The Spokesmtan by The Spokesman

TUESDAY FEBRUARY 12, 2013

TOP TEN OF MULTIPLE MARRIAGES PG I 03 RAWALPINDI/ISLAMABAD DAILY

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THE VIEW FROM AFGHANISTAN

THE FADING SOUL OF PAKISTAN’S DIVERSITY

– TAHIR ALI

– ZEEBA T. HASHMI

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VOL V, NO. 299

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America ‘tests’ Pakistani route for Afghan pullout

50 containers sent through Pakistan on Sunday Other routes for shipping 70,000 vehicles and 120,000 containers also being considered

KABUL: The US military has started to withdraw equipment from Afghanistan through Pakistan ahead of next year’s deadline for combat troops to leave the war against the Taliban, an official said Monday. Two convoys, each hauling 25 shipping containers, entered Pakistan at the Chaman and Torkham border crossings on Sunday as part of the US redeployment of equipment from Afghanistan, US Lieutenant Colonel Les Carroll said. “The passage of these convoys marks the first US shipments from Afghanistan through Pakistan since July

2012,” Carroll said. Carroll said the two convoys had been sent through Pakistan as a “test” as the military decides how best to withdraw the huge amount of US and NATO equipment in Afghanistan, more than 11 years after a US-led invasion brought down the Taliban. “There are still 100,000 men and 200 bases. Some of the equipment will stay (in Afghanistan), some of it will be redeployed,” Carroll said. “We have got to use any feasible way to do that. The northern route and of course air are other solutions.”

Pakistani-US relations have now largely recovered and the outgoing US commander in Afghanistan, General John Allen, and his successor, General Joseph Dunford, on Thursday held talks with Pakistani army chief of staff, General Ashfaq Kayani. The New York Times reported last month that in the next two years NATO forces are expected to remove about 70,000 vehicles and 120,000 shipping containers from Afghanistan, and the way out will require rail lines and wellsurfaced roads. Although Pakistan is the most efficient and

cheapest route, the blockade and Pakistan’s past demands for more money have made Western officials wary of over reliance on Islamabad. The New York Times said officials in Uzbekistan have offered to provide a land route for equipment leaving northern Afghanistan if vehicles and military supplies can be left behind for them. The so-called Northern Distribution Network accounts for just over 50 per cent of NATO cargo transport and 40 per cent for the United States, which also receives around 30 per cent of its supplies by air.

SNEAK PEEK

Is Maulanaʼs bubble about to burst?

SC questions legitimacy of Qadri’s plea

Competition with Khakis on perks The key government positions that should be crucial for running the state machinery have become a victim to a game of musical chairs. It’s a mess in civil bureacracy. For now, a competition is on with their brethren in uniform for securing more perks and privileges, writes Amir Mateen in his column Politically Incorrect. Page 03

Court to decide maintainability of petition today PAT chief rules out delay in polls

Rupee reaches 100 against dollar The Pakistani rupee on Monday sank to an alltime low against the US dollar over Forex reserve fears as the country repayed $146 million to the International Monetary Fund. The rupee fell to 100.1 to the greenback in trading in Karachi, down from 99.30 on the open market Friday, and has now lost 39 per cent of its value against the US currency since March 2008. Page 09

Zardari expresses solidarity with young doctors President Asif Zardari, a practioner of real-politik as he is, sent bouquets to injured young doctors through a PPP team in a sign of solidarity. The president also enquired after PPP leader Shaukat Basra in the hospital. Page 04

Aﬄeckʼs ʻArgoʼ wins top awards at BAFTA Ben Affleck's "Argo" was crowned best ﬁlm at the BAFTAs while Daniel Day-Lewis bagged yet another leading actor award for the title role in "Lincoln" as an increasingly familiar awards season script unfolded. Affleck also won the best director trophy for "Argo", about the rescue of American hostages in Iran during the 1979 revolution. Page 10

Taliban threaten to ʻpurifyʼ Karkhano Market The shopkeepers of a famous business centre, located near Peshawar and also bordering Khyber Agency, Karkhano Market, are now receiving threatening letters from the Taliban’s Khyber Agency group to not sell ‘obscene movies’ and the medicines which are enhance male potency. Page 05

A rich legacy of chordophones, percussion instruments Contrary to popular belief, music has a rich history and strong routes in this region and it was encouraged by various Muslim rulers of the subcontinent as well. Mughal emperor Jalalud Din Muhammad Akbar’s love for the musical genius of Tansen is no secret and he was accorded the status of being one of the Navaratnas (nine jewels) in the emperor’s court. Page 02

A Pakistani customs official in Jamrud said that Sunday’s containers came from Bagram, the largest US-run air base in Afghanistan, and were trucked into Pakistan under tight security provided by paramilitary troops. Hanif Khan Marwat, the president of the All Pakistan Goods Carriers Association, said the convoys were on their way to the port city of Karachi. “The containers are carrying military equipment. This is the first time that such a big number of trucks are coming back to Karachi with NATO equipment,” he said. –AGENCIES

MASOOD REHMAN

ISLAMABAD: Tahreek Minhaj-ul-Quran Chairman Dr Tahir ul Qadri flashing the victory sign after a hearing at the Supreme Court. –ONLINE

Hatf IX missile testﬁred successfully

Nawaz favours ‘Bahawalpur’ Calls for new provinces on administrative basis Says government spreading chaos, unrest

OUR CORRESPONDENT RAHIM YAR KHAN: PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif Monday said that the government was not sincere in creating new province in south Punjab. Addressing a public gathering here, he said the government never wanted to establish new province but always created controversies. He said the aim of the government was to spread hatred among the people of Punjab and to extend chaos and unrest in the country. Nawaz said his party was committed to restore Bahawalpur province and would create new provinces on administrative basis, not on ethnic basis. The PML-N leader lashed out at the ruling government for bad governance which he claimed caused increase in sufferings of common people of the country. “If we would have given chance to serve the nation, the condition of the people would be different, the current government has enjoyed ﬁve years but did nothing for common man.” Nawaz said that reforms could be brought about and the system can be transformed if the voters would elect

sincere, dedicated and honest representatives so that corrupt practices in all ﬁelds could be rooted out. While claiming credit for the restoration of judiciary, he said it is the apex court which is initiating suo motu actions against corruption, law and order, extortions and unconstitutional acts. “We saved the judiciary as the country will be further strengthened with presence of strong institutions.” He said instead of accepting dictation from the US, he followed policies that were in the larger interests of the country. He stressed for immediate removal of the government, which he accused of indulging in massive corruption. Nawaz said Pakistan was in the midst of all sorts of problems, adding that agriculture sector had been hit hard by increase in POL and other input prices. He said the country was being run on borrowing from the State Bank, which was printing new notes to meet the government’s demand. He said this was leading to inflation and burdening the common man. He said labourers had no job while the poor had been pushed to the wall.

RAWALPINDI: Pakistan Monday conducted a successful testfire of short range surface-to-surface Hatf IX missile. As per the ISPR, the test fire was conducted with successive launches of two missiles from a state of the art multi-tube launcher. Hatf IX, with a range of 60 km, and in-flight maneouver capability can carry nuclear warheads of appropriate yield with high accuracy. This quick response system, which can fire a four missile salvo ensures deterrence against threats in view of evolving scenarios. Additionally the missile has been specially designed to defeat all known AntiTactical Missile Defence Systems. Addressing the scientists, engineers and military officers of strategic organizations, the CJCSC congratulated everyone on displaying a high standard of proficiency in handling and operating the state of the art weapon system. He said armed forces were fully capable of safeguarding Pakistan’s security against all kinds of aggression. –ONLINE

ISLAMABAD: A three-member Supreme Court bench on Monday directed Pakistan Awami Tehreek chief Dr Muhammad Tahirul Qadri to file a comprehensive reply today (Tuesday) explaining what legal justification he had to file a petition challenging the appointment of chief election commissioner and four members of the Election Commission. During the first preliminary hearing of Dr Qadri’s petition, the bench of Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, Justice Gulzar Ahmed and Justice Sheikh Azmat Saeed asked various questions from Dr Qadri who is pleading in person pertaining to maintainability of his petition. At the beginning of the hearing the CJ asked Qadri to first satisfy the court on what legal grounds he had to file such a petition and what was his right of claim. Dr. Qadri told the court that it was his first appearance in court and first of all he wanted to share his inner feelings with it, adding that he had taken part in the movement for restoration of the judiciary. The chief justice, however, urged him not to digress and stick to his case. He asked Dr. Qadri if a Canadian citizen could also keep Pakistan citizenship, to which Qadri replied he was a citizen of both Pakistan and Canada and immigration documents would be submitted in due course. The CJ asked Qadri the basis for his acquiring Canadian citizenship and if he felt his life was in danger in Pakistan, to which Qadri responded that he acquired Canadian citizenship in 2005 after resigning from the National Assembly. “This makes it evident that you are the citizen of Canada for a long time

and there is a bar on you to become a member of parliament under Article 63,” the CJ told Qadri, adding “you must prove how and under what law you have the right to file a petition for ECP reconstitution”. The CJ asked Qadri whether he could read out the oath of allegiance he had taken while attaining the Canadian citizenship. Dr Qadri replied that he did not have a copy of that oath on him, nor was this a question to be asked here. Justice Azmat Saeed told Dr. Qadri that was for the court to decide. The CJ told Qadri, “You cannot become a citizen of a country unless you take an oath of allegiance to that country. If I take an oath of allegiance to any other country being the chief justice, I will not remain the chief justice”. Subsequently the CJ read out the oath of Canadian citizenship and asked Attorney General Irfan Qadir if a person with dual nationality had the legal right to file such a petition. The AG said there was no restriction on dual nationals to file such a petition and since the court had extended its jurisdiction in cases of public interest, it was difficult to object to Qadri’s petition. The court adjourned the hearing for today (Tuesday), when it will decide whether Qadri’s petition is maintainable or not. Dr. Qadri stated in his petition that the ECP’s incumbent members had not been appointed in the manner laid down in the constitution, thus their appointment and continuation was unconstitutional, invalid and void ab-initio. Online adds: Dr Qadri told journalists outside the Supreme Court that he did not think his petition calling for the reconstitution of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) could lead to a delay in the upcoming general elections.

Pak-Iran gas line nears materialisation

Pakistan hands over feasibility report on design to Iranian side despite constant US pressure

SAHTAK BALOCH ISLAMABAD: In an ‘unexpected and surprising’ development, Pakistan has handed over its feasibility report on the design of the mega $1.5 billion Iran-Pakistan Gas Pipeline Project to lay to rest the unending wait that literally took a lifetime to enter into the phase of materialisation. The all-crook American corridors of power had jumped into action with panic, restless and extreme confusion to stop this sensationally nervewracking project; however, the

courageous individuals from both sides rejected Uncle Sam’s pressure, as rightly appreciated by sources of this correspondent in the petroleum arena. “Those who have signed this great project are the sons of the soil. They have duly abided by the greatest responsibility on their shoulders, to resist the unholy pressure from evil Americans. The history will remember them in a crying but respectful voice, mind you guys,” a well-informed official in top corridors of the petroleum ministry said in a whispering tone to this scribe. He

minced no words to salute the framers of the great project whose chastity bears no doubts or limits. The gas ﬂow from the Iranian side will reach Pakistan by December 2014. Both sides will sit tight to each other’s cleaned ears to whisper what is believed as a historically monumental strategy to go about this great project today (Tuesday). The gas from Iranian wells will help Pakistan dealing with the crunching energy crisis. The Pakistani delegation, in a secretive mid-night whisper onto the Iranian delegates, has asked them to

provide thorough details of the workplan, cost of the project and the project’s quality (that has to stay uncompromised, of course), according to the sources. The Iranian delegation is headed by the deputy chief of Tadbir, a petroleum ﬁrm, while the Pakistan’s side is led by the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Resources secretary that also includes managing director of Inter State Gas Systems (ISGS) and senior officials of ﬁnance and law ministries. The project to be completed by

December 2014 will first bring 750 million cubic feet gas per day in the 781 kilometres long pipeline with diameter of 42 inches. Later on, the gas flow will increase up to one billion cubic feet per day. Iran has already constructed more than 900 kilometers of the pipeline on its territory. It has offered to give Pakistan $250 million loan to help finance the project and has pledged to secure $500 million to complete the Pakistani section of the project and the rest will be provided by the Pakistani government.

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2013

Florists begin stocking flowers for Valentine’s Day ISLAMABAD: The arrival of the Valentine’s Day is always a blessing for the city’s florists, as they can earn a huge amount by selling colorful bouquets and flowers. The flower sellers are impatiently waiting for the day sitting in their beautifully illuminated shops. They usually stock tonnes of flowers, especially the beautiful fragrant roses. Some of them have already placed large number of orders to nurseries for fresh stocks of red roses. Some will start storing flowers in deep freezers a week ahead to keep them fresh and avoid shortage. Valentine’s Day provides an opportunity to make grand sales

Azerbaijani Speaker calls on Kundi

even more than any other event like New Year and Eid occasions. From the start of February, the shopkeepers start decorating their places with the red-colored stuff like balloons, teddy bears, cards, romantic poetry books and colorful ornaments. The Valentine’s Day in Pakistan is always complicated as some people are against celebrating it and some others love to celebrate it. Yet there is another category who believe that it’s a personal matter of everyone. Nowadays the day is becoming more popular among the youth of the country. They give ﬂowers, gifts and chocolates to their loved ones.

Non-teaching employees to strike from today SAJJAD BALOCH

ISLAMABAD: Non-Teaching Employees of the Federal Directorate of Education have announced a strike for the resolution of their long standing issues from today (Tuesday). Imran Mughal, the chairman of the Shaheen Group of the Non-Teaching Staff, told The Spokesman that all schools and colleges of capital territory would remain closed until the government would accomplish their demands. They demanded health allowances, regularization of daily wagers, implementation of Federal Services Tribunal (FST) decision regarding promotion of Lab Assistant, salaries of 40 sanitary workers who were appointed in 2011 and fee exemption of Non-Teaching Staff children. “We have been on the roads for the last two years demanding our long standing issues, every time we are approached by the government and but our problems are still there,” the protesting Non-Teaching Staff said.

Difficult wait for test reports at PIMS Patients and attendants have to wait in long queue at the Report Section HOMER BALOCH

ISLAMABAD: Patients and their attendants have to wait for hours in a queue to get their medical tests report from the General Report Section where only three persons are treating them and it looks like the management or the executive director of the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) has no concern over the situation. The largest hospital in the federal capital is relying on only three men to treat a crowd of people who visit the hospital every day to get the test reports of their patients but they are forced to wait for hours in queue to get the reports. Asif Khan,

who was standing in a line to collect the report of her younger sister who was admitted in Surgical Ward, said “I am waiting in this line for almost two hours to get report but the queue doesn’t seem to be moving, a person who came an hour earlier than me is still in the row." Abdul Rauf was also waiting to get the test report of his father, admitted in Nephrology Ward. He said, “I was told to collect the reports of my father yesterday and I waited here for almost three hours for my turn but then I was informed that the section is closing and I may wait for the next shift to come or to get the report

tomorrow, and you can see today again I am in the row and the situation seems to be repeating same as yesterday.” An official from the Laboratory Section requesting anonymity conﬁrmed that only two to three persons are handling the patient reports. “Every day we treat thousands of patients who sometime get furious while waiting in the row and argue with us but the situation is out of our control as we need more staff here to handle the patient reports. We need more staff here to deal with the crowd,” the official stated. He said various times they have requested the administration to

provide them more staff but they always advise us to manage with the same staff. When contacted, PIMS spokesperson Waseem Khawaja told The Spokesman that, “Yes there are long queues of people outside the Reports Reception but it never happen that a patient or person do not get the report.” “The number of staff may be increased in case a written application is forwarded to the administration regarding the issue, but no one has complained to us about the issue yet. But again it depends upon the administration to either itself take notice of the issue or not,” he said.

MOIZ KARIM

Open electric wires threaten residents ISLAMABAD: Unsafe and hazardous electricity wires in several buildings are posing a great threat to the lives of pedestrians and residents of rural areas of the capital. The public and social circles while expressing their concern over the situation underlined that electricity meter boxes in large sizes are in dilapidated condition, with some broken, while open wires lying on the footpath are posing a grave threat to the lives of the people. Kashif Saeed, a resident of Garden Town, New Shakrial while expressing over the situation said: "These dangling wires are posing threat to the visitors especially to the kids." The web of electricity wires in some of the places are discouraging visitors to visit the market, said a shopkeeper. ONLINE

Contract workers stage sit-in ISLAMABAD: The employees of Central Directorate of National Savings held a sit-in in front of National Press Club after the failure of the talks with the management. The contract staff of CDNS have asked for four month salary and annual increment but the administration refused to accept the genuine demand as the talks among staff and management failed. The contract employees were on strike for realization of their one point charter of demand . After their protest the administration of Central Directorate of National Savings called the meeting of the employees. The second round of talks was held at the residence of DG CDNS Zafar Sheikh in which Director Operation Raﬁque Sheikh also participated. During negotiations DG assured contract employees to pay their four month’s salary forthwith as well as annual increment would also be granted to them. The employees told the director general if their demands were fulﬁlled then there would be no strike. But after the lapse of four months, the contract employees could not get their pending salaries. ONLINE

Hike for health in the Margallah Hills

ISLAMABAD: More than 250 students from various schools and colleges participated in a hiking expedition, titled ‘Hiking for Health’, on Monday at the Margallah Hills. The event, organized by the Aga Khan Youth & Sports Board for Rawalpindi and Islamabad, aimed at spreading awareness on health related safety issues. Civil society members and doctors also participated in the hike, which kicked off from Trail-02 Margallah Hills Parking Area at early morning and concluded in the afternoon. Speaking on the occasion, doctors briefed the participants about various health issues and precautionary measures to prevent harmful diseases through healthy exercise. The doctors stressed upon the participants to make exercising a part of the daily routine to live a healthy life. Upon reaching Daman-e-Koh, the participants were enthused by different games and activities such as puppet shows, dancing and singing competitions.

ISLAMABAD: Speaker of the Parliament of Azerbaijan Oqtay Asadov and Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly of Pakistan Faisal Karim Kundi held a meeting in the Marriott Hotel and discussed matters of mutual interest. The meeting was held on the sidelines of the ongoing First General Conference of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Economic Cooperation Organization. The two Parliamentary leaders extensively deliberated on the friendly relations between the two countries and appreciated each other’s support in the regional and international forums. Among others, they also discussed the Charter of the new ECO parliamentary Assembly and foresaw its effective future role for strengthening democratic / representative institutions in the PAECO member countries. They expressed the belief that the new body would facilitate trade and economic development in the region by complementing the efforts of the ECO states. Beneﬁtting from the meeting, the two sides also underlined the need for connecting and linking the ECO Countries through road communication for their common development and regional prosperity. On this occasion, the Deputy Speaker National Assembly said that there was an urgent need for creating a business community among the ECO Countries, empowering women, and ensuring youth participation in the overall activities in the region. The new role for the youth leaders who held the future in their hands was a call of the time which must be responded. ONLINE

ISLAMABAD: Laborers loading a huge billboard stand to a Shehzore truck unsafely in F-6. ONLINE

CDA sleeping as wedding SC directs judges to identify functions in parks ﬂout ban ghost schools in one month ISLAMABAD: Wedding functions are being held unhindered in all the parks and plots of federal capital causing inconvenience to the citizens. Ban is in place in pegging tents in green areas, parks and open fields but this ban is being flouted blatantly in all the sectors particularly sectors G 6, 7, 8, 9, I 10 and I 11 where all the parks are seen seething with marriage functions, valimas and other wedding related ceremonies. Capital Development Authority has taken no step to stop this illegal practice of occupying parks and grounds by the marriage ceremonies organizers and putting the life of the citizens at stake amid the unremitting aerial firing. The three days including Friday, Saturday

and Sunday are selective days in connection with marriage ceremonies and no park or ground is left vacant by the wedding parties’ organisers. All the parks turn into garbage depots as no cleanliness arrangement is made by the wedding parties’ sponsors after the conclusion of functions. Police also keeps mum over the bouts of aerial firing which continues the whole night. Several casualties have reported due to the aerial firing but no action has been taken against the violators of anti aerial firing rules. The citizens have demanded of the government to take immediate measures to stop holding of marriage ceremonies in parks, green belts and open fields. ONLINE

STAFF REPORT

ISLAMABAD: A three-member bench of the Supreme Court on Monday directed the district and sessions judges across the country to conduct a survey of schools and report within 30 days how many schools were working and how many others were ghost schools. The bench comprising Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, Justice Gulzar Ahmed and Justice Sh. Azmat Saeed was hearing a case pertaining to hundreds of ghost schools where teachers did nothing but drew salaries and buildings were being used for animals by the inﬂuential. During the hearing, the chief justice noted that hundreds of schools were being used for animals and their buildings had been turned into stables. “What are we doing to our children when education

is a constitutional right?” the chief justice remarked. The petition on the matter was ﬁled about a year ago by a charity in Sindh, requesting the SC to investigate fake schools, most of them in rural districts of the country. The court directed the district and sessions judges to carry out survey of schools, unearth the ghost schools and submit a report until March 18. Justice Gulzar Ahmed noted that the government had failed to provide any answer or details about the state of ghost and non-functional schools, while apparently funds and salaries were being disbursed as buildings remain abandoned or occupied by animals. Although it is not the job of the court but the court has to enforce fundamental rights enshrined in the constitution, the CJ said. The court was told by the petitioner, Rahmatullah, that 60,000 children were not going to school in rural Sindh district of Matiari alone.

A rich legacy of chordophones, percussion instruments Pakistan has the most intricate and elaborate musical devices apart from traditional Dhol, Duff and Shehnai SHANEL KHALIQ

ISLAMABAD: Contrary to popular belief, music has a rich history and strong roots in this region and it was encouraged by various Muslim rulers of the subcontinent as well. Mughal emperor Jalalud Din Muhammad Akbar’s love for the musical genius of Tansen is no secret and he was accorded the status of being one of the Navaratnas (nine jewels) in the emperor’s court. Even Muslim philosophers such as Al Farabi and Bu Ali Sina highlight the role of music in their works and quite a few musical instruments were introduced by Muslims themselves. One great example is Shah Abdul Latif Bhitai,

Sindhi suﬁ scholar, mystic, saint and poet, who introduced the Tanboor in the region. Apart from the traditional instruments such as Dhol, Duff and Shehnai that are still played at weddings and other joyful occasions, this region has seen some of the most intricate and elaborate musical instruments. The subcontinent has a rich legacy of a variety of chordophones and percussion instruments. The Spokesman digs into some of these instruments to revive this forgotten heritage. The Dilruba or the Indian harp is around 200 years old and has a special place in Eastern classical music. It has a considerable amount of similarity with

the Sitar but it is not ﬁngered in exactly the same way. The Dilruba consists of around 18 strings, it is bowed by the right hand and the strings are ﬁngered by the left. It is arguably a blend between the Sitar and the traditional Sarangi which itself a bowed instrument and is said to have been invented by a musician Mian Sarang in the court of Mughal emperor Muhammad Shah Rangeela. The Sarangi has ability to imitate the vocal chords closely when played along with vocals. Similar to these is the Chikara, which is also quite old. It can be differentiated by the tiny bells attached at the end of it to enhance the melodic sound produced. Other classical instruments include

the Surmandal. It is placed in the lap and strummed with one hand. The idea is to provide a drone. In musical terminology a drone is when a particular note or chord is sounded repetitively throughout the piece. The Tanpura is also another ancient musical instrument that resembles the Sitar to a great extent. It is played in exactly the same way as a Sitar but is also used to produce the drone effect. The four provinces also have their own legacy of various musical instruments that can date back to hundreds of years. The remnants of these are continuing because of the folk artists and musicians of these areas. The Tambaknari is a Kashmiri instrument made up using the most

primitive resources available. It is actually a goblet which has goat skin stretched on the larger opening. It is played by the right arm and held under the left. Another indigenous instrument of the area is the Santur, which has similarities to a harmonium. It consists of a wooden box with metal strings attached on to it laterally. Similarly the Saroz hails from Balochistan. It is made up of ten strings generally out of which ﬁve are played at a time only. The Pakhtun region’s counterpart to the Saroz is the Sarinda. This is a wooden instrument made from Mulberry wood particularly with around nine metal strings attached which are played by a horsehair bow. However, Pakhtun music remains

dominated by the Rubab which is an essential element in almost all classical Afghan music. Pakhtun artists have evolved the use of the Rubab and it remains a key component of every genre of the Pakhtun music today as well. The subcontinent holds legacy to a wide range of percussion instruments as well. The Mugharmaan is one of the oldest forms of drums in the region that is popular in the Sindhi areas of Hyderabad and Tharparkar. The ancient Naqqara is famous for being played on joyous occasions or on welcoming royal guests. It has also been mentioned in the work of the great Rumi. The Majira is a pair of brass discs that are clasped together to produce rhythmic beats.

POWER ALLEYS |

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2013

Top ten of multiple marriages

enom Inc. This should not be held against me in a court of law as I solemnly declare that these are absolute lies, dirty whispers and wild speculation that I have heard while crawling in the dark power corridors of the creepy Capital. You will believe them at your own risk Shh...If you have venom to spill please don’t hesitate to share with us on our blog at www.thespokesman.pk

The power of the tele s elections come closer, different political parties are competing with each other to make media strategies. Robust media cells have been formed in every party; with huge amounts of money being kept aside for when D-day nears. We hear about all kinds of media buying. A few anchors are even asking for money openly. The going rate for 'programme selling'--a new concept where the anchor gives the choice of guests, mode of discussion and topic to the bidder, is one million rupees for mainstream news channels. If you want a series of programmes, the rate is obviously going to be different. And if you want to book the anchor for the entire season, that too is possible but it costs a fortune. But money is no issue with political parties, particularly for the ones in power. They have already set aside huge chunks from government funds as the Chaudharies did the last time. By the way the very company that the Chaudhary used against the PPP now works for the PPP. And this happened before the Chaudharies joined the PPP camp. Recently a senior bureaucrat in Punjab has been transferred on the charges of taking kickbacks in a media campaign. A local and national channel in Lahore are being pumped against the Sharifs in an attempt to isolate them in the public's eye so close to election date. A lot is happening on this front. The buying of smaller channels to contents to anchors--even owners. Sheshnag will keep you informed on this. But the latest to enter the fray is nobody else than our Man for Interior. He announced the other day in public that he is bringing his DM TV to Pakistan. That should be an interesting development, especially so close to the elections.

Victory is nigh?

he self-professed saviour of Pakistan's democracy failed to shake things in the apex T court yesterday during the ﬁrst hearing of his petition which seeks to reconstitute the election commission, a move which legal experts believe is downright impossible. Only time will tell if the present shenanigan will turn into something concrete, or will it fade into the abyss as did the Memo and so many others.

GHAZANFAR ABBASS ultiple marriages is quite a common practice among our politicians. No points for guessing the all-time Number One--nobody beats Mustafa Khar. Seven wives are conﬁrmed, the last being with a girl one third his age, but some counts also add one or two more. But the good thing about him is that he does it openly. In fact, he ﬂaunts his manhood. Ironically he shares a wife, Tehmina Durrani, with Shahbaz Sharif, who despite being number two in our count, is very sensitive about his weddings. This is despite being in public life, where it should be a normal issue for people to ask about the number of wives or children he may have. He married his cousin Nusrat, then he got married to Aliya alias Honey who he, according to media reports not denied by him, he divorced after family pressure. He never owned Tehmina publicly until Ms Durrani’s father died and his name was mentioned among the aggrieved family members in newspaper ads. We would not like to

speculate about his other affairs not matter how tempting. Son Hamza seem to be in competition with Shahbaz. As his father, he also gets offended when he is asked about the number of times he has got married. But he has been involved in at least two marital controversies before the media and the courts. But Azam Hoti recently got into news for his fourth wife. The news came out when the third ﬁled a case against him for not paying Mehr. Come on, Khan sb, why should you not share with her some wealth when you have shared so many things with her in the past—bed being one of them. The list of threesomes is a long one. But the most notables ones include Hussain Haqqani. He was married to a cousin before he married second time with Nahid Khan’s sister. His third marriage, we all know, is with Farah Naz Isphihani who refuses to take his name. It has nothing to do with her feminist views—she just hates the Haqqani network. Makhdoom Fahim has done it

No-Holds-Barred When people stand for public office the presumption is that they are better than others. But public figures here expect the same immunity as that of a private citizen. Politicians stall basic queries, even about the number of wives and children they may have, in the name of morality. We want to contest them through innuendo, humour and sarcasm—our best weapon in a society that suppresses information to the hilt.No hard feelings we hope—Editor

thrice for sure. He seems fetish about air hostesses as he met two of his wives in the air—if you know what I mean. I would not speculate on his other expeditions at all. Saeen being such a forgetful person that he forgot who deposited four million rupees in

his bank account. Hafeez Pirzada is also among the list of three timers in weddings if not more. He married Sameena twice. First when she was a student at Quaid-i-Azam University. Sameena then married Ayaz Amir before

Rifts in PML-N’s local chapter over new province AITEZAZ NAQI akistan Muslim League Nawaz's members of national and provincial assemblies from district Bhakkar claim to support the proposed “Bahawalpur Janoobi Punjab” province resolution in National and Punjab assemblies against their party policy. However it is their desire to see Multan as the provincial capital. Regarding the said issue, PML(N) MNA Rasheed Akbar Niwani rejected news of any demonstration against the inclusion of Bhakkar in the proposed province, saying that “no demonstration was held here, these are fake news as 99 % of the people support the inclusion of Bhakkar in the proposed province and we will go with the public opinion about this issue”. He showed his reservations against his party leadership on the issue, saying that “our development funds have been hijacked by Takht-eLahore”. We will stand against our party line if our leadership tries to separate Bhakkar district from proposed new province, he further said. Punjab Chief Minister Mian Shahbaz Sharif contested election from PP-48 seat of Bhakkar with Niwani’s support. He never visited his constituency afterwards and no development has happened there since. The people of Bhakkar have deep grievances against the PML (N) and its policy. They want to cede with Bahawalpur Janoobi Punjab province but the PML (N) is

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The people of Bhakkar have deep grievances against the PML (N) and its policy regarding the new province

Mojaan hi Mojaan for babus-VII

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opposing the public will, added a social worker from Bhakkar, Ahmed Khan. On the other hand, the MQM representative from Mianwali Hakim Khan Hathikhel and civil society blamed the PML (N) member of national assembly Umair Hayat Rokhri of orchestrating fake demonstrations against the demarcation of proposed province. Hakim Khan Hathikhel claims that Rokhri imposed mandatory vacation in the primary schools, to guise as a protest, using the provincial government machinery to make his leadership happy against the general public's will, whereas the majority of public and representative support the inclusion of district Mianwali in the new province. PPP vice president of southern Punjab Haider Zaman Qureshi states that majority of MNAs and MPAs of PML(N) belonging to south Punjab are willing to vote in the favour of the resolution and have deep concerns about the party policy against the new province. PML (N) MNA Saood Majeed says that they have showed their concerns to chairman of parliamentary commission, Senator Farhatullah Babar about the formation of commission which is against the demand made by Punjab

assembly resolution. PML (N) is the ruling party in Punjab and its number of members should be more than other party members in the Parliamentary commission. It is the PPP’s election stunt, no PML(N) member is against the party policy ,he claims. When the resolution of Bahawalpur Janoobi Punjab was tabled in the Senate, PML (N) boycotted the session and walked out over their reservations about the parliamentary commission report regarding new provinces in Punjab, followed by the two resolutions about revival of Bahawalpur province and Janoobi Punjab province. The PML(N) stance is that the commission has no mandate to make any province including Bahawalpur. They have deep concerns on demarcation of proposed province specially the inclusion of Mianwali and Bhakkar districts. Formation of parliamentary commission has been challenged in the high court and the matter is sub-judice. Demonstrations in support of the proposed province in Punjab by Saraiki nationalists are continuing in different districts of South Punjab and DI Khan of KP.

Syeda Shehla Raza @SyedaShehlaRaza IF I WOULD B AN INDIAN MUSLIM I WOULD NOT CAST MY VOTE FOR CONGRESS AND BJP AND THEIR ALLIES TO PROTEST THE KILLING OF AFZAL GURU SHARMILAFARUQUI @sharmilafaruqi #TUQ calls his canadian dual nationality a "Traveling Document".. Yeh teri sada dili maar na dalay humko!! Shoo Shweeet! Ayesha Durrani @AyeshaDurrani2 Now with more & more pre-election jalsas there will be more & more food ﬁghts. Sara Taseer Shoaib @sarataseer You can challenge someone, encourage them, and inspire them but you cant Motivate them. That needs to come from within, it's an inside job. Saima Mohsin @SaimaMohsin 50 thousand Pakistanis paid just one rupee, less than one cent, in income tax last year - #Pakistan is cracking down on tax evaders#CNN Rabia Zia @rabiaziauk Shame! "@TalatHussain12: Amitabh Bachaan is happy over Afzal Guru's murder. A foul deed made worse by celebrating it." Bakhtawar Bhutto Z @BakhtawarBZ 27 'Sweet Homes' established for orphans:http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?pag e=2013%5C02%5C11%5Cstory_11-22013_pg11_5#.URjmTrJzHsZ.twitter … farahnaz ispahani @ﬁspahani What will happen to the millions of dual-nationals who do not serve in the Pakistani parliament? Will Pak courts deny them rights? #SC Maleeha Lodhi @LodhiMaleeha US withdrawal is good news, for everyone. US starts using Pakistan route for Afghan pullout http://bigstory.ap.org/article/us-starts-using-pakistanroute-afghan-pullout … Nadia Jamil @NJLahori Someday I shall record & share th Parosis Murghas baangs w u.Play thm 24 hrs & youll know WHT we go thru.Every Kukkar cant sound ths insane! Sherry @CherieDamour_ There was a time, when being alone on the valentines day was the only tragedy in life ! #GoodOldDays Zainab jameel @Zainabjameel3 Farah Mahmood Wins Crown For Mrs. Pakistan World 2013..she is so beutifull MA pic.twitter.com/5x5XmVr1 Ayesha Siddiqa @iamthedrifter @Razarumi I am not sure about that today's BBC is not what it used to be it is closer to Pak estab & poor manpower has impact on quality

Competition with khakis on perks he key government positions that should be crucial for running the state machinery have become a victim to a game of musical chairs. Here is the state of affairs for the chiefs of the finance, tax-collection and the Prime Minister’s office. The Finance Secretary Amir Mateen has been reduced to a single-budget position. The PPP's five years in government has seen six persons on this job. Dr Waqar Masood alone has been in and out three times. He was replaced by Farukh Qayyum who was again changed by Waqar. Then Salman Siddique was brought in to replace Waqar again but only for a few months. Now the most important ministry is being run by a retired official Wajid Rana brought in on a yearly contract. What is going on here? Are they short of competent people? Should we trust a person, who is on contract with our budget, financial policies involving billions of rupees as opposed to a regular offi-

Politically Incorrect

cial who will remain answerable later also? Obviously, people are brought on this job to get ‘things’ done and then get changed when they fail to deliver to one vested interests or another. The story of the Board of Revenue is not different. It is one up on the Finance Division as it has seen seven chairmen in five years. They are Abdullah Yousaf, Ahmad Waqar, Sohail Ahmad, Salman Siddique, Mehtab Rizwi (acting charge), Mehmood Alam and now, as the finance secretary, the charge has been given to a contractual employee, Ali Arshad Hakeem, for two years. Ha-ha, as if he will survive on this job for two years. A similar pattern exists on most lucrative jobs from CDA Chairman to Establishment Secretary - nobody stays for long. The security of tenure for two to three years, a concept that was practiced from the days of the British, has been abandoned altogether. It is difficult to blame one person for any mess because of short tenures on the key postings. The pattern becomes more dangerous when it is practiced with the PM Office also. Siraj Shamsul Hassan was the first Principle Secretary to the PM, then Nargis Sethi came on an Acting charge and then became permanent after promotion to Grade 22. Then Khushnood

Lashari left a long trail of corruption charges as the PSM. The incumbent, Ayub Qazi is unique in some ways. Even his batch mates do not know about him. The only mentionable service he ever did was a stint at the PM’s Secretariat. He is known more as the PS to the PM’s family. He cannot be accused of any traces for any distinguishable achievement throughout his service. Yet he stands anointed on the most prized posting that requires super excellence. It’s a mess. Four parallel secretariats exist for the same job and compete with each other for more perks and privileges. Ideally, the Cabinet Secretariat should be responsible for coordination between the Cabinet and the govern-

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marrying Hafeez again. Nearly one sixth of the parliament seems among those who married a minimum of two times. But here only the names of Hamayun Akhtar, Raja Bisharat, Azam Swati, Ayla Malik should suffice.

ment. General Mushraf expanded the Presidential Secretariat as he ran the government from there. Mushrraf may have gone and the constitutional powers of the president curtailed in the 18th Amendment but Azis Zardari retains an even bigger staff. Nawaz Sharif built the Mughal-styled PM Secretariat to match President Ghulam Ishaq Khan’s power. The situation may have altered but the white elephant with round domes stays with a Special Secretary added by Shaukat Aziz as its head. The PM House too retains a full-ﬂedged staff as the PM hardly goes to his Secretariat. So where does all of this leads to? The bureaucracy has become a huge monster that is now part of the problem than a solution-provider. It

The khakis too have upgraded the posts of director general (DG) of ISPR from a Colonel to a major-general and DG ISI from a Brigadier to Lt-General with eight major-generals working under him. This goes without saying that the corps commanders, who are basically the uniformed members of the same Club-22, live a far more luxurious life.

requires lots of debate, research and political will to reform it. For now, a competition is on with their brethren in uniform for securing more perks and privileges. The khakis too have upgraded the posts of director general (DG) of ISPR from a Colonel to a major-general and DG ISI from a Brigadier to Lt-General with eight major-generals working under him. This is just to give you one example and to show where this reverse pyramid, top-heavy model in the civil-military bureaucracy is headed. This goes without saying that the corps commanders, who are basically the uniformed members of the same Club-22, live a far more luxurious life. But the military bureaucracy may have retained a solid system to groom their elite officers who are given ample exposure to a diversity of ﬁeld, secretarial and instruction experience to hone their leadership talent. And the criterion for promotion, at least to the level of two-star officers, is reasonably fair. But then a few disturbing trends have emerged on the military side also. The promotion of three major-generals from the ISI to the rank of Lt-general is a new trend. The impact of so many people from an arm that is trained and indoctrinated for a speciﬁc job in such leadership positions is something that we will have to see. A series on them some time later. Inshallah.

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2013

Female ECO lawmakers call for measures to empower women

NPC to hold free medical camp for journalists RAWALPINDI: National Press Club in collaboration with Pakistan National Heart Association will organise a free medical camp on heart diseases for the journalists and their family members on February 17. The free medical camp will continue from 10 am to 4:30 pm. Several heart diseases related tests including sugar, cholesterol, ECG, ultra sound and other checkups will be conducted in the camp. Prominent cardiologists including Gen Masood ur Rehman Kayani, Gen Ashore Khan, Col Imran Asghar, Dr Asad ul Islam, Dr Imtiaz Chaudhry, Dr Shahnaz Hamid will check up the patients free of fee. Medicines will also be provided free of cost. In connection with registration of name, coordinator free medical camp Khurram Butt can be contacted at mobile No 0335118418. President Press Club Farooq Faisal Khan and other office bearers have appealed to the journalists to reach the camp in time for medical checkup. ONLINE LAHORE: Patients and attendents wait in vain outside Services Hospital as young doctors continue their strike. ONLINE

Police nab 36 Sheesha smokers RAWALPINDI: City police station and New town raided in different Sheesha centres and apprehended 36 criminals red-handed. Upon receiving a secret information, city police raided Café Times located at College Road and arrested 12 persons who were busy in Sheesha smoking. The New Town police also raided another place, Hangout Café, situated at Malik Abad Plaza, and arrested 14 criminals. Meanwhile, they also launched operation in Blue Night Café located at Babrak Plaza and nabbed 10 Sheesha smokers red handed. Separate cases have been registered against them and police started thorough investigation. ONLINE

Traffic police accused of extortion RAWALPINDI: Accusing traffic police of imposing extra fine money, the United Transport Federation has threatened a strike against the traffic administration. The federation claimed that the traffic police was using high handedness tactics and was imposing extra fine on them to make money. They said that often they were fine Rs 2000 which is too high and have made them a fund raising source. The transporters threatened that if the police do not change its attitude then they would be forced to go on a strike. Although, the City Police Officer has assured the transporters that the challan would not be issued more than Rs 500. But the orders were not being implemented, the transporters said. ONLINE

Bail plea accepted in Baldia factory ﬁre case

President Zardari expresses solidarity with young doctors Sends bouquets to injured doctors; enquires after Basra; flies to Bilawal House without Wattoo OUR STAFF REPORTER

LAHORE: President Asif Zardari, a practioner of real-politik as he is, sent bouquets to injured young doctors through a PPP team in a sign of solidarity. The doctors, who were striking against the Punjab government for its non-acceptance of their demands, came on the wrong side of the Punjab police when they were attacked and their camp uprooted by the batonwielding riot police. Following the age-old edict of Italian prince Michaevilli, who believed enemy’s enemy is a friend, Zardari also visited Services Hospital on Monday to see his party’s Punjab comrade, Shaukat Basra, who was manhandled by the Punjab police during the raid on the young doctors. Basra had ended up in the hospital. Zardari praised the courage and valour of Basra and assured him that the days of tyranny were

numbered. The president wanted to visit injured doctors as well but security didn’t clear him and instead he sent his party’s women MPAs Najmi Saleem and Faiza Malik to convey the sympathies and ﬂowers from the president. President started the day with a visit to Governor House in the morning and after he departed he recalled that Punjab PPP

President Manzoor Wattoo also ﬂew in with him and he (the president) left him stranded at the Governor’s House. Though the other companions of his ride – Tanvir Ashraf Kaira and Raja Riaz – rode with him to Bilawal House. A bewildered Wattoo was soothed later by Punjab governor and sent to Bilawal House by car. PPP’s Punjab Secretary General Tanvir

Punjab releases detained doctors LAHORE: The Punjab government has ordered the release of all the arrested young doctors. According to media reports, Adviser to Punjab chief minister on health, Salman Rafiq said the doctors were being released as a goodwill gesture. He regretted the use of force by police against the protesting doctors. To a question, the adviser said that he was also sad for the injuries suffered by Shaukt Basra during the police crackdown. “Some parties want to use doctors for political gains,” he said. Rafiq pointed out doctors remained on strike throughout the year, urging them to correct their attitude. ONLINE

Promotion Bill challenged KARACHI: A petition has been ﬁled in the registry branch of the Supreme Court against out-of-turn Promotion Bill. The petitioner has stance that the bill was tabled in the provincial assembly on February 7 while the notiﬁcation for its approval was released on February 4. It has been said in the petition that the approval of the bill was against the Constitution, therefore, the Supreme Court should cancel the appointments made under the bill. ONLINE

130 Education Dept officers transferred QUETTA: The Education Department of Balochistan has issued transfer notiﬁcation of 130 officers. Before the advent of the general election, the provincial government has issued the transfer orders of the officers from scale 17 to 19. The EDOs of Jaffarabad, Barkhan, Panjgoor Kech Kharan and Khuzdar have also been reshuffled. The EDOs of Killa Abdullah, Killa Saif Ullah, Gawadar and Keechi have also been transferred. Notiﬁcation in this regard has been issued. ONLINE

Retired generals ask voters SC gives police a week to submit Kamran murder report to shun ‘baradri’ system PESA sees timely elections solution to many problems

KARACHI: Sindh High Court (SHC) on Monday accepted the bail plea of the owners of the Baldia Town factory and other accused. SHC judge Justice Ghulam Server Korahi accepted the bail plea of all the accused including two owners Shahid Bhaila and Arshad Bhaila. The court has directed both the owners to submit one million rupees surety bonds. The other accused including Mansoor Ahmed, the factory’s manager, will submit Rs200,000 surety bonds. The court has directed the accused to submit the surety bond immediately. On September 11, over 260 workers were burnt to death when fire engulfed Ali Enterprises, the factory situated in the Baldia Town area of Karachi. ONLINE

Ashraf Kaira categorically denied later that the miss was intentional. PPP Co-Chairman Bilawal Bhutto also had a busy day on Monday. He chaired a meeting of Faisalabad Peoples Party and got the sense of what was happening in Faisalabad. The young Bhutto was apprised of party position in Faisalabad and he heard the grievances of the group that opposes Punjab opposition leader Raja Riaz. Though the president and young Bilawal Bhutto are actively overseeing party’s election campaign but the party insiders who participate in Bilawal House meetings say that the president is apprehensive at the same time of attempts to get the elections postponed by the non-democratic forces. Without explaining the identity of larger agenda of these forces, the sources say, the president was determined to thwart the attempts of these elements.

ISLAMABAD: The Women Parliamentarians from Economic Cooperation Organization Countries on Monday emphasized on adopting special measures to promote women's economic, social and political progress in the region. They also expressed their resolve to join hands and raise a collective voice through initiating discourse and series of dialogue to address the emerging socio-economic needs and concerns of the women of the ECO countries. While undertaking ‘Islamabad Declaration’ here, they reaffirmed to make concerted and collective efforts to position women for undertaking meaningful role at the policies and decision making levels within all spheres of the political and socio-economic development. A joint communiqué issued after the first meeting of ECO woman parliamentarians said that woman MPs pressed for evolution of mechanisms that ensures positive and greater cooperation through launching ECO Woman Parliamentarians Forum. The meeting further extends its gratitude to the Parliamentary Assembly of ECO Countries for deciding to incorporate such an initiative into its Charter and to encourage the holding of its first meeting as the first agenda item at its First Conference being held here. Transmits the joint statement to the Executive Council with the request that the honorable Speakers individually and collectively would continue to facilitate in taking it forward Further requests, it is transmitted to the first meeting of the Women Parliamentarians at the First Conference of the Parliamentary Assembly of ECO Countries for attention as having taken place successfully and appropriately. ONLINE

RAWALPINDI: The Pakistan ExServicemen Association on Monday said that the prevailing chaotic environment in the country required in time elections on in the country. Election Commission of Pakistan must be made independent and powerful and all Constitutional issues must be resolved before elections to remove stigma of ‘muk muka’ and avoiding any controversies thereafter, it said. These demands came out in a meeting of PESA with its President Lt. Gen. Ali Kuli Khan (r) in chair. Others present included Vice Admiral Ahmad Tasnim, Air Marshal Masood Akhtar, Lt General Naeem Akbar, Brig Mian Mahmud, Brig Masud ul Hassan, Major Farouk Hameed Khan, Major Khurram Naveed Khan, and Naik Raja Muhammad Fazil. Formation of caretaker government should not be merely conﬁned to a deal between two groups in the parliament. Political parties outside the parliament must not be ignored as these command massive support, the former generals demanded. They added that views and aspirations of a broader segment of the populace must be taken in to account in formation of the caretaker set up. The meeting observed that huge amount of funds is being dished out in cash and in kind under different heads like charity, poverty alleviation and income support funds etc. which is as part of pre-poll rigging. Instead of helping the

economy to grow, these programmes have taken the country to record heights of debts and very close to bankruptcy. Election Commission must come out heavily to stop such unproductive expenditure just meant to lure the voters, the former military strategists said. They said that people are looking for a change; this can happen only if the voters free themselves from stranglehold of feudal lords and inﬂuence of ‘baradri’ system. It was decided that PESA will soon start a nationwide campaign in conjunction with other likeminded organizations to ask the people to vote on merit alone. The PESA members also took note of the situation created by plans to divide Punjab and create a province of Bahawalpur-South Punjab and strongly opposed creation of provinces on ethnic basis, in a hurry. They expressed deep concern about the deterioration of law and order saying that despite orders from the Supreme Court any improvement was now beyond the capabilities of the lame duck government. Solutions will probably have to wait for the next government to effectively deal with disordered situation dominating country. Grave concern was expressed over disturbing reports of foreign powers promoting their interests by investing heavily in our media. All Pakistanis need to be cognizant of this danger while authorities must take measures to thwart such evil intentions. ONLINE

STAFF REPORT

ISLAMABAD: A two-member bench of the Supreme Court on Monday granted seven days to the Islamabad police to submit their report on the mysterious death of National Accountability Bureau’s investigating officer, Kamran Faisal. He was investigating the multi-billion Rental Power Projects scam involving Prime Minister Raja Pervaiz Ashraf. The bench comprising Justice Jawwad S. Khawaja and Justice Khilji Arif Hussain directed the police to accelerate the efforts. Appearing on

notice, a senior police officer of Islamabad police Yaseen Farooq told the court that Islamabad police had not yet received the forensic report, thus some more time may be granted for submitting case’ progress report. The court accepted his request and granted one week time for submitting the report. The court also exempted from appearance before it the team which conducted postmortem of Kamran Faisal’s dead body by exhuming his grave a couple of days ago. The court however held that the team could be summoned if required. Later the court adjourned further hearing till February 19.

LAHORE: Passengers boarding the Metro Bus. ONLINE

Government-HEC hostility blocks funds to universities

Senate body shows concern over financial crisis Five-member committee to consult all stakeholders No Punjab govt funds to Punjab University ZEESHAN JAVAID

ISLAMABAD: The unfriendly relationship between the federal government and the Higher Education Commission has now entered in another phase as this cold war with the education sector follows the deterrence of grants and funds to public sector universities. Senate’s parliamentary panel chaired by Senator Abdul Nabi Bangash expressed their deep concerns over the barriers faced by the public universities in receiving grants entitled by the

Higher Education Commission. When the tenure of the government is near to end, the parliamentary panel constituted five-member committee to resolve the issue of financial crisis carry on in public sector universities with consultation of all stakeholders. The federal government granted 20 percent ad-hoc relief allowance, increase in pension and conveyance allowance to the employees, of which financial impact came to Rs 5.919 billion for federally funded higher education institutions. The additional impact on account of salary increase

couldn’t be accommodated within the allocated budgetary provisions and universities are not in a position to pay the ad-hoc allowance to their employees and pensioners. Resultantly, the situation created unrest and agitation among the academia and other staff of the universities. Interestingly, the Punjab government, who recently inaugurated the billion-rupee Metro Bus Service in the provincial capital, did not release a single penny to one of the largest learning institution, the University of Punjab, during its ﬁve-year tenure. Brieﬁng to the committee over

the grievances of his institution, Punjab University Vice Chancellor Dr Mujahid Kamran said that the university has been generating 70% revenue through its own resources including tuition-fee since last two years, however the volume of revenue get down up to 67% because of non-availability of funds by HEC and the provincial government. Peshawar University Vice Chancellor Imtiaz Husain Gillani was of the view that the public sector universities has been suffering because of munching between federal government and HEC, adding both the government and the

HEC should handle their issues at their own despite increasing the miseries of public sector universities. Abdul Wali Khan University Vice Chancellor Dr Ahsan Ali informed the panel that HEC released only Rs 80 million against the monthly expense of Rs 30 million. Expressing his deep apprehensions, he maintained that more than 45 universities existed in the country despite to meet the expenditures of existing institutions, government allowed the construction of 29 more universities, which cause the treacherous cut on funds awarded by

HEC. Sources informed The Spokesman that the total outlay of HEC budget (recurring and development) for the year 2011-12 was agreed to be Rs 48 billion, however the actual release remained at Rs 38.650 billion resulting in a shortfall of Rs 9.350 billion. The question, which compelled the public sector universities for agitation, if the HEC spent 1.4 percent of total release to meet its administrative expenses than HEC should spend Rs 130.9 million out of total release of Rs 38 billion during budgeted year 2011-12 for its own expenses.

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2013

Just play ‘Seraiki, Seraiki’ And Governor Ahmed Mehmood owadays, the people of Seraiki belt are witnessing a very claimed that the PPP would restore the strange politics of our political Bahawalpur province in which two pundits, whose statements have bitter other divisions are to be included. It contradictions. Syed Yousaf Raza means that the new province in Punjab Gilani, when he was the prime minister, will be called Bahawalpur, comprising used to tell the Seraiki people that he three divisions - Bahawalpur, Multan had been convinced by Taj Muhammad and Dera Ghazi Khan. But when he Langah on the question of their identity visited Rahim Yar Khan after taking and the only way to resolve the Seraiki oath as governor, he addressed a national question was formation of a meeting in his constituency during in new province which should be based on which he avoided to call the word ‘Bahawalpur’ and used ‘South Punjab’. Seraiki identity. Gilani told us in a meeting that he He now says that South Punjab will had learned the politics of Seraiki soon be a separate province. Similarly, Gilani also identity when he was a used the word southern student through Punjab and avoided to listening to and reading mention the Seraiki the speeches and issue at the death writings of Taj anniversary of Shaheed Muhammad Langah. Benazir Bhutto. We saw But I was not convinced Qamar Zaman Kaira, in by these arguments current session of because when Gilani Parliament, using both started his political career, he and his family word in one breath – AAMIR HUSSAINI were supporting the ‘South Punjab’ and martial law regime. His Bahawalpur province. family did not go with the Seraiki And in the end, the Parliamentary politicians, who were opposing Mian Commission on new provinces Muhammad Nawaz Sharif ’s selection recommended one province for the slot of Punjab chief minister. Bahawalpur South Punjab province. It Moreover, as a member and chairman means that the commission accepted of District Council Multan and also as the point of view of those groups who a Member of Parliament and minister were opposing the formation of new during Zia era, Gilani had never province in Punjab on the basis of showed himself as a nationalist identity and nationality, and a victory of politician. During that period, I never right-wingers. read his single statement on the Seraiki The right-wing political groups national question. In those days, no neither accept national question nor politician from rightist camp in the the Seraiki belt as a separate cultural region supported the national question identity. They even deny the Sindh, arising in country. And instead, they Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa always opposed these trends, terming as cultural federating units and them as anti-Pakistan and against consider them just administrative ideology of Pakistan. Therefore, I called divisions. But question is: If the his statement just a political stunt at federating units of Pakistan are just administrative units, then why the that time. During his tenure as prime minister, name of North-West Frontier Province replaced with Khyber Gilani repeatedly said the issue of was restoration of Bahawalpur province was Pakhtunkhwa? In my view, the feudal and capitalists just another negative and destructive tactics for manipulating and distorting classes of Pakistan People’s Party are the Seraiki province case. And after his manipulating and distorting the case of removal from the office, he had accused Seraiki people and have been opting to the establishment of convicting him opportunism. I seriously feel big lacuna in politics due to his stance on the Seraiki question. But after the arrival of of the Seraiki region, which is the of real representative President Zardari in Multan and later absence his stay in Islamabad, we saw him revolutionary voice of working class, making alliances with old feudal pro- peasantry and revolutionary middle establishment political families of class intellectuals. The Seraiki Bahawalpur Division, who are running nationalists, mostly, are inclined the movement of restoring the towards the rightist trend and they place their weight behind the feudal Bahawalpur province. At residence of Syed Irfan Gardezi, and pro-capitalism forces, as they never Mr Gilani ‘revealed’ for very first time considered the national question in that he had not opposed the demand of context of class question in Seraiki restoration of Bahawalpur, thus region. They never connected this forgetting his all statements made question to global imperialist capitalist during his tenure as prime minister. He system and adopted idealist approach played very important role in bringing and quitted the dialectical materialist the three sons of Makhdoom Ahmed approach. The result is very obvious Mehmood, who was made the Punjab and we are observing a game in which governor of Punjab on his advice, into every person limited to just shouting ‘Seraiki, Seraiki’. the fold of PPP.

LOWER DIR: BISP beneficiaries at an ATM. PPP is banking on the programme for success in the general elections. INP

Taliban threaten to ‘purify’ Karkhano Market

Shopkeepers threatened to stop selling sex medicines and porn movies or face consequences

AURANGZEB KHAN

PESHAWAR: The shopkeepers of a famous business centre, located near Peshawar and also bordering Khyber Agency, Karkhano Market, are now receiving threatening letters from the Taliban’s Khyber Agency group to not sell ‘obscene movies’ and the medicines which are used to increase male potency. Earlier CD shops in Peshawar, Mardan and Charsadda as well as in some tribal areas were targeted by militant groups, as their owners had to face similar threats. But it is for first time that

shopkeepers in the Karkhano Market received the warning. The pamphlet distributed by Tehrik-e-Taliban Khyber Agency said the selling of sex medicines and adult movies was against Sharia, added that “those involved in the business are warned to quit the occupation and start a lawful trade or face the consequences.” The interesting thing is that various types of drugs, especially hashish, and liquor are openly at the Karkhano Market, while one can also see hundreds of noncustom paid vehicles parked next to the market. The said market is famous for

smuggled goods like clothes, crockery, branded shoes and jackets; however, one of its small shopping centres, Sitara Market, is now attracting many customers for the last few years. The reason is that the goods originally sent for the NATO troops in Afghanistan are available here for general public. There are no proper outlets for Viagra-style male potency pills and porn movies, as the vendors sit in front of shops to attract buyers. People believe that although, all the products available in the Karkhano Market are imported, but most of these medicines are

expired, while people ﬁnd the songs of Pakistani singers in the CDs, the cover of which mostly shows images from of porn movies. But it isn’t that simple. Using modern technology, the people involved in the business keep computers with them and transfer the clips of porn movies to mobile phones’ memory cards. The pictures of Pakistani and Indian girls also sold in this way. Though, Taliban are trying to ban the sale of sex medicines, but the locally-made version, Majoon, is widely used in both tribal and settled areas. Majoon is mixture of opium and some other ingredients.

Four injured, child dead, as roof collapses KARAK: A child died and four others, including a woman and three children, injured as the roof of a house collapsed due to a blast caused by gas leakage on Monday. According to details, a family residing in the Teri area of Karak had turned on gas heater on night to keep them warm in the cold weather. But later, it turned off due to low pressure and gas leakage continued, resulting in accumulation of gas in the room. On Monday morning, when a family member lit matchstick to turn on the heater a huge blast took place as a result of which the roof caved in. A four-year-old girl died in the incident while her mother and three other children sustained wounds. The locals and neighbours on a self-help basis dug out the body and injured from the rubble and shifted them to hospital. INP

US ʻspyʼ Afghan national killed in South Waziristan WANA: Militants killed an Afghan national over his alleged role of spying for the United States on Monday. According to details, bullet-riddled body of a person stated to be Afghan national was recovered from Rustam Bazaar in Wana, headquarters of South Waziristan Agency. A written letter was also found with the body stating that the said person was killed over spying for the US forces and a warning that those, who were found guilty of similar charges, would have to face the same fate. AGENCIES

Peace militia reconstituted in Peshawarʼs suburbs PESHAWAR: Peace militia, locally known as ‘aman lashkar’ against extremists has been reconstituted in the outskirts of Peshawar. According to a private television, the volunteers of the peace force have sought government’s cooperation and its patronage. It merits mentioning that the peace force was constituted in 2009 to rid the Adezai area of extremists. After the demise of its chief, Dilawar Khan, his brother namely, Amanullah was made head of the force. AGENCIES

PESHAWAR: Valentine’s Day preparations even in militancy-hit Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. ONLINE

Three killed in shootout, one dies of police torture SHEIKHUPURA/JALALPUR BHATTIAN: Three persons accused of kidnapping for ransom were killed in exchange of ﬁre with police in wee hours of Monday. According to details, police were taking Faryad, an accused in kidnapping for ransom and murder of 16-year-old Tauseef, to the crime scene for investigation when his two companions ambushed the police party at Abdali Bridge near Sharqpur Sharif. In crossfire, Faryad and the two attackers, Naeem and Mehmood Ahmed, were killed on the spot. The bodies were shifted to mortuary for medico-legal-formalities. Police said the accused killed in encounter were wanted in several incidents of kidnapping for ransom and other crimes.

Protest on against Guru’s hanging OUR STAFF REPORTER

On the other hand, a labourer, arrested on the suspicion of being involved in drugs business, died of alleged police torture in Jalalpur Bhattian on Monday. Family of the deceased, Zafar Iqbal hailing from Khanqah Dogran, alleged that the police had arrested him over the charges of selling drugs. But instead of shifting Zafar to the police station, the cops took him to their residential quarters and brutally tortured him. Later, they released Zafar cops after receiving Rs 10,000 bribe but he succumbed to his wounds. The family and relatives held protest demonstration with dead body and demanded the Punjab chief minister to arrest those involved in torture and award exemplary punishment to them. AGENCIES

MIRPUR (AJK): A black day was observed in Mirpur to protest the execution of Afzal Guru, on the call of AJK PM Chaudhry Abdul Majeed. In this connection, a large rally was organised in the city, which started from the District Courts. The deputy commissioner, SSP, administrators of Mirpur Municipal Corporation and district Zakaat committee, other officials and hundreds of citizens participated in the event, as they chanted slogans against India. Speakers said India would not be able to stop the freedom struggle by these coward acts. On one hand, the Indian army was committing violent acts against innocent Kashmiris and, on the other, the Kashmiri leaders, who raised their voice against these atrocities, were hanged to death. But all the International institution, including the UN, was playing the role of a spectator, they added. They further said the Indians could control the freedom ﬁre by these acts. “This freedom struggle will continue till the last breath of Kashmiri. Kashmiri will write the freedom note with their blood. They have moved forward so far by sacriﬁcing thousands of their lives and they won’t agree on anything else except a free Kashmir.” At the end, funeral prayers in absentia were held to honour Afzal Guru.

Malakand turns orange in harvest season TAHIR ALI

MALAKAND: “My oranges are juicy and aromatic and taste delicious; Tourists! Your trip to Swat will be incomplete if you did not eat my oranges,” calls out Ali Rehman, a vendor at Malakand Pass as vehicles pass by him. Like other fruit vendors of the area, Ali has also set up a along the zigzag road of Malakand and sells oranges brought from the nearby orchards of Palai area in Malakand Agency. Malakand, the gateway to the Swat valley, is known for variety of fruits and vegetables but the oranges grown in this particular region have no parallel. At the moment, orange (locally known as malta) harvest season is at its peak. The produce from the Palai mountainous area is famous all over the country and tourists, who visit Malakand in winter season, never miss a chance to take a basket of the Palai oranges with them. At the moment, when it is the mid of harvesting season, a bag containing ﬁve dozens of high quality oranges is available at around Rs 700, while it will reach Rs1,000 at the end of ﬁve-month period. Ali, in his early forties, is involved in the

business for the last 12 years; he is quite satisfied with his earning. “We earn around Rs 20 per bag; at the end of the five-month-long season we earn a reasonable amount,” he explains. According to the vender, at the time he entered this business, the bag he sells today for Rs 1,000 was available at around Rs 200 only. “As the rate of transportation, fertilizers and pesticides has been increased, the farmers also raised the oranges’ price”, Ali argued. Orange is cultivated at different parts of the Malakand Agency but Palai leads this business; it was the first site where the delicious fruit was cultivated for marketing. Few years back during an exhibition in Islamabad, Muhammad Jalil, a gardener from Palai won first prize for cultivating quality oranges. Talking about the quality of Palai’s produce, a local farmer Mursalin Lodhi, who is also a poet said, “When orange is greenish, it is aromatic and delicious. If someone eats it at this stage, it will work as perfume; and later when it is fully ripened you will keep it eating but will never be fed up.” Commenting over the oranges production of Palai, Raham Khaliq, who specialises in agriculture sector said, “Orange is usually grown

Fruit of the loom - Orange harvest in full swing. in hilly areas; its quality would be high if the soil is sandy and the weather is cold. And the land of Palai fulﬁls all these requirements,” However, the gardeners are not happy with the existing prices and say after months of toil,

the outcome is not satisfactory. “Through different means we make the soil fertile; every step needs a large amount of money, but the reward we get is nothing,” said a gardener, Raheem Said.

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2013

THE SPOKESMAN

Chief Editor: Huma Ali Executive Editor: Atif Mateen Resident Editor: Saeed Minhas Consulting Editors: Jalees Hazir Samina Choonara Block 11, G-6/1, Aabpara, Islamabad Telephone: 051 260 7153-4 Fax: 051 260 7498 www.thespokesman.pk ce@thespokesman.pk

Selling God cheaply Over the years, the grip of an ignorant clergy over the Pakistani society has been tightening. These shopkeepers of religion have distorted the kind face of Islam for their petty personal benefits, selling the name of God for a pittance. The different versions of Islam they shout from loudspeakers in our villages, towns and cities, have killed the humanitarian spirit underlying the religious teachings of Quran and replaced it with a superstitious observance of hollow rituals. They turn minor differences among various sects into moot points and pit them against each other in unholy acrimony. Their rabble-rousing divisive oratory is inspired not by the message of peace sent through Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) but by the works of scholars of various hues who wrote decades and generations after him. So how did it come to this? How did they manage to spread their venomous tentacles around a God-loving tolerant society? And more importantly, how do we put the genie back into the bottle? The growing power of an ignorant and violent clergy can be traced back to the reign of General Ziaul Haq who shamelessly used religion to tighten his control over the country. Public flogging, hanging and stoning to death were carried out with fanfare and publicised. Laws were enacted in the name of Islam that encouraged the persecution of minorities and those who dared defy the emboldened clergy. The state patronised religious groups and encouraged their acts of coercion and violence. Madrassahs mushroomed all over the country teaching sectarian syllabi manufactured in Saudi Arabia. Poor children were programmed to serve as pawns in the CIA-ISI great game against the communist infidels in the so-called Afghan jihad. The governments that came after him allowed the sore to fester for petty political gains. The self-serving media played along. Today, the religious discourse in Pakistan is monopolised by these professional preachers that have no place in Islam. Unfortunately, the discourse against religious extremism has been steeped in rootless liberal secularism that has too many chinks in its armour to confront this monster. It does not speak to the hearts of believers that constitute the majority of Pakistanis but to the gallery of Godless donors. The menace of a professional clergy cannot be tamed by those who speak with borrowed words, those who have no compassion for the people they would like to rescue. The monster must be countered by a better informed discourse on Islam, one that is rooted in the teachings of Quran and taps into its universal humanitarian soul. The educated Muslims of Pakistan have allowed these ignorant hate-mongers to promote superstition in the name of their religion. They pray behind bigots and pay them to teach their children how to read the Quran, solemnise their marriages and pray for their dead. They must now reclaim their religion from a clergy that stands on the foundation of a discourse that militates against the teachings of Quran; making a profession out of religion, spreading fitna and fasad and quoting the word of God in fragments.

The view from Afghanistan Afghans are confused. They want the US to leave the country but are worried about the loss of financial support extended by the US-led international community and the power structure it will leave behind TAHIR ALI

senators, governors and city mayors who are likely to support him. People in Afghanistan are discussing It is a fact that only a Pashtun the post-2014 scenario when the US- could become the president led forces would leave the country, through majority vote, which and fear that they would be would outnumber the combined dragged into a series of new votes of the rest of the ethnicities. unpredictable conflicts. At a time It is out of question for a nonwhen Afghanistan is witnessing Pashtun to enter the presidential escalating political and economic palace; although there are rumours uncertainty, with the law and order that Pakistan and the US have situation deteriorating each day, mutually agreed upon supporting the global powers are actively Dr Abdullah. The north is working planning on usurping the Afghan on the well-thought out plan of natural resources. ushering in as many Pashtun Constitutionally barred from a contenders as possible to divide the third term, President Hamid Pashtun vote. Even so, the problem Karzai is in a bit of a fix. Despite with that plan is that the north is his public announcement that he further divided into ethnic groups would not be vying for a third term, and their interests clash with one he is making efforts to retain his another. For instance, Abdur control. According to a wellinformed source in the Afghan government, Karzai is planning to call the grand meeting of Loya Jirg to either modify the constitution or, at the very least, to get an extension. But the Loya Jirga can only be summoned if something extraordinary happens. “This could be a huge attack on important government officials, offices, or a border clash, most probably with Pakistan or even with Iran. If he fails to pull off a major stunt like that, the sensitive issue of Durand Line could be exploited,” says a member of his political party. Meanwhile, certain elements in the power corridors of Kabul are trying to get rid of Karzai. “In mid- Rashid Dostam could not leave his place to Noor Mohammad Atta, November last year, an explosives-laden car was recovered neither could Ustad Mohaqiq to Dr from the presidential palace. It had Abdullah, nor Dr Abdulla to Karim Khalili. been parked there for over three Ahmad Wali Karzai was most hours. It could not be ascertained as to who had parked this car there likely to replace Karzai in 2014 before he was murdered in July as the CCTV cameras were 2011. Karzai’s other brothers aren’t switched off during those hours,” perceived to be competent enough said an MP. The elections are not far away and to run the presidency. The northern alliance lost its influence in the political observers are of the view that Karzai could retain his hold on power structure when the previous National Directorate of Security power since he has very cunningly (NDS) Chief Amarullah Saleh was appointed a large number of loyal political, tribal and military leaders deposed along with Interior Minister Hanif Atmar – both were as ministers, deputy ministers,

closely associated with northern interests. Now Asadullah Khalid, a very close confidante of Hamid Karzai, heads the NDS. Businessmen and traders, who have invested millions of dollars in Afghanistan, are anxious as they see the power of Taliban-warlords increasing in the future setup, leading to lawlessness and instability. Most of the influential businessmen have taken nationalities of countries like the US, UK, Canada and Australia, and have established their businesses there. Engineer S, a millionaire turned politician and now a sitting MP, has established his business in Dubai, a place that especially attracts Afghan millionaires. “You can deposit millions of dollars and

Businessmen and traders, who have invested millions of dollars in Afghanistan, are anxious as they see the power of Taliban-warlords increasing in the future setup, leading to lawlessness and instability

invest in Dubai without any queries or problems,” he said. When asked about his plans after 2014, he said that his family was already settled in Australia while he’d established his businesses in both Australia and Dubai, so there wasn’t anything to worry about. The reports about arms distribution by former warlords like Ismail Khan (60,000), Rashid Dostam (12,000) and Noor Mohammad Atta (7,000) have caused grave concern among the people, especially Pashtuns living in the northern non-Pashtun majority provinces. Ismail Khan,

former controller and governor of Heart, who has close ties with Iran, announced the distribution of weapons in a public gathering saying, “After the US withdrawal, former mujahideen (like him) would safeguard the country”. Average citizens, government servants and low-level businessmen are worried that the US-led international community would stop providing the ﬁnancial support to the government and there’d be no money to run the country. There is also a competition among different foreign nations vying to use the country for their vested interests in future. Saudi Arabia is a fresh entry and it has greatly perturbed Iran, which was already toiling hard to counter the Pakistan-Turkey influence in the Pashtun, Turk and Uzbek communities. The Afghans view the Saudi entry into the arena as a US stunt to counter the growing Iranian influence in northern, western and central Afghanistan, and to settle things with the Taliban and other Sunni groups in the country. Saudi Arabia was quick to announce a $100 million project of building a university mosque (on the model of Faisal Mosque in Islamabad) in Kabul in the first phase. The plan would be extended to other provinces later. Iraninfluenced media houses have started a campaign against the project, dubbing it as interference in internal affairs of Afghanistan. Interestingly, Iran has not only built mosques and Madrassahs in Kabul, but it has been encouraging Hazara-Afghans to study in Qum, Najaf and other Iraqi and Iranian cities to learn theology and politics, granting scholarships and stipends to Shia students. There are indications that this Shia-Sunni divide is being exacerbated under the Karzai government. TAHIR ALI IS A JOURNALIST BASED IN PESHAWAR AND TRAVELS EXTENSIVELY IN FATA

Economic doubt-look: austerity measures on the cards The strategy to sell the family silver, and then lease it back to eat, is mind boggling. All in all, this particular methodology of the developed economies to acquire developing countries’ productive resources is indeed ingenious SYED BAKHTIYAR KAZMI The ability to shroud catastrophe in the garb of ‘business as usual’, and occasionally, as modest improvement, is indeed rare. It requires staggering imagination and articulation skills. Kudos to the Central Bank for pulling it off! Courtesy the global ﬁnancial crises the world’s entire central banking community is facing this predicament. One can perhaps tout it as ‘business as usual’, on the global scale, then. Even so, hope seems to be the buzz word for future economic outlook everywhere. Living in the age of information, it is rather imprudent to churn out an annual outlook this late, then again predicting the future in such volatile circumstances – in any circumstances for that matter – is not exactly a walk in the park. Nonetheless, considering the central bank’s track record of accurately predicting a dismal outlook for 2012, a year ago, the change towards optimism is encouraging, albeit puzzling. Unfortunately, the preconditions behind this optimism dampen the enthusiasm.

EDITOR’S MAIL BOX Killing fields Newspapers of February 3 have reported that the Chief Secretary of Balochistan has given a cheque of one million rupees, on the Prime Minister’s behalf, to the widow of television journalist Abdul Haq Baloch who was killed in Khuzdar last September. While not all the families of journalists killed in the line of duty have been compensated, the doling out of money has become the standard operating procedure. Little effort is made to create safe working conditions for

Wishing that the banks would lend to the private sector resulting in an increase in investment; expecting the realisation of inflows from Etisalaat and 3G licenses; anticipating that oil prices would ease and food prices would rise and hoping that inward remittances would continue to post a strong growth, is an overkill of optimism! What is even more perplexing is the fact that the fate of Pakistan’s economy, according to this report is entirely dependent upon external, uncontrollable factors. Accordingly, if everything headed southwards, the only apparent option is to lay back and enjoy; which seems axiomatic if historic outcome is anything to go by. This is perhaps one of those instances where history should be ignored, completely. It is startling to see the Americans worried about going over the fiscal cliff, when nothing was ever going to happen. And this assertion is based on firsthand experience. Juxtapose the American anxiety with the fiscal climate in Pakistan, where total debt and liabilities have crossed a whooping Rs 15 trillion. Considering the recent trends, there is zero probability of ever generating sufficient resources to meet this obligation. The more pertinent question is

journalists. In his well-documented book, The Press under Siege, Zamir Niazi chronicles the pressures on journalists from non-state actors – mostly political parties or religious groups. The nineties were perhaps the beginning of the trend of targeting journalists by groups not affiliated with the State. However, in those days most journalists got away with physical injuries and were rarely killed. With the rise of religious militants, and the stakes increasing for those associated with the country’s assorted intelligence agencies, the killing of journalists – whether targeted or accidental – has risen phenomenally, making Pakistan among the most dangerous places for journalists. Ironically, it has ranked as more dangerous than Afghanistan and Iraq, two countries that have been engulfed in war in recent years. Regrettably, the response of the journalist community itself has been inadequate. While there are periodic calls for safer working conditions for those in the frontline of conﬂicts and some workshops to train journalists have also been held, the movement for the protection of working journalists has not been a sustained one. Like the

the extent to which the country can continue borrowing. Even more intriguing is the view that the size of the fiscal deficit is not sustainable and could push the country into a debt trap. Unless financial pundits have revisited the definition of a debt trap, ever escalating debt coupled with the inability to repay in the foreseeable future, is the dead centre of the debt trap. What are the proposed options to bridge the balance of payment gap, except borrowing more? The view that money is an illusion is lent credibility by a simple observation that as opposed to this humongous debt, rupee in circulation hovers around Rs 1 trillion; but more on that some other time. Continuing in wonderland, another astounding assertion was that CPI inflation had reduced to 11% in 2012 from 13.7% in 2011. Contrary to the assertion, the media has gone bonkers during the past year or so, sensationalising the plight of the masses suffering from inflation. One of them is definitely talking about the wrong country. On a technical level this indicator is perhaps accurate and appropriate. Unfortunately, it

proverbial public memory, the journalist community also appears to be suffering from lapses. Young Hayatullah Khan, kidnapped in December 2005 and whose body was left in Mirali, North Waziristan, six months later, is just one example of our collective failure to pursue justice. Tragically, his wife was also killed when their home was bombed. Hayatullah Khan’s family had expressed lack of conﬁdence in the judicial commission set up to investigate his killing. They were farsighted in doing so as years later the judicial commission formed to probe the death of Saleem Shahzad failed to pinpoint the culprits. As both the intensity and frequency of violence increases in Pakistan, journalists become even more vulnerable. Whether it is the militancy in FATA, the conﬂict in Balochistan or the mean streets of Karachi, journalists are sitting ducks as they compete to “break news” for their respective media organisation. The Spokesman has arrived! This is the proclamation on the front page of this exciting new website. I would like to give some unsolicited advice – start by listing the name of each journalist killed by militants, intelligence agencies or anyone else.

does not gel with reality. Having always held radical views about Public Sector Enterprises, any comment shall be synonymous with opening the Pandora’s Box. Nonetheless, minus protectionist policies, initiatives to restructure PSEs would fall short of targets. Additionally, even if the private sector, perhaps rightfully, is unwilling to invest, is procrastinating an appropriate strategy? Short of a miracle or sincere and committed efforts, revival of private domestic investment is a mirage. Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) does not even qualify for that. On a positive note, FDI might provide short term respite, but over the long term there could be serious repercussions. The strategy to sell the family silver, and then lease it back to eat, is mind boggling. All in all, this particular methodology of the developed economies to acquire developing countries’ productive resources is indeed ingenious. What is more bewildering is that even after modern history has exposed these nefarious designs, FDI continues to spread its tentacles. Irrespective, investment is necessary for economic growth and if the private sector is

Investigate with the kind of zeal many show when it comes to exposing corruption among Pakistan politicians. Demonstrate that when it comes to fallen colleagues you have the memory of an elephant. ZOHRA YUSUF ISLAMABAD

Breaking the shackles We are on the road to nowhere as Jean Jacques Rousseau says in the Social Contract, "Man is born free and everywhere he is in chains". One thinks of himself as the master of others and still remains a greater slave than them. We are not at all free, it is just desired that we should be. The potent gentry place a book of life in our cradle and we never get rid of it until we reach our graves, the final destination where we are in serenity and calmness. The modus operandi of King of wishful thinking is like a spider's web that can catch flies but not wasps. That's why a public servant here is one who serves the public for his own good. The by now upper crust with windecree from the King tramples all the hurdles in the field of humanity and the miserable hoi polloi being goaded by liars, dishonesty, hypocrites and

not rising to the challenge, out of box thinking should be the order of the day. Since the government is already utilising most of the nation’s savings, what is the harm in using a portion for investment in manufacturing? Notwithstanding all of the above, the sword of Damocles for the economy appears to be the inward remittance. What if remittances had not increased to $13 billion last year? What if they don’t continue to post strong growth? “What if ” scenarios are an eye opener and in a situation as delicate as the economy, risks need to be identiﬁed and mitigating strategies put in place. Under realistic assumptions, trends and constraints touched upon in the paragraphs above are not expected to reverse towards positivity in the next year. What is an appropriate response then? It might be useful and incredibly productive to hope for the best be prepared for the worst and plan accordingly. Most likely austerity measures are on the cards, and it would be reasonable to put the house in order before the creditors come a calling.

pretenders in the name of help. The socalled prudent favour of potent gentry gives birth to lifelong sufferings of a common man. Every road of life ends with death. From good to bad everyone lives his life as a 'habit', like Jon Elia says, "faqat adato' ki warzish hay". It can be debated whether a man wants to prove the worth of his life or the life's worth for himself. Ultimately, he starts losing his interests in social contacts for the sake of livelihood. Now he is in a position to define what life actually is. But is the death a definitive solution of one's problem? Shakespeare says, yes: “He who dies, pays all debts”. In the present scenario, he is wishing for death because he cannot emancipate himself from the bondage of daily edible prices. Well, the unperturbed men (the leaders) always look busy in their whole lot of life in planning while the angels in heaven make a mockery of their scheduling which they set for themselves for the rest of their flowery lives, setting aside their Maker, a Creator sans whose permission even a leaf can't take a twist. And the history derailed a lot of heavy mandated leaders' trains while sleeping on a bed of roses in a bogie. The common man is in great anguish

THE WRITER IS A CHARTERED ACCOUNTANT BASED IN ISLAMABAD

against the entrenched mindset since his inception. The dishonest bureaucracy and crooked politicians coupled with unjustiﬁed role of military in political circus is the main hurdle in the making of a ﬂourishing state envisioned by the Jinnah and Iqbal. The mindset of politicians looks towards the US and the big power for grabbing a share of the clout. People have suffered deception since the creation of Pakistan and death of the Quaid. But now the time of being duped is gone, they are now looking at the courts after using every means of their disposed to get rid of this. The cream of the crop by sending gifts of baton charge, tear gas and making people the missing persons to be punished for equality also reminds us the era of Dark Ages. Rounding off this commentary, you can leave a will directing how to handle your money but not your reputation. The masses will attend to that. And now in global village a knave is respected, a great man suspected. MAHTAB BASHIR ISLAMABAD Please email your letters to letters@thespokesman.pk or post them to our address in Islamabad.

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2013

Pocket mirror ‘We do have to cater to Protocol. The other day three of us went to Minister saab’s home to fix their three-phase issue. We got it done real quickly since there were three of us’ KEEKAR KANAIR I am a young man. I have a bicycle, aspiring to have a “bike” soon.... yes that’s what I’ve always known to be short for motorbike or motorcycle. Uncle Basharat says “bike” is relatively new... in the 1980s they didn’t shorten that appellation so much. I’m tall in my family at 5’ 8”. Well, I’m not quite 25 yet so perhaps there’ll be some more growth. In the central park in Model Town I often hang from the monkey bar to get taller. At least, that’s what mother says it would do. I walk barefooted on grass early in the morning while saying my wazeefa. Dewed over grass soothes the eyes. I don’t talk to or look at strangers at that time because that’s my rejuvenation time. As you see, I take good care of my bicycle. I clean it every day before I ride it to work. So I do that first thing after my walk in the park and the hanging from the bar routine. Then i get ready for work. I shower with fresh water and these days if I leave the water running in the bucket, it warms up and as I see steam coming out of the bucket in our otherwise cold outdoor bathroom, I say “bismillah” and pour out the water on my body with the red mug. I remember it’s getting a bit leaky. I will replace it. I wash the bathroom floor after bathing and also flood out the squatting toilet at the end so that the bathroom is good to be used by Abbu ji who gets up after I’ve gone to work. I work at the power station and have to be at work early in the morning. Today, as you see I shaved my face with the new razor blade and afterwards dabbed on some honey lotion to keep my face moist. You know, the wind I catch on my bicycle gives me dry skin. The reason you see my skin nice and supple this way is because of the lotion. Just a tiny bit of hair oil after the bath to keep my hair manageable all day. I keep this pocket mirror in my pantpocket to check my look during the day. (With a laugh) Why? Well, who doesn’t want to be admired? Of course, I take care of myself. You are right, work is sometimes unfulfilled when there’s no power supply from the main grid station. Our hands are tied when that happens. Customers do complain and there are always customers around at our power house. They complain... but you see, I’m young, I need to be liked and it’s not the work I am admired for. It’s who I am. I’m young, I’m energetic, I take care of myself. I wear clean clothes. One can only keep one’s person in tip-top shape. The rest that goes on throughout the day is not up to us. It’s up to Allah. It’s Allah’s will if there is a power outage and it’s those who decide our country’s fate. We cannot help these poor customers with that. Now if there is some job that I may be able to do, such as if there’s a short-circuit complaint somewhere, I may ride out there and

fix the problem... or when some wiring needs to be changed, I’d do that, sure. I’d rather do one good job a day. Yes, sir jee, there are thousands of jobs. There’s no shortage of work if it could be done, you know. I worked in the private sector before when it was worth getting down and dirty with the gig because they paid me well. With my current salary, I try to do one good deed every day. There are bad days - if I’m fasting or if there’s fog in the morning, I can’t go out of my way to put in any great effort. The reason is I can’t fix the whole city’s issues so why bother and why use up my energy and dirty my clothes. I want to be admired and people who admire me, my liverfriends, would rather see this nice check shirt you see on me, clean. You think it fits well? It’s from Dubai. My uncle sent it to me and these pants I bought from Shahalami. They now have great fitting, these Made-inChina clothes. I like the cross pockets and you see how snugly they fit me. No I don’t climb any poles. I haven’t had a training and mother says I should avoid that. She had a cousin who got electrocuted. So mother blows Aet-ul-Kursi my way every morning. I have the backing of Haji Raheem saab, too. He’s my supervisor. He’s so nice. You know he never misses any of his fasts and he is a hafiz. He treats me like a son. Well some customers are really fanatical and make frantic calls, send their servants with the complaints... and it’s not always easy for me to deal with them and I refer them to Haji saab who can tackle them much better. (With a laugh) He’s very pragmatic and often he’s gone to the mosque and the servants would have no patience to wait. So they just leave. Why not, sure! We do have to cater to Protocol. The other day three of us went to Minister saab’s home to fix their three-phase issue. We got it done real quickly since there were three of us together, we don’t let each other slack off. Well, I’m not saying I’m a slacker when it comes to going out to do those jobs by myself. No, sir jee, I don’t smoke so it’s not a matter of taking a break for that, Allah save me from that curse. I don’t drink tea either. Mother says it darkens the complexion. It’s just that one job a day is all that we can accomplish. Sir jee (with a laugh) this is Pakistan... what do you expect. I’ve been to Malaysia where my sister is married and things have a faster pace there. I like it here in my own city, Lahore, my own country. I don’t need to go there. However things work, they do work here. Alhamdulillah. I like to be admired and accepted by my liverfriends and they do, sir jee. I like my life. I love it here. It’s just that I do want a bike. Maanha, my best friend just got one. THE AUTHOR IS A FICTION WRITER

The fading soul of Pakistan’s diversity Bheels face intimidation from the Muslim clerics and their fundamental rights are violated. They have no faith in politics. However, lately there has been an awakening of sorts, as many scheduled-caste communities are beginning to protest ZEEBA T. HASHMI

particular about their diet and the effect different foods have on their vocal chords. To them, singing is the medium Around the Lahore Central Railway that brings them closer to God, and it is Station, narrow alleys are like a maze, their love for music that has made them with hotels and restaurants for so well-versed with the expression of passengers coming in from across the mystical love. They hold great country. The visitors from Cholistan reverence for Suﬁ saints. They mention were staying in one such building. them and sing their poetry with as Their common attire said nothing much devotion as they have for their about their signiﬁcance. The Devtas and the bhajjans glorifying assertiveness is in their eyes spoke of the hardships they face in the middle of them. To them music represents universal love, a language through the uninhabited deserts. Through the which they converse with the mortals music they make, they bring their and the divine. They speak Marwari, world to life with songs of love, Koli and other dialects. They don’t mysticism and sad partings. have much written literature in their A group of singers from the Bheel languages except for a few fragments. community were my hosts in one of However, they have adapted the local the rundown hotels where they were dialects to make a common language. staying. A few moments after I Bheels are a sub-sect of the Hindu entered the room and greeted them, minority in Pakistan, commonly there was music all around, the known as “Dalits” or “untouchables”. sadness of the room shattered by the They mainly live in Tharparkar and in elaborate melodies they made from the Cholistan desert of Southern the stringed Yaktara and the colorful Punjab, and are recognised as a Raanti instruments. Such was the beauty I found in that tiny, unfamiliar scheduled caste under Pakistani law. room that came to life with music and Many Bheel families decided to stay back in Pakistan at the time of lively stories, in spite of interruptions by the hotel manager who kept asking partition because they felt that in a new country that came into existence on the us to tone it down. principle of rights for minorities, they The members of the Hindu Bheel would not face the discrimination they community are mostly landless, and did among upper caste Hindu they are known for their melodies and compatriots. beautiful traditional musical Constitutionally, the Dalits were instruments, ornamented by elaborately embroidered bright colored given the status of a scheduled caste under the Scheduled Castes fabrics. They make their stringed Declaration in 1957, which ensured instruments with animal hides and them certain privileges like a quota in wood, hollowed pipes that are magic jobs for scheduled castes. But no for the ear. They are known for their serious effort was made to implement distinctive voice quality and the art of the declaration and give the rights that story-telling. Their women wear glass were due to them. The presidential bangles all over their arms and wear ordinance was later repealed in 1998 colorful Cholis and Ghagharas. during Nawaz Sharif’s tenure, when The singers among them are very

the quota for scheduled castes was converged in the general quota for minorities. The effect of this deliberate negligence and marginalisation created problems for the Bheel community in terms of exercising their rights as Pakistani citizens, marriage registration and a lack of representation in the Parliament. According to official statistics, there are approximately 3 million Hindus residing in Pakistan. Of these, 2.5 million belong to scheduled castes. However, the Scheduled Castes Federation of Pakistan disputes the ﬁgures presented by the state. The growing orthodoxy, a harsh feudal environment in areas home to the community and lack of education, have pushed the Bheel community to poverty. Under the strict inﬂuence of the waderas, these landless people are kept marginalized, with no health or education facilities in their remote and inaccessible villages. There are countless stories to be heard, the most shameful one about their mass migration to India for better lives. It triggered a prompt response from the government, directing authorities to keep a record of Hindus leaving the country and asking the Indian Government to repatriate them back to Pakistan. ‘We are a Dervaish people, we do not indulge in the lies of politics,’ Krishan Lal Bheel, a renowned Bheel singer explained to me. ‘However, we do have our shortcomings, and we ourselves are to be blamed for these shortcomings as we keep giving in to our own vulnerabilities,’ he said referring to the sad reality of his marginalised community and its exploitation. Forced conversions have been taking place over the years in Sind, and such

incidents are increasing. Punjab is comparatively better on that count. The landlords take their women who are kept as wives after their conversion, but after the passage of a few years, they are sent back to their villages where these women are viewed with mistrust by their own community. These women cannot revert back to their religion for the fear of the clerics. There have also been incidents of kidnappings for ransom and demolition of their worship places and houses. But the grievances are never addressed. The powerful feudal lords manage to suppress the news in the mainstream media and easily manipulate the police and courts to deny justice to the victims. Bheels face intimidation from the Muslim clerics and their fundamental rights are violated. They have no faith in politics which they consider to be corrupt. However, lately there has been an awakening of sorts, as many scheduled-caste communities are beginning to protest the gross injustice they face, and are beginning to form a political movement to address their grievances. In September last year, a demonstration was organised by the Bheel community in Mithi, in liaison with Sindhi nationalist parties, against the demolition of their houses and temples. The Scheduled Castes Rights Movement is spearheading their cause, but it needs to be seen how much impact it could have given the nexus of political power with feudal lords. If nothing is done immediately to address the plight of the Bheel community, then a beautiful voice that gives soul to Pakistan’s diversity might fade away. ZEEBA T. HASHMI IS AN INDEPENDENT WRITER

Ashis Nandy controversy: welcome to closet illiberalism VIDYA SUBRAHMANIAM The Ashis Nandy controversy illustrates the paradox of India’s opinion makers preaching caste equality while instinctively, reflexively, articulating positions that bunch them up on one side of the caste divide, thus reinforcing the very order that they have rejected. Mr. Nandy’s defenders have made the untenable legal claim that he should be judged not by what he said at the Jaipur Literature Festival but by his past record and scholarship. But worse, gradually the defence, which was originally grounded in Mr. Nandy’s right to free expression, has deteriorated into a free-for-all against Dalits and Other Backward Classes (OBC) — who are presumed to have become “sacred cows” protected by “draconian” laws. If to question Mr. Nandy is intolerance, what does one call this rant? Mr. Nandy’s initial statement was a qualiﬁed one: he said the Indian Republic was saved because the corrupt of today were from the “Scheduled castes, OBCs and now the tribals.” But the nuances went for a toss with his stunning insistence that West Bengal was free from corruption because “in the last hundred years, nobody from the OBCs, SCs and STs has come to power there. It is an absolutely clean State.” Forget the backhanded compliment to the Left Front leadership which has been deemed to be clean for being upper caste. The inescapable inference from this is that upper caste means no corruption regardless of the period of reference — today or a hundred years ago. Per se this is indefensible. Yet if for no other reason than to make the caste debate meaningful, we also need to look at Mr.

Caste might be cast in stone judging from the way the dominant discourse gets conducted in India. Political empowerment of the backward castes is a dramatic reality today. But social attitudes have stayed frozen Nandy’s subsequent clarification — more so because contained in the clarification is an uncomfortable truth that the Indian intelligentsia has tiptoed around for too long. To quote Mr. Nandy: “What I meant was that most of the people getting caught for corruption are people from OBC, SC and ST communities, as they don’t have the means to save themselves unlike people from upper castes who can hide their corruption.” The Nandy episode would have been well served if this statement had become the peg on which to examine the persisting caste prejudices and double standards that allow one kind of corruption to be exposed and the other to be hidden. However, it is important to understand that exposés and blackouts happen not only because one section is smarter than the other, which surely it is, but because the dominant discourse in India continues to be shaped by the socially advantaged classes. The media, as surveys have established, are a classic example of this stranglehold but upper caste dominance is as much a reality in academia and other key policymaking institutions. This collective is superficially progressive. Yet at a subconscious level, its members harbour all the entrenched biases, resulting in the backward castes being censured far more severely than their “twice-born” counterparts for the same alleged crime — be it ostentation, self-promotion, a specific legal violation or patronage of a particular caste group. A case in point is the differential treatment

extended to Mayawati and the NehruGandhis. This difference endures despite xenophobic intolerance of the First family by right-wing sections of the middle class. The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief ’s wealth and her self-projection — creating parks and monuments, naming projects after herself and celebrating lavish birthdays — have been obsessively written about by a media that ignored her political achievements until she compelled attention by forming in 2007 the first majority government in Uttar Pradesh in 17 years. The star of that watershed election was Ms Mayawati but the media ignored her, choosing instead to be embedded with Rahul Gandhi whose party finished last and is still stuck there. Compare the relentless focus on Ms Mayawati’s financial assets with the easy ride given to Robert Vadra. The Vadra real estate papers were avidly consumed in private, they had been available for years with the principal Opposition party, but the veil on the Gandhi son-in-law’s vast business empire was lifted only after Arvind Kejriwal made bold to mention the unmentionable. Today, while Ms Mayawati finds the law chasing her, there seem to be no such anxieties for Mr. Vadra. In Prime Minister Vajpayee’s time, similar deference was shown to his foster son-in-law Ranjan Bhattacharya. I had my first real brush with deep-seated caste attitudes in 1988 when I was in Allahabad for a Lok Sabha by-election contested by Rajiv (Gandhi) challenger V.P.

Singh. His opponents were Sunil Shastri from the Congress and Kanshi Ram from the BSP. Singh was the media darling and Mr. Shastri derived his importance from being his principal opponent. The BSP faced a near media blackout, and as it turned out, the party was equally contemptuous of the “manuwadi” press. BSP volunteers blocked me off from their meetings, saying they knew what I would write. Over the years, as I tracked the BSP’s astonishing growth, I could not help but notice the unfailingly skewed media coverage of the party, whose rallies would be reported, not for their content but for the traffic chaos they caused. As a part-time journalism teacher in 2005, I would discover the same unconscious bias in the essays turned in by my students. Writing on Ms Mayawati’s birthday, they left out the political aspects of the event, concentrating instead on her diamonds, her “flashy” clothes and the size of the cake she cut. They would accept later that diamonds and silks were worn by other women politicians too but that somehow, these outward manifestations hit the eye more in the BSP chief ’s case. There is an ironic reality here that must be understood in its proper context. What people saw as distasteful flamboyance was a political tool that Ms Mayawati consciously employed, especially in the formative years when it was important for her to raise the self-esteem of her constituency. This was explained to me by the part Hindutva, part OBC Uma

Bharti. The Dalit girls in her village were forbidden from crossing the threshold into even OBC homes. But they would rebel in their own way, wearing Mayawati hair clutches and imitating her mannerisms, thereby signalling that they would not be kept down by force. The handbag, symbolising status and accomplishment, is similarly a deliberate presence in the muchcriticised Mayawati statues. Admittedly, the showmanship can get excessive, as it did in 2010 when the then Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister wore a gigantic garland of currency notes, estimated to add up to several crores of rupees. This kind of extravagant cash display undoubtedly raises questions about source and accountability. However, in all the outrage over this incident, the media missed mentioning that Indian politicians have traditionally been weighed against coins. At election time this becomes a means of adding to the party coffers without the bother of disclosing the source. Political empowerment of the backward castes is a dramatic reality today. But social attitudes have stayed frozen. Why else would 50 per cent of all Central schemes and projects be named after the NehruGandhis? Why would there be a chorus of protests over Mayawati statues but not over the renaming of the Borivali National Park after that champion of democracy, Sanjay Gandhi. (THE HINDU)

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2013

Malian, French troops reassert control in key city

Guinean military chief, others killed in air crash

MONROVIA: Guinea's military chief General Kelefa Diallo and a few others were killed on Monday when their aircraft crashed in Charlesville, near the Roberts International Airport located outside Monrovia, according to officials. A presidency source said the plane, conveying Guinea's senior military officials on security mission to Liberia, went down near the airport and that rescue officials had confirmed death of the army chief and five others. The Guineans were coming to grace the occasion of Liberia's Armed Forces Day when their aircraft crashed, the source said. Liberia's Minister of Information Lewis Brown also confirmed that the plane crashed about 40 kilometers southeast of Monrovia, capital of the west African country, but could not ascertain the casualties figure. –AGENCIES

Sunday’s attack was the most serious escalation in fighting since the French ended Islamist occupation in Gao

GAO: French and Malian troops appeared on Monday to have reasserted control of this strategic settlement in northern Mali after a protracted firefight with Islamist extremists who infiltrated the city after being chased from it two weeks ago. Malian troops took up position on virtually every street corner on Monday and fresh bullet holes scarred a police headquarters, testimony to Sunday’s ﬁghting in Gao, which is at the edge of the desert and is the largest population center in the north. The battle between Islamist militants and a force of Malian and French troops,

which continued for much of Sunday afternoon, suggested that the quick French campaign against the local Al Qaeda affiliate and its allies was not over. Overnight, a series of explosions echoed in the early hours of Monday but the cause of the blasts was not immediately clear. Sunday’s attack by the Islamist fighters was the most serious escalation in the fighting since the French ended over six months of brutal Islamist occupation in Gao at the end of January. That victory came after a quick French bombing campaign and with barely a shot fired. Continuous bursts of gunfire

where Islamist ﬁghters had taken refuge, and that it appeared to have been successful. The Islamists’ attack appeared to have begun with an attempted suicide bombing late Saturday night, when a militant on foot blew himself up at a Malian Army checkpoint outside of town, in the second such episode in two days. The bomber’s attack, which wounded a Malian soldier, was merely a ruse to allow an Islamist commando unit to enter the city, Mr. Oumarou said. “The Malian soldiers panicked; that’s how the Mujao got into town,” Mr. Oumaro said, referring to the Islamist group, the Movement for

were heard around the police station, in the city’s center and in southern districts as French helicopters hovered overhead. Malian soldiers fought back against Islamists armed with AK-47 rifles as the streets cleared of residents. French troops were also patrolling the city, which has a population of about 86,000, including its surrounding areas. By late Sunday afternoon, the Islamist fighters had been encircled by French troops, according to a Gao municipal councilor, Abdheramane Oumarou. Later, Mr. Oumarou said that troops had launched a “final assault” on the town’s police station,

Syrian rebels seize largest dam

Vote registration begins in Palestine GAZA: Voter registration stations opened Monday in the Palestinian territories including the Gaza Strip for the ﬁrst time since the Islamic Hamas movement seized control of the area in 2007. Hanna Nasser, head of the Palestinian Central Elections Commission (CEC), said 257 registration centers in Gaza are expected to receive more than 300,000 people in one week. Last month, Hamas has officially notiﬁed the CEC that it can operate and start updating voter registration in the Gaza Strip. The move brings a Palestinian national reconciliation closer, as President Mahmoud Abbas of Fatah party, insists on not moving on before Hamas allows the CEC to work in Gaza. –AGENCIES

Three DPRK doctors killed in northern Nigeria ABUJA: The three Asian doctors that were killed by unknown attackers in the northeast Nigeria's town of Potiskum are from Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), Nigerian police in northeast state of Yobe conﬁrmed on Sunday. State commissioner for police Sanusi Rufai told Xinhua that the health workers were killed in the early hours of Sunday. According to him, the health workers were posted to the Potiskum General Hospital. "I can conﬁrm to you that those killed are from North Korea and not Chinese or South Koreans" he said, adding that investigations had commenced to unveil those behind the murder of the expatriates. –AGENCIES

Israel holds 10 women for wearing prayer shawls JERUSALEM: Israeli police detained 10 women at one of Judaism's most sacred sites on Monday for wearing prayer shawls, which Orthodox tradition sees as solely for men, a spokesman said. The incident at the Western Wall in Jerusalem's Old City highlighted the divisions between the more liberal streams of Judaism and politically powerful Orthodox groups that traditionally limit the role of women in prayer. –AGENCIES

Shebab suicide bomber kills four in central Somalia MOGADISHU: Somalia’s Shebab insurgents said Monday they carried out a suicide attack using a car bomb targeting senior police officials in the central Galkayo region, killing at least four people. “There are at least ﬁve people dead, including the bomber,” said Mohamed Abdullahi, a police officer in the town, which straddles the border between the northern breakaway state of Puntland and the selfproclaimed region of Galmudug. –AGENCIES

Oneness and Jihad in West Africa, which is affiliated with Al Qaeda and controlled Gao from May to January. Mr. Oumarou said that the ﬁghters who penetrated Gao were aided by local sympathizers, and that caches of armaments had been discovered by the local authorities. Though the French appeared to be leading the ﬁght on Sunday, primary responsibility for patrols had been handed back to the Malian Army, which is still shaky after the defeats of last month that led the French to intervene, and still plagued by the internecine squabbles that led to a gun battle at a barracks in the capital, Bamako, on Friday. –AGENCIES

SRINAGAR: Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front activists violating a curfew to protest the death sentence to Afzal Guru by the Indian courts. –WIRE SERVICE

Toll rises to 37 in Kumbh stampede ALLAHABAD: Anxious relatives searched for missing family members in northern India on Monday during one of the world's largest religious gatherings, unsure if their loved ones were caught in a stampede that killed 37 people or had simply gotten lost among the tens of millions of pilgrims. People thronged to the main hospital in Allahabad to see if their relatives were among 37 dead and 39 people injured in Sunday evening's stampede at the city's train station. Tens of thousands of people were in the station waiting to board a train when railway officials announced a last-minute change in the platform, triggering the chaos. An estimated 30 million Hindus took a dip Sunday at the Sangam — the conﬂuence of the Ganges, the Yamuna and the mythical Saraswati rivers — as part of the 55-day Kumbh Mela, or Pitcher Festival. Sunday was one of the holiest days to bathe. People missing at the Kumbh Mela is the stuff of legend in India and at least a dozen ﬁlms have been made on the theme. On Sunday, like most other days, volunteers and officials used loudspeakers to give details of children and elderly people who were "found" on the river banks, having lost their families in the crowd. It was unclear how many people were missing because of the stampede. On Monday, state government officials and railway

authorities told reporters that they had taken all precautions to prevent just such a tragedy. Stampedes are common during religious festivities in India. During the Kumbh festival, platoons of policemen patrol the specially marked bathing areas to prevent crowding along the river banks in Allahabad. For the past few weeks, and especially on festival days, authorities made constant announcements asking people to move in orderly lines to the bathing areas. An official in the Uttar Pradesh state government in charge of the festival arrangements resigned Monday as the death toll mounted. State minister Mohammed Azam Khan said he had "moral responsibility" for the stampede and submitted his resignation although the incident took place outside the Kumbh festival area. Witnesses blamed police action for the stampede. "We heard an announcement that our train is coming on platform No. 4 and when we started moving toward that platform through a footbridge, we were stopped. Then suddenly the police charged us with batons and the stampede started," passenger Shushanto Kumar Sen said. "People started tumbling over one another and within no time I saw people, particularly women and children, being trampled over by others," Sen said. –AGENCIES

Coal mine blast kills 18 in Russia MOSCOW: At least 18 people died and three remained in grave conditions after a coal mine blast in Russia's northern Komi republic, emergency authorities said Monday. The explosion occurred at 10:28 Moscow time (0628 GMT) at Vorkutinskaya mine. By 14:20 pm Moscow time (1020 GMT), the death toll has reached 18, the Interior Ministry said, adding 10 of the bodies have been lifted to the surface. According to the Emergency Ministry's website, a total 259 people were working in the mine when the blast happened, and 250 of them have been evacuated by 11:40 a.m. Moscow time (0740 GMT). Forty emergency workers are attempting to recover the miners trapped underground. "We hope to find seven miners alive," Emergency Minister Vladimir Puchkov told reporters. Families of those killed miners will receive some 2 million rubles (about 67,000 US dollars) in compensation, Puchkov added. Preliminary investigation conducted by the Russian technical safety watchdog Rostechnadzor suggested that the blast of methane occurred 800 meters underground. The Investigative Committee in charge of investigating the coal mine blast has opened a criminal case under the article of "Violation of the safety rules during mining, construction and other works" of the Russian criminal law, the Investigative Committee's spokesman Vladimir Markin told reporters. According to the Vorkutaugol company's website, the mine has been working since 1973 and has coal reserves for 50 years ahead. It has an annual production capacity of 1.8 million tons of coal. Rostekhnadzor inspected the mine in 2012 and found no safety violations at the time. Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev ordered his deputy Arkady Dvorkovich to collect all information about the situation at Vorkutinskaya mine and to support the victims' families. –AGENCIES

BEIRUT: Syrian rebels have taken control of the country's biggest hydro-electric dam on the Euphrates River, activists said, dealing a strategic blow to President Bashar al-Assad. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights and other Syrian activists said Islamist ﬁghters seized the entrances to the dam, although gunmen had not entered the main operations room and the dam had continued to function. They had earlier swept through the nearby town of Tabqa, renamed al-Thawra (Revolution) by the country's rulers. A statue of Assad's father, the late President Hafez alAssad, was set on ﬁre in the town, video footage showed. Other video posted on the Internet showed what activists said was an abandoned Air Force Security base next to the dam and army

installations inside the town. "The dam was protected by an artillery battery and many intelligence units. The rebels moved on them in a lightning offensive yesterday, overrunning their positions and capturing scores of personnel," said Abu Ziad Teif, an opposition activist in contact with rebels in the area. He said it was not clear whether the rebels would be able to keep the dam in operation and whether enough employees were left at the site. Extra power cuts were reported in the war ravaged city of Aleppo, which is partly supplied by the dam. Rami Abdulrahman of Britishbased Syrian Observatory described the swift collapse of Assad's forces in Tabqa and around the dam as one of the president's biggest strategic setbacks in the 22-month-old Syrian uprising. –AGENCIES

Syria will not submit to ʻplotsʼ: Assad DAMASCUS: Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on Monday stressed that his regime, battered by nearly two years of revolt, will not submit to pressure or "plots" against it, reported state news agency SANA. "Syria will remain the beating heart of the Arab world and will not give up its principles despite the intensifying pressure and diversifying plots not only targeting Syria, but all Arabs," Assad said at a meeting with a Jordanian delegation in Damascus. The statement came after Syrian opposition chief Ahmed Moaz al-Khatib said he had received "no clear response" from Damascus over his offer of dialogue. Khatib said in late January he was prepared to hold direct talks with regime representatives who did not have "blood on their hands," and so long as the discussions addressed replacing Assad. The Assad regime had said it was open to talks but without pre-conditions. The Syrian uprising began with mass peaceful protests in March 2011 and steadily grew into an armed insurgency amid continued state crackdowns. Air raids, shelling attacks and ﬁghting has left over 60,000 people dead since then according to the UN, the vast majority in the second year of the conﬂict. –AGENCIES

$1m bounty announced for fugitive LA ex-officer LOS ANGELES: Los Angeles police on Sunday announced a reward of one million U.S. dollars for information leading to the capture of a former officer suspected of killing three people. Police Chief Charlie Beck and Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa announced the bounty at a news conference for ﬁnding Christopher Jordan Dorner, who was ﬁred in 2009.Authorities said Dorner killed a couple in Irvine and a police officer in

Riverside and injured two others in a revenge campaign against police last week. Dorner was ﬁred after a police disciplinary board found him guilty of making false statement against his training officer, whom he accused of kicking a mentally-ill man during an arrest in 2007. Beck said police will reopen investigation into the ﬁring of Dorner, in a bid to put the public thinking to rest. –AGENCIES

Freedom of information takes another hit in the US DAVE LINDORFF The US government doesn’t like Iran. I get that. It claims, on pretty dubious grounds, that Iran might be planning, at some point down the road, to take some of the uranium it is processing into nuclear fuel to a higher level of purity and make it into an atomic bomb. Because of that possibility, which Iran denies, and for which there is no hard evidence, the US has been tightening an embargo against Iran, blocking countries from buying Iranian oil, blocking banks from doing business with Iran, blocking Iranian banks from doing business with the US, and blocking certain products from being exported to Iran. Many of these actions are, in and of themselves, hostile acts that could, under international law, be considered acts of war given that there is no UN authorization. In fact, some of them are exactly the type of thing that drove militarists in Japan, fearful of their

country being cut off from access to iron ore and to oil, neither of which are available in Japan, to go to war against the US back in 1945. But for all that, the US is not at war with Iran. Got that? There is no state of war between Iran and the USA. You can travel there as a tourist if you like– actually more easily than you can go to Cuba. Iranians can visit the US too, though they probably will get a pretty serious going over by the ICE crew at their port of entry. Now, however, the US has taken a really stupid step. It has blocked the carrying of Iran’s state-owned Englishlanguage PressTV television broadcast on the Galaxy 19 satellite that was allowing the 24-hour newscast to be viewed, at least by some people, in the US. Full disclosure: For several years, I have been frequently interviewed by Iranian Press TV reporters for commentary on such matters as the US election campaign, the US economy, various issues before the Congress, the state of civil liberties in the US, police

repression of the Occupy movement, and also international issues such as the US drone warfare campaign and the war in Afghanistan. For six months, I was also paid to write a weekly column for the Press TV website, until that arrangement was ended for ﬁnancial reasons on Jan. 3 of this year. You might ﬁnd this next bit instructive (I sure did!): When I was invited to write the column last June, knowing that it would be for a stateowned news organization, I said I would have certain requirements. These were: My articles could not be cut, they could not be added to, I had to be paid ($200 per article) whether or not the article was run on the site, and if an article was changed at all, I would reserve the absolute right to have my name removed from it. The editor agreed immediately, and in fact, in all those months, during which I wrote an article of my own choosing every single week, only one article didn’t run — a piece I did on the debate over the death penalty in the US. I have

to say I have never, in 40 years of professional work as a journalist, gotten that same degree of control over my work from a publisher as I was handed by PressTV, except when I was the publisher, or was part of a collective of people. In any event, the bozos who run our government, who have managed to cow the corporate media here into the role, essentially, of propagandists, particularly when it comes to international affairs, seem to think it’s a great idea to punish Iran by blocking it’s own state media, which certainly plays a similar role. But wait a minute! Aren’t we always complaining when other countries, like the former Soviet Union, or Cuba, or North Korea, block our propaganda broadcasts, notably Radio Marti or Radio America? You bet we do. We consider that an example of limiting the free ﬂow of information–of denying the people of those countries access to outside information. How does that square with what the US is doing in this case with PressTV?

It’s exactly the same. Our government is not punishing Iran. It is punishing us, by shutting us out from getting Iran’s side of the story. Americans should be up in arms over this outrage! What is the government afraid of? What message are they sending to the rest of the world? Well I can tell you. They’re afraid Americans might see stories about the true medieval tyranny in the US ally of Bahrain, where the majority Shia population is being viciously repressed by the monarchy there, with the aid of US military equipment. They’re afraid, perhaps, that Americans might see some American journalist like me talking about the 172 known children who have been killed by US drones authorized for deadly strikes in Yemen and Pakistan during the years President Obama has been president — a story that has been effectively blacked out by the compliant US corporate media. And the message they’re sending is that the US is not the much-ballyhooed

“Land of the Free and Home of the Brave” that it claims to be. It is a land of ill-informed sheep and the home of a bunch of cowards — cowards in government who are afraid of the truth and the open debate over facts and ideas, and cowards among the broader public who willingly allow these steady encroachments on our freedom in the name of “ﬁghting terror.” The same kind of campaign has long been underway to silence the Englishlanguage broadcasts of Al Jazzeera in the US, though many well-known US journalists are today working for that news network, and though it is one of the best sources of reporting in the Middle East. Fortunately, there’s still the internet. So I say, check it out. Go to www.presstv.ir and read the articles on the Iranian TV website. You can also click on the button at the top of their home page and watch the broadcast live. Make your own decision. Don’t let the censors in Washington decide for you what you can and cannot watch. (Counterpunch)

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2013

Gold 10 Gms

Dollar Interbank

Kibor 6 months

T Bills6 months

Rs. 97.99

9.10%--9.35%

9.16%

Rs.53614

Crude oil (WTI)

Urea/Bag

$95.25/barrel

Rs.1704

Cement/Bag

Furnace oil

Rs.457

75,763/MT

Letter to petroleum ministry

OGRA seeks advice on CNG tax SAHTAK BALOCH

ISLAMABAD: Even though gas companies have stopped the recovery of Gas Infrastructure Development Cess (GIDC) from the consumers, CNG consumers are still bearing brunt of the same tax owing to absence of advice from petroleum ministry to OGRA (Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority). However OGRA has now written a letter to the ministry seeking issuance of advice on the matter. 11 days earlier Islamabad High Court (IHC) in a decision on collection of GIDC from the consumers had declared GIDC Act 2011 as illegal but no decrease in the prices of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) was made by the government to provide relief to the innocent consumers and they are being ﬂeeced with taxes. Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Resources (MPNR) has so far not advised the OGRA to take necessary steps to decrease the price with an aim to provide

relief to consumers. Around Rs 80 billion has been collected from gas consumers under the GIDC. Sui Southern Gas Company Limited (SSGCL) and Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL) have stopped recovery of GIDC and it would not be included in the gas bills likely to be issued to the consumers within the next couple of days. However, OGRA has now written a letter to the ministry requesting the government (Petroleum Ministry) to issue advice on the matter as on 31-01-2013. Islamabad High Court in its order had also advised to adjust the amount already received on this account, sources said on Monday. The sources also said since the imposition of tax was a federal subject hence it was the ministry who issued advice to the regulator to impose or vacate tax, adding that OGRA itself had no powers in this very regard. Islamabad High Court (IHC) on 31-012013 in a decision on GIDC said, “Gas Infrastructure Development Cess Act, 2011 is

declared Ultra Vires to the Constitution, an infringement to the fundamental rights, offensive to principles of fair play, equality, transparency, social justice, good governance and tantamount to exploitation. It was further declared that levy and collection of GIDC is illegal. Respondents were restrained from making demand of GIDC, and the amount already received on this account had to be adjusted in the future bills of the petitioners.” GIDC was applicable on CNG, industrial

sector, fertiliser, and cement and power sectors. CNG consumers of Region-I comprising areas of Potohar, KP, Balochistan and Region-II including areas of Punjab and Sindh are at present bearing the heavy brunt of GIDC. CNG consumers in Region-I are paying Rs15.37 where GIDC is Rs 13.25/kg and GST is Rs 2.12/kg, which is 16 per cent in the price. While consumers of Region-II are paying GIDC as Rs10.64/kg where GIDC is Rs 9.18/kg and GST is Rs 1.46/kg in the price of the commodity.

Stations opened after 2 months in Faisalabad FAISALABAD: CNG stations in the city opened up after a prolonged shutdown for two months, while the motorists and rickshaw drivers were seen making a beeline for getting their cylinders re-ﬁlled on Monday. Sui Northern Gas in its handout said that gas supply to Faisalabad CNG stations had been resumed for two days. Despite this resumption of CNG supply for two days only, the citizens heaved a sigh of relief, while the rickshaw, taxi drivers and other vehicle owners are happy on the supply of cheap fuel that would provide them a margin of proﬁt and earn a livelihood. –ONLINE

Economic Cooperation Organisationʼs charter approved ISLAMABAD: Dr. Fehmida Mirza, Speaker National Assembly, Monday, said that common historical, cultural, religious and commercial bonds of Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) had closely knit together since time immemorial. This joint heritage provides ideal grounds for the socioeconomic integration of this region. She further said that makes ECO nearly double the size of the European continent and almost equal in terms of its consumer market. What is more, ECO’s geographical position serves as a bridge between the East and the West and makes it the “trade corridor” of the world. She said that proposals like the “ECO Vision 2015”, which anticipated our region as a Free Trade Area by 2015; the ECO Trade Agreement; and the ECO Trade and Development Bank have all remained off-the-mark. –ONLINE

Pakistan repays $145m to IMF KARACHI: Pakistan on Monday paid $145.7 million to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) as the ninth repayment installment against the loan obtained under the standby arrangement. According to the State Bank of Pakistan, additional repayment of $400 million to the IMF is due on February 26.It said Pakistan would have to repay $1.6 billion to the IMF by June 2013. Pakistan had obtained $7.8 billion from the IMF in 2008. –ONLINE

DGKC̶ EPS of Rs6.65 in 1HFY13, up 128%YoY KARACHI: DG Khan Cement (DGKC) announced its 1HFY13 results today, where the company booked proﬁts of Rs2,913mn (EPS of Rs6.65) as against earnings of Rs1,279mn (EPS of Rs2.92) in 1HFY12, up 2.28x YoY. In 2QFY13 alone, the company recorded proﬁts of Rs1,474mn (EPS of Rs3.37), against a PAT of Rs962mn (EPS: Rs2.2) in the same period last year. The result is in line with what was estimated (EPS: Rs3.24). Net sales were reported at Rs11.8bn, up 11%YoY, mainly owing to higher retention prices. –STAFF REPORT

RCCI to hold exhibitions in 13 countries DACCA: The President of Rawalpindi Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Manzar Khurshid Shiekh has said organizing the single country exhibition in 13 European and Asian countries during current year is on the card.He was addressing the inaugural ceremony of single country-Made in Pakistan exhibition at Dacca on Monday. He said that RCCI had organised 10 single-country exhibitions in different countries last year. He said that the recognition of RCCI’s efforts of holding single country exhibition to enhance exports by the govt is proof that the chamber is playing its due role. –ONLINE

CURRENCY US Dollar Euro Great Britain Pound UAE Dirham Saudi Riyal Kuwaiti Dinar Canadian Dollar

BUYING 99.20 132.17 154.28 26.90 26.40 349.10 97.46

SELLING 99.90 133.75 156.08 27.17 26.61 352.10 99.24

ISLAMABAD: Speakers of parliaments of Economic Cooperation Organisation member states taking part in the inaugural ceremony of 1st Conference of the Parliamentary Assembly of ECO at Islamabad. —ONLINE

Experts, WAPDA, WB discuss Dasu

Decreasing dependence on costly imported fuel for electricity generation vital: WAPDA chairman Detailed designed for the hyrdro-power project to be ﬁnalised by March LAHORE: International panel of experts for Dasu Hydropower Project Monday visited WAPDA House and held a meeting to discuss their recommendations about the work done on the project thus far. The meeting, presided over by WAPDA Chairman Syed Raghib Shah, was also attended by the senior representatives of the World Bank, the project consultants, WAPDA Members and other senior officers concerned. Addressing the meeting, the WAPDA Chairman said that addition of a sizeable quantum of low-cost hydel electricity to the national grid is vital not only for mitigating power shortages in the country, but also decreasing dependence on costly imported fuel for electricity generation. For the purpose, he said, WAPDA is simultaneously working on the priortised 4500 MW-Diamer Basha Dam Project and 4320 MW-Dasu Hydropower Project in addition to a number of other under-construction projects. Besides initiating construction work on Diamer Basha Dam as early as possible, WAPDA also plans to undertake Dasu Hydropower Project in various stages, he added. While appreciating the recommendations made by the

International Panel of Experts, the chairman said that their reports are valuable to strengthen technical, environmental and social aspects of the project. He said that the recommendations would be looked into as per best international practices. It is pertinent to mention that detailed engineering design of Dasu hydropower project will be finalisd by March this year. The World Bank senior representative expressed keen interest in the project financing and said that the Bank will send its appraisal mission for Dasu Project in MarchApril, this year. The Chairman thanked the World Bank for showing its interest to provide funds for Dasu Hydropower Project, adding that the World Bank has been a reliable partner for construction of various WAPDA projects. It is worth mentioning that Dasu Hydropower Project is proposed to be constructed on River Indus, 7 kilometers upstream of Dasu village in Kohistan district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. On completion, the project will contribute about 21 billion units of low-cost electricity to the National Grid every year. –ONLINE

All-time low plunge

Rupee touches 100 against dollar KARACHI: The Pakistani rupee on Monday sank to an all-time low against the US dollar over Forex reserve fears as the country repayed $146 million to the International Monetary Fund. The rupee fell to 100.1 to the greenback in trading in Karachi, down from 99.30 on the open market Friday, and has now lost 39 per cent of its value against the US currency since March 2008. “We have traded the dollar at 100.1 rupees, although there is a slight difference on the open market,” said currency dealer Mohammad Arshad. The official inter-bank rate for the dollar is 98 rupees, but Mohammad Sohail, who heads brokerage firm Topline Securities, confirmed it had crossed 100 on the open market. Pakistan had a $10.7 billion IMF loan until September, but had drawn only about a third of it. The government has indicated it would not seek a new loan. Pakistan repaid $145.79 million to the IMF on Monday and is scheduled to repay another $375 million on February 26, according to Syed Wasimuddin, spokesman for the country’s central State Bank. So far Pakistan has repaid $2.57 billion, $1.5 million this fiscal year, ending June 30, according to the central bank. “The rupee is likely to remain under pressure because of IMF repayments,” said Sohail. “The foreign exchange reserves have declined to $8.7 billion as of January 31 from $10.8 billion at end-June 2012,” said the central bank last week. The IMF last November urged Pakistan to reduce its large budget deficit to bolster the struggling economy’s resiliency, noting that foreign exchange reserves under $10 billion were below adequate levels. –AGENCIES

Profile

Give employees a stake: Yahya Polani SHANEL KHALIQ

ahya Polani, a business magnate and owner of Polani Travelers and a group of eight other subsidiary companies, contends that the secret behind running a successful company is giving employees a stake in the business. Polani Travelers, one of the oldest and most successful travel ventures in the country, was started by him with an investment of mere Rs 100 in 1973. Today he holds a prolific profile and has headed the Travel Agents Association of Pakistan (TAAP), its standing committee on Aviation, Tourism, Hajj and Umra and Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI). While talking about employees in Pakistan Mr. Polani argues that although the workforce in Pakistan is diligent and hardworking, it is imperative for the employers to keep in mind the needs of their employees. Encouragement and appreciation is foremost in this regard as this inculcates a sense of responsibility and ownership in the employees and results in greater productivity which ultimately benefits the business. He also emphasized the importance of education and training of the workforce as this is vital in the output they produce. Keeping this in mind he has also founded an NGO which trains teachers of underprivileged schools in order to help them acquire better English speaking and teaching skills. He described other reasons behind a successful business as working in good coordination with partners as distributing the workload equally and according to everyone’s skills as this renders the highest level of efficiency. He also feels that government support is equally essential. This is the main reason why Pakistani nationals are able to produce better output abroad as compared to in their native country as there is a better support structure present there. In his own case, he describes honesty to be his biggest strength and credits his achievement to this quality in himself. Polani ascribes most of the downfall in the industries of aviation, tourism and Hajj to the government’s corruption. He recounts the time when he handled Hajj as considerably better than the situation today. Although at that time the pilgrims' groups were sent by ship however the corruption and malfunction in the state owned airline has caused severe problems for the people now.

OGDCL converts 3rd party workers as daily wagers STAFF REPORT

ISLAMABAD: OGDCL has taken 3052 work charge temporary workers on direct daily wages basis who were working with the organization through third party contractor since last many years to provide them maximum amount of benefit, majority of these workers are locals of the areas where OGDCL operations are under progress. OGDC has two categories of employees, officers and workers. There are nine grades for officers starting from (Executive Grade) EG 1 to EG 9 and for workers the grades are from Non Management Grade (NMG)1-17. At present there are total 2604 officers in OGDCL who work in various fields and offices across Pakistan including the head office and total staff or workers on OGDCL payroll are 10,882, out of which 3,052 are on work charge or temporary workers. The hiring procedure for all officers and workers is thru press advertisement whether permanent or on contract. Sometimes due to temporary peaks in workload officers and workers can be hired on temporary basis for upto 87 days on a day rate basis; this is called daily wages procedure. They work as laborers, waiters, barbers, chokidars, drivers, clerks, qasids, cooks etc. at engineering parties, seismic parties, drilling rigs and oil and gas plants across Pakistan. In order to create employment in the local communities, OGDCL hires all unskilled workers from the local communities. Field heads are authorized to engage and disengage them, as they are present in the field and know the locals better. Amongst temporary workers are chokidars as well, who are hired by field heads on the recommendation of the landowners on whose land OGDCL has its plants and facilities. OGDCL has agreement with the landowners to hire 3 chokidars from each landowner’s village/family on his recommendation. The field heads are required to report the head count of all daily wages workers with business need justification to the head office on regular basis in order to prevent ghost workers or misuse of authority. Any misuse of authority if identified attracts disciplinary action against the concerned person. Sometimes, mis-hiring of temporary worker/labor takes place in the field due to misdeclarations by an individual that he is a local, when in fact he is not. In such event all effort is made to dehire such a person and hire a local instead. In the event, if permanent staff or worker is required by the field, then field heads have to request the head office to press advertise and follow the same procedure as explained above for permanent hiring of officers or workers.

Bulls lift index 70 points as KSE continues to eye records ANIS SHAIKH

KARACHI: KSE started the week brilliantly, climbed to a high of 17,593 with an intraday increment of over 100 points. Yet it remained unsustainable, as it lost a bit of ground towards the end closing at yet another record of 17,548 adding up another 70 points to last trading session’s close. Surprisingly, since most of the volume leaders were in red, OGDC alone pushed and maintained the index in the green zone. The volumes were still good at 292 million shares. Out of 382 companies traded today 178 advanced and 156 declined, hence a 70-point increase may not depict the accurate picture, AKBL the star performer of the last session also closed in the red zone.

year translating into an alluring dividend PTCL and the LDI scenario yield of 14%. The much anticipated results of telecom Result preview HBL sector will commence from this week where Habib Bank Limited (HBL) is scheduled to PTCL will be the first to declare its result on Wednesday, February 13, 2013. According to announce its CY12 results on Tuesday, February 12th, 2013. EPS expected at BMA Research the Rs17.41 - DPS at Rs7 in company is expected to CY12. The bank is expected post astounding earnings KSE 17,548.54 +70.60 0.40% to post a post taxation proﬁt of PKR6.1bn in 4th quarter ISE 3,196.11 +25.16 0.78% of Rs21bn for last calendar of the calendar year 12 LSE 3,204.71 +8.60 0.27% year. It would be a skimpy taking the full year profits increase of just 1.8% on to PKR1.1bn translating into earning per share of 21 paisa. Market can yearly basis. HBL is expected to announce a receive another surprise with a dividend dividend of Rs3.5/share. According to Invest announcement of PKR1.0/sh for CY12. The Cap such a trend is anticipated to be led by the research report predicts that the company ﬂattish increase in Net Interest Income, though will payout PKR2.9/share in current calendar gross interest income is expected to step up by Stock of the day

a signiﬁcant 15%YoY, the 31% escalation expected under the interest expense head (ﬁxed deposits up by 21% YoY) is likely to absorb the positivity induced by such. The provisions booked by the bank are expected to slide down by a massive 29%YoY on the back of the industry wide practice of banks preferring risk free government securities to relatively risk embedded advances. Predictions for next session

The month of February can be tricky sometimes, State bank didn’t have much to offer in terms of further easing, in fact it looks as though we may see monetary tightening soon. The result season is in full bloom and anything below expectations can ruin the day. Volumes are healthy as solid company fundamentals support accumulations at dips.

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2013

Affleck’s ‘Argo’ wins top awards at BAFTA SHOWBIZ DESK LONDON: Ben Affleck's ‘Argo’ was crowned best ﬁlm at the BAFTAs while Daniel Day-Lewis bagged yet another leading actor award for the title role in "Lincoln" as an increasingly familiar awards season script unfolded. Affleck also won the best director trophy for "Argo", about the rescue of American

hostages in Iran during the 1979 revolution, and the movie is now in pole position to win the biggest movie award of all on Oscar night. "You are remarkable at what you do. You're smart and you know what you want but more importantly you love what you're doing," George Clooney, one of the ﬁlm's producers, told Affleck on stage as they accepted the best ﬁlm award.

Steven Spielberg's biopic of Abraham Lincoln was nominated in 10 categories but went away with just one award for Day-Lewis. Emmanuelle Riva, an 85-

BAFTA FASHION

year-old French actress, won the BAFTA for leading actress for her part as a retired music teacher struggling to cope with the aftermath of a stroke, in Austrian director Michael Haneke's "Amour". The award ﬁnally brings a win for Riva who was nominated for a BAFTA in the foreign actress category in 1961 for "Hiroshima, Mon Amour", but lost out to Shirley MacLaine. Haneke's harrowing French-language "Amour" also won the BAFTA for best ﬁlm not in the English language. Anne Hathaway won the BAFTA for best supporting actress for her singing role as the tragic Fantine in "Les Miserables", the movie version of a global hit stage musical. Christoph Waltz won the supporting actor award for his performance in Quentin Tarantino's slavery-era Western "Django Unchained", which also won the best original screenplay BAFTA.

Why Priyanka can't sing for films SHOWBIZ DESK NEW DEHLI: Priyanka Chopra, who impressed everyone with her hit international single, 'In My City', reportedly can't sing for her Bollywood ﬁlms as her contract with the music label that has produced her single doesn't allow her to do so. The 30-year-old actress revealed that right now she is focusing only on her upcoming album and she cannot sing for her movies until her entire album is released. The 'Fashion' star, who always had an inclination towards music, said that ever since she entered

Bollywood, she has been regularly asked to sing for her ﬁlms, but it was this opportunity that made her shed all her inhibitions.

Hrithik replaces World Radio Day today Salman Khan

SHOWBIZ DESK

JENNIFER LAWRENCE

ZAWE ASHTON

LONDON: While not quite as big as Australia Day or the Melbourne Cup in this country, February 13 is the day proclaimed by UNESCO and endorsed by the United Nations General Assembly to celebrate Radio as a medium; to improve international cooperation between broadcasters; and to encourage major networks and community radio alike to promote access to information and freedom of expression over the airwaves. UNESCO encourages all countries to celebrate World Radio Day by planning activities in partnership with regional, national and international broadcasters, non-governmental organizations, the media and the public. In England, A 24 hour pop-up station will celebrate the work of the Children’s Radio Foundation with a host of musicians, radio presenters and artists coming together at the Institute of Contemporary Art in London to appear on the station. The International Committee

for the World Radio Day invites all public, private, online and community Radio organizations as well as Radio professionals and listeners worldwide to participate in a global campaign and join voices to tell the world why Radio still is the greatest media! If your station is doing something for WRD, then you can tell us and we’ll let our readers know at radioinfo. The host for this year’s WRD celebrations is the Academia Española de la Radio in Madrid.

Shatrughan Sinha calls Rani 'Rani Chopra' SHOWBIZ DESK

HAYLEY ATWELL

PALOMA FAITH

obvious I mean Aditya." Sinha said this at the unveiling of a statue of Yash Chopra here, where a host of celebrities including Poonam Dhillon, Prem Chopra, Kabir Khan, Parineeti Chopra, Vaibhavi Merchant and Rani Mukherjee were present. Yash Chopra's wife Pamela and younger son Uday were also present on the occasion. Last year, when the noted ﬁlmmaker was admitted in Lilavati Hospital, Rani was present with the Chopra family. Later, at the prayer meet for Yash Chopra, Rani had stood by the family.

MUMBAI: Even as Rani Mukherjee and producer-director Aditya Chopra have kept the rumour mills guessing about their relationship, veteran actor Shatrughan Sinha addressed the actress as "Rani Chopra" at an event. While calling out the names of the family members of late ﬁlmmaker Yash Chopra, Sinha said, "Pamela Chopra, Uday, Rani and other family members just now my wife said I missed out on Aditya Chopra. When I am saying Rani Chopra's name it is

SHOWBIZ DESK MUMBAI: Last year, beverage giant Coca Cola signed Salman Khan to endorse Thums Up after the firm dropped Akshay Kumar, ending almost a decade-old association with the actor. In the latest move, Salman has been replaced by Hrithik Roshan as Mountain Dew’s new celebrity face after the firm ended its deal with the Dabangg (2010) star. According to PepsiCo, Hrithik “truly reflects the daring, bold and fearless persona of the brand

and its consumers.” Interestingly, this is the latest deal to be bagged by Hrithik, who endorses around a dozen other brands including Hero, Acer, iBall and Liberty, among others. We’ve also heard that recently, the actor rejected a big offer from a prominent mobile company to endorse it because he wasn’t very pleased with the marketing ideas. Apparently, he turned down an offer of R15 crore because according to him, the brand was trying to hard-sell the product.

Meera and Saima refuse stage work SHOWBIZ DESK LAHORE: According to a source, ever since Nargis has retired from the stage, there is a hole made in the stage drama industry. To bring more light to the stage dramas, producers have approached Meera and Saima who refused ﬂatly. Some producers are however hoping for Meera to be the next star for stage plays.

Winners at the 55th Grammy Awards LOS ANGELES: Here are the winners of some of the main categories at the 55th Grammy Awards, two hours into the music industry's biggest annual show at the Staples Centre

ANDREA RISEBOROUGH

SARAH JESSICA

ADELE BEST POP SOLO PERFORMANCE

JESSICA CHASTAIN

ANNE HATHAWAY

ADELE BEST POP SOLO PERFORMANCE

BONNIE RAITT BEST AMERICAN ALBUM

GOTYE AND KIMBRA BEST ALTERNATIVE MUSIC ALBUM

FRANK OCEAN BEST URBON CONTEMPORARY ALBUM

GRAMMYS SKRILLEX BEST DANCE RECORDING

ZAC BROWN BAND BEST COUNTRY ALBUM

KELLY CLARKSON BEST POP VOCAL ALBUM

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2013

Zeballos surprises Nadal to win Chilean Open TENNIS VINA DEL MAR: Argentine Horacio Zeballos sprung a major surprise by beating Rafa Nadal 67 7-6 6-4 to win the Chilean Open on Sunday and clinch the first title of his career. World number 73 Zeballos held his nerve in the final set, breaking Nadal when he was serving to stay in the match to seal victory after almost three hours in the Pacific coast city of Vina del Mar. "I'm shocked. I've beaten one of the best players of tennis history. It's an incredible sensation," an emotional Zeballos said. "I still think I'm dreaming. It's an honour playing against him. I enjoyed being with him at the locker room, eating with him. He's a great guy, I would like to ask him if he's from this planet," the Argentine added with a big smile. Nadal was playing his first tournament since suffering a shock defeat to the unfancied Lukas Rosol at Wimbledon last June, having been sidelined by a troublesome knee injury and his comeback delayed by illness. He will continue continue playing on his favorite clay surface at two

other Latin American events this month. The French Open champion heads to the Brazil Open in Sao Paulo next week and the Mexico Open in Acapulco from Feb. 25. "Although I didn't make it (to win the tournament), for me it is a huge achievement playing all the week," Nadal said when he received his runnerup trophy. The 27-year-old Zeballos was competitive from the outset, but failed to exploit two break-points in the first set to allow Nadal a tiebreak, which the Spaniard comfortably wrapped up 7-2. Zeballos hit back to win the second set tiebreak 8-6 and showed great poise to level at 1-1 in the decider after being broken in the first game. Nadal struggled with his serve and was a shadow of the fired-up, fist-pumping competitor that has clinched 11 grand slam titles as he tired late in the match and lost key points without showing much emotion. Local fans were won over by the Spaniard, who was gracious in defeat, however, and thanked the crowd for the support. "This is one of the best weeks of the last months. I want to thank you all," he said.

SOUTH AFRICA TOUR CAPE TOWN: Pakistan's left-arm fast bowler Mohammad Irfan made a claim for a Test place and senior batsman Younis Khan played himself into form on the second and ﬁnal day of a practice match against an Emerging Cape Cobras team at the Western Province Cricket Club on Monday. Irfan followed up his ﬁrst innings haul of four for 20 with three for 20 as the home side, comprising amateur players from the Western Cape franchise, were bowled out for 78. Set to make 59, the tourists romped to a ten-wicket win. They batted on until they reached 126 for one, enabling Younis Khan

to score 74 not out after his ﬁrst four innings on tour yielded only 34 runs. The second Test starts at Newlands on Thursday. Rahat Ali was preferred to the tall Irfan for the third seamer's role in the ﬁrst Test in Johannesburg, which South Africa won by 211 runs, but Ali did not take a wicket. Umar Gul and Junaid Khan, the two senior fast bowlers, were rested and Irfan's match haul of seven for 40 was easily the best return for the tourists in the practice match, with none of the other pace bowlers taking more than three wickets. Summarised scores: Emerging Cape Cobras 156 & 78 Pakistanis 176/6d & 126/1 (43.0 ov) Pakistan won by 10 wickets.m AGENCIES

Snedeker wins Pebble Beach Pro-Am GOLF

CHILE: Argentine Horacio Zeballos celebrates his victory over Spanish tennis player Rafael Nadal at the ATP Vina del Mar tournament final singles match on Sunday. AGENCIES

Nigeria win Africa Cup of Nations FOOTBALL SOWETO: Nigeria ended a 19-year Africa Cup of Nations title drought Sunday with a 1-0 final victory over Burkina Faso at Soccer City thanks to a late first-half goal from Sunday Mba. It was a result that took winning coach Stephen Keshi into the record books as he equalled the feat of late Egyptian Mahmoud El Gohary by winning gold medals as a player and a coach. Among the rewards for the Super Eagles was a $1.5 million first prize and a place at the FIFA Confederations Cup in Brazil, where they will face world and European champions Spain, Tahiti and Uruguay. Nigeria were forced into a late pre-match change when striker and four-goal leading scorer Emmanuel Emenike was ruled out by a hamstring injury sustained in the semi-final rout of Mali and experienced Ikechukwu Uche took his place. Burkina Faso were able to retain the team that started against Ghana in a semi-final settled by a shoot-out after the red card given to midfielder Jonathan Pitroipa was rescinded when the referee admitted he erred. It was only the third time the countries have met in the 56-year competition with Nigeria beating then-Upper Volta 4-2 in 1978 and Burkina Faso snatching a stoppage-time 1-1 draw in a Nelspruit group game last month. The Mba goal gave the Super Eagles a deserved 1-0 half-time lead after 45 minutes that followed a predictable script with Nigeria

Pakistan humble Cape Cobras by 10 wickets

PEBBLE BEACH: Brandt Snedeker, who finished second each of the last two weeks, busted through for his first win of the year on Sunday, firing a seven-under 65 to capture the Pebble Beach National ProAm. The red-hot Snedeker saved his best round of the week for the final day as he finished with a 19-under par 267 total to beat fellow American Chris Kirk by two strokes. "It is kind of crazy," said Snedeker, who will improve to number four in the world rankings on Monday. "This is a special day. To win at Pebble Beach in such a beautiful place. "This gives me a ton of confidence going into The Masters and the US Open. Those are next on my list." Snedeker' 267 set a tournament scoring record, bettering the previous mark of 268, which Mark O'Meara established in 1997 and Phil Mickelson tied six years ago. The 32-year-old Snedeker entered Sunday's round tied for the lead with James Hahn, who shot a two-under 70 in the fourth round. Hahn finished tied for third with two others at 14-under 272. Kirk shot a six-under 66 for 17-under 269. Snedeker started quickly Sunday by rolling in a four-footer for eagle on the second hole to break the overnight tie with Hahn. At one point he led the proam event by as much as four shots. Snedeker finished runner-up to Tiger

Woods and Mickelson in the past two weeks and placed third in the USPGA Tour's seasonopening event in Hawaii. "The last two weeks I played great but running into two hall of famers motivated me to go out there Brandt Snedeker knowing that I celebrates with his trophy. can play good and handle the lead," Snedeker said. This also marked his second win in his last six starts and his fifth career USPGA Tour win after claiming the Farmers Insurance and Tour Championship last year as he earned the US tour's $10 million playoff title. He is the first player since 1990 to follow up two straight runner-up finishes with a title. "You can't make up a day like this," Snedeker said. "It seems like over the last three months I have been waking up in a dream world." Hahn tied for third with Kevin Stadler (65) and Jimmy Walker (66). Australian Jason Day shot a final round 67 and ended alone in sixth on 273. Mickelson had four birdies, two bogeys and a double-bogey in an even-par round of 72. The defending champ finished tied for 60th at one-under-par 285. AGENCIES

Disgruntled Indian tennis players form association Nigerian players celebrate their victory after the final on Sunday night. AGENCIES dominating possession and scoring chances while the Burkinabe relied largely on counter-attacks. Mba, one of two home-based stars in the starting line-up, struck on 40 minutes with a penalty-box ﬂick over Mohamed Koffi and a left-foot shot into the far corner past helpless goalkeeper Daouda Diakite. It was an opportunist goal by Mba and his second of the tournament, having struck a superb match-winner in the 2-1 quarterﬁnal defeat of pre-tournament title favourites Ivory Coast. Nigeria should have taken the lead much earlier as Diakite spilled a cross on 10 minutes into the path of Brown Ideye, whose shot at an

unguarded goal was just too high. A combination of Nigerian midfield creativity and a couple of defensive howlers by the Burkinabe offered several half chances to the Super Eagles that were squandered. The early second-half exchanges mirrored the first period with the Nigerians pressing for a second goal that would leave opponents fielding a lone striker in Aristide Bance with a mountain to scale. Diakiate did well to push away a hard, low Ideye cross-cum-shot and Moses should have done better in a two-on-one situation that favoured the Eagles only to timidly surrender possession with the Burkinabe goal in sight. Although Spain-based

Uche was a goal-scoring star of the qualifying campaign, he was making no impact on the final and gave way to Ahmed Musa nine minutes after half-time. There was another Nigerian substitution not long after – this time enfored – with full-back Elderson Echiejile limping off to be replaced by Juwon Oshaniwa, while the Burkinabe introduced Wilfried Sanou for Florent Rouamba. As the game moved into the final quarter there were chances at both ends with unmarked Musa slipping as he was poised to shoot inside the box and a Sanou drive at the other end finishing just wide of the far post. AGENCIES

MUMBAI: Top Indian players formed an association on Monday to protect their professional interests days after signing a temporary truce with the All India Tennis Association (AITA). The Indian Tennis Players Association (ITPA) said in a statement that it would function around the ATP model and act as a platform to represent the concerns of its members. "We believe that the ITPA will provide the players a voice that will stand united in our concerns and suggestions for the improvement of the sport in the country," Somdev Devvarman, India's frontline singles player, said in the statement. The AITA said they would wait for the association to approach the governing body for recognition and hoped it would not disrupt the ongoing discussions for a long-term understanding. "We have heard about it. If they at all

approach the federation for recognition, we will discuss it in the executive committee and convey to them our decision," AITA chief executive Hironmoy Chatterjee told Reuters by phone. "For their own convenience they have formed an association and I can't see why the federation should have any problem with it." Eleven frontline players, excluding 13times grand slam doubles champion Leander Paes, pulled out of the regional first-round Davis Cup tie against South Korea in New Delhi earlier this month, which India lost 4-1. Last week, the AITA agreed to most of their demands paving the way for the disgruntled players, including multiple doubles grand slam champion Mahesh Bhupathi, Devvarman and Rohan Bopanna, to commit to play in the April 5-7 tie against Indonesia. AGENCIES

Manchester United, Bayern, Barcleona roll on EUROPEAN FOOTBALL ROUNDUP LONDON: Manchester United, Bayern Munich and Barcelona cemented their commanding positions at the top of their respective leagues with victories over the weekend. England: Manchester United ruthlessly beat Everton 2-0 on Sunday to move 12 points clear at the top of the Premier League following champions Manchester City's shock 3-1 loss at Southampton on Saturday. Ryan Giggs and Robin van Persie struck in the ﬁrst half for United who are in a commanding position to win their 20th league title with 12 matches left. City trailed 2-0 at struggling Southampton but Edin Dzeko pulled one back before halftime, only for Gareth Barry's bizarre own goal to restore the home side's two-goal cushion. Third-placed Chelsea beat Wigan Athletic 4-1 to ease the pressure on interim manager Rafa Benitez and Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal also won to stay in the hunt for Champions League places. Southampton moved four points clear of the relegation zone and Aston Villa climbed out of the bottom three after beating West Ham United 2-1. Queens Park Rangers remained four points adrift at the foot of the standings following a 4-1 defeat at Swansea City. Spain: Barcelona moved 12 points clear at the top of the Primera Liga when they crushed Getafe 6-1 at the Nou Camp and secondplaced Atletico Madrid were beaten 2-1 at Rayo Vallecano on Sunday. Barca forward Lionel Messi scored his 35th of the campaign and Alexis Sanchez and David Villa made the most of a rare place in the starting lineup with

a goal apiece. Atletico's lead over third-placed Real Madrid was cut to four points after the champions thumped visiting Sevilla 4-1 on Saturday. Real forward Cristiano Ronaldo warmed up in style for Wednesday's Champions League last 16 first leg at home to his former club Manchester United with a hat-trick and an assist. Malaga cemented their grip on fourth with a 2-1 comeback win at Levante on Saturday, promising playmaker Isco scoring twice to crown the week when he made his debut for Spain in a 3-1 friendly win against Uruguay. Germany: Leaders Bayern Munich are cruising towards their first Bundesliga title since 2010 after crushing Schalke 04 4-0 to open up a 15-point lead. Left back David Alaba scored either side of a sensational Bastian Schweinsteiger free kick with Mario Gomez, starting ahead of top scorer Mario Mandzukic, drilling in the fourth as Bayern made it four straight wins this year without conceding a goal. Champions Borussia Dortmund suffered a shock 4-1 home loss to Hamburg SV but hung on to second place on 39 points, with Bayer Leverkusen missing the chance to go second after conceding a late equaliser in their 3-3 draw at Borussia Moenchengladbach. Italy: Juventus increased their lead at the top of Serie A to five points when they beat Fiorentina 2-0 and second-placed Napoli were held to a 1-1 draw at third-placed Lazio. Mirko Vucinic and Alessandro Matri scored in the first half for titleholders Juventus, taking

them on to 55 points from 24 games. Napoli trailed for most of their match, Hugo Campagnaro grabbing a point in the 87th minute after Sergio Floccari scored in 11th minute for Lazio who are a further six points back in third. Inter Milan's 3-1 win over Chievo left them one point behind Lazio in fourth whilst Mario Balotelli scored a late penalty for the second game in a row to salvage a 1-1 draw for AC Milan at Cagliari. France: Paris St Germain moved six points clear at the top of the Ligue 1 table by beating Bastia 3-1 while their main rivals in the title race, Olympique Lyon, collapsed to a home loss to Lille by the same score. PSG, level with Lyon 10 days ago, have 51 points from 24 games with the seven-times French champions on 45 after their second successive defeat. Third-placed Olympique Marseille are two points behind after a 1-1 draw at Evian Thonon Gaillard in which they conceded a penalty and had Kassim Abdallah and Jordan Ayew sent off in the second half. Marseille, who occupy a Champions League qualifying spot, are three points ahead of fourth-placed St Etienne, who better copped with their snow-covered pitch to beat Montpellier 4-1, and Stade Rennes in ﬁfth thanks to their 2-0 home victory over Toulouse. Netherlands: Feyenoord teenagers Jean Paul Boetius and Tonny Vilhena were on target in a 3-1 home win over AZ Alkmaar which put them three points behind leaders PSV Eindhoven. PSV were held to a 2-2 draw by Vitesse Arnhem, with a late double from Wilfred Bony, while Ajax Amsterdam and Twente Enschede also dropped points. Ajax came from behind in a 1-1 home draw against

AMSTERDAM : Ajax Amsterdam's Isaac Cuenca (R) vies with Roda JC Kerkrade's Mitchell Donald during a Dutch Eredivisie match on Sunday in Amsterdam. AGENCIES Roda JC Kerkrade, while Twente remained winless in 2013 following a 1-1 draw at lowly PEC Zwolle. Portugal: Portuguese Premier League jointleaders Porto and Benﬁca stumbled to draws against Olhanense and Nacional da Madeira respectively to keep the title race ﬁnely balanced. Porto were held 1-1 at home, with Colombia striker Jackson Martinez levelling in the second half but then missing from the

penalty spot. The champions pressed on but failed to break Olhanense and their inspired keeper Rafael Bracalli. Benfica threw away a 2-1 lead and had influential Paraguay striker Oscar Cardozo and holding midfielder Nemanja Matic sent off in an eventful 2-2 draw in the Atlantic island of Madeira. Porto and Benfica lead with 46 points from 18 matches, 15 ahead of third-placed Pacos de Ferreira. AGENCIES

TUESDAY FEBRUARY 12, 2013

THE SPOKESMAN - RAWALPINDI/ISLAMABAD

Nothing for shooting 2 Pakistanis, but... Pope will resign on Feb 28: Vatican VATICAN CITY: Pope Benedict XVI announced Monday he will resign on February 28 because his age prevented him from carrying out his duties, an unprecedented move in the modern history of the Catholic Church. "After having repeatedly examined my conscience before God, I have come to the certainty that my strengths, due to an advanced age, are no longer suited to an adequate exercise of the Petrine ministry," the 85-year-old pope told a meeting of cardinals. "In order to govern the bark of Saint Peter and proclaim the Gospel, both strength of mind and body are necessary, strength which in the last few months, has deteriorated in me to the extent that I have had to recognise my incapacity to adequately fulﬁll the ministry entrusted to me," he said. –AGENCIES

Raymond faces 2-year term for parking fight MOMO BAIG DENVER: A former CIA contractor who was involved in a 2011 shootout in Lahore is due in court here Monday over a fight in a parking lot at a bagel shop. A judge will consider a plea agreement for Raymond Allen Davis, who is charged with felony assault and misdemeanor disorderly conduct in the fight outside a suburban bagel shop. The deal calls

for Davis to plead guilty to a misdemeanor assault charge in exchange for probation. It also calls for him to pay restitution to the alleged victim, Jeffrey Maes, and take anger management classes. Maes' attorney, Larry Klayman, said he opposed any deal that doesn't include a formal letter of apology or jail time. Davis' trial is scheduled to begin Tuesday. A conviction on the felony charge would carry a minimum 2 years in prison.

While working as a CIA contractor in Pakistan, Davis was detained by Pakistani authorities in January 2011 after he shot and killed two men he said tried to rob him. Pakistan released Davis that March after the men's families agreed to accept $2.34 million from the US government. Klayman provided a copy of a proposed plea agreement to The Associated Press. He also has ﬁled a lawsuit on behalf of Maes and Maes'

Another bloody day in Karachi

Muscat airport closed after PIA plane crash-lands MUSCAT: A Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) passenger plane with about 70 people on board crashlanded on the runway of Oman’s main airport in Muscat on Monday, forcing the cancellation of all flights from the facility, a safety officer said on Monday. Ali Al Zuwaidi, flight safety director at Muscat International Airport, said the pilot had reported no injuries among the passengers or crew. “A PIA aircraft crashed on the runway after its landing gear collapsed,” Zuwaidi told Reuters. “We had to close the airport indefinitely until the investigation has been completed,” he added. Zuwaidi said the scheduled flight by the Boeing 737 aircraft was arriving from Islamabad when it crash-landed. –AGENCIES

Firing during PTI elections injures three LAHORE: At least three people were injured in Lahore in a ﬁring incident during the Pakistan Tehriki-Insaaf ’s (PTI) intra-party elections held on Monday whereas police arrested eight suspects accused if disrupting law and order. The incident occurred when an argument erupted between the two contending groups of the PTI, both of whom accused each other of rigging the intra-party polls. –ONLINE

Missing prisoners ̶ SC asks AGP for explanation ISLAMABAD: Supreme Court has sought explanation from the Attorney General with regards to the prisoners who went missing from Adiala Jail. A 3-member bench led by Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhary heard the case on Monday. Lawyer for missing persons noted that the prisoners were seized illegally and now the party involved are coming up with legal reasoning. The CJ asked why the matter is not being resolved at the earliest despite the fact that some prisoners are ill. At this, the AG sought time to give explanation. The court adjourned the hearing till today. –ONLINE

Shahrukh sent to central prison KARACHI: An Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) on Monday ordered shifting of Shahrukh Jatoi, prime accused in the Shahzeb Khan murder case, from the juvenile prison to the central prison whereas a show-cause notice was issued to the police surgeon and Investigating Officer (IO) in the case. Shahrukh and three other suspects appeared in court for the hearing along with members of a medical board who submitted the medical records pertaining to the prime accused. According to the birth certiﬁcate submitted, Shahrukh’s date of birth was stated as Nov 27, 1993.–ONLINE

wife and two children, who witnessed the ﬁght. The lawsuit claims Maes suffered a fractured vertebrae and other injuries. "If we don't get a real letter of apology that includes contrition, our position is that he should do jail time," Klayman said. Davis' attorney, William Frankfurt, disputes the claim that Maes suffered a fracture. He said Maes may have injured himself by allegedly trying to tackle Davis during the altercation.

ASI among 15 dead Blast targets gas line

OUR STAFF REPORTER

KARACHI: Rangers and army personnel patrol Defence area during house-to-house verification of voters lists. –ONLINE

Veriﬁcation of Karachi votersʼ lists

Sindh EC seeks five more days ECP to intensify scrutiny of candidates Increases number of polling stations in capital

OUR STAFF REPORTERS KARACHI/ISLAMABAD: The Sindh Election Commission has requested the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to grant five more days to complete the voter verification process in Karachi. According to ECP sources, the verification of voters’ lists was scheduled to be completed by February 11, but will now be complete by February 16. The additional time was requested due to difficulties faced owing to the law and order situation in Karachi. The approval for a five day extension will be given by the Election Commission of Pakistan. In December 2012, the Supreme Court had directed the ECP to conduct verification of voters’ lists in Karachi with the assistance of the army and Frontier Corps. Meanwhile, Election Commission has issued notices to the officials of the State Bank and Federal Board of Revenue to attend a high-level meeting on February 13 aimed at finalising measures for preventing tax-evaders and bank-defaulters from contesting the elections. Chief Election Commissioner Fakhar-ud-Din Ibraheem will chair the meeting.

The ECP has decided to intensify scrutiny of the candidates of the upcoming general elections, such that those penalised by National Accountability Bureau will not be allowed to participate. Sources said those who have been part of a plea bargain will not be contesting the next general elections. The Election Commission has also discussed the issue of implementation of Article 62, 63 of the Constitution. In a related development, the Election Commission of Pakistan has increased the number of polling stations in two constituencies of the Federal Capital on Monday. After increase in polling stations’ numbers the total number has become 546 in the federal capital. The increase has been made in the new polling scheme introduced by the ECP for the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT). The number of polling stations of National Assembly seat in the federal capital NA-48 Islamabad-I has been increased by 182 to 261 while in NA-49 Islamabad-II by 197 to 285. The ECP also sought objections from political parties regarding new polling scheme and it could be submitted within seven days in the ECP office of Islamabad district.

SC wants Tauqir deported by 14th OUR STAFF REPORTER ISLAMABAD: A twomember Supreme Court bench on Monday directed the concerned authorities to ensure deportation of Tauqir Sadiq, former OGRA chairman, before his detention in Dubai expires on 14 February. The court directed the FIA, Ministries of Interior and Foreign Affairs and all other authorities of the government and their subordinate divisions and offices within Pakistan or abroad to render full and prompt assistance to NAB in diligently pursuing the absconding accused and to bring him back to Pakistan. The court directed that if the process to deport Tauqir did not complete by February 14, steps be taken to extend his detention period. The court directed NAB Prosecutor General to submit a petition for the arrest of Tauqir in the accountability court and after the arrest warrant was issued, the deportation process should be completed.

SC to clear Swiss case mystery ISLAMABAD: Does the decades-old Swiss case saga has ﬁnally ended in favour of President Asif Ali Zardari after the Swiss authorities have reportedly informed the government of Pakistan that a corruption case involving him could not be reopened in their country on legal grounds? It is still a question mark. This question mark will be cleared after a few days when Supreme Court resumes hearing of the National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO) implementation case and the law ministry presents before it the Swiss letter. Since the government has been keeping the Swiss letter secret, it is still not clear whether the case is not being reopened for being time-barred (anfractuous) under the Swiss laws or the immunity of the president has been accepted. It is likely that the government decided to write the letter after getting some solid information and assurance from the Swiss authorities regarding the issue of immunity. According to reports, the Swiss attorney general, in reply to a letter sent by the Pakistani government three months back, told the law ministry through a letter that the case could not be reopened because it had become time-barred under the Swiss laws. –MASOOD REHMAN

KARACHI: At least 15 people including a police officer were killed Monday in various incidents of violence in Karachi whereas police arrested a man from Shershah area of Karachi who was suspected of involvement in killing of police personnel. Three people died when unidentified assailants opened indiscriminate fire on a real state agency in Ahsanabad. Unknown gunmen killed an police Assistant Sub Inspector (ASI ) in Landhi’s Sherpao colony area of Karachi. The deceased was posted in Karachi’s Quaidabad police station. One person was killed in a gun firing incident near Safoorah Chowrangi in Karachi. Two bodies were found stuffed in gunny bags in Karachi’s Abbas town area. The bodies bore marks of torture and gunshot wounds. Another person was killed by gun firing in Bin Qasim area of the city. Some armed men opened fire at a shop in Kahradar’s Bantwa area of Karachi injuring two people. The

injured were shifted to a nearby hospital where one of the wounded succumbed to his injuries during treatment. Fear and panic gripped the area after the incident. An in-charge of a private welfare organisation was critically injured in a gunfiring incident in Lyari area of Karachi. A blast apparently targeting a gas pipeline left a policeman injured in Defence area of the city. According to preliminary reports, the blast took place near Qayyumabad flyover. Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC) said a substation located near the flyover was attacked. However, police were still not confirmed about nature of the blast. Police, Bomb Disposal Squad and ambulances rushed to the area shortly after the blast. Meanwhile, police conducted a raid in Shershah area of Karachi and arrested a man suspected of involvement in target killings. Police sources claimed that the arrested suspect was a hired gun who used to kill policemen after collecting head money adding that the government had place a bounty of Rs 500,000 on the head of the arrested man.

No letup in Held Kashmir protests Three dead in tense Valley as curfew enters 3rd day Troops deployment increased

SRINAGAR: Three young people have died in violence in Indian Held Kashmir despite a curfew that continued for a third day Monday following the execution of a Kashmiri man convicted in a deadly 2001 attack on India’s Parliament. Despite the curfew, protests and clashes between troops and demonstrators broke out at a dozen places in the region Monday. Police and paramilitary soldiers ﬁred tear gas and used batons to chase away rock-throwing protesters, police said. Guru’s execution is an extremely sensitive matter in the Himalayan region, where most people believe his trial was unfair. Several rights groups in India, and political groups in India also questioned the fairness of his trial. Monday’s protests coincided with the 29th anniversary of the execution of Mohammed Maqbool Butt, the founder of the proindependence Jammu-Kashmir Liberation Front. Several activists tried to hold a procession in Butt’s honour in Srinagar, but police chased them away. In Watergam

village near the town of Sopore, which was Guru’s home, a 12-yearold boy, Obaid Mushtaq, died early Monday of injuries after police and paramilitary troops ﬁred tear gas shells and bullets a day earlier to disperse an angry crowd, hospital official Aijaz Mustafa said. Another young man died in Sumbal village in northern Kashmir on Sunday after he jumped into a frigid river while trying to run away from troops who were ﬁring tear gas and swinging batons. The body of a high school student who had been missing since Sunday’s protest was also recovered from the river on Monday, police said. Thousands attended the funeral processions of the two young men on Monday, shouting slogans such as “We want freedom.” Tens of thousands of security troops were fanned out across the Himalayan region, and metal barricades and razor wire blocked all major roads. Cable television and mobile Internet services were shut down in most parts of the region. -AGENCIES

Pak HC in India clueless about hydel power projects ZEESHAN JAVAID ISLAMABAD: The Ministry of Water and Power and its concern institutions made the Pakistani High Commissioner in New Delhi Salman Bashir seem helpless particularly to explain the point of view of Pakistan over Hydel power projects planned to construct in Gilgit-Baltistan and Azad Kashmir region. A letter number DG (SA)-I/12012 dated November 28, 2012,

available with The Spokesman, revealed that Pakistani High Commissioner in New Delhi sent a communication dated November 23, 2012 in which he expressed fear over the unnecessary intervention of India to abandon the different Hydel power projects planned to construct in Gilgit-Baltistan and Azad Kashmir region. The communication between Foreign Office and Pakistani High Commissioner further maintained that High Commission has

requested for comprehensive detailed information about the projects and donor agencies. Indian Ministry of External Affairs made a verbal demarche to protest the upcoming and ongoing Hydel power projects at Shebratan and Chillas, which the Indian authority learned from the World Bank (WB). Foreign office wrote to the concerned departments including Ministry of Water and Power, Indus River System Authority (IRSA) and Water and Power Development

Authority (WAPDA) to respond over the queries. Reportedly, India already created hurdles as convincing World Bank (WB), Asian Development Bank (ADB) and other financial institutions, which had early agreed to finance the 4500MW Diamer Basha Hydel Power project planned to construct in Gilgit Baltistan region. WB kept the envelop of $1.2 billion annually for Pakistan of total financing in developing countries, however, the Pakistani government

demanded more than the capacity fixed by the bank for its development project including Diamer Basha Dam. The leading international financial institutions, including the World Bank (WB) and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) seemed reluctant to fulfill the financial needs for 4500MW Diamer-Basha hydropower project, which could cause a long delay in completion of such a mega power project for 10 years. Even federal government also

Published by Ahmad Waleed from Yasmin Majeed Printing Press, 69-Cricket Stadium, Rawalpindi

failed to arrange the sufficient financial arrangements either through its own resources or foreign lenders for the project, which produce a cause for international financial institutions (IFIs) to review their monetary policy for financing this huge project. Foreign Office Spokesman Moazam A. Khan categorically the Indian protest is meaningless because everyone knows that Kashmir is a disputed territory and not the part of India.