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Messages, loud and clear

In a precision hit several days ago, a profound message was delivered to a recalcitrant judiciary (and supporters thereof) when former Additional Judge of Sindh High Court (SHC) Nizam Ahmad and his son Nadeem were gunned down at the gate of their PECHS home in Karachi. A vocal advocate for human rights and a crusader against land-grabbers, besides being an important member of the various Bar Councils and Associations, late Judge Nizam was the brother-in-law of Supreme Court Judge (and former Chief Justice SHC Nasir Aslam Zahid). Justice Zahid has been a symbol of the campaign for human rights as well as an independent judiciary. A “Conscientious Dissenter” to the concept of executive influence over judiciary at all levels, as Chief Justice SHC he had set far-reaching suo moto precedents and was at the epicentre of the historic March 20 Supreme Court Judgment that is the present cause of severe tussle between the ruling PPP regime and its own (mostly) appointed judiciary. The Constitution specifically desires independence of the judiciary from the executive, after years of resistance the bureaucracy (and their political mentors) had to give way in the face of a united legal profession, judges and counsel alike. From March 23, 1996, an independent judiciary has gone from strength to strength, laying off (in a latest initiative) 24 judges on Sunday June 16, 1996, who were found unsuitable to be elevated to the High Court Benches, being either not recommended by the Chief Justices of the Provincial High Courts and/or the respected Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. It may be remembered that the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court had his official car hijacked in Karachi soon after the March 20 judgment followed soon after in Lahore by the Chief Justice of the Lahore High Court, seemingly two unrelated incidents that seemed to be a sort of warning. One cannot have doubt that while (for multiple reasons in line with his principles and professional pre-occupations) Judge Nizam was already a prime potential target, the main motive “to terminate him with extreme prejudice” as well as his son was to send a clear, unambiguous message to all “conscientious dissenters” among the judiciary who have been actively militating against the influence of executive rule that for decades has vitiated the concept of justice, the signal being to either “play ball” or join the indispensables among the ever increasing population of the graveyards of Karachi. Our law enforcement agencies (LEAs) cannot be expected to find a motive, their administrative penchant is to shy away from the obvious and the influential. What one need only ask is that in addition to the brutal murder of Judge Nizam Ahmed and his son, “what is the common factor behind the killings of Special Terrorist Court Judge Junejo, Landhi Jail Warden Abdul Rahim Shaikh and Newspaper Editor Maulana Salahuddin?” While the IG Sindh Police remains intermittently busy, among other pre-occupations promoting the crass commercial interests of a particular ethnic “brother” in Karachi owning a private security agency, he seems to discreetly ignore parallel outfits not in conformity with the ethical aims and objectives of law enforcement agencies (LEAs), i.e. they clearly operate outside the ambit of the laws of the land (i.e. they have nothing official about it), see THE NATION May 30, 1996). On the other hand, the respected Chief Justice of the Supreme Court and his brother Chief Justices of the various Provincial High Courts have not been found wanting in giving a correct and suitable rejoinder to the crude message delivered to them by the murder of Judge Nizam and his son. By sending the unapproved judges home, their clear message is that they refuse to be cowed down by threats, intimidation, blackmail, verbal abuse and now murder.

The other message was even less subtle, it was delivered bluntly by the present Government of Pakistan (GoP) to the urban population of the country, the via-media being the Minister of State for Finance Makhdoom Shahabuddin in presenting the Federal Budget on Thursday June 13, 1996. With scant knowledge of what he was boisterously reading out, one cannot but admire Makhdoom’s delivery since he remained totally impervious and only intermittently oblivious to the commotion in the National Assembly. One must also commend the PM Ms Benazir in the choice of such a thick-skinned one-track delivery weapon, symbolizing the perfect auctioneer. The Makhdoom’s loud voice, theoretical manner and absolute unconcern of the item being auctioned of, in this case the mental peace of Pakistan’s millions, was commendable. That the budget would be tough was obvious to the whole country, when one lives beyond one’s means, the world finally does catch up. However, instead of the rich and infamous bearing the tax burden, the salaried class from the highest executive to the lowest peon have been bludgeoned with such a heavy tax club (danda) that they will barely be able to feed or clothe themselves, what to talk of affording the utilities as well as facilities for medical cover, education, transportation, housing, etc.

The common man will find that other than the basket of utility charges that have gone up inordinately, he will have to pay more for everything that is of his common daily use, within a pay packet that has not only been taxed more but is that worth much less in terms of original value due to galloping inflation. While the increased taxation was very much on the cards, the callous way that it has been structured has sent a strong unambiguous message to the urbanites who form 99.9% of those paying taxes, the ruling regime does not need them and as such hardly cares what happens to them or how they react. The PM lamented that there were only 800,000 taxpayers in 120 million people, perhaps she should have also stated that there is not one single tax-payer among the 70 million rural population. The PPP government needs the feudals and the rural areas, what these sacred cows pay as pittance to the Federal and Provincial Treasuries is a joke that is not funny anymore.

Most politicians live by the adage that you can fool all the people all the time. That may be true to an extent as the masses are usually loathe in the last decade to take to the streets with any great frequency and/or enthusiasm as was seen in the 60s, 70s or in the middle 80s. There is a general air of resignation among them about their plight that is not only pathetic, it is disconcerting. There remains a limit to the abuse that human beings can absorb at the hands of their leaders. Over the past several years, our countrymen have changed from being a demanding, protesting mob to becoming a simmering, sullen crowd who are hard put to survive as individuals and thus bear their sulking resentment just beneath the surface. Likened politically to angels, they accept their lot with equanimity and mostly without protest. Unfortunately for the government, while the public may tolerate their own sorry plight they remain restless about corruption, stories about the rolling acres in Surrey have surfaced at a particularly bad time for the Bhutto government. There are too many coincidental circumstances to ignore, particularly the “mangoes” consignment that was transported free from London to Karachi by PIA and which did not contain mangoes but among other personal effects, antique arms (at least according to Kamran Shafi, the Press Minister at the Pakistan High Commission in UK) that is supposed to have ended up in this fairy tale (no pun intended) Estate. The British Press is very used to being the target of libel action but it seldom takes up a tough stand so early as has the “Sunday Express”, resolving to fight any legal action initiated against them on behalf of the Zardaris. In effect, Sunday Express has thrown down the gauntlet, i.e it is upto the Zardaris to pick it up. In the circumstances where Pakistan has been adjudged to be the second most corrupt country in the world, it is incumbent upon the PM or her husband to take the advice of the Leader of the Opposition and sue the print media in question so as to absolve this country from this embarrassment. What has been alleged in the newspapers i.e. other than the ownership and the price, about the landing strip, security lights, etc would only be applicable to a Middle Eastern potentate having oil wells to spare and then some. While it is true that Mian Nawaz Sharif’s request does have a political angle, that should hardly restrain the PM (or her husband) in taking legal action against the recalcitrant British newspaper for the sake of millions of her supporters and for the good name of this country.

Among the messages being transmitted to and fro, one reply that has yet to be delivered is the extreme frustration of the people of Pakistan at the Budget proposals. With deep anxiety about our likely pitiful future and a burning resentment for those who have placed us in this predicament, there is also a simmering anger among our countrymen that is becoming worse by the day. The calm and quiet presently prevailing seems to be a lull before the storm. The downtrodden masses can be equated to angels in their present behaviour mode, one must nevertheless beware of the “rage of angels”.

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