October2003). Brigadier Abdul Majid Khan was appointed as ambassadorin Dushambe (contract expired on June 2002), whileMajor Badruddin was posted as high commissioner toBender Seri Begawen. In the cabinet division, Maj-GenKhalid Bashir was appointed as Member (Tech) PakistanTelecommunication Authority (PTA) (up to November2001), Maj-Gen Raza Hussain as chairman SUPARCO andMaj-Gen Shahzada Alam Malik as Chairman PTA. Theseinductions were made on regular basis. Similarly, inthe ministry of communications, Maj-Gen Tariq Javedwas inducted as National Highway Authority chairman onNovember 11, 2000 but was later repatriated. In hisplace Maj Gen Furrakh Javed was appointed as NHA chiefon November 5, 2001 on a secondment basis. He alreadyhad served as deputy director general (Dev) in theCivil Aviation Authority (CAA). Likewise, Maj-Gen(retd) Agha Masood Hasan was appointed as DirectorGeneral Pakistan Post Office on a contract basis,Vice-Admiral Taj Muhammad Khattak was appointed asChairman Port Qasim Authority (PQA) on secondment,Rear Admiral Muhammad Asad Qureshi was appointed asDirector General PQA, Vice Admiral (retd) S Tauquir HNaqvi as Chairman Pakistan National ShippingCorporation (PNSC) on contract, Vice Admiral (retd) SAbaid Ullah Khan as chairman (PNSC) (contractterminated on October, 2000), Rear Admiral Bakhat AliJumani was appointed as Executive Director (ShipManagement PNSC), Rear Admiral (retd) Sarfraz Khan wasappointed as Chairman Gwadar Port Authority (GPA),Rear Admiral Muhammad Nashat Raffi as General ManagerKarachi Port Trust (KPT), Vice Admiral Ahmed Hayat was appointed on a contractbasis as Chairman Karachi Port Trust (KPT), but priorto him Vice Admiral (retd) Khalid Mohammad Mir wasserving as chairman. Maj Gen (retd) Mohsin AhmedVahidy was appointed as Executive Directive PNSCKarachi on a contract basis but he is not serving now,while Rear Admiral Sikandar Viqar Naqvi was appointedchairman PQA (not serving). Similarly, in the ministryof defence, Lt-Gen (retd) Hamid Nawaz Khan wasre-employed on a contract basis as secretary ministryof defence but earlier Lt-Gen (retd) Nasim Rana wasserving in this capacity whose contract was terminatedon July 8, 2001. Rear Admiral Irfan Ahmad wasappointed as Additional Secretary (contractterminated), then Maj-Gen Muhammad Ashraf Chaudhry wasmade Additional Secretary, defence ministry, onsecondment basis. Maj-Gen Javed Iqbal was appointed as Director GeneralMilitary Land and Cantonments (ML&C) on secondment buthe was later retired. Later, Maj Gen Muhammad Jawedwas appointed as DG ML&C on secondment. Maj-GenMahboobul Muzaffar and Maj-Gen Sabihuddin Bokhari wereappointed as Surveyor General of Pakistan. After theirretirement, Maj-Gen Tariq Javed was appointed in theirplace on secondment basis. Rear Admiral Arshad MunirAhmed was appointed Ex-Managing Director KarachiShipyard (contract expired), Air Vice Marshal S JavedRaza as Director Pre Engineering PIA, AVM (retd) NiazHussain Director (Engineering) PIA and AVM ArshadRashid Sethi as Deputy Director General, CAA (notworking). In the Defence Production Division, Air Marshal (retd)Zahid Anis was appointed as secretary D P Division.Earlier Lt-Gen (retd) Lehrasab was working in hisplace. Similarly, Maj-Gen Ali Baz was appointed asAdditional Secretary D P Division. Earlier, Maj-GenRehmat Khan was serving as Additional Secretary D PDivision. Maj-Gen M Salimuddin was re-employed afterhis retirement from the army as Chief Scientists andScientific Adviser DESTO in place of Maj-Gen AkbarSaeed Awan, while Maj-Gen Syed Ali Hamid was appointedas Director General DEPO on secondment basis while AVMAurangzeb Khan was appointed Chairman PakistanAeronautical Complex board, Kamra. In the Establishment Division, Maj-Gen (retd)Rahmatullah was appointed as Managing Director FederalEmployees Benevolent Fund and Group Insurance.Earlier, Maj-Gen (retd) Inayatullah Khan Niazi wasworking in his place. Air Marshal (retd) ShafiqueHaider was appointed as Chairman Federal PublicService Commission (FPSC) while Lt-Gen (retd) ArshadHussain was appointed Member, FPSC. Maj-Gen (retd) Sikander Shami was appointed asDirector General of Head of Institute of NIPA, Lahore,while Lt-Gen (retd) Sardar Ali as Director NIPA,Lahore, both on a contract basis. Maj-Gen MuhammadIqbal Khan was appointed as Managing Director PASSCOon contract in the ministry of food, agriculture andlivestock, Maj-Gen Ahsan Ahmad as Director Generalhealth on secondment but was replaced by Maj-Gen(retd) Muhammad Aslam also on secondment/contract inthe health ministry. In the interior ministry Maj-Gen (retd) Zahid Ehsanwas appointed as Chairman Nadra (posted out) while inthe ministry of industries and production Maj-Gen(retd) M Mohsin was appointed as chairman NFC(national finance commission) on contract. AVM AzharMaud was appointed National TelecommunicationCorporation (NTC) chairman. In the ministry of information and broadcastingMaj-Gen (retd) Jamshed Ayaz Khan was appointed aspresident Institute of Regional Studies, Islamabad, oncontract. In the minorities, culture, sports, Maj-Gen(retd) Inayat Ullah Khan Niazi was appointed ChairmanETPB (contract expired), while Maj-Gen Anis AhmadBajwa was appointed as Managing Director PTDCIslamabad on contract. He had already served as DeputyChief of Staff to Chief Executive in the PrimeMinister's secretariat. Lt-Gen Hamid Javed wasappointed as Chief of Staff to the President in thepresident's secretariat. Similarly in the Prime Minister's secretariat Lt-GenGhulam Ahmad was appointed as chief of staff to ChiefExecutive in place of Lt-Gen Hamid Javed. Maj-GenAbdul Jabbar Bhatti, Maj-Gen Shafaatullah Shah andMaj-Gen Muhammad Yousaf were also appointed as deputychief of staff to chief executive. Maj-Gen HaroonSikandar Pasha was appointed as Director ChiefExecutive's secretariat. Maj-Gen Nadeem Taj had alsoserved as Military Secretary (MS) to Chief Executive(posted as MS to the president from January 2002).Lt-Gen Khalid Maqbool (now Governor Punjab) and Lt-GenSyed Muhammad Amjad were appointed as ChairmanNational Accountability Bureau (NAB), while Maj-GenAbdul Jabbar Bhatti, Maj-Gen Ijaz Ahmed Bakhshi andMaj-Gen Ovais Mushtaq Qureshi, AVM (retd) M SaleemudDin, Maj-Gen Muhammad Sabir, Maj-Gen Nazakat Ali Khan,Maj-Gen Shujaat Zamir Dar, Maj-Gen Syed Usman Shah andMaj-Gen Tariq Bashir, Rear Admiral Ihsanul Haq, RealAdmiral Ubaid Sadiq, AVM Masood Akhtar, AVM ZakaullahKhan and AVM (retd) Khuda Dad were subsequentlyappointed as Director General, NAB Maj-Gen (retd) SyedAsif Riaz Bokhari was appointed as Member, NRB on acontract basis. Maj-Gen Parvez Akmal was appointed as ManagingDirector Oil and Gas Development Company (OGDC) (notworking) while Maj-Gen (retd) Syed Usman Shah wasappointed as Director General Intelligence andInvestigation. In the railways ministry Lt-Gen (retd) Javaid AshrafQazi was appointed as secretary/chairman PakistanRailways. After his contract was terminated Lt-Gen(retd) Saeeduz Zafar replaced him. On termination ofhis contract, Maj-Gen (retd) Hamid Hassan Butt wasappointed as General Manager M&S PR but his contracttoo was terminated. Lt-Gen (retd) Zulfiqar Ali Khanwas appointed as Wapda Chairman on secondment/contractwhile Maj-Gen (retd) M Aslam Zuberi was appointedAdviser in the Wafaqi Mohtasib secretariat (contractexpired). Those who were appointed in the attacheddepartments include Air Marshal (retd) Sharbat AChangazi who was appointed as Director State LifeInsurance Corporation of Pakistan and Rear Admiral(retd) Ejaz Husain appointed as General ManagerSpecial Project, Pakistan State Oil Company Ltd. {4}QUESTIONABLE EXTENSION:THE news that Lt-Gen Munir Hafeez has been given ayear’s extension in the Army to let him complete hisfour-year tenure as NAB Chairman does not make sensewhen in the same breath the ruling leadershipproclaims that true democracy has been ushered in. Ifit was not considered appropriate to give him anassignment in the armed forces, he should have beenretired and the Accountability Bureau’s charge givento a reputable civilian, preferably a retired superiorcourt judge, especially in the light of the SupremeCourt ruling to this effect. At best, he could havebeen allowed to complete his tenure as NAB chief,after having retired from the army. There are otherexamples of serving officers retiring from the army,but completing their fixed tenure in civilian slots,the most recent being the previous WAPDA Chairman.Extension in service is by itself odious, impactingadversely down the line and affecting the careerprospects of deserving aspirants. The irony is thatsuccessive governments begin with vociferouscommitments of doing away with the practice, but endup finding excuses, mostly lack of suitablereplacements, to accommodate favourites. In this way,they ignore the well-known dictum, that the graveyardsare full of indispensable people. Whether it is thearmy or civilian bureaucracy, the principle ofretiring officials upon superannuation should bestrictly followed. The inroad of serving and retiredarmy men into civilian jobs is causing heartburningamong deserving civilian officials and constitutes amajor grouse of the people against army rule. Atpresent, there are perhaps, the largest number ofarmed forces personnel working in civilian assignmentsever in Pakistan’s history, giving the wrongimpression that the civilian bureaucracy is unfit tohandle those jobs. The situation needs to be quicklyremedied. After all, serving army officials should berequired to man the posts for which they have beengroomed. Otherwise, the claim of having introduceddemocracy would not be taken seriously, neither athome nor abroad. {5}ACROSS THE BOARD ‘ACCOUNTABILITY’:General Musharraf after 12 Oct 1999s’ mutiny had saidin his 7 points agenda that across the boardaccountability would start from this table and nobodywould be spare. Would he please define as to where hispromise has gone? He said Judiciary and Military hasbuilt in Accountability System so NAB has nojurisdiction there but every now and then news appearin the newspaper that Military Officials in NAB areblackmailing everybody for money who in any waybecomes ‘involve’ even through a anonymous complaints.If that was not enough Army Officers in NAB are sometime arrested with huge amount of money i.e. inBillions and they hushed up the whole matter. Thereare thousands of petition pending in several courts oflaw particularly in Sindh against allegedhighhandedness of Army Officials of NAB whileinvestigating cases of corruption but this so-calledNAB is silent on Mehran Bank, General Sabih QamarZaman {Pakistan Steel Mills Corruption Cases}, FaisalSaleh Hayat, Imtiaz Sheikh, Aftab Ahmed Sherpao andthousands of other cases. A minor example: {6}The Hyderabad bench of the Sindh High Court onThursday issued a notice to a lieutenant colonel on apetition filed by Zahoor Ahmad, accusing the armyofficer of harassment. Sindh Additional AdvocateGeneral Masood A. Noorani filed statements ofrespondent police officers, including the SHO of theMangli police station, Sanghar, denying harassing thepetitioner at the behest of the army officer. Thepolicemen further stated that the petitioner was notwanted in any case by the Mangli police. Thepetitioner stated that respondent Lt-Col MohammadAmeer had been using his official position to get adispute of civil nature settled which involved thelate father of the petitioner. He claimed that he hadmade payment to the army officer for fear of his life.DANGEROUS CONSEQUENCES FOR PAKISTAN:This is not intended as criticism of our soldiers whoare among the bravest and toughest in the world. Butthe leadership of our troops is in the hands of anofficer corps that is in danger of losing itsprofessional edge due to endless intervention incivilian matters far removed from their normal duties.Although General Musharraf and his colleagues haveassured us that only a small percentage of militarypersonnel are directly involved in civilian duties,the impression is one of vast numbers of serving andretired officers landing themselves plumb jobs. Lowerranks have to content themselves with checkingelectricity meters and driving licences. To say thenormal training cycle is not affected is to suggestthat it does not require much time and effort. Thequestion then arises as to what military personneldoes the whole year? Pakistan army's record is not exactly etched inletters of gold. From the fiasco of the 1948 Kashmirwar in which the initial advantage was squanderedthrough bad leadership to Kargil, the wars andskirmishes our army has fought have never yielded theresults we had hoped for when we initiated all thesehostilities. Although much valour was displayed bytroops and junior officers, they (and the nation) werelet down time and again by senior officers. Poorplanning, excessive caution and little communicationbetween the three services on the one hand, andcommand and field echelons on the other, havecharacterized our military operations to date. In the1965 and 1971 wars, both started by our military'smiscalculation of the Indian response to our actions,our units were largely static and where an offensivewas launched, it was ill-judged. Mostly, our generalswere content to hold on to defensive positions whilewaiting for international diplomacy to pull theirchestnuts out of the fire. An Israeli analysis of our army's performance in the1965 war was reproduced in the long-defunct Outlook inthe early seventies, and was devastating in itsconclusions. According to the authors, Pakistanenjoyed a sizable qualitative edge in US- suppliedhardware that was not exploited by generals andresorted to tactics that let the Indians off the hook.The Hamoodur Rehman commission report has beenscathing about the personal and professional conductof senior officers during the 1971 war. While in EastPakistan, units were surrounded by superior forces,the bulk of the army was in the West but provided nomeaningful resistance. But with generals like YahyaKhan in charge of the army and the nation's destiny,small wonder that the entire military was demoralized.Then we had the likes of Zia and Aslam Beg, the latterknown for his "doctrine of strategic defiance". Morerecently, this master strategist was quoted by OwenBennet Jones in his book "Pakistan: eye of the storm"as saying, in effect, that Pakistan did not need acommand and control system for its nuclear weapons asIndia was unlikely to attack our installations. Kargilwas a short-term tactical triumph but a strategicdisaster because its authors, General Musharraf amongthem, failed to grasp the global picture. They simplydid not anticipate the outrage an unprovoked attackwould arouse across the world when two nuclearprotagonists were involved. A good general is capableof thinking and planning in three dimensions severalmoves ahead, and so far, none of our military plannershave demonstrated this ability. Another problem ourdefence forces face is their heavy involvement inproperty and other business-related activities. Whenan officer is spending much of his time in expandinghis real estate portfolio, this is bound to tell onhis professionalism. And after a point, he hasacquired too much property to want to take risks.Although all these plots are lawfully acquired, surelythere should be a cut-off, limiting officers to one,or at most two, houses in their career. The fact thatan army officer (and his family) should considerthemselves to be above the law comes as no surprise:what is different today is how the public has reactedto this case. Newspapers and magazines have carriedcomments and criticism about the matter for weeks, andangry letters from readers continue to be published.If GHQ is in any way concerned over this widening gulfbetween the army and the people of Pakistan, the highcommand needs to reflect on the fact that when itsofficers are placed in charge of virtually everyinstitution, they will be blamed when things go wrong.A continuing problem with army-civilian relations hasbeen the arrogance military officers display whendealing with civilians. To all intents and purposes,they could be a colonial force lording their innatesuperiority over the backward natives. All armies areinsulated from civilian life to some extent, but ourofficers are also taught to despise politicians andbureaucrats as soon as they enter the militaryacademy. The reality of power in Pakistan is that thearmy has controlled the destiny of the nation for mostof its existence, and is likely to continue doing soin the foreseeable future. The invisible 'agencies'have huge, unaudited budgets and manipulate and malignpoliticians and control sections of the press.Incidentally, all this is a matter of public record:names of politicians and journalists who have receivedcash handouts from the exchequer have been publishedmany times without any action being taken againstthose making the payments and those receiving them.{7}

Hussain Bin Mansoor Al Hallaj.

NOTES:Unemployment mounting in Sindh By Sabihuddin Ghausi.{1}28 March 2005 Monday 17 Safar 1426 http://www.dawn.com/2005/03/28/ebr3.htmA Military State By Zahid Hussain. {2}http://www.newsline.com.pk/NewsOct2004/cover1oct2004.htmThe Pakistan Army Confuses its Own Interest withCountry's National Interest John Lancaster {Washington Post}. {3}http://www.satribune.com/archives/dec02_08_02/opinion_wpostarticle.htmArmed forces exceed 10pc quota in Cabinet Div. By OurStaff Reporter {4}22 March 2005 Tuesday 11 Safar 1426 http://www.dawn.com/2005/03/22/nat11.htmThis List is being constantly Updated as newinformation becomes available The Partial List ofCivilian Posts taken over by Army Officials SpecialSAT Report {4}http://www.satribune.com/archives/sep23_29_02/P1_armylist.htm1,027 civilian posts occupied by servicemen By NasirIqbal {4}03 October 2003 Fridayhttp://www.dawn.com/2003/10/03/nat9.htm QUESTIONABLE EXTENSION {5}http://nation.com.pk/daily/oct-2004/11/editorials3.phpA Minor Example.HYDERABAD: Court issues notice to army officer By OurCorrespondent {6}http://www.dawn.com/2005/03/18/local22.htmCenturions and legionnaires By Irfan Husain {7}http://www.dawn.com/weekly/mazdak/20040403.htmWhose land is it, anyway? By Irfan Husain {7}http://www.dawn.com/weekly/mazdak/20020914.htmThe growing divide By Irfan Husain {7} http://www.dawn.com/weekly/mazdak/20031220.htmLooking ahead, darkly By Irfan Husain {7}http://www.dawn.com/weekly/mazdak/20030104.htm

Maj Gen Ahsan (RET) on Karachi water

----Original Message Follows----From: muneera zia <muneerazia1900@yahoo.co.uk>Reply-To: sindh-politics@yahoogroups.comTo: sindh-politics@yahoogroups.comSubject: Re: [sindh-politics] Karachi water, Kalabagh and DesalinationDate: Thu, 31 Mar 2005 00:15:10 +0100 (BST)

I agree with Memon Saheb.This also brings to our focus the fact that water is not the probem of rural areas or of those who live below Kotri but it is a matter of life & death for any one who lives anywhere in Sindh. I am sad to note that so far Karachi,s public has not shown any interest in the fight against KBD. When my family migrated from C.P. India in Jan 1948, I was less than 8 years old but I remember distinctly how we were recieved in Sindh with open arms. It is shameful that Karachites are keeping mum over this issue. If this is the attitude, then let us divide the entire amount of drinking water to entire Sindh & let the Karachites get their deficient water from wherever they want. Karachi is the capital of Sindh & Karachites should learn to march in step with the rest of our province.

Maj Gen Ahsan Ahmed (Retd) PPP London.

Karachi water, Kalabagh and Desalination

Currently Karachi has two main sources of water supply - Darya e Sindh (Indus), some 140 miles away, and Hub dam about 40 km from the city. Hub Dam water is relatively small and dependent on rains. About one-and-a-half years back, it had no drop of water due scarcity of rains. Accordingly, the main source of water for Karachi is Darya e Sindh.Those of you who have visited Kotri Barrage and Almanzar restaurant will remember that there are several canals coming out of Darya e Sindh. In many months of the year, you will notice that all canals are dry except one. That one open canal is taking water about 140 miles to Karachi through a storage lake and treatment plants. That canal is the main source of Karachi water.As of now, the water for Karachi is gauranteed-- whether there is water for other towns of Sindh below Kotri or not. This year, I expect the water situation for whole Sindh to be relatively good because of large snow falls and rains upstream. However, in times of future droughts or dry conditions say for example due to construction of Kalabagh, new canals or other water projects upstream, water for Karachi is likely to become less gauranteed. People of other towns below Kotri may resist gauranteed supply of water to Karachi if they do not have drinking water for themselves. In addition, population and water needs of Karachi are continually increasing. Accordingly, in order to gaurantee water for themselves, people of Karachi must ensure that othr people between Kotri and Karachi are not thirsty-- otherwise, they could threaten Karachi's supply.Karachi is also wisely looking for additional alternate sources of water. Desalination is obviously one important option. However, it is a very expensive option. In layman's terms, desalination means that one needs to boil sea water, collect steam, cool it and then distribute it. Given, high cost of electricity and other energy in Pakistan (as compared to Saudi arabia of Dubai), the affordability of desalinated water has always been in question. Price per gallon of desalinated water in Karachi is likely to be many times that is currently paid.Nevertheless, recently, there has been some progress. As reported in DAWN, a preliminary agreement for the installation of two desalination plants, having a capacity of 25mgd each, one at Korangi and the other at Bin Qasim, was signed here on Monday March 28, 2005.Brig Iftikhar Ahmed, MD of the Karachi Water and Sewerage Board, and Mr Samiullah Khan, head of the California-Enviro Management Inc. USA, signed the agreement at a ceremony held at a local hotel. US Consul-General at Karachi, Douglas C. Rohn, and the City Nazim, Niamatullah Khan, counter-signed the agreement.Addressing the ceremony, City Nazim Niamatullah Khan said that the ceremony follows signing of a Memorandum of Understanding in October last year. He said that water is life and in future, wars will be fought not for land but for water.Niamatullah Khan said that he had been discussing the possibility of desalination plants with many companies, but the same could not materialise till Mr Samiullah Khan offered the installation of two desalination plants of 25 mgd each on Built, Own and Operate basis. This will meet only a small part of Karachi's water needs but it will be an additional source of water.According to the plans, the desalinated water will be supplied to industries and affluent people who can afford to buy and thus the 50 mgd water so saved will be supplied to city's deficit areas by the year 2007. This would be a good way to get around the high cost of desalinated water. However, given past tendencies of industrialists and affluent people, they will probably bribe the water company staff and secure cheaper water for themselves. Sooner or later, common people of Karachi will be paying for the desalinated water.Clear option for people of Karachi is to make sure that there is enough water in Darya e Sindh (Indus) so that all people below Kotri can get enough cheap water.Ali Nawaz MemonSindh Development Institute7204 Antares DriveGaithersburg, Maryland, USA 20879http://sindhdevelopmentinstitute.blogspot.com/sindhhouse@hotmail.com

Karachi Water Supply

Karachi has two main sources of water supply - Darya e Sindh (Indus), some 140 miles away, and Hub dam about 40 km from the city. Hub Dam water is dependent on rains and about one-and-a-half years back, it had no drop of water due scarcity of rains. Accordingly, the main source of water for Karachi is Darya e Sindh.
Those of you who have visited Kotri Barrage and Almanzar restaurant will remember that there are several canals coming out of Darya e Sindh. In many months of the year, you will notice that all canals are dry except one. That one canal is taking water 140 miles to Karachi through a storage lake and treatment plants.
As of now, the water for Karachi is gauranteed-- whether there is water for other towns of Sindh below Kotri or not. This year, I expect the water situation for whole Sindh to be relatively good because of large snow falls and rains upstream. However, in times of future droughts or dry conditions say for example due to construction of Kalabagh or other projects, water for Karachi is likely to become less gauranteed. People of other towns may resist gauranteed supply of water to Karachi if they do not have drinking water. In addition, population and water needs of Karachi are continually increasing. Accordingly, Karachi is wisely looking for alternate sources of water.
Desalination is obviously one important option. However, it is a very expensive option. In layman's terms, desalination means that one needs to boil sea water, collect steam, cool it and then distribute it. Given, high cost of electricity and other energy in Pakistan (as compared to Saudi arabia of Dubai), the affordability of desalinated water has always been in question.
Nevertheless, recently, there has been some progress. As reported in DAWN, a preliminary agreement for the installation of two desalination plants, having a capacity of 25mgd each, one at Korangi and the other at Bin Qasim, was signed here on Monday March 28, 2005.
Brig Iftikhar Ahmed, MD of the Karachi Water and Sewerage Board, and Mr Samiullah Khan, head of the California-Enviro Management Inc. USA, signed the agreement at a ceremony held at a local hotel. US Consul-General at Karachi, Douglas C. Rohn, and the City Nazim, Niamatullah Khan, counter-signed the agreement.
Addressing the ceremony, City Nazim Niamatullah Khan said that the ceremony follows signing of a Memorandum of Understanding in October last year. He said that water is life and in future, wars will be fought not for land but for water.
Niamatullah Khan said that he had been discussing the possibility of desalination plants with many companies, but the same could not materialise till Mr Samiullah Khan offered the installation of two desalination plants of 25 mgd each on Built, Own and Operate basis.
The desalinated water will be supplied to industries and affluent people who can afford to buy and thus the 50 mgd water so saved will be supplied to city's deficit areas by the year 2007. This would be a good way to get around the high cost of desalinated water.

Need for courses on Sindh Development

Dear memon sahib,

I have been reading your writings on sindh house net for a long time, we even met at Sana convention at NJ when you and MR.Hafiz Shaikh were surrounded by friends and well wishers. Recently I visited sindh and stayed at jamshoro for six months. I call this my vacation in wilderness, i-e., social, political, economical and educational. somehow i am of the opinion that we should accept the fact that from 1947 onwards we have failed to play our constructive role as teachers, intellectuals, political leaders, and social reformers in improving the over all situation of sindhi people by not providing them with the true and worthwhile information.all knowledge and information we have been imparting is based on personal likes and dislikes and colored by our prejudice and image of others as created in our minds by our personal experiences. I am a witness to the fact that majority of our political and social leaders have kept on changing their ideologies and attitudes from time to time and confusing their followers and much more than doing any good to them.

Your writings at least bring to us facts and figures contributing to our knowledge and enabling us to refer to these figures when discussing the issues with others. I must thank you for that. Is it possible that Sindh house could start a series of short term courses (on line) or correspondence ones regarding development of sindh including various aspects and issues, present and future oriented? the participants of these courses may be awarded certificates or diplomas to enable them to compete in job market at national and international level. I personally look upon it as a service to our nation by providing our people not only with correct information but also equipping them with the knowledge and skills very much needed for future dialogue on the issues as well as, a solid steping stone to employment opportunities in related fields.

Thanks. sincerely,
DR.Qamar Wahid .(ms)

Economic uplift in all regions must for peace

Kasuri says economic uplift in all regions must for peace
By Our Reporter
(DAWN March 29, 2005)
KARACHI, March 28: Foreign Minister Khurshid M. Kasuri on Monday emphasized that the best assurance for the consolidation of global peace was in the economic development and prosperity of all regions. Economic progress in one region supported and complemented prosperity in the other, he said while expressing confidence that "the moment of opportunity could be converted into an initiative of peace, which would usher the people of South Asia in an era of greater prosperity and peace". He said that the agreement on the SAFTA in this connection would augur well for the economic well-being of South Asia. According to a press release of the ministry of foreign affairs, he was addressing students and faculty of the Institute of Business Administration. He claimed that the foreign office was geared to meet the rapidly evolving challenges and in securing the string of successes in the realm of foreign relations. He said, "A host of new issues including globalization, human rights, democracy, terrorism and environment had made their way to the centre stage of international attention and international relations were being reconfigured to underline the primacy of these issues and a few international norms were being rapidly evolved in these and other areas". Mr Kasuri said that in these challenging times, the conduct and direction of our foreign policy had enabled us to make the right choices and protect the interests of Pakistan's security and promote its economic and social development. He claimed there was appreciation of the role Pakistan was playing in the promotion of regional peace and security and in the containment of terrorism. He pointed out that the current international configuration had immensely altered the traditional diplomatic functions and practices. The dispersal of authority away from states, the predominance of economics over politics, and the growing role of NGOs in social movements highlighted the need for national governments to alter their modes of interaction with each other and with the relevant actors in the multi-centric world, he said. The foreign minister said that economic diplomacy was assuming greater importance in planning and execution of foreign policy. International relations were being reconfigured to underline the primacy of these issues and new international norms were being rapidly evolved in these and other areas. He further said that in view of the persistent challenges, the contours of our foreign policy were being constantly re-examined, refined and redefined, as necessary. He said that the emerging new international economic environment, influenced in several different ways by the process of globalization, had placed new responsibilities on the ministry of foreign affairs. Cognizant of these external changes, the foreign office had continued to pursue the country's economic agenda with commitment and vigour in promoting exports, foreign investment inflows and industrialization.

33pc of poor live in Sindh, Punjab: ADB

33pc of poor live in Sindh, Punjab: ADB
By Our Staff Reporter
(DAWN March 29, 2005)

ISLAMABAD, March 28: Over 33 per cent of Pakistan's poor population live in agro-climatic zones of Sindh and southern Punjab where skewed distribution of land is hindering poverty alleviation measures , reveals an Asian Development Bank (ADB) report. According to the latest report of the bank's Resident Mission in Pakistan, high poverty level exists in Sindh and southern Punjab. These two zones account for over 33 per cent of the poor and 29 per cent of the country's total population (17.5 per cent in the Punjab and 11.2 per cent in Sindh). Most of the cotton-growing districts in Punjab including Lodhran, Bahawalpur and Rahim Yar Khan are classified as 'highly deprived overall' and have low employment rankings, while Muzaffargarh, Bahawalpur and Rahim Yar Khan fall in the category of "high deprivation". The ADB mission has found that the percentage of rural population living below poverty line has increased over the time, especially since late 1990s. Using recent data, the study finds that Sindh and southern Punjab are "the poorest regions" in Pakistan. During the period from 1994 to 1999, poverty increased across all regions. Between 1999 and 2002, the Punjab and the NWFP were most adversely affected by poverty. While referring to various literatures, the report says that prevailing poverty trends in Pakistan date back to 1960s. Though there has been high growth rate in the agriculture sector during the decade, the beneficiaries of agricultural subsidies during this time were large farmers. Citing various sources the report said that in 1990, 69 per cent of the farms in Pakistan were owner-operated, 12 per cent by owners-cum tenants, and 19 per cent by only tenants. However, in 2000 the proportion of owner-operated farms increased to 78 per cent whereas the proportion of farms operated by owner-cum-tenants declined to 8 per cent and those by tenants to 14 per cent. Most of the owner-operated farms are smaller than five acres (79 per cent in 1990 and 83 per cent in 2000). A large proportion of farms operated by owners-cum tenants fall in the 25-50 acres category (24 per cent in 1990 and 18 per cent in 2000). Tenants-operated farms were generally less than 12.5 acres in size. Referring to various sources, the report says in Pakistan, 55 per cent of the non-poor and 63 per cent of the poor are land less while majority of the poor owns less than 5 acres of land. The proportion of land less house holds among the poor is the highest in central Punjab (74 per cent) followed by northern Punjab (72 per cent) and Balochistan (71 per cent). The poverty head count for households owing less than one hectare is 35 per cent, while for the land less, it is 40 per cent. The report has found the highest incidence of land inequality in Muzaffargarh, followed by Multan, Rahim Yar Khan and Vehari. "Due to unequal distribution of land, an increase in crop income serves to exacerbate inequality. Due to highly skewed distribution of land in rural Pakistan, farm income was found to be an unequally-increasing source of income during the early 1990s", the report adds. It says that wheat and rice appeared the most important crops for poor households while rich households depended on sugarcane and other crops. The report says that 47 per cent of rural households depend on either farm cultivation or livestock and incident of poverty is found higher among the latter.

Kalabagh out of water sector plan?

Kalabagh out of water sector plan
(DAWN March 29, 2005)
By Sabihuddin Ghausi
KARACHI, March 28: The much talked about Kalabagh dam does not find even a casual reference in the draft of the Medium Term Development Framework (MTDF) that stipulates an allocation of Rs293 billion for water sector out of the proposed total outlay of Rs2094.2 billion for the five-year period (2005-10). Of the Rs293 billion proposed for the sector, the federal government will be spending Rs242 billion and the provincial governments Rs51 billion. The document states that the allocated funds are insufficient for completing all the ongoing projects, and at least Rs16 billion would be needed even after the five-year plan period to complete a few of them. "This does not leave any room for any new project in the plan," the MTDF concedes. It points out that an important issue in the water sector is 'shortage of funds' for timely completion of the projects. It indicates the possibility of exploring resources outside the Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) and hints at approaching the private sector. The initial construction cost of the controversial Kalabagh dam was estimated at $12 billion in 1996 - at the current dollar-rupee parity it comes to around Rs720 billion. But taking into account inflation and other factors over the last 10 years, the construction cost would now be not less than Rs1 trillion which is almost equal to the current fiscal year's total budget outlay and about half of over Rs2 trillion development outlay being proposed for the next five years. After the approval of the fiscal responsibility bill which restricts the government from taking debts, both domestic and foreign, beyond a certain limit, the possibility of taking up a project of the magnitude of Kalabagh dam has to be ruled out. Reports suggest that the World Bank and other donor institutions have already indicated their inability to finance big dams in Pakistan and elsewhere in the world because of the public outcry against massive dislocation of population and environmental degradation. Since taking over in October 1999 President Musharraf has been consistently advocating the cause of Kalabagh dam. He has declared his intention to go ahead with the project despite its opposition in Sindh, NWFP and Balochistan. The MTDF estimates the total water requirement in 2010 at 178.3 million acre feet (MAF) for irrigation and non-irrigation purposes. The current water supply at the farm gate is 135.7 MAF. The MTDF investment is expected to raise water supply to 150.3 MAF, indicating a deficit of about 28 MAF. Under the irrigation programme, the government is taking up project like Gomal dam, raising of Mangla, Mirani, Sabakzai and Satpara dams, Greater Thal, Kachhi and Raini canals and repair and modernisation of barrages in Sindh and Punjab. In addition, revamping and rehabilitation of irrigation system in Sindh and Punjab, extension and rehabilitation of Pat Feeder and Khirthar canals and construction of 46 minors in Balochistan are being planned. All these projects are expected to augment water supply by more than 14 MAF which will bring an additional 3.2 million acres of land under cultivation. The MTDF draft recognises the need for a certain amount of seepages below the Kotri barrage. The chairman of flood control has been assigned the task of carrying studies on sea water intrusion below Kotri. There is a need of at least 10 MAF seepage every year to check sea intrusion.

Unemployment rate/ General Ahsan discussion

General Ahsan Saheb,
I full agree with your assessment that actual numbers on unemployment are in double digits in most parts of Pakistan. I know that in some parts of Sindh, these are over 50%.
Another point which caught my attention was that the data relates to 2002/03. It is indeed old data. It shows how slow our State Bank is in collecting and sharing the data. In some countries, employment survey is conducted every three months and the results are shared with public every three months too.
However, when it comes to regional distribution of unemploymnet, unemployment has been rising in Sindh where as it has been declining in many parts of Pakistan as well as in the nation as a whole.
If our government viewed all four provinces equally, they will be worried about why the situation in Sindh is getting worse. Further more, like a good parent, they will be taking corrective action on accelerated basis. Unfortunately, such a picture is not emerging.

Your input and help towards development of Sindh is always welcome.
Ali Nawaz MemonSindh Development Institute7204 Antares DriveGaithersburg, Maryland, USA 20879http://sindhdevelopmentinstitute.blogspot.com/sindhhouse@hotmail.com

----Original Message Follows----From: muneera zia <muneerazia1900@yahoo.co.uk>Reply-To: sindh-politics@yahoogroups.comTo: sindh-politics@yahoogroups.comSubject: Re: [sindh-politics] Unemployment rate rises in Sindh and declines nationallyDate: Tue, 22 Mar 2005 22:56:42 +0000 (GMT)

Dear All, These official figures are just laughable. Only the overseas Pakistanis take these seriously. Unemployment in Pakistan has always remained in double figures. The real figures are MANY FOLD more than depicted in State Bank reports. Otherwise, what is the reason of greatest number of suicides taking place in last three years, the one for unemployment/ economic reasons. If the rates are so low, how come the poverty has risen to 40 percent from 26 percent about ten years back. In fact, there are areas in Sindh where poverty is at 80 percent. When Pervaiz Musharraf came to power, one of his promises to the people was that his government would never fudge the figures " as the previous govt was doing. "This is exactly what he is doing i.e. fudging the economic figures, in addition to fudging the democracy of course. Maj Gen Ahsan Ahmed (Retd) PPP London. Ali Nawaz Memon <sindhhouse@hotmail.com> wrote:

Unemployment rate rises in Sindh

Unemployment rate declines to 7.7 per cent
By Sabihuddin Ghausi (March 22, 2005)
KARACHI, March 21: The national unemployment rate has come down from 8.3 per cent in 01-02 to 7.7 per cent in 02-03 but employment opportunities in Sindh and Balochistan has shrunk during these two years , reveals the State Bank second quarterly report for 2004-05 released on Monday. The report quotes Labour Force Survey 04, which shows 41.8 million persons were employed in 03-04 as compared to 38.9 million in 01-02. "The economy added 2.9 million new jobs during two years period," the report points out. Of these additional jobs, 1.5m went to males and 1.4 million to females. The province wise employment data, however, presents a disturbing trend in Sindh where unemployment ratio went up from 5.2 per cent in 01-02 to 5.97 per cent in 02-03. In Blochistan too, the unemployment ratio went up to 8.19 per cent in 03 against 7.76 per cent in 02. The report attributes rise in unemployment ratio in Sindh "mainly to relatively higher increase in labour force." But is quiet as to how labour force in Sindh has increased. Obviously, the labour migration from Punjab to Sindh continues unabated as is evident from a decline of 1.14 per cent unemployment in Punjab. "It was only Punjab province that saw a major decline of 1.14 percentage points in unemployment rates," the report says while pointing out that since 60pc of the country's labour force is in Punjab, the improvement in unemployment rate in Punjab gives the impression of overall improvement. In case of Sindh, the unemployment rate has increased in both the urban and rural areas. But in other provinces the unemployment rates in rural areas declined more rapidly than urban areas. According to the report, the decline in unemployment rates looks even more attractive as it has taken place in face of an increase in national labour force from 42.4m to 45.2m. The agriculture sector created the highest number of 1.6 million new jobs. The report has also made a gender wise comparison, which reveals female employment has improved in all the four provinces. The urban female employment has shown a more pronounced improvement. Punjab holds 82 per cent of the total rural female force. A vast majority of female labour force is employed as unpaid family helpers. The data of major occupational groups reveal that female labour is concentrated in agriculture and fishery sectors.

Inflation may go up by 8.2-8.8pc, says State Bank: GDP growth over 7pc likely

Inflation may go up by 8.2-8.8pc, says State Bank: GDP growth over 7pc likely
By Mohiuddin Aazim (DAWN March 22, 2005)
KARACHI, March 21: Inflation may rise by 8.2-8.8 per cent during this fiscal year, up from about 4.6 per cent in the last year, says the second quarterly report of the State Bank released here on Monday. "Inflationary pressures in the domestic economy remain worrisome," says the central bank and admits that gradual tightening of monetary policy has failed to contain core inflation, adding that further tightening is needed. This indicates that interest rates may now rise at a faster pace. The central bank also admits that the concern about "sustained inflationary pressure is quite real" as it threatens macroeconomic stability and economic growth in the long term. During eight months of the current fiscal year, average inflation has already reached 8.9 per cent. The February inflation has touched an eight-year high of 9.95 per cent. The inflation was initially targeted to increase by 5 per cent during this fiscal year but later on, National Credit Consultative Council, the body that draws up monetary plan, revised it upwards to 7 per cent. The report that covers economic developments of July-December 2004 says that the GDP is likely to grow by 7.4-7.8 per cent during this fiscal year ending in June 2005, higher than the revised target of 7 per cent. The government had set the GDP growth target at 6.4 per cent for the current fiscal year but later on revised it to 7 per cent, up from last year's growth of 6.4 per cent. The central bank says the economy looks set to grow by 7.4-7.8 per cent on the strength of better prospects in agriculture and higher-than-expected performance of manufacturing and services sectors. It says that agricultural growth during FY05 will exceed the target of 4 per cent chiefly due to larger-than-expected cotton crop and timely rains. The SBP report says that cotton production will reach an all-time high of 14.2 million bales during this fiscal year, against the target of 10.7 million bales adding that this would offset the impact of relatively low rice and sugarcane production on overall agricultural growth. Rice production is estimated at 4.977 million tonnes and sugarcane crop at 47.938 million tonnes against their respective targets of 5.114 million tonnes and 50.875 million tonnes. The report gives no estimate of wheat production. The report says that industrial production measured by Index of Industrial Production grew by 15.4 per cent during July-December 2004 surpassing the full fiscal year 2005 target of 9.8 per cent with large-scale manufacturing showing a big growth of 16.1 per cent, far higher than the target of 12 per cent. Explaining reasons for projecting 8.2-8.8 per cent inflation for this fiscal year, up from an earlier estimate of 7.6-8.2 per cent, the central bank says subtly that the revision is rooted in government's inaction. It says that the earlier estimate of inflation was based on the assumption that the government "would continue to shield the domestic economy from large part of the rise in international oil prices and that food inflation would be contained as the government proactively sought to assure ample supplies of key food staples to avoid speculative attacks." But, it points out, that these assumptions have not materialized compelling the central bank to scale up its earlier estimate of inflation.

Lessons for Sindh/ Pakistan from China and India Experience

The recent IMF statement comparing business environment of China and India may be summarized as follows:

1. India is ready to take off economically but must make it easier forforeigners to do business in order to secure sustained growth

2. India lags well behind much of Asia in attracting foreign directinvestment. In 2003 FDI (foreign direct investment) to India totalled justfive per cent of gross domestic product compared to 31 per cent for Thailandand 35 per cent for China.

3. surveys consistently point to India as being one of the top two or threedestinations for FDI in the coming years, so opportunity is there for thetaking. What is perhaps important is to make India an easier place to do business

4. To start a business in South Korea it takes 22 days and in China 41. InIndia it takes 89 days

5. Enforcing a contract takes 425 days in India which is more than fivetimes longer than in Korea and nearly double than in China.

6. IMF called for "bold" economic steps to keep a growth momentum that wouldcreate 100 million jobs in the next 10 years.

7. India needs to put public finances on a solid footing and reducegovernment’s borrowing needs that would help free resources for privateinvestment.

8. While the economy has been growing robustly in recent years, India stillaccounts for less than one per cent of total global exports while averagetariffs are at about 22 per cent

I do not have comparable data for Pakistan. However, if Pakistan and Sindh want to develop and generate employment, they will have to follow swimilar policies. I must say that the idea of creating 100 million new jobs in ten years excites me greatly.

Kind regards,
Ali Nawaz Memon
720404 Antares Drive,
Gaithersburg, Maryland 20879
Phone 301-869-5447
Fax 301-869-3124

IMF says Indian business climate tougher than China

IMF says Indian business climate tougher than China
(The News, March 18, 2005)MUMBAI: India is ready to take off economically but must make it easier for foreigners to do business in order to secure sustained growth, IMF chief Rodrigo Rato said on Thursday. "India appears to be in the first stages of the sort of take off that several other Asian countries have experienced over recent decades," Rato said in a talk at the central bank to Indian financial experts and business leaders.
India’s business environment, he added however, needed to be eased to fuel long-term sustainable growth of more than eight percent. "India lags well behind much of Asia in attracting foreign direct investment," Rato said, pointing to the fact that in 2003 FDI to India totalled just five per cent of gross domestic product compared to 31 per cent for Thailand and 35 per cent for China.
"Yet surveys consistently point to India as being one of the top two or three destinations for FDI in the coming years, so opportunity is there for the taking. What is perhaps important is to make India an easier place to do business," Rato said.
The International Monetary Fund chief said that to start a business in South Korea it takes 22 days and in China 41, "but in India it takes 89 days." "And enforcing a contract takes 425 days in this country, more than five times longer than in Korea and nearly double than in China."
Rato called for "bold" economic steps to keep a growth momentum that would create 100 million jobs in the next 10 years. "India needs to put public finances on a solid footing and reduce government’s borrowing needs that would help free resources for private investment, which remains low by regional standards," Rato said.
"The government’s ability to finance large deficits domestically with apparent ease may have reduced the sense of urgency to make the difficult choices necessary to turn the fiscal situation around."Large deficits have a major, if almost "silent cost", he added.
India has been struggling to rein in its fiscal deficit over the last few years, with Finance Minister Palaniappan Chidambaram in his budget for the year to March 2006 targeting the deficit at 4.3 per cent of GDP.
Rato said despite the reforms over the past decade or so, the Indian economy remains a closed one. "While the economy has been growing robustly in recent years, India still accounts for less than one per cent of total global exports while average tariffs are at about 22 per cent," he said.

Views of a Visionary Economist

Visionary Economist Muhammad Yunus Shares Microlending Success Stories
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION: Helen K. Chang, 650-723-3358, Fax: 650-725-6750
May 2004
STANFORD GRADUATE SCHOOL OF BUSINESS — In Bangladesh, hundreds of thousands of people engage in one of the oldest occupations in the world: begging. They travel from house to house throughout villages each day asking for pennies or small amounts of food to feed themselves and their families. Some are the forgotten of society—the lame, the blind, and the limbless—who perch in strategic spots hoping that passersby will be kind to them. They represent the lowest rungs of the poor, the "hopeless" cases doomed to chronic poverty. Yet one man has come up with an ingenious strategy that is turning thousands of such people into viable entrepreneurs.
That man is Muhammad Yunus, head of economics at Bangladesh's Chittagong University. Yunus described to a rapt audience at the conference on Global Business and Global Poverty how he devised the concept of microlending and came to found the extraordinarily successful microfinancing enterprise Grameen Bank. He also related some of the bank's other entrepreneurial efforts, including the creation of the largest mobile telephone company in Bangladesh, Grameen Phone, and discussed the bank's latest efforts to help the poorest of the poor. So moving and inspiring was his address, and so pragmatically hopeful was his vision, that Yunus received a standing ovation.
The story began in 1974, Yunus recounted, when he could no longer tolerate "teaching about elegant fields of economics" in the midst of people who were literally starving to death all around Chittagong University. Leading students on a local field trip, he interviewed a woman who made bamboo stools and learned that after repaying the usurious middleman for raw bamboo each week she was left with only a penny profit. He compiled a list of 42 such people who suffered similarly at the hands of lenders and discovered that the total amount of money they needed was a mere $27.
"I realized that it was within my capability to solve the problem, so I gave the money, the $27, and got them liberated from the clutches of the money lenders," Yunus recalled. "This created such excitement among the people in the village that I wanted to continue. I said to myself, if you can make so many people happy with such a small amount of money, why shouldn't you do more of it?"
When Yunus was unable to persuade the local bank to loan money to the poor, he offered himself as the guarantor. "I started signing papers, taking money from the bank, and giving it to people for entrepreneurial activities. It worked perfectly," he told the audience at the May 19 conference organized by the Center for Global Business and the Economy at the Stanford Graduate School of Business. "People were paying back 100 percent without a problem." So encouraged was he by the success of the project that in 1983, Yunus set up his own independent institution, Grameen Bank, and continued to expand microlending throughout the country. Today, the bank has 3.5 million borrowers, 95 percent of whom are extremely poor women, and has given out more than $4 billion worth of loans at a 99 percent recovery rate.
"With an average loan of $200, people invest in small businesses and change their lives," he said. Poor women not only gain financial self-sufficiency, they are able to send their children to school and college and thereby break the cycle of illiteracy. Each year, the bank offers thousands of student loans and more than 6,000 scholarships.
Six years ago, when the government decided to liberalize the telecommunications sector, Grameen Bank successfully applied for a license to sell phones. The bank created thousands of small business opportunities for borrowers to sell mobile phones in rural communities without electricity. "Everybody thought it was a crazy idea, but it became a roaring success," he said. Grameen Phone has provided borrowers with an almost instantaneous opportunity to move from poverty to economic sustainability.
Last year, Yunus came up with the idea of helping the very poorest people—beggars—to begin lifting themselves out of poverty, as well. The ingeniously simple plan involves offering beggar women the option of selling merchandise such as food, toys, and knickknacks to homes where they solicit. The women are given a special Grameen identity card—"so that people start looking at them in a different way," said Yunus—and are allowed to borrow merchandise from local stores, sell what they can, and return the rest at the end of the day. The bank covers the loan.
The response has been extremely heartening. By the end of this past April, Grameen had 9,000 beggars voluntarily participating in the program, each operating on a typical loan of $10. Their services have come to be in considerable demand, given that household women are forbidden to shop on their own.
Tacking on one more piece to the project, Grameen has offered stationary beggars—generally those who are blind or missing limbs—the option to sell small foodstuffs at their beggar's bowl. "Since they sit in very strategic places, they already know how to run a business," commented Yunus. "They now give passersby the choice as to whether they want to throw in a penny or buy a soft drink or a banana. All we need to do is put a roof on top and they become businesswomen, right there."
Although Yunus has created a business model in which social good, not profit, is the objective, in 2003 alone Grameen Bank made more than $11 million, proving that the two goals are hardly mutually exclusive. In closing, Yunus briefly mentioned other "social business entrepreneurship" ideas, such as the creation of a "social stock market" in which the primary goal of the shareholder is not to obtain greater dividends but rather to support organizations that are helping reduce poverty, clean up the environment, improve health, and accomplish other worthy goals.
Yunus acknowledged that such ideas inevitably seem unviable at the beginning, but he encouraged the audience to think positively and boldly. "At Grameen, we don't have any legal instrument between the lender and the borrower, and it is a very scary thing when we are lending more than $4 billion," he said. "Everybody asks, 'What will happen if nobody pays back?' I say, 'But everybody pays back, so why should I worry about it?'"
Yunus was an unscheduled speaker at the conference on Global Business and Global Poverty. A change in his travel plans allowed Yunus to join speakers from four continents at the event, sponsored by the new Center for Global Business and the Economy at the Stanford Graduate School of Business. The Center hopes to open new areas of research into issues faced by business, governments, and nonprofit organizations operating around the world. It is codirected by Business School professors John McMillan and John Roberts.

Elections, Governance and Development in Montogomery County

I just came back from a Steering Committee meeting to elect Steve Silverman as County Executive of Montogomery County, which is a suburb of Washington DC. The election will be held in November 2006, but the campaign has already started.
I am sharing this with you because this has important lessons relating to elections, governance and economic development of SINDH AND pAKISTAN. I intend to use this first hand experience from now through elections to tell you about american democracy and to draw lessons for Sindh and Pakistan.
Montogomery county is one of the richest counties in USA and has budget of several billion dollars. For example, it spends about 16,000 per year on education of each child per year as compared to less than $10 in many developing countries.
For the post of county executive, so far we have two democratic party candidates. Steve Silverman and Ike Legget. One belongs to jewish community and another to african american community. Both have served as Presidents of the County council (assembly) and are well known and well versed with issues of the community. I know Steve more closely and personally. He has been sympathetic to issues of interest to me. Accordingly, when he asked me to serve on his fifty member Steering Committee, I was happy to do it. Today was the first meeting of the committee with well focussed discussion on how to get Steve elected. The meeting was held at home of one of his supporters.
As we arrived, each of us was given a brochure about what steve has achieved todate. We also received a form asking how each of us can help. We were asked to fill it out. 16 WAYS TO HELP STEVE were suggested. It asked whether I will be willing to host a coffee party at my home, whether I will make a donation, write to newspapers, call and convince my friends etc. One of the most important questions was whether I will serve on one or more of Steve's ISSUE ADVISORY BOARDS. The advisory boards relate to
(1) ENVIRONMENT, (2) ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, (3) TRANSPORTATION, (4) PARKS AND RECREACTION, (5) AFFORDABLE HOUSING(6) HEALTH CARE(7) SENIOR CITIZEN ISSUES(8) MINORITY OUTREACH(9) RELIGIOUS OUTREACH(10) EDUCATION(11) ISSUES INVOLVING PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES(12) OTHER
I suggested that we should also have advisory board relating to PUBLIC UTILITIES WHICH INCLUDE ELECTRICITY, WATER, SANITATION AND TELECOMMUNICATIONS since prices of these services are becoming very high.
During his speach, Steve emphasized that ultimately election will be decided on basis of how the voters feel about approach of the candidates relating to issues important to them. He told us not to worry about money at this stage. He requested each of us to introduce him to our friends and community groups that we belong to. HE MADE IT CLEAR THAT ELECTION PROCESS, GOVERNANCE OF MONTOGOMERY COUNTY AND DEVELOPMENT WILL BE INTERCONNECTED.
This is early stage of the campaign. But I wanted you to know that this particular candidate is interested in issues. Through the advisory boards, he wants to develop the positions that he can and will support.
This does sound a little different from elections back home, doesn't it? I THINK THAT IF WE WANT DEVELOPMENT OF SINDH AND PAKISTAN, WE WILL HAVE TO MAKE SURE THAT ELECTIONS, GOVERNANCE AND DEVELOPMET REMAIN INTERCONNECTED. IF SOME CANDIDATE OR PARTY FAILS TO KEEP COMMITTMENTS, THEY WILL HAVE TO BE DEFEATED NEXT TIME AROUND. This will sound elementry and naive to many. However, unless we believe and act, things will remain same as they have been for more than fifty years.
Kind regards,
Ali Nawaz MemonSindh Development Institute7204 Antares DriveGaithersburg, Maryland, USA 20879http://sindhdevelopmentinstitute.blogspot.com/sindhhouse@hotmail.com

Business Can Help End Poverty, Says BP's John Browne

Business Can Help End Poverty, Says BP's John Browne
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION: Helen K. Chang, 650-723-3358, Fax: 650-725-6750
Month 2004
Browne
STANFORD GRADUATE SCHOOL OF BUSINESS — "Poverty is not inevitable," John Browne, group chief executive of the energy giant BP, told the conference on Global Business and Global Poverty. Business, government, and global institutions, he said, are proving that through their combined efforts. "Change for the better is within our grasp."Browne drew upon impressive statistics to show that the dismantling of trade barriers and the opening of markets have helped raise the economic status of the entire world. Living standards rose more than twice as fast in the second half of the 20th century as they did in the first, he said, because from 1950 to 2000 world trade grew "by a remarkable 1,700 percent." Open markets also have led to the spread of knowledge and best practice, improved environmental conditions, better health, and enhanced human rights. "The case which links globalization and progress is pretty strong," he said.Browne acknowledged the "dark sides to globalization": terrorism, the traumatic disruption of established patterns of economic activity, governmental and corporate corruption, and a sense of public unrest and unfulfilled expectations. Corporations can maintain globalization as a positive force, he said, if they take a direct interest in the health and stability of the places in which they operate.Drawing on a striking historical example close to home, Browne observed that Stanford University's founder, businessman Leland Stanford, proved how simply providing educational opportunity to an impoverished area could turn it around economically. "[Stanford] wanted to create an institution at a time when this part of California was one of the poorest and most disadvantaged areas of the United States," said the Cambridge-educated physicist, who is also a graduate of the Business School's Sloan Management Program. Stanford "certainly succeeded, and in doing so demonstrated what a sustained commitment to education can achieve."Browne spoke as part of the May 19 conference organized by the Center for Global Business and the Economy at the Stanford Graduate School of Business. BP is one of the Center's founding donors. Knighted by the Queen and made a life peer, Browne is known outside of his BP role as The Lord Browne of Madingley. A 38-year veteran of the energy giant, Browne recently was named most admired CEO by the publication Management Today.Business can help improve the quality of life around the world by bringing investment, jobs, and educational opportunities to communities in which global companies operate, he said. Business also can contribute by protecting local environments."The greatest enemy of the environment is not development but poverty itself," Browne said, adding that the struggle of people living at subsistence levels can lead to great habitat damage. "Development and investment give people more and better choices," he said. "Technology and the spread of global best practice can protect land and water supplies and improve the fuel mix—reducing dependence on coal and wood, containing the uncontrolled use of land, and giving people the opportunity to use resources in ways which are sustainable."Another imperative for sustainable success, observed Browne, is that companies remain "transparent"—that they declare publicly what they are paying to governments and workers, eliminate bribery and facilitation payments, and avoid involvement in politics and partisan issues. Globalization, he said, should not be "a new form of colonialism in which a tiny, self-perpetuating elite grow rich at the expense of everyone else."Browne included a plea for the continued elimination of protectionism around the world. "In many of the places where poverty is at its worst, business can't operate," he said. "Markets are closed or biased against their competition. Investment and profits are restricted or banned altogether. I believe there is a strong and direct correlation between the successful open activity of business and rising living standards."Governments, private firms, and international institutions such as the World Bank and the World Trade Organization must coordinate their efforts to develop local talent and infrastructure, establish international standards, and resist corruption, Browne maintained. He pointed to proposals made by British Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown designed to support investment in education and health care and link the distribution of funds to the country's transparency and governance as exemplars that leaders and organizations internationally can draw upon in their own efforts.Browne enthusiastically endorsed the Business School's new Center for Global Business and the Economy as an enormously important effort in the worldwide struggle against poverty. "There is no excuse for fatalism," he enjoined.
—Marguerite Rigoglioso
Video File, 41:21 minutes
Transcript of Speech (on BP's Web site)
Center for Global Business and the Economy
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Microlending: An Anti-Poverty Success Story
Visionary Economist Muhammad Yunus Shares Microlending Success Stories
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