Raoof Hasan
A hate-speech that elicits unprecedented protest Altaf Hussain’s hate-speech of May 12 was a spate of threats hurled at just about everyone in the country – be it institutions, political parties, or individuals. No one quite escaped the venom of his excruciatingly painful outburst. Accusing the establishment for its partisan role, he cautioned: “If you don’t stop playing with fire, it would burn the entire Pakistan down”. He threatened the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) “to reach a decision with honesty or else they would not be able to find a shelter”. Warning the workers of another political party who have been protesting the alleged rigging in the May 11 elections at the Teen Talwar Chowk in Karachi, the British national thundered that they should behave or else he could unleash his party workers on them who “would dismember them into pieces with their swords”. He demanded that if the (allegedly rigged) mandate in the city was not respected, “Karachi should be separated from the rest of the country”. He threatened that if opposition was not stopped, he would let his followers “act freely on their own. How can I control them and for how long? Altaf Hussain should not be blamed if a war breaks out among the people. Whoever attempted to conduct propaganda will face war”. When his hate-speech elicited the obvious negative reaction from the public and the media, and the phone lines of the London Metropolitan Police were literally jammed with calls to the British government to initiate proceedings against the Queen’s subject, he came up with another fiery outburst on May 15, this time against the media, more notably its anchorpersons: “If you don’t mend your ways, somebody from the organisation of millions of people might lose his mind. If that person does something bad to one of you, don’t blame the MQM or Altaf Hussain”. He continued puking venom: “If the MQM ran out of patience, then neither the anchors nor the owners of the media houses would find a place to hide”. A spokesperson of the London Metropolitan Police confirmed the receipt of ‘floods’ of calls from Pakistan, the UK and elsewhere against Altaf Hussain’s hate-speech. He also said that an investigation (against the MQM chief) was underway”. The British High Commissioner to Pakistan Adam Thomson also commented on the episode. He confirmed the receipt of complaints, but tried to absolve the government of the UK from any responsibility in the matter saying that “unlike some countries of the world, the British police are fiercely independent of the British government and it is for the British police to investigate allegations of incitement to violence or hatred”. The High Commissioner, however, conceded that the London Metropolitan Police have been flooded with complaints about (Altaf Hussain’s) remarks. “What we say is that wherever somebody has a concern that hatred or violence is being incited, that one community or another is being turned against others, this should be reported to the police. And I know that they take such allegations very, very seriously indeed”. He further said that “if proved guilty, the MQM chief could face a jail sentence”. He did not rule out the prospect of handing over Altaf Hussain to Pakistan, but said that, in the absence of a UK-Pakistan Extradition Treaty, it would have to go through the whole process which is complicated: “It does not make it impossible, but it does make it quite difficult”. Karachi has been a hostage to violent and hateful machinations for over thirty years now, which the MQM and its leadership have unleashed on its hapless people with murderous abandon. The MQM are decidedly the original architects of the phenomena of extortion and murder in Karachi which has been used to perpetuate an environment of fear in the city. Thousands have been tortured and brutally exterminated with blood-soaked pieces of their bodies thrown all over the city in gunny bags. It has let lose a spree of murder ever so often to caution the residents against the prospect of freeing themselves from perpetual enslavement. The threatening demeanour and the foul language used by the MQM leadership leave little to the imagination. These endless threats have been unduly rewarded by various governments with invitations to the MQM to become partners in ‘democracy’ and dictatorship alike. Quite literally, the MQM has been a part of all provincial governments of Sindh and the federal governments over the last thirty years or so. No principles. No qualms. The extortion must continue. The killing spree should not end. The governments have been aware of this. The security agencies know of this. The intelligence agencies cannot feign ignorance either. What has the combined might of the state done to undo this harrowing spectre that threatens to dismember the country and advancing self-promoting gory objectives? Encourage them further by inducting them as partners in the governments and awarding them lucrative ministries to add to their illicit earnings? Seek their support to save their failing governments by issuing endless statements acknowledging their contribution to ‘democracy’? Quite simply, it has been a case of unremitting shame. What was the cause for this latest venomous outburst of the supremo? Quite simply, for the first time since the inception of the MQM, the supporters of another political party were able to break the shackles of fear and go to the polling stations to cast their ballots. So, true to tradition, the MQM literally hijacked the entire election process in connivance with the Returning Officers and other ECP officials who were just too scared to stand up to their murderous tactics. The MQM expects this mandate of fear to be accepted without questioning. For once, the people are angry. They appear unwilling to surrender their right to choose the leadership of their liking. They are protesting. They want justice. They are demanding re-polling under the army supervision in all constituencies of the city. They want an end of the politics of murder and extortion that has been practised through the last thirty years. They have a right to that and it is the state’s responsibility to ensure it. There are no two ways about it. The politics of fraud must cease. The people of Karachi want their freedom from fear and violence that they suffered from endlessly – and they must have it. They must also have their freedom to choose the leaders of their liking. The ECP must ensure that. The state must ensure that. It should not be left to the goons of terrorist outfits garbed as political parties to decide the fate of the people of Karachi, and that of Pakistan. A word for the British High Commissioner: instead of hedging your responsibility in the case of investigating the conduct of one of your citizens, you should advise your government to expedite the enquiry against him. For your added information, the two laws under which he can be tried and punished are the Anti-Terrorism Act 2008 and the Racial and Religious Hatred Act 2006. Meanwhile, and pending the results of the enquiry, appropriate restrictions should be clamped on his speech so that he would not be able to incite the people of Karachi to violence and hatred. They have had enough of that. It is time for them to move on – towards turning Karachi into the glorious city of lights that it used to be, not too long ago! The writer is a political analyst. He can be reached at raoofhasan@hotmail.com

Zeeshan Salahuddin
Change takes time There is an argument to be made that Pakistanis favour the status quo over the revolution. The other side of this coin insists that the status quo has been challenged, and perhaps even changed. Both sides are right. Nawaz Sharif maintained the status quo, Imran Khan changed it. The lion of Punjab now rules this familiar jungle. Promising motorways, airports and bus services, Nawaz Sharif rode on the tidal wave of rhetoric generated by his urban development projects and his six nuclear detonations establishing Pakistan as a nuclear power, and swept through the country. With the tally hovering between 125 and 130 seats for the PML-N in the centre, the great lions of Punjab need literally no other party to form the federal government. They might extend an olive branch to old compatriots like Maulana Fazlur Rehman’s JUI-F, perhaps in an attempt to weaken an opposition that will inevitably be forged out with some permutation of rival parties, but the lion reigns supreme. Despite allegations, it stands to reason that national rigging of this scale and calibre is implausible and improbable. The Sharifs’ love-hate relationship with the general population, demonstrated most visibly by the on-again, off-again relationship they have had with the central seat of power, continues unabated by the political pendulum that seems to swing only between the PML-N and the PPP. On the other side of this coin are you, the PTI supporters, who rose to the occasion for Imran Khan. You stood in line for 10 hours in certain cases, rode around urban centers in vehicles adorned with party flags, and made a stand beyond the relatively safe comfort zones of your homes. You ought to be lauded for your resilience, your affinity for what you perceive to be positive change, and your dedication in the street protests post-elections. The protests are warranted, and as citizens you are well within your rights to demonstrate and share your dissatisfaction with the results. But all of it is for naught, as beyond the scope of what you “burgers” wish to see, the “illiterates” have already chosen our collective fate. There are three reasons you should rethink your role, go home and prepare for the coming fight. First, you are leading to class warfare that will inevitably hurt your long-term goals. Voting your mind is not backwards or wrong. Outside the security blankets of the urbanites, there lives a Pakistan that is so disenfranchised, so far out on the fringes, that it cannot imagine voting for leaders with no political track record and no sense of real identification with their problems. Just because the galvanized upper class and upper middle class can afford to look past putting food on their tables and into what the future may hold, does not mean these concerns are shared by the rest of the population. Their idea of democracy and the strength of their vote matters no less and no more than yours does. Former Law Minister Punjab Rana Sanaullah already referred to the protestors as “mummy daddy” in order to alienate them further from those that simply do not place much faith in Imran Khan’s ideology. And the ruse is working, as the other side is already labeling this as class warfare, saying the rich are trying to impose their version of democracy, truth and liberty on the uneducated ‘paindoos’. Imran Khan’s battle has only just begun, and the fact that his message was not able to permeate the mindset of the middle and lower classes will need to be categorically and systematically addressed by the PTI in the coming years. Because one thing is for certain: without these votes, there can be no decisive victory in the centre, and these very votes are being ridiculed and estranged further. Go home PTI supporters, you’re disillusioned! Second, you are on a fine line between supporting your favourite leader, and being seen as worshippers of a one-man cult. Imran Khan, in less than two years, has become a force to be reckoned with, a new political awakening that has caused the Pakistani Twitteratti and the drawing room warriors to turn out in droves, cast their votes, and flood Facebook with photos of purple thumbs. It was not enough for a clean sweep, but it was enough to forever change the status quo. The PTI secured 30-plus seats in the national assembly, and it will likely form the government in the highly volatile KP. The PTI supporters should celebrate this, it is a remarkable accomplishment. But at this point, with protests that have been largely registered, and the ECP re-polling/recounting in certain constituencies, as well as FAFEN’s preliminary report stating that these elections do “reflect the free will of the electorate through a relatively fair process”, this is becoming a tad pointless. You wear the Kardar shirts, wail for a lost future where you could swing the Bat of Justice against the forces of Corruption, and imagine Imran Khan as the long-awaited messiah who has been thwarted by widespread rigging and widespread ‘jaahils’. He has his work cut out for him. He has a tough fight in the centre, trying to keep the government in check, and he has to bring transformation to the KP in order to forever cement his reputation as an agent of change. Help him move forward, don’t entrench him in what is done and mostly over with. Go home PTI supporters, you’re disillusioned! Third and finally, you fail to see what this country has gained in the process. We are a long way from the ever-elusive idea of democratic maturity, but we have crawled a few inches towards it, and we have fought and bled and suffered to gain every last inch. We are the first people in the 66-year history of the country to not only witness a civilian handover of power, but also to figure out how this process works, and how we can continue to improve on it. Despite 180 killings in 30-plus incidents of election violence, the public defiantly turned out to vote, with initial ECP estimates at 60 per cent, up from the 44.4 per cent in 2008. The marginalized transvestites were not only allowed to vote in the elections, several transvestite candidates ran for elections. Badam Zarri rose for her people in what the foreign media describes as “the lawless tribal frontier”. Despite vast differences in political ideologies, all parties united to push the government and the ECP for timely elections, and as promised we all voted on May 11, 2013. A lion roared, an arrow missed the mark, and a bat scored a few crucial runs. And right after elections, Nawaz Sharif paid a friendly visit to Imran Khan in the hospital. This is unprecedented. This is history in the making. We cannot be held back by our collective need to impose our individualistic version of how it should be on everyone else. We must come together, support the system. Go home PTI supporters, you’re disillusioned! Instead of decrying the results, you can appreciate and recognize how far we have come, and maybe, just maybe, these small victories will lead to something bigger, better and beautiful. Change takes time. This is not the end. This is just the beginning. The writer is the Executive Producer for the Planning and Research Department at Capital TV,

Zoya Ashraf
Change is a slow process, sometimes painfully slow Addressing the Punjabi Muslim Students Federation at Lahore on October 31, 1947, Jinnah said: “Pakistan is proud of her youth, particularly the students who have always been in the forefront in the hour of trial and need. You are the nation’s leaders of tomorrow and you must fully equip yourself by discipline, education and training for the arduous task lying ahead of you. You should realise the magnitude of your responsibility and be ready to bear it.” It is clear from Jinnah’s statement that youth is an integral part of the state as they are the leaders of tomorrow. However, in today’s world, leadership is not the only trait one should look for in the youth, another closely related quality is also of great import: the aptitude to bring change in society. Youth today has whatever it wants at its disposal and our laws provide them the rights to freedom of speech, assembly and association, but using law for personal petty interests is not good. Instead, they should be used to create pathways for the sake of national interests. By doing this, they sure will create a window of opportunity not only for themselves but also for other people. Youth also needs to come forward to voice their opinion and not be afraid of learning from experiences of others. One of the ways where they can put their collective efforts is on how to improve the education system because it is they who are going through it and they know well what they need. If it doesn’t bring any change, it will at least lay down ground work for this debate to become mainstream and national. Youth is often attributed to change and change is good. Without change there would only be stagnation and then decay will take over. Change is not an event that can happen overnight, it’s a process, a slow and steady process. If people expected the youth to change the future of Pakistan in the elections, they were in for a surprise. Youth brings change through their fresh intellectual fervor and the results can differ from region to region and context to context. However, in Pakistan’s case, what they have done is that they have opened up for discussion the very possibility of change in the country. People should not fall prey to the utopian ideals of change; they should know that it is a slow, sometimes painfully slow, process. Answering that all too important question as to how youth can utilise their abilities to bring change is simple and complex at the same time. They need an ideology to initiate the process of change and awareness level about any initiative they might take needs to be increased. Educating the masses of Pakistan will be equivalent to achieving a milestone in itself. It is here the youth can play an important role, by educating people. For example, informing people about the importance of vote, why to vote and who to vote for was a challenging task, still they did it and with such huge success. More important than all, a process of dialogue should be initiated as dialogue has the power to change things upside down. The youth of Pakistan has the potential to work as one of the agents for change; they can prove to be an important part of this dialogue. Apart from bringing a change in the system, the issue of conflict resolution also needs to be addressed. Pakistan is in a state of constant conflicts with its neighbours and a number of internal ones. In this age of globalisation, one should address the conflicts and indentify the problems. Our problem is that we start the process of conflict resolution without even identifying the problem. Bangladesh, once our part, seceded from us in 1971 but no effort was made to stop this secession nor was the conflict addressed in a proper manner. For closure, Bangladesh wants our apology which is not too outlandish to ask for from their perspective. If the government is not up for an apology, at least a dialogue process can be started. Here the youth can also work better than most of the others. If someone has to take initiative for a dialogue, why not youth? Let’s keep politics out of this matter and see the results. Our youth can get in touch with the youth of Bangladesh and get to know their perception and then after having a dialogue, the issue should be taken on the state level. Things might actually turn up positively after this attempt. Youth has an opportunity to prove their worth, and not just the one they had in elections. If they work hard, their agenda is positive and they have a vision, a positive change should not be out of reach. Not all is black and white, so to speak. Much is grey still, and that’s where the youth has a chance to prove their worth.

anjum

This week, Microsoft rubber-stamped Windows 8 as good to go for manufacturers. This means PC makers and other partners can grab the operating system code and test it out with their products, which should start arriving Oct. 26. The struggle for the future of computing as we know it has essentially commenced.

Microsoft has essentially opened a window in having media and technology start anew with their new operating system. As they have minted a lot of money through Windows Vista, and through Windows 7, who says that they won't do the same now?

Howevever, what one really needs to see is a resurgence of the Personal Computer industry, to battle smartphones and tablets in the ever-growing information technology market. Windows unsuccesful bid to bring forth a popular Tablet PC for their customers brought an opportunity for Apple to establish its brand through the iPad. Early smartphones in the form of handheld palmtops such as the HP Jornada have given Google an edge in bringing forth Android phones with more advanced operating systems.

So it essentially comes down to this: with Windows 8, we get to find out what the non-Apple computing industry really has left.

Windows needs some resurgence to its already established brand, as the bringer of Personal Computers during in an information technology hike in the 80's, 90's, and 00's. It really needs to get the ball rolling and not leave companies like Dell, Hewlett-Packard, or Acer sitting idly by while others get ahead in the game.

Just about everyone—even Apple fans—should hope that some company gets its act together, takes some risks, and wows the public on the back of Windows 8. It’s the sort of competition the industry needs to be healthy and for innovation to continue at a furious clip.

Sakina Husain
It has been about a month since the IMF report on Pakistan ‘ingeniously’ highlighted the economy’s fragility. A sense of urgency was incumbent; the PM quickly and quite conveniently replaced the secretaries of finance and FBR. Very few questions were asked; the damage was covered. How and why would the public demand accountability and transparency, or an extenuating correction of seemingly portrayed fudged figures when it has been residing in blissful ignorance with regard to the economy? Or maybe the silence was another extension of the disillusionment with the system. For the purpose of reminiscing, the IMF report in Feb-12 revealed that the (please note: expected) budget deficit communicated by the government for FY12 has been understated by Rs532 billion where in the revenue was overstated by Rs215 billion and expenditures were understated by Rs317 billion. This would imply that the budget deficit for the current fiscal year would arrive at about 6.6 per cent of GDP, instead of the government’s repeated assurances about realising the promised five per cent contingent on promised external inflows which even the sovereign would vouch by…but nevertheless. Given this back drop, the very act of changing secretaries signals that the government is capable of making only cosmetic changes in an effort to please the almighty IMF. The first contention questions why the IMF is so important that the government needs to replace qualified personnel who have served its cause throughout the regime so far. Moreover, current deliberations by the ex-finance minister reveal that domestic debt has exceeded foreign debt, indicative of greater reliance on the domestic financial system instead of lenders abroad. So why is there a need to prove credibility in front of this iffy source of funds? The second contention challenges the autonomy of the ministry of finance as the government’s window into its accounts. If expenditures, especially the larger recurrent ones are being exceeded than the target, is the finance ministry really supposed to suffer blame? There are severe structural deficiencies in the collection and distribution of revenues between the federal and the provincial governments. For instance, the provincial government or the chief minister has the power to undertake expenditures without taking prior approval from the national assembly. This automatically results in a greater than expected deficit in provincial budgets as the latter have limited space to raise revenues, especially, post the 18th amendment which led to the devolution of many subjects that were earlier apart of the federal list. Third, the PM’s alacrity in reading international evaluations of the economy is commendable and therefore must be lauded. Why should he pay heed to weekly caveats published by domestic analysts who have repeatedly tried to inform, challenge or at least warn the government regarding the same macro variables delineated by the IMF? The government is ready to cheer the FBR chairman when he reports higher than target revenue collection, but ever ready to replace the same person when the numbers are challenged by an international body! Why are there no internal checks and balances? And moreover, is the 2-3membered IMF office in Pakistan better equipped to report federal collection of taxes and expenditures? Regardless of whether the answer is in the affirmative, there is only a sense of embarrassment and shame that holds its ground. If the government is ever so concerned about accurate reporting of its accounts and more importantly meeting its target spending, ‘may be’ it needs to address the inefficiencies that exist in its very own government offices. Supposedly, for the provision of government services annually, the government spends about Rs13,000 per capita, leaving out the amount that is assigned for expanding the scope of these services ie the PSDP. And to put an end note: there is little education, very little health and almost no security in the country. The writer is an economic analyst and freelance financial journalist. She can be reached at sakina.husain@gmail.com

Javed Gilani
an economy unable to reach its production possibility frontier will always remain vulnerable to exogenous shocks, as in the case of Pakistan. It would have been a different story if the last two-to-three years had seen some sort of visible improvement in handling deficits and improving growth. If we had produced, exported and grown more, we would have had a more stable support base, restricting damage from external shocks our economic and political managers have no control over. In the present circumstances, among Pakistan’s chief worries is rising energy and input cost, the demand-supply dynamics of which play out on a stage and involve actors far removed from Islamabad’s sphere of influence. With our deficits in uncomfortable zones, additional price pressure due to increasing inflation, predominantly higher energy and input costs, is putting unsustainable pressure on the country’s reserve situation. Therefore, even as relevant quarters and analysts calculate a few month elbow room for reserves, their value diminishes every time international pressures bid up oil. Things looked up in the immediate aftermath of the 18th amendment, which transferred increased power and responsibility to provincial governments. Yet with no proper revenue generation framework, and unable to get help from a largely defunct FBR, they have been unable to make any meaningful contribution so far. On the other hand, the federal machinery has not been able to introduce any form of value addition in the present export basket. This means that almost all traditional means of generating national revenue are compromised. That is why we rely on international trends to facilitate our economic engine. We are always in need of improved remittances to defend deficits. We are always praying for international events that push down the price of oil so our own economic managers can breathe easy. And of course, we are always on the lookout of bailout and donor assistance. Sadly, despite the obvious persistence of such trends, we have not moved in manner that the situation merits. It bears noting that persistent growth problems require solvency in credit markets to stimulate the only indigenous option to revive GDP. When the external situation exerts unbearable pressure, economies look inward, prompting private sector expansion which in turn attracts offshore investment. In this case, banks facilitate private sector investment, in some cases ably guided by the official machinery, in a way that the centre does not interfere in market mechanism, only facilitates it. This is where the Pakistani banking sector needs to step up to the plate. For some years now, a proactive lending regime, one that incorporates targeted needs of the time, has been conspicuous by its absence. Whatever little scope the private sector has had has been compromised by heavy government borrowing. This equation requires urgent balancing. The last couple of years of private sector crowding out have left a vast investment field yet to be exploited. Ironically, the laxity of the past might even turn into an attractive opportunity for the present. If properly handled, private sector investment can create jobs, improve infrastructure, create employment and, most importantly, engineer second round market multiplier, with gains for all. We have now come to the point of no return. Both government and autonomous organs must finalise an action plan that will stimulate employment and growth. That means fine tuning both fiscal and monetary policies. Once the finance ministry initiates immaculately targeted fiscal expansion, and the central bank makes credit available to private investors, we may even see a domino effect strong enough to lure bulky foreign investors. Our problems are not existential, but their handling has made them acute. We have the necessary inputs, its just a little toggling of official policy that is required. The recent stock market optimism is an adequate indicator of productive potential across the economy. All that is needed is effective program management. The writer is Chief Manager SME bank and has been a leading banker in the industry for more than 30 years

Pakistan Today
Since the creation of Pakistan, it has faced a number of problems. All of these issues are major and badly affect our society. It is undoubtedly connected with so many resources directed towards the educational improvement, which is given at low priority. This is evident upon examination of Pakistan’s overall literacy rate of 37.8% (50% for men and 24.4% for women). A poorly educated population is unlikely to participate in family planning or any other form of population control. Poor educated population makes Pakistan a poor choice for the foreign investors. Furthermore, the extremely low literacy rate among Pakistani women (24.4%) tends itself to a society where most women never enter the labour force, creating less incentive for them to limit the size of their families. Government should take a keen interest on this major issue because without education our country will not survive in this modern world. MUHAMMAD SALIK Karachi

Pakistan Today
The Chief of the Army Staff, General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani on Tuesday, April 30, 2013, maintained that general elections would be held in the country on May 11, 2013, and that nobody should harbor any suspicions and misgivings on this count. He termed the general elections as a golden opportunity which could usher in an era of true democratic values in the country. The Army Chief’s assured that Pakistan Army stands committed to wholeheartedly assist and support the conduct of free, fair and peaceful elections. It would play a pivotal role in rebuilding the confidence of political parties. Now with the assurance for conduct of fair, free and timely elections from Chief of the Army Staff (COAS), all political parties contesting the elections must participate in it wholeheartedly and focus on steering the country out of its current multidimensional predicaments. M FAZAL ELAHI Islamabad

Pakistan Today
Undoubtedly, youth are the backbone of a nation. So in order for a nation to progress, it is imperative that a proper system of education be implemented. There are many problems that this country is facing such as corruption, inflation, constant power outages and unemployment. It is extremely disheartening to see how the situation is unfolding. The good thing is that youth of today is aware of its rights and responsibilities. Pakistani youth has a major role to play in the upcoming elections 2013. Young voters are likely to play a deciding role in the upcoming general elections with over 34 percent of voters aged less than 31 years, according to statistics obtained from the Election Commission of Pakistan.

anjum
Is there a method behind this madness? While politicians take years to be exposed, accusing fingers are being pointed at a number of caretakers in less than two months. The motives behind crucial transfers and appointment are being discussed widely in the media. The caretaker setup is tasked only to make arrangements for holding timely elections. The interim administration is supposed to comprise neutral individuals known for their integrity. They can retain the image only if they are fully focused on their one item agenda. No doubt there are several weaknesses in the system which need to be rectified and numerous injustices that have to be undone. There is however no need for urgency as the elected government is likely be in office in less than two weeks. The caretakers must use their powers sparingly and only in the limited sphere allotted to them. The caretakers are of course required to undertake administrative measures to help the ECP hold fair and free elections. Early last month the ECP ordered the federal and provincial administrations to change certain federal and provincial secretaries who were supposedly loyal to the outgoing administration. This was needed to provide all candidates a level playing field. Suspicions about civil servants lurk because the bureaucracy in general and in Sindh and Punjab in particular, has been stuffed with lateral entrants and political appointees often at the cost of merit, thanks to the patronage-driven political system prevalent in the country. These transfers were therefore understandable. But the matter did not remain confined to carrying out the orders of the ECP. There were stories in the media of government officers being transferred because they reportedly refused to carry out illegal orders. One minister, avowedly an NHA contractor, desired the termination of the services of two NHA officials working on contract. An additional secretary of ministry of communications who refused to implement the order was transferred without mentioning any reason. Acts of the sort have given birth to suspicions about the ulterior motives of some of the caretakers. What is more it is in violation of the Supreme Court verdict in Anita Turab case. It is not a matter of transferring one or two officers only. At least 20 high ranking officers have been dislodged without being assigned any reason. This is highly unjust because this impairs the working of the concerned departments, delays crucial decisions and causes unnecessary hassle to the officials who have to hire lawyers and make appearances at the court. The glaring high-handedness has finally led the Supreme Court to issue a contempt notice to the caretaker prime minister. What is highly disturbing is that the cycle of transfers has continued even after the elections. On Tuesday managing directors of three petroleum and natural resources companies were removed arbitrarily. One simply fails to understand the reason behind the highhanded activity. Is it just a brainwave or is there a method behind this madness?

Pakistan Today
Kerry promise to limit war and 20 year drone war plans contradict With the US Secretary of State John Kerry due to arrive next month to present a new proposal to Pakistan to impose “limits” on the drone program, it has emerged that the Pentagon is adamant to continue the drone program for the next two decades, at least. With the State Department and the Pentagon in apparent conflict and the US Senate undertaking its first public hearing over the mechanical death squads operated by the CIA, there are questions over whether Kerry will bring anything new to the table. Nonetheless, it also presents the new Nawaz league government an opportunity to lay out its terms to the US government, and take a stance on what the previous government continued to maintain are “illegal and unapproved” drone strikes. What would be the Sharif governments response to the new Kerry doctrine? Will the proposal to “limit the attacks to high-value targets of al Qaeda and the Taliban only” be accepted by Pakistan? Will another clandestine deal be brokered to continue the unpopular programme? Whatever be the case, there is much to discuss, with the US keen to discuss its exit strategy from Afghanistan, with the US keen to bring the Afghan Taliban on the negotiating table. But what is Pakistan to make of the statement of the Assistant Defense Secretary before the Senate Armed Services Committee that “this is going to go on for quite a while. I think it’s another 10 to 20 years.” This is as lawmakers in the US grapple with whether to scrap or change the laws that authorised the campaign in the first place. The official also revealed that while “the president must approve each military strike, the Pentagon defines which groups are designated as “associates” that pose a threat to US security.” With the Pentagon insisting that the drones need to keep buzzing, there is perhaps little that Kerry will bring to the table. With PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif already having gone on record to state that he wants to “strengthen ties with US,” it is thought that the new government may not take such a hard line on the drones, if the US agrees to reduce the number of strikes. The words of one of the US congressmen are worth repeating, ““In other words, could we be in a situation in which Afghanistan is no longer at war against Mullah Omar’s Taliban, but we still are (fighting them in Pakistan)?” Such is the contradiction of the US drone war that two different policy lines are emerging. One led by the State Department, one led by the Pentagon. If the US wishes for Pakistan’s assistance, the State Department will have to assert itself. Hopefully a compromise will be found between the two countries to move forward.

Pakistan Today
Needs to give itself aspirin The rigging claims are getting bizarrer by the day: from protests started by Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) supporters in NA-250 Karachi and NA-125 Lahore, the Muttahida Quami Movement (MQM), the Pakistan Peoples Party, the Jamaat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) and even the Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) joined the bandwagon. Now the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), which emerged with a clear majority, has alleged rigging in Lahore NA-126. While on some counts, it appears to be nothing more than a case of who got the sour grapes, on others, there appears to be substance to the allegations. The task of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) is now to sift through the haystack, and take out the needle – and fast. With over 49 polling stations reporting over 100 percent turnout – six of these in Khyber Pakthunkhwa, 32 in Punjab, 10 in Sindh and one in Balochistan – there is certainly a case to be made that something was amiss. The ECP has ordered a recount for eight NA seats while polls have still to go ahead on three seats. Even the PTI chairman Imran Khan, speaking from his hospital bed, has asked for a recount at 25 constituencies, threatening that the PTI will take out a sit in outside the offices of the ECP, if the matter was not addressed within three days. The JUI-F, forced into taking the opposition chambers in the KP, however, is pointing its fingers at the PTI, whom it claims “was never a contender”. In NA-250, where the MQM was protesting against the calling off of the polls, the PTI and JI against MQM orchestrated rigging, the matter appears to be going towards a re-poll. But with the Sindh government postponing the May 19 re-poll, the matter is likely to continue on. The suggestion of thumb impression verification is a positive one. It makes sense for the ECP to go ahead with it in constituencies where significant disputes are being reported. That a conflicting number of registered voters has emerged in NA-154 means that some of the fault must be shared by the ECP. With women in the Kurram Agency also taking to the streets against alleged rigging, protests could spread to other constituencies if measures to restore confidence are not taken quickly. With Chaudhry Nisar reportedly losing his provincial seat in Rawalpindi after recounting for the third time, the effectiveness of a recount appears to be getting more credence. With the protestors yet to dissipate from Teen Talwar and Lalik Chowk, the ECP needs to give itself aspirin for a headache it could have easily avoided.