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DAWN WIRE SERVICE

------------------------------------------------------------------- Week Ending : 28 November 1996 Issue : 02/48 -------------------------------------------------------------------

Contents | National News | Business & Economy | Editorials & Features | Sports

The DAWN Wire Service (DWS) is a free weekly news-service from Pakistan's largest English language newspaper, the daily DAWN. DWS offers news, analysis and features of particular interest to the Pakistani Community on the Internet. Extracts from DWS can be used provided that this entire header is included at the beginning of each extract. We encourage comments & suggestions. We can be reached at: e-mail dws@dawn.khi.erum.com.pk dws%dawn%khi@sdnpk.undp.org fax +92(21) 568-3188 & 568-3801 mail Pakistan Herald Publications (Pvt.) Limited DAWN Group of Newspapers Haroon House, Karachi 74400, Pakistan TO START RECEIVING DWS FREE EVERY WEEK, JUST SEND US YOUR E-MAIL ADDRESS! (c) Pakistan Herald Publications (Pvt.) Ltd., Pakistan - 1996 ******************************************************************** *****DAWN - the Internet Edition ** DAWN - the Internet Edition***** ******************************************************************** Read DAWN - the Internet Edition on the WWW ! http://xiber.com/dawn Pakistan's largest English language newspaper, DAWN, is now Pakistan's first newspaper on the WWW. DAWN - the Internet Edition will be published daily (except on Fridays and public holidays in Pakistan) and would be available on the Web by noon GMT. Check us out ! DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS

CONTENTS

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NATIONAL NEWS

Govt to curtail golden jubilee expenditure Modified petition accepted by SC Army to help in polls if asked for UK think-tank critical of caretakers policies Benazir rejects polls under caretakers Good relations between president, PM must: CJ Dissidents decide to expel Benazir, other leaders from party Imran rules out alliance with any party No decision on US visa issuance ---------------------------------

BUSINESS & ECONOMY

Caretakers on price hike spree to reduce deficit IMF may not release more than $53m More of the same  more intensively IMF sledge-hammer to hit the manufacturing sector Govt borrowed Rs 62bn from banking sector Caretakers decide to merge TCP, RECP, CEC Restoration of mobile phones runs into snags Delay in relief package worries investors ---------------------------------------

EDITORIALS & FEATURES

The competent bully Ardeshir Cowasjee 58(2)(b): a double-edged sword? Dr Farrukh Saleem A ministers diary: the first 15 days Javed Jabbar The mood of the sovereign awam Ayaz Amir Responding to the challenge of change Benazir Bhutto -----------

SPORTS

23 Cricket success after two years in Sharjah 23 Jansher clinches World Open title, sets record of wins 28 Wasim Akram has to show his fitness 26 Shahbaz Jr opts out of Champions Trophy

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NATIONAL NEWS

961124 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Govt to curtail golden jubilee expenditure ------------------------------------------------------------------- Bureau Report ISLAMABAD, Nov 23: The caretaker government has decided to observe Pakistans golden jubilee celebrations in simple manner and asked the civil and military organisations to return all funds received earlier for this purpose. Informed sources told Dawn that the federal government has issued instructions to all the provinces, civilian and military organisation to observe golden jubilee celebrations in a very simple manner so as to curtail undue expenditure. This is part of the caretaker governments plan to introduce austerity in all the departments. The government has already decided to cut expenditures and wasteful projects. Even the caretakers are said to have asked the military authorities to minimise their expenditure. They were told that expenditure other than the purchase of important military hardware be curtailed. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 961125 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Modified petition accepted by SC ------------------------------------------------------------------- Rafaqat Ali ISLAMABAD, Nov 24: The Supreme Court of Pakistan on Sunday entertained the modified petition of ousted prime minister Benazir Bhutto challenging the dissolution of the National Assembly and the ouster of her government. The registrar of the Supreme Court had returned the petition of Ms Bhutto twice and entertained it only after the protest letter, which was annexed by the counsel of Ms Bhutto with the modified petition, was withdrawn. Chaudhry Aitzaz Ahsan had annexed a three-page letter with the modified petition to place it on record Ms Bhuttos disagreement with the courts refusal to entertain her petition. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 961125 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Army to help in polls if asked for ------------------------------------------------------------------- Ihtashamul Haque ISLAMABAD, Nov 24: The corps commanders on Sunday discussed the internal and external security situation and decided to extend all possible support, if requested, to help hold fair and free elections on Feb 3. Informed sources told Dawn that the 54th corps commanders meeting held at the General Headquarters (GHQ), Rawalpindi, presided over by Chief of the Army staff General Jahangir Karamat, was primarily convened to discuss matters pertaining to national security and operational preparedness. The official told Dawn that although the interim government had not, so far, sought armys support during elections, any such request would be considered in the pure national interest. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 961125 ------------------------------------------------------------------- UK think-tank critical of caretakers policies ------------------------------------------------------------------- Shaheen Sehbai WASHINGTON, Nov 24: The London-based think-tank Oxford Analytica, which was extremely critical of the Benazir Bhutto government, has now turned its guns on the caretaker government saying its proposals for economic reform do not inspire confidence and President Legharis approach to reform leaves many questions unanswered. In its latest analysis of the Pakistan situation after the dismissal of the Benazir government, the think tank says the status of current reform initiatives was problematic. More radical reform measures than any presently being contemplated may be necessary if Pakistan is to break out of its cycle of political and economic crises, it suggests. Discussing the significance of the anti-corruption reforms, it says institutional reform was essential if structural adjustment was to be pursued successfully. However, the governments initiatives are marked by ambiguities which may frustrate its objectives. Amongst the many charges which President Farooq Leghari laid against former prime minister Benazir Bhutto as reasons for her dismissal from office were systemic maladministration and failure to deal with institutionalised corruption. Although such problems have long been endemic in Pakistan (they previously provided the basis of the charges which led to former prime minister Nawaz Sharifs dismissal in 1993), their scale had recently increased significantly. It recalled Transparency Internationals rating of Pakistan as the second- most corrupt business environment in the world and said the IMF belatedly discovered it was being given false information. Since Bhutto was dismissed, it has been revealed that last years budget deficit was much higher than published and in the first four months of fiscal 1996-97, her government borrowed three times more than its agreed target for the entire year. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 961126 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Benazir rejects polls under caretakers ------------------------------------------------------------------- Mahmood Zaman LAHORE, Nov 25: Former prime minister Benazir Bhutto here on Monday levelled a number of charges against President Farooq Leghari and asked him to prove his innocence in a special court as required under the recently promulgated Ehtesab (accountability) Ordinance. Ms Bhutto made allegations while talking to reporters at the Lahore Press Clubs Meet the Press programme during which she also expressed no- confidence in the caretaker government and demanded of the president to step down paving the way for Senate Chairman Wasim Sajjad to take over and establish a non-partisan and neutral government to hold elections. Nobody will accept results of elections held by the caretakers comprising elements who believe in a confederal system, secessionists, loan defaulters and liars who have a definite vested interest in taking over the PPP and raising the kings party, she said. The former prime minister said her governments dismissal was part of a conspiracy by the forces who wanted to bring about a fundamentalists soft Islamic revolution. The murder of Murtaza Bhutto was a major step in the plot as the forces wanted to eliminate the Bhutto family considering it a stumbling block in their scheme of things. She was of the view that the same forces would ultimately remove Mr Leghari. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 961126 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Good relations between president, PM must: CJ ------------------------------------------------------------------- Rafaqat Ali ISLAMABAD, Nov 25: Chief Justice Sajjad Ali Shah observed on Monday that if relations between the president and the prime were tense the smooth running of the government was not possible. Presiding over five-member bench hearing the presidential reference and two other related constitutional petitions, Chief Justice said that affairs of the country could not be run smoothly if the president and prime minister were at loggerhead. Chief Justice observed that if a husband and wife were not in good terms, running of a house became difficult and how it was possible that when the president and prime minister were not seeing eye to eye the affairs of the country would run smoothly. When Syed Iqbal Haider, counsel for Ms Benazir Bhutto, argued that personal relations of the prime minister and the president should not affect the smooth functioning of the countrys affairs, Chief Justice said it was not possible. In response to Chief Justices observation, Mr Haider said there were so many couple in this world who have less cordial relations but their matrimonial life was going on without any major problem. He said that tolerance was the key for the success of democratic system. Chief Justice observed that harmony between the president and the prime minister was must for the smooth functioning of the government. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 961127 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Dissidents decide to expel Benazir, other leaders from party ------------------------------------------------------------------- Mahmood Zaman LAHORE, Nov 26: A strong group of PPP dissidents on Tuesday decided to serve on chairperson Benazir Bhutto and other leaders notices for breaching party discipline by compromising the organisations fundamental principles and its ideological programme and allowing vested interests to hijack the party. A decision to take-over the party and expel Ms Bhutto and her associates will be taken at a convention on December 1 to commemorate the PPPs 29th anniversary. Dr Ghulam Husain, a former MNA during the late Zulfikar Ali Bhuttos rule, was nominated as general secretary of the group which has decided to introduce the concept of collective leadership by its central executive committee whose members will also be elected at the convention. The convention, it is claimed, will take important decisions like co- operation with other parties and work out a strategy in case the PPP leadership takes disciplinary action against the group. One issue on which a consensus seemed to be emerging at the meeting was that the process of accountability of corrupt politicians must be expedited. An indication was also given that the group may forge an election alliance, or merge with the PPP(SB). We are natural allies of the SB group, some speakers at the meeting said. They plan to invite Ms Ghinwa Bhutto to visit Punjab in the near future. One speaker after another accused Benazir of betraying the PPPs programme as spelled out by Mr Bhutto and allowing the party to be hijacked by feudals, members of the Majlis-i-Shoora, political turn-coats and other remnants of the Zia period. They said, Ms Benazir Bhutto had ignored workers sacrifices and sufferings and their services in the restoration of democracy. They were of the view that Asif Zardari and Ms Naheed Khan were mainly responsible for leaving the party workers in the lurch. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 961127 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Imran rules out alliance with any party ------------------------------------------------------------------- Staff Reporter LAHORE, Nov 26: Ruling out the possibility of an alliance with any political party, Tehrik-i-Insaaf convenor Imran Khan said on Tuesday his party regarded both the PML and the PPP as its major rivals. Talking to newsmen at his party office, he alleged that both the PML and the PPP wanted to maintain the status quo. He claimed that his party was revolutionary in its thinking and nature and it was determined to uproot the system of exploitation. He said he would put up about 700 candidates for the national and provincial assembly seats and would ensure that no seat went uncontested. He said 80 per cent of his party candidates would be university degree holders and many of them would be foreign qualified. Our rivals will be stunned when our team comes out in the field. Mr Imran Khan said his team would comprise people committed to serve the country. Many of them, he claimed, were coming from the PPP and the PML and since they were joining hands with the Tehrik-i-Insasf after trying the two major parties, there was no possibility of their parting ways with him. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 961127 ------------------------------------------------------------------- No decision on US visa issuance ------------------------------------------------------------------- Staff Reporter KARACHI, Nov 26: The US Consul General in Karachi Mr. Douglas B.Archard said here on Tuesday he could not say when the US government would allow the issuance of visa from Karachi. Please be assured I am working on this problem. But do not ask me for a guess when it is going to be over, he said referring to the ban on the issuance of US visa from Karachi. Speaking at a luncheon held in his honour by Pakistan Commodity Traders Association he said he appreciated the importance of the matter and was interested to see it resolved. But he made it clear he did not know when US visa would be issued from Karachi. ******************************************************************* DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS ******************************************************************* INTERNET PROFESSIONALS WANTED * MS in computer science, with two years experience, or, BE with four years experience in the installation and management of an ISP. * Must be able to select equipment, configure, and troubleshoot TCP/IP networks independently. Preference will be given to candidates with proven skills in the management of a large network and security systems. * We have immediate openings in Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad. * Competitive salary and benefits, and an exciting work environment await the successful candidates. send your resume to by e-mail : ak@xiber.com by fax : +92(21) 568-1544 by post : Dr. Altamash Kamal, CEO Xibercom Pvt. 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BUSINESS & ECONOMY

961123 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Caretakers on price hike spree to reduce deficit ------------------------------------------------------------------- M. Ziauddin THE BUDGETARY DEFICIT in 1993-94 could be slashed by more two per cent of the GDP mainly because of the massive hikes effected by the caretaker Moin Qureshi government in administered prices following the understanding reached then with the IMF. We are witnessing an almost similar spurt of hikes in frequency and magnitude in administered prices in the wake of the recently concluded talks between the IMF and Shahid Javed Burki, the caretaker prime ministers adviser on economic affairs. This is probably the only way the World Bank people know how to bring down budgetary deficits in a hurry and make a name for themselves at the cost of the economy of the less influential Third World countries. Attempts to control budgetary deficit by price hikes only end in making the possibility of achieving economic stability ever more remote. During the caretaker Moin Qureshi regime, the round of price hikes had enhanced the cost of production so high all around that even with heavier taxation in the following two years, the previous government could not achieve even a semblance of stability in the economy. When the present caretaker government completes its price hike spree and goes home after three months, the elected government which will be sworn in on February 10, 1997, will probably find itself in a similar position as the dismissed Ms Bhutto government did in October, 1993-94. By the end of the fourth month of the current fiscal year, bank borrowing for budgetary support had touched an all time record of Rs 70 billion against the full year target of Rs 20 billion. This massive bank borrowing in such a short time could be attributed to the post budget upheavals made worse by rumours of impending dissolution of the assemblies all these weeks which finally came true in the first week of November. Besides, a burden of as much as Rs 30 billion of bank borrowing had been transferred to the current years account from last years balance sheet in order to keep the last years budgetary deficit as low as 5.8 per cent of the GDP. In the remaining five weeks of the second quarter and most of the third quarter, the economy is likely to take a frontal beating by electioneering, constitutional cases in the higher courts and the launching of a brand new accountability process. And the fourth quarter would be the first quarter of the first year of the newly elected government trying to find its feet and grasp the enormity of the situation. However, if the remote possibility of revival of the assemblies through the courts turns into reality in the meanwhile, it would be a different ball game with its attendant uncertainties. These are the challenges confronting the caretaker managers of the economy led by Mr Burki, the miracle man loaned to us by the World Bank to which we are already indebted hugely. It is in fact a journey into the unknown on which the nation has embarked, especially in the sphere of economy. Who does not know what is wrong with our economy. It is not growing at the needed rate of 10 per cent because the savings rate is too negligible which in turn is because only one million of our of 135 million countrymen pay taxes. The situation has been made more difficult by the tapering off of concessional assistance from multilateral and bilateral sources following the end of the cold war. On the other hand, the hopes of getting foreign private investment to fill the gap have been shattered by the ever increasing mismanagement of the economy and burgeoning corruption. The fundamentals of the economy are also skewed because of heavy dependence on agriculture, imports and customs with exports contributing only negligibly to the GDP. Over the past several years, a number of prescriptions have been proposed for remedying the above mentioned ills of our economy by witch doctors and people of their ilk inside the country and from abroad possessing the right credentials of having managed institutions like the World Bank and the IMF. Therefore, one expected the caretaker economic managers to launch their prescription from day one of their short tenure in order to accomplish as much as possible in the 90 days. Instead they have gone on a spree of price hikes and in order perhaps to fudge reality, they have predictably constituted 13 to 15 task forces on all kinds of subjects (with the exception of a couple) under persons of dubious credentials. It is all right to berate the caretakers for not taking the bull by the horns from the word go, but it would be totally unfair to reject the proposed panacea without first giving Mr Burki the chance to unfold his agenda. However, Mr Burki has not win any points by keeping his negotiations with the IMF camouflaged under diplomese. The standby loan remains suspended despite the optimism he had exuded in his Press conference at the conclusion of the negotiations with the Fund team. Some newspaper stories have alluded to the possibility of delay in disbursement until the induction of the elected government. The fact that the IMF officials did not join Mr Burki at the Press conference in which he announced the possibility of an enhanced standby disbursement in December made him look a shade less credible. He also did try at the same Press conference to create the impression that the caretakers would be able to sign a new ESAF agreement before the end of their mandated tenure. On the face of it this sounds too optimistic because the Fund usually likes to negotiate such long term reform arrangements with an elected government having the peoples mandate to implement these reforms. At present, the country has around $600 million in foreign exchange reserves. This is not so bad. In August 1993 we had only $300 million in the kitty. Earlier, in August 1981, the amount in the FER was no more than $100 million. Still we survived. This time too we are likely to muddle through. Not because of any miracle by the miraclemen of the caretakers but because countries and states do not go bankrupt, especially when their economies are being managed by World Bank managers on deputation. So, the caretakers would only be sparing the nation if they resist the temptation to present routine developments as great achievements. Pakistanis have suffered enough from this compulsion of our successive rulers to make exaggerated claims of their achievements even when the weather turns good for the crops. Of course, if the caretakers succeed, by means other than unreasonable price hikes, in bringing down bank borrowing to a reasonable level by December 31, 1996 from the present Rs 70 billion they would deserve the very deep gratitude of the nation. And this should not be such a big problem, if they could, in the meanwhile as promised, curtail the ministries and divisions from 48 to number 31, reduce the number of corporations and departments and plug the massive wastes that have become a norm in government expenditures. Simultaneously, they could implement a number of measures to document the economy immediately like making it mandatory that all financial transactions over Rs 10,000 should be done through cheques and also by giving the nation a fail safe scheme to collect at least Rs 20 billion from taxes from agricultural incomes. Meanwhile, they could speed up as promised the privatisation process and sell a couple of commercial and investment banks in as transparent a manner as is possible under the circumstances and use the proceeds to retire a part of the costly local debt. Also, the caretakers should make public, the real annual budgetary deficit figures of the past 11 years since 1985. The other day no less a person than the President, asserted that deficit figures had been fudged by successive governments and the previous government was not alone in committing this sin. If this is so, then there is an additional burden of at least Rs 40 billion (nearly 1.5 per cent of the GDP) on the budget which has to be taken into account while fixing the budgetary deficit target figure in any future negotiations with the IMF for ESAF. The caretakers before their time is up, should help the nation identify the real culprits who in order to show a lower budgetary deficit than it really was in their time had committed the original sin of fudging the figure. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 961124 ------------------------------------------------------------------- IMF may not release more than $53m ------------------------------------------------------------------- M. Ziauddin ISLAMABAD, Nov 23: Pakistan is likely to get no more than a third of 160 million dollars, the sum of two pending tranches of 80 million dollars each, from the standby arrangement, next month, if the IMF at its next board meeting, scheduled to be held on December 10 , approves the new Rs 41 billion package of additional budgetary measures announced by the State Bank governor on October 22. The remaining 100 million dollars are likely to be kept on ice in the pipeline until the advent of the next elected government. Perhaps, anticipating the development, the caretaker government has decided to send its adviser on economic affairs, Shahid Javed Burki, the World Bank man on deputation in Pakistan, to Washington in the first week of December to do last- minute lobbying for a more favourable consideration by the Fund. The IMF mission which had an extended stay in Pakistan during which it had first negotiated and initialled an agreement with an elected government and then reopened the negotiations with the representatives of the caretakers , is said to have listened to the assurances of a good conduct given by the caretaker government as well as the president, with much scepticism. The Funds reservations are reportedly not about the sincerity of the president and the caretakers in their assurances, but about the fact that there is no system or network in Pakistan which could ensure collection of additional revenues of Rs 54 billion in the next seven months, more than third of which would be consumed by electioneering and accountability process. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 961123 ------------------------------------------------------------------- More of the same  more intensively ------------------------------------------------------------------- M.B. Naqvi SHAHID Javed Burki, the Prime Ministers Adviser on all economic affairs, has given both, his manifesto and how he will run the economy. Minor details are less significant at this stage than the major dimensions of the restructuring that impends. Needles to say, that all the conditionalities that the Benazir government had failed to implement in full would somehow be implemented. That means not only the conditionalities committed to under the Standby Agreement of December 1995 would be executed in full but a new set of stricter conditionalities are about to be negotiated with IMF and doubtless with the World Bank also under a different nomenclature for more resources so that a new ESAF agreement will provide additional resources to the $160 million that would be in the kitty sometime next month. Insofar as the financial managers of the government are concerned, it would look like QED to them. The caretakers, especially Mr. Burki, would be rated as having already delivered. For them the name of the game is to borrow  left, right, and centre. The new Burki achievement may include the retirement of many short-term loans from private banks that, according to the published reports, had already amounted to $5 billion or more in recent months. That will slightly ease some of the burden of repayments each quarter. That may provide a breather if the governments pressing needs do not negate what Burki might accomplish. The governments hunger for spending, especially in foreign exchange, seems insatiable. But is this all? The question of questions remains: impact of the reforms now sure to be more intensively implemented. Let us consider them under three main heads. The first is the privatisation and deregulation part. What it involves is hopefully a more efficient and a lot quicker disposal of public sector assets. Although a lot can be said about the required efficiency as well as transparency in the privatisation programme, but that can wait. There is no reason to suppose that the government, under Burkis directions, would actually restrict itself to what has emerged as a consensus among his peers, friends and the like- minded, namely devote all the proceeds from the privatisation for retiring first the domestic debts and later some of the external ones. This benefit of doubt can not  that the government will not use some of the proceeds to support the budget  automatically be given to Islamabad with its spendthrift habits. The rest of the country will need to keep up pressure on Burki, or rather the rest of the government, not to utilise these funds for reducing budget deficits because it is sure to be tempted to do that. Reducing red tape Insofar as deregulation involves cutting down on red tape and needless bureaucratic controls is concerned, it can only do good, provided the process is not confused with doing away with necessary regulatory duties of the state to ensure competition and prevent monopoly, protection of the consumer and adequate reporting on the economy. There is lot of fuzziness regarding the implications of deregulation and liberalisation. Needless bureaucratic controls and useful regulation need to be sharply distinguished. The second major head is the conditionalities concerning budget deficit and control of money supplies. Although by right, monetary policy should be included under this head, one specific part of the overall monetary policy had better be kept separate: the per value policy of the rupee. Money supply and effects of budget deficits are a matter of great concern because the government is the biggest economic actor. Its actions produce tremendous repercussions on the economy, especially on prices. It has become customary to regard inflation as resulting mainly from larger money supplies and high budget deficits. No one can deny that these are very important causes of inflation rate. However the point that has been made in this space is that it would be far too simplistic to believe that a reduction of two or three percentage points in budget deficit, if achievable would automatically reduce both money supplies and inflation rate. What can certainly be said is that reduced deficits would have a beneficial impact on the inflation rate. But then inflation in this country is a far too vicious a beast. Its taming and trimming will take a lot of drastic as well as sustained action than a quick reduction in budget deficit can achieve. The point is: budget deficit in each economy has its own characteristics. In Pakistans case it certainly has its peculiarities specific to Pakistan. Moreover planning a drastic reduction of budget deficit in a matter of three months or even a years operation is not exactly achieving it. Otherwise Mr V.A. Jafarey would not have had to go so unceremoniously. The declarations of Mr. Burki are to be welcomed. But they are not the same as achievements. For the latter we shall have to wait and see whether the succeeding government actually makes the required cuts, recoveries and realisation of taxes. No doubt the winding up or amalgamation of 17 divisions in the Central Secretariat sounds impressive. But if their entire staff is adjusted in the remaining divisions and ministries, the abolishing will only be in name and these divisions with their budgets will merely become part of other divisions or miniseries - the likeliest manoeuvre by the bureaucracy - the net result would be zero. Why? because the amalgamated divisions will bring with them their stated functions, staff and budget and will carry on merrily as before. The need is not renaming or reorganising the divisions and ministries. The need is a drastic reduction in the size of the government, meaning thereby fewer clerks and even fewer officers. Indications are that Mr Burki and the present caretaker regime are not the likely agents of such a drastic change. Bureaucratic manoeuvres are not what the IMF conditionalities imply. This would not seem to be honest implementation of what is required by donors - unless they were interested only in removing Benazir Bhutto and her crew. The purpose of the reduction in government is to reduce expenditures so that the overall deficit can come down, which is desired so as to bring down the inflation rate. The litmus test for IMF conditionalities is the actual reduction in the inflation rate. The immediate or short-term impact of the measures that have been suggested by the IMF  and Mr. Burki has lost no time in giving yet another instalment by increasing POL prices for the umpteenth time in recent months  is actually to increase price levels in the economy. One-way price movement Most have come to think that the prices of petroleum products act as a multiplier of inflation - supposedly in the short run. How short such runs have turned out to be are no longer an unknown; prices know no coming down. So far all these short runs have accumulated into a fairly long run if we go by the preceding 10 year record. After all their experiences, Pakistani consumers cannot take the word of IMF, Mr Burki or the government at face value. For the people, the touchstone of all this restructuring is at least the stabilisation of prices at no matter what level; no one expects any actual reduction. Needless to say that continued high rates of inflation would eventually destroy the economy and the situation is grim enough. The third major segment of the reforms being implemented concerns other aspects of liberalisation and globalisation of the economy. There are several components of this part. The primary one is doing away with restrictions on imports, together with steady reductions and eventual destruction of all duties and levies on imports. Also included in it is that no special incentives be given for exports or even duties on them. The other component of this policy is to keep the currencys par values realistic and the specific rate should be determined by laws of supply and demand. The idea is to attain the Wallahala of perfect competition throughout the globe. That would somehow maximise the creation of wealth throughout the world and all will be more prosperous. So says laissez faire economics. There is yet another component involved. This is to rely on foreign investments, direct or otherwise, if domestic savings and investments lag behind. For the purpose, Pakistan government has given exorbitant incentives like a 22 per cent net return on capital with total freedom to repatriate capital and profits. The IMF does not seem to have objected to such extravagant terms. On the ground these terms will eventually lead to very high (uneconomic) prices of eventual products. These terms will introduce serious distortions in price structures and may vitiate the whole growth processes. Recent governments could not implement this whole part, though it has selectively implemented one segment, viz the realistic bit about the currencys external value. The Rupees value continues to be chipped and cut at a steady rate, without the government fully implementing the other implications, especially reducing import duties down to the level agreed the IMF. Now the task seems to be that by June 1997, the maximum import duties on any product would be 35 per cent. Given Pakistans distribution of national income, this would send the import bill sky high. Local industry will grind to a halt. All the plans and notions about Pakistan having overcome its BoP deficits would go up in smoke. Despite the best will, the Benazir government failed to implement this part - partly because local industrialists frustrated governments wishes. Can things change so radically in these three caretaker months as to enable this or the next government to allow the near destruction of local industry and the drowning of local market in the flood of foreign goods. Granted that theory says inefficient producers should go to the wall and more efficient should survive (and prosper). But does that happen in real life, especially in the international sphere? The theory requires that the more inefficient industries in the NICs (newly industrialised countries) should collapse while efficient ones (in OECD countries) should prosper further. Realistic expectation is that most new industrial ventures or even services in NICs are unlikely to survive competition from MNCs; most of them are sure to collapse. This prospect is termed recolonisation of the Third World by many. This assessment is not far fetched. Some of the Pakistani industries are notably inefficient and under the pressures of under-development, high inflation and low savings, Pakistan economy has been distorted no end. Globalisation now, in such conditions, will be at this countrys expense. The simple, standardised IMF advice, without heavy qualifications in their sequencing, timing and picking and choosing, cannot be adopted. What the caretakers seem to be doing looks extremely hazardous because they are borrowing with no thought for the morrow. Their programme is to please the donor agencies by promising whatever they lay down and by being their most obedient and loyal servants. We know that distortions in Pakistan economy need to be removed. But the IMF conditionalities take absolutely no notice of them except to pay lip service to inflation or BoP difficulties. We need something better and different. Who can give that to us except ourselves? DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 961123 ------------------------------------------------------------------- IMF sledge-hammer to hit the manufacturing sector ------------------------------------------------------------------- Sultan Ahmed THE large-scale manufacturing sector, which has been facing a grave crisis for the last two years and growing only nominally, may face a worse threat when the import tariff is slashed to 35 per cent from 65 per cent soon under the IMFs pressure. The caretaker government of Moeen Qureshi had in September, 1993, decided to reduce the import tariff on finished goods from 75 per cent to 50 per cent in three year, that is by the middle of 1995. And Mr Hafiz Pasha, as Commerce Minister, had presented the comprehensive package of the categories of imports and extent of duty reduction and Mr Pasha as the new Deputy-chairman of Planning Commission has said the tariff might be brought to 35 per cent this year under pressure from the IMF. However, a final decision in this regard would be taken after the receipt of the reports of two task forces  one on tariff reforms headed by Dr Muhammad Zubair, and the other on Tariff reforms headed by Dr. Hafiz Pasha. Under fiscal pressure the import tariff which was brought down to 55 per cent last year was raised to 65 per cent following the regulatory duty of 10 per cent levied by the mini-budget of last year. The tariff was expected to be brought down to 55 per cent through the annual budget of June 13 last. Instead that was maintained at 65 per cent, and the regulatory duty of 10 per cent was not withdrawn. The IMF had agreed to that in the hope that might help reduce the budget deficit to 4 per cent as committed by Pakistan for the current year. Now, however, under a comprehensive package for structural reforms, the average import tariff might be brought down to 35 per cent as that is what the IMF wants. And if the import tariff drops so sharply and suddenly there will be a large inflow of foreign manufactures, including textiles to compete with Pakistani manufactures and hurt our industry. In principle reducing the import tariff is a good thing as the high import duties and other levies are resulting in Customs revenue losses of Rs 50 billion to Rs. 100 billion. If the tariff is reduced more, the goods will come through regular trade channels rather than through smugglers operations and the revenues of the government will increase substantially. Overdoing the act However, the tariff should not be reduced to such an extent and suddenly that Pakistans manufacturing sector will be hit too hard and more factories will close down in a country which has already over 3,000 sick industrial units and where the growth of the large scale manufacturing sector in 1994-95 was only half a per cent while it was slightly better last year, and certainly below the growth of 3.1 per cent claimed by the government. Normally, before reducing import duties sharply the government should increase the competitiveness of Pakistans manufactures through a proper mix of measures. Instead, the government of Benazir Bhutto increased the cost of production by enhancing the various duties, increasing the cost of inputs, including power and gas, and raising the interests rates which is now as high as 25 to 28 per cent for commercial loans. Wages have gone up while productivity has not, and prices of all agricultural inputs including cotton and sugar cane and oil seeds, have risen. In fact all these prices keep on rising constantly with each one acting on the other. and that makes the wrong environment for lowering the import tariff. Already many of the industries are hit hard by cheaper imports following the lowering of the tariff. Cigarette companies in Pakistan, which pay heavy excise duties protest that import of high quality cigarettes of comparative quality has increased. Manufactures of synthetic yarn, including ICI, have been protesting they are suffering losses as a result of sharp reduction in import duties on synthetic yarn which are coming in from South Korea and other countries. The engineering goods industry is also hit hard by cheaper imports, even through massive smuggling, while the taxes on the products of this industry continues to be heavy and the industry has not been able to come up to the required level. Smuggling Importers, on the other hand, have been compelling that because of the 107 per cent duty, on imported tea a great deal of tea is being smuggled into the country via Afghanistan and the government is losing heavily through such smuggling. The solution lies in reducing the import tariff and beating smugglers. Western countries are interested in getting the import tariff reduced in Pakistan so that they could export more of their manufactures, including textiles, to Pakistan. The powerful US. trade representative Mickey Canter had spoken last year of US textiles entering Pakistan at 35 per cent tariff this year, but that did not come to pass as the government raised the total tariff to 65 per cent following last years 10 per cent regulatory duty on imports. Now the IMF pressure is both to reduce the budget deficit which last year rose to 6.3 per cent of the GDP, instead of the budgeted 5 per cent as well as lower the import tariff sharply so as to reduce the smuggling and increase the ultimate revenues. But the issue is far more than a fiscal one as the urgent need of the time is to enable the large scales industry regain its vitality and work to full capacity. For that the government has to come up with concessions on the fiscal and monetary fronts and reduce the cost of the inputs and lower the giddy interest rates. The right thing to do was to set up a task force for the purpose, but that has not been done, while 11 task forces have been set up for diverse purposes. If the government now slashes the import tariff under time- pressure before reducing the cost of production substantially and increasing the competitive edge of Pakistans manufactures, Pakistans manufacturing sector will lose out to imports, while its export sector will be hit too hard. Pakistan cannot afford such a deadly double setback now. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 961126 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Govt borrowed Rs 62bn from banking sector ------------------------------------------------------------------- Pervaiz Ishfaq Rana KARACHI, Nov 25: The government has borrowed over Rs 62 billion from the banking sector in the last four monthsJuly to October, 1996. It represents over 50 per cent borrowing of the entire 1996-97 ceiling of Rs 42 billion and 25 per cent over the actual borrowing of Rs 49.46 billion recorded during the same period of 1995. Latest figures show that credit requirements of the private sector have also been met adequately as a sum of Rs 22.32 billion were provided as against total ceiling of Rs 60 billion fixed for whole 1996-97. It is much more than Rs 9.18 billion provided to the private sector during the same period of 1995. Total domestic credit of Rs 84.52 billion in the last four months as against projection of Rs 102 billion for whole 1996-97 has been brought down to Rs 72.79 billion because of contraction of Rs 11.72 billion. Foreign exchange reserves reported an alarming contraction of Rs 55.83 billion in the last four months despite the fact that gap in international trade during July to October, 1996, has narrowed down by over $300 million as over trade deficit of the same period in 1995. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 961128 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Caretakers decide to merge TCP, RECP, CEC ------------------------------------------------------------------- Bureau Report ISLAMABAD, Nov 27: The caretaker government has decided to reorganise the whole structure of the ministry of commerce specially by merging the TCP, RECP and the CEC into one organisation and strengthening the role of the EPB within the next few days. We have decided to have one organisation in place of the Trading Corporation of Pakistan (TCP), Cotton Export Corporation (CEC) and the Rice Export Corporation (RECP) to cut their growing expenditures, said the Minister for Commerce, Dr Zubair Ahmad. He told the reporters here on Wednesday that the Foreign Trade Institute and the National Tariff Commission would also be reorganised so as to improve their performance. But we have no plans to remove people from their services by cutting the expenditures through the merger of various corporations, he said adding that the surplus staff would be accommodated in different other places. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 961128 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Restoration of mobile phones runs into snags ------------------------------------------------------------------- Sabihuddin Ghausi KARACHI, Nov 27: Restoration of mobile telephone service in Karachi has apparently run into snags because of governments insistence on the three operators to withdraw their losses claim. The three operators of mobile telephones service contend to have suffered losses of more than Rs 1 billion on account of abrupt suspension of mobile telephone service in Karachi since July 1, 1995. The dismissed PPP government suspended the mobile telephone service about 16 months ago as a counter measure to suppress, what it perceived then a near insurgency situation in the Karachi city. Frustrated and disappointed on the first contact with the caretaker Communications Minister, Mr Abdul Ghaffar Jatoi last Sunday at Islamabad the executives of the three mobile phone services are holding consultations to work out a new strategy to put forward effectively their points of view, in Islamabad. Their contention is that Karachi is the biggest market for the mobile telephone operators who introduced the service in late 1990. Karachi provided more than 60 per cent of customers out of 65,000 clients to mobile telephone industry in the last six years of operation, and obviously was the main centre of revenue generation, a senior executive of one of the three companies explained. Evidently suspension of service for 16 months in main business centre has caused the operators substantial losses and there is legitimate reason to ask for compensations, the executive argued. However, the three operators maintain that the restoration of mobile telephone service in Karachi, and losses claims should be treated as entirely two separate issues and should not be interlinked. Restoration of mobile telephone service is not only our requirement but a pressing demand of the trade and industry of the biggest business centre of Pakistan, the executive argued who referred to the demands made by the representative trade bodies like the Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry and other trade associations during last 16 months. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 961128 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Delay in relief package worries investors ------------------------------------------------------------------- Staff Reporter KARACHI, Nov 27: Stocks turned in an easy performance on Wednesday as investors were a bit worried over delay in announcement of the corporate relief package as weaker among them took profits at the available margin. The market, however, was not without some special features despite easy undertones as most of the pivotals were massively traded and mostly on the higher side, indicating that the covering operation has already begun. Volume figure again soared to 68 million shares as all the actives shares were massively traded both ways. Both PTC Vouchers and Hub-Power again proved market leaders but in opposing directions, reflecting the high incidence of rolling of positions from one to the other mostly by foreign investors, analysts said. That was perhaps why the same set of operators, who indulged in overnight tactical selling and pulling the market down just in one go, were active buyers at the lows, pushing the market again on the rails. After opening about 10 points down, the KSE 100-share index finally showed a remarkable recovery as investors were back to cover positions at the overnight bottom levels. The KSE 100-share index did fell fractionally by 1.45 points at 1,487.74 as compared to 1,489.19 a day earlier, reflecting the relative strength of most of the base shares. Analysts said political uncertainties notwithstanding, investors are in the rings in a big way and might stay if the pace of corrective steps to put the economy back on the rails is sustained. The fact that the rally powered by the relief package early in the week for spinner is fading worries of investors as it could pave the way for selling in other sectors too, they added. The other disturbing factor is that the buying euphoria witnessed in the investment shares after the textile package is also losing its steam as those who bought at the earlier lows are again selling at the available margin. Performance of most of the blue chips and current favourites are also not very encouraging, having a negative impact on the trading pattern. Synthetic and insurance shares, however, did not follow the markets general line of action on various reasons. While the former continued to attract good support in response to duty cuts on polyester yarn, the latter came in for strong buying on expectation that they will be treated at par with the others in respect of capital gain tax exemption. Century Insurance, Premier Insurance and Adamjee Insurance and some others were actively traded, finishing with good gains. Other notable gainers were led by PILCORP, Javed Omer, Apex Fabrics, Kohat Cement, Quality Steel, Balochistan Wheels, apparently after the appointment of new managing director, Mitchell Fruits and Tri-Pak Films, rising by Rs 1.75 to Rs 2.90. Big losers were led by Zeal Pak Cement, Fauji Fertiliser, Packages, Searle Pakistan and Parke-Davis, falling by Rs 1.75 to Rs 5. Others to follow them were led by Pak DataCom, EFU Insurance, Dreamworld, and Shell Pakistan falling by one rupee to Rs 1.25. The most active list was topped by Hub-Power, easy five paisa on 12.735 million shares, followed by PTC Vouchers, up 25 paisa on 10.886m, Dewan Salman, higher 95 paisa on 8.945m, FFC-Jordan Fertiliser, lower 25 paisa on 2.648m, and ICI Pakistan (r), up 20 paisa on 1.272 million shares. They were followed by Dhan Fibre, up 10 paisa on 1.495 million, Ibrahim Fibre, firm 35 paisa on 0.491m, Fauji Fertiliser, off Rs 2.75 on 0.466m, ICI Pakistan, up 20 paisa on 0.740m, and Schon Bank, up 75 paisa on 0.152 million shares. Trading volume soared to 67.901 million shares from the previous 49.247m shares thanks to active bouts of selling and buying in the current favourites. There were 348 actives out of which 153 shares fell, 123 rose with 72 holding on to the last levels. DIVIDEND: On the corporate front, the Board of Directors of Siemens Pakistan has announced a maintained cash dividend of 30 per cent, while Syed Match came out with a 10 per cent cash. Sui Southern Gas Company announced bonus shares at the rate of 15 per cent. ------------------------------------------------------------------- SUBSCRIBE TO HERALD TODAY ! ------------------------------------------------------------------- Every month the Herald captures the issues, the pace and the action, shaping events across Pakistan's lively, fast-moving current affairs spectrum. Subscribe to Herald and get the whole story. Annual Subscription Rates : Latin America & Caribbean US$ 93 Rs. 2,700 North America & Australasia US$ 93 Rs. 2,700 Africa, East Asia Europe & UK US$ 63 Rs. 1,824 Middle East, Indian Sub-Continent & CAS US$ 63 Rs. 1,824 Please send the following information : Payments (payable to Herald) can be by crossed cheque (for Pakistani Rupees), or by demand draft drawn on a bank in New York, NY (for US Dollars). Name, Postal Address, Telephone, Fax, e-mail address, old subscription number (where applicable). 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EDITORIALS & FEATURES

961122 ------------------------------------------------------------------- The competent bully ------------------------------------------------------------------- Ardeshir Cowasjee KARACHI, October 6, 1996 Fax message for: Mr Ahmad Sadiq, Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan now in tatters. Dear Mr Sadiq You were a good man when I first met you in 1972, when you were being harassed by Bhutto and being falsely accused by him of having allowed General Habibullah to flee the country. The public perception now is that you are a big bully and are either highly corrupt yourself or highly competent in aiding and abetting corruption at the highest levels. Your workplace is, of course, contaminating and conducive to corruption and other such sins. Herewith a copy of an article by Kaleem Omar from The News. Whereas you people up there are dealing in billions of dollars, plebs such as Kaleem and I are worried about such minor sums as millions of rupees. Kaleem checks his facts before writing. However, I would be glad if you could let me have some documentation to prove both he and the public perception wrong. Hoping you have shed some weight, and with good wishes. Knowing how haughty this recycled secretary had become, I expected no answer and got none. But he did ask a friend to convey to me that I was apparently unaware as to how much his presence as chef of the Prime Ministers Secretariat had saved the nation. This is very much the same as what I heard the other day from Jehangir Ansari of Pakistan State Oil (now on the ECL). He claimed that we should not scoff at him, as PSO had made a profit of some Rs 20 billion in the last year. My answer was that it was possible that had he and some others spent their time asleep at home, and if what had been robbed had not been robbed, the profit would perhaps have been Rs 30 billion. Back to the shenanigans of Falstaff Sadiq. On April 17 this year, the fax machines spat out a message in the offices of the Federal Finance Secretary, Chairman Pakistan Banking Council, Vice-Chairman Export Promotion Bureau, Managing Director PIA, Chairman Pakistan Telecommunications Corporation, Chairman State Life Insurance Corporation, Chairman National Insurance Corporation, Chairman Pakistan Insurance Corporation, President National Bank, President Habib Bank, President Allied Bank, President Muslim Commercial, Chairman National Development Finance Corporation, Managing Director National Investment Trust, Managing Director Investment Corporation, Managing Director PNSC. It was from the office of the man that headed that most dreaded, and perhaps most corrupt, secretariat in Islamabad: National Publicity Goals  In order to discuss some important national publicity effort, a meeting will be held at 11 a.m. on April 21, 1996 in the Prime Ministers Secretariat under chairmanship of Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister. Kindly make it convenient to attend the meeting personally. Sd./ Abdul Shafiq, Deputy Secretary, Law. The obedient head honchos stopped doing what they were doing, cancelled their engagements, and rushed to Islamabad. Those gallivanting abroad were represented by their No. 2s. In Sadiqs office that day, there were no representatives of either the Ministry of Information, the Directorate of External Publicity, PTV, Radio Pakistan or any division or ministry dealing with national publicity. Falstaff Sadiq looked at the assembled group, and asked the deputy Chairman of NDFC where his Chairman was. The deputy made some excuse, to which Sadiq retorted that apparently the Chairman was getting too big for his boots. We can easily replace him. And you can tell him that from me. No working papers were distributed, no minutes recorded, and those attending were strictly instructed to keep the days discussions top secret and advised, in both the national and their personal interest, to implement post-haste the decisions taken at the meeting. The 15 heads were informed that each would have to contribute the rupee equivalent of $100,000 towards the national effort. No details were discussed and they were told that instructions would follow. The sycophants amongst them jumped with joy. Brilliant, they told Sadiq. Their organisations would contribute more if required. Asadullah Khwaja of ICP said that the stock market was down, his organisation had nothing to advertise, and it could not bear this unnecessary expense. He was informed that none of them were there to argue, but to comply with a decision already taken. Asadullah asked for written orders. Sadiq had no problem with that. ICP paid the $100,000. Receiving no responses at all to their queries as to details on how the money had been spent, they asked for their money back. It has so far not been sent. The story I now relate concerns a bureaucrat with the courage of his convictions, who values the peoples money, stands up and fights, and is considered to be awkward. This last government constantly complained that he did not co-operate. He is Ferozuddin Ahmed, Chairman of PIC. A few days after Sadiqs meeting, he received a letter from the Banking Council, our Panjrapore (where barren cows in India are sent to be cared for until they die), enclosing a letter from the finance ministry authorising co-ordinated action and the collection of a total of $1,145,000 (Rs 5.8 crores) from the targeted institutions. PIC was told to send the money to PBC where the funds will be pooled for subsequent disposal, as per instructions of the competent authority. The full amount was to be sent by June 10, for onward transmission to London-based FMS International Ltd, one of the cover companies used by Asif-crony Javed Pasha. Ferozuddin played bat and ball, lobbing the ball into his external auditors court, into his Board of Directors court, back and forth. He was not co-operating and would suffer the consequences, roared Commerce Minister Ahmed Mukhtar and the angry super-secretary Salman Faruqui. It was this same genius, Mukhtar, who had proclaimed to the members of the Karachi Chamber of Commerce: How can we be bankrupt? We can print as many notes as we like every day. Ferozuddin was also out of favour for delving into the payment of premiums, totalling some $12 million, pertaining to the re-insurance abroad of PIAs fleet. On the evening of September 17, PIC Secretary Nadir Ali Mukhiani received two faxes from the commerce ministry, the first instructing him to ensure that Ferozuddin immediately relinquish charge of the Corporation and hand it over to Asif-crony Humayun Zia (who was in no way competent to take over). The second read: The competent authority has directed that the charge may be handed over/taken over today positively. A compliance report may be furnished today. Indecent haste? Who was obliging whom? The same evening, on-the-ball Zia wrote to the secretary of PIC: I hereby report to PIC to resume my office and to start looking after the work of the office of the Chairman PIC w.e.f. 17.9.96. Markhiani rushed to Ferozuddins house that evening with copies of the two faxes, to ask what he should do as both Minister Mukhtar and Secretary Faruqui were waiting in their offices for the compliance report, so that they could report back to Asif. On September 19, Ferozuddin wrote to Ahmad Sadiq: I am now 58 years of age, and only two years are left before I superannuate from government service. The one thing I cherish most is my self-respect and the one being from whom I ask favours is the one who has created both you and me. Ferozuddin was an OSD until November 9, when the caretakers reinstated him as Chairman PIC and asked him to additionally take acting charge of that cess-pit, the Pakistan Steel Mill. Ferozuddin had done his duty, as the rest of the sorry bunch should have done. But, under the past regime, doing what was right and proper was a crime. The accountability commissioners could question Sadiq and those who have co-operated as to whence they derived the right to rob, to impoverished masses, all in the interest of enriching the few. These men were trustees of the nations wealth. Should they not be punished for betraying their trust? Misappropriation does not start with the figure of a billion. In moral terms, and in terms of his sworn duty, there is no difference between a public servant robbing a billion or a thousand. Our gangsters, fixers, and collectors would do well to remember that the Feds could find no evidence to convict Al Capone, the famed US gangster of the 1920s who had gunned down hundreds, who had robbed the people, and whose wealth in 1927 was estimated at being close to $100 million. But they persevered and in 1931, they got him for Federal income tax evasion. He was tried, found guilty and sentenced to eleven years in prison plus the payment of $80,000 in fines and court costs. In November 1939, stricken by syphilitic deterioration, he was released and hospitalised. Robbed of his mob and connections, Capone retired to his estate in Florida where he died in 1947, a mad, powerless recluse. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 961124 ------------------------------------------------------------------- 58(2)(b): a double-edged sword? ------------------------------------------------------------------- Dr Farrukh Saleem Ever since the unexpected departure of Gen. Zia in 1988, the enlightened media of ours has been giving Zia what he rightfully deserved. Eleven years of virtual dictatorship was followed by an almost daily dosage of severe criticism and routine harsh commentary that all lasted for a good five years. Some of it, as a matter of fact, still continues. To be certain, Zia was no friend of any politician or of democracy. Although the general has been gone for a long time, his gift of 8th Amendment to the politicians of this country is what no one has been able to get rid of. After all, there have since been three elected governments at least one of which had a clear two-third majority. Both Presidents who followed Zia are also on record for exercising their constitutional powers of dissolving the National Assembly and dismissing the Prime Minister. Each time a government is dismissed, the presidential order of dissolution is challenged in the superior courts. Junejos dismissal was challenged in the Lahore High Court (LHC) which held Zias order of dismissal as unconstitutional but did not restore the three- year-old government based on the rationale that the whole nation is geared up for elections... . When Benazirs first government was dismissed, GIKs use of Article 58 (2) (b) was found to be legal and valid by the LHC. The Court held that the pre-conditions prescribed by the Constitution were fulfilled and that, a situation [had] arisen in which the government of the Federation could not be carried on in accordance with the provisions of the constitution and an appeal to the electorate was necessary. Benazir had lasted for a mere twenty months. Nawaz Sharif who became PM in November 1990, managed to last for twenty- nine months. The Supreme Court decision that followed Sharifs dismissal, not only held GIKs order as being illegal but also reinstated him as PM. The Supreme Court held: The President unfortunately assumed to himself the position of a Judge on the performance of the government and thought that he had the power to punish the Cabinet for acts of omission and commission as ascertained by him, adding that, Article 58 (2)(b) contemplated one and only one situation for dissolution of the National Assembly, and that is where, in the opinion of the President, the government of the Federation cannot be carried on in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution and an appeal to the electorate is necessary. The present Chief Justice, Sajjad Ali Shah, is on record for dissenting from the majority opinion. *From precedent set over the past decade the three inferences that clearly stand out are: (i) The presidential jurisdiction to dissolve the Assembly must be based on an objective deduction; (ii) The President cannot consider himself to be a Judge on the performance of the government; and (iii) The one and only one situation whereby the President can exercise Article 58 (2) (b) is when the government of the Federation cannot be carried on in accordance with the Constitution. President Legharis proclamation of dissolution is not much different from the past three that are already on record. In light of recent superior court rulings, the President can clearly not become a Judge of how the Benazir government was performing or, for that matter, has no power to punish the Cabinet for its acts of omission and commission. The only other thing left is whether the President genuinely felt that the government could not carry on as per the Constitution and, as a consequence, a fresh mandate had become necessary. The Supreme Court would really have to enter the presidential frame of mind and draw its own conclusion as to whether the Presidents decision is based on an objective analysis and also whether the President genuinely believed that the government of the Federation could not be run according to the Constitution. From a historical perspective, the courts felt that Zias decision to dismiss Junejo was not an unbiased one. GIKs decision to dissolve BB was found to be constitutionally valid while the same Presidents dismissal of Nawaz Sharif was found to be lacking authenticity of presidential intention. The deposed PM is now making an attempt to bring in an element of ethnicity in superior courts rulings. The implication is absolutely baseless. Judges of the superior courts can safely be assumed to be above such narrow, synthetic affiliations. The confrontation between the previous PM and the Chief Justice is a living proof of that. The fight was on principles. It is also being asserted that the presidential action has hurt democracy. That, at best, is a ridiculous assertion. No one has hurt democracy more than our champions of democracy themselves Additionally, the Constitution itself provides for such emergency actions which in return must be taken as a warning to corrupt democrats. Has the President then hurt the parliamentary tradition, or are we really moving away from the Westminster-style of democracy? The answer to both of these issues remains in the negative. The President has actually opted for a route that may eventually usher in a superior form of democracy. Some even go as far as claiming that we may have actually managed to avoid martial law. The maturity of our political assemblage, on the other hand, has not really reached a stage whereby even an iron-lady can be removed from party leadership by the party itself, and till that happens Article 58 (2) (b) is proving to be safety valve. Moving over to the post-dissolution scenario, the team of caretakers has not been receiving favourable reviews. The choice of economic managers seems like a good one  or may be we did not have much choice in that regards but the choice of caretakers from the political field (with the sole exception of the Prime Minister) has left much to be desired. The hierarchy in Punjab or in Sindh, for example, does not command much respect in the eyes of the electorate. Admittedly, Zias intention of incorporating the once-dreaded 8th Amendment may have been based on pure, unadulterated self interest. What we are now beginning to realise is that Article 58 (2) (b) may in effect be a double- edged sword, playing a critical role as a safeguard mechanism against the misuse of democratic power by corrupt, rent-seeking government and enforcing checks and balances in a system [otherwise] devoid of any equitable law enforcement. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 961124 ------------------------------------------------------------------- A ministers diary: the first 15 days ------------------------------------------------------------------- Javed Jabbar Reading aloud the oath of office is like getting dressed in full public view. Each sentence is a garment that conceals the nakedness of human nature. The pledge is a full formal dress that seeks to cast one as an angel. The oath is a see-through costume, transparent as well as tantalising. The first time I read a similar though not identical oath was on 21st March 1985, after being elected to the Senate. The second time was on 4th December, 1988, when I joined the first cabinet of Benazir Bhutto as a Minister of State. Now the third time around, joining a team led by President Farooq Leghari and Prime Minister Malik Meraj Khalid, the text of the oath is newly awesome in its implications. Can any mortal being always act upon every word of it? TV camera lights magnify the fine print. Still camera flash bulbs punctuate the paragraphs. The silence around us is almost furtive, perhaps following every syllable that we speak, possibly wondering how large the gap will be between word and deed. Yet as the signature is affixed to the oath, the profound simplicity of the promises made warms the heart and fills the mind with confidence. After three years of careless government, a three-month caretaker cabinet is like a bridge between two river banks. We are supposed to make sure some rotters do not walk on to the bridge  or even swim across. They are supposed to be held to account. But we live in times when a mans pockets can be empty while a secret bank account far away is bursting at the seams. Technology facilitates criminality. Will respect for the Constitution and the law mean licence for scoundrels? Someone in the future should work on a civilian version of martial law: one of whose facets would be swift, sure punishment while at the same time ensuring total justice. Isnt that a conundrum? As for the other river bank, is it a mirage that we see upon the horizon or the outlines of a brave new world? Everything just speeds up soon after taking charge. Telephone calls multiply at a rate faster than the countrys population. Visitors increase. With prior appointments. Without advance warning. Then there is a daily fixed hour for the public at large when any citizen can walk into the office 3.00 pm to 4.00 pm. With requests ranging from authorisation for a gas connection to be given out of turn on a priority basis to emotional requests for transfers so that the applicant may be better able to look after the legendary ailing mother, Allah bless her. Journalists who ask sharp questions. Ambassadors and high commissioners looking for tell-tale signs. Probing questions that meet careful answers and elicit re-assuring statements. Officials from global oil and gas corporations from whose smooth tongues flow easy references to billions of cubic feet of gas and to hundreds of millions of dollars looking for secure investment beyond 90 days. The stream of incoming paper becomes a torrent  and a blizzard at the same time. Cabinet papers marked alluringly: secret. Files of different sizes: slim and sleek, some with middle girth, others big and bulging. Marked Immediate, Confidential and in case your attention is wandering: Most Immediate. Applications for sanctions by the Minister  for lucrative volumes of LPG, tanker loads of condensate, solvent oil and bitumen. Letters of felicitations from old friends. New acquaintances. And perfect strangers. Telegrams. Books. Baskets of apples. Bouquets. Background material on each sector and sub-sector of a Ministry whose scope of policy and regulatory authority is vast and varied. Oil. Gas. Coal. Minerals. By- products. All contributing their malodorous share to the fragrant fumes of development. The basic, enormous sources of power that drive tractors and trains, cars and motor-bikes, that light up a village home and put the glow in chandeliers. Then there are meetings. Of the Cabinet. Of Cabinet sub- committees. With Ministry officials at a first get-to-know-you session. Then meetings with officers of individual departments, corporations, organisations. Then encounters with representatives of sectoral associations with their respective interests. Of oil exploration companies, marketeers, refineries, cartage contractors, petrol pump owners, unions, groups of young management trainees, men and women, grossly over-recruited and mis-recruited in the past three years into public sector corporations, nervous and uncertain about their security of jobs. Dealing with the new data headed at me from every direction is like walking into a gale-force wind. The new information is fascinating in its scale. The subject is complex, each sector intricate in its detail. The inter- connectivity between a perishable resource and the minutely detailed systems and structures that have to be created to exploit that resource is engrossing, whether it be the processing technology, from production to storage to transmission and distribution to consumption or the financial methodology used to manage costs and rates of return. Notebooks and pads are filling up fast. Invitation cards proliferate. Lunches. Receptions. Dinners. We even managed to have a breakfast meeting of a Board of Directors of a refinery controlled by the Ministry. Even the flag on the car seems to flutter faster when seen from the inside. Whats all the excitement about? The driver, who has survived several Ministers, keeps the car interior smelling fresh with just an extra bit of air freshener. At least one does not have to look for a parking space for the next three months. Why are the papers so sceptical, if not actually outright hostile, to our government? The critical tone of most newspapers and magazines about the caretaker Government is curious. Some of the comments are pertinent and instructive. Their general direction is well-motivated, obviously seeking to ensure that the country is not forced to suffer because of our follies. Yet there is also an unreasonable edge to the writing: presumptive, arrogant  and sometimes even outright ignorance  and cynical, unwilling to allow a new Government even 15 days before loosening up with their canons. In politics, we live with the skin of a rhinoceros while trying to sustain the heart of a human. Already I am the victim of at least three disinformative reports in the Press. The first one was datelined Lahore and said the Urdu equivalent of: even if the Supreme Court restores Benazir, she will not regain power  Minister for Petroleum. The second: Minister flouts Prime Ministers directive on austerity: orders five cars for his personal use in Karachi. The third: Leaves the house of a widowed landlady in Islamabad without paying four months rent and telephone bills. Each of the three was a fabrication. Each was contradicted. But of course, the original story spurs more comment and circulation than the contradiction. However, such is the truth with which we live in an age of freedom of expression. Am still staying in my sister-in-laws home in Islamabad. The place is so much more comforting and hospitable than the large but cold premises allotted to me in what I like to call the best servants quarters in the country otherwise known as Ministers Colony. Perhaps I will move there is a couple of days. Suddenly, the time available for my family shrinks to too little. Is public office not too high a price to pay for what is most precious? DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 961125 ------------------------------------------------------------------- The mood of the sovereign awam ------------------------------------------------------------------- Ayaz Amir THE sovereign awam  of whose sovereignty, let me say, I have always had my doubts  are in a troubled mood these days. Having been betrayed by their leaders, they are sick and tired of professional politicos. At the same time, they do not quite believe what the present caretaker lot is saying  which accounts for the widespread scepticism about elections despite strenuous presidential assertions that come what may, they will be held on time. Far more ominously, however, the awam also want the tumbrils to roll  which is what happened when the French Revolution got going. Soaring prices which are making life difficult even for the middle classes, the absence of social services, the growth in administrative corruption and the hollow sounds coming from the political arena are the factors which have driven the people to these desperate straits. But honed by years of bitter experience to make out the difference between appearance and reality, the people also know that yearn as they might for drastic solutions they are not going to get them from the present lot of carpetbaggers who are alternately fuming and fumbling as they uneasily sit atop Pakistans landslide-prone heights of power. How do I arrogate to myself the right to speak thus of popular feelings? Go to any public gathering  a shadi, a journey in a bus, a conversation in village baithak or city drawing room  and unless I am grossly mistaken, this is the mood whose dark and sullen depths you are likely to plumb. Not for a moment do I say that I agree with this mood. There was a time when I used to swear by the collective wisdom of the masses (misguided passion being a prerogative of youth) but, sadly, not any more. More often than not the wisdom of the masses is the wisdom of the mob  attracted by gimmicks and monkey tricks and swayed easily by slogans. If the Pakistani awam, or at least a sizeable portion of it, could ever take Benazir Bhutto seriously and if God forbid it ever begins to take Imran Khan seriously (I get goose pimples merely thinking of this) is it possible for any sane man to have much respect for its collective wisdom? Benazir visits Lahore for the first time after her dismissal and says to a crowd assembled outside Data Darbar that she has to come to meet the Ghayyur Awam of the city. Some in the crowd must have cheered this line which makes you despair of the human species. Or consider Karachi whose Urdu-speaking population has the highest literacy rate in the country but which for all that has allowed itself to be led down a blind alley by the demagoguery of its Fuehrer, Pir Altaf Hussain. Thats the wisdom of the masses for you. Why I still remain wedded to the ideal of democracy is because if there is anything worse than Pakistani-style populism it is Pakistani-style authoritarianism. Such a sorry lot of tinpot dictators no other country has probably seen. Which is what makes me afraid of the present sullen mood of the awam. They want accountability (the sad Pakistani synonym for the notion of revolution) but they are wrong to think that the carpetbaggers now in place are in any position to deliver it. What the awam are thirsting for is strong and heady drink. What they are getting from the present set- up is accountability dipped in tepid and diluted milk. Justice Mujaddid Mirza becoming the scourge of the corrupt? It takes an effort of the imagination to get used to this idea. Forget about the intricacies or the time-frame of the Ehtisab Ordinance. Where is justice going to come from? How are the buccaneers who have grown fat on the spoils of the Republic going to be made to disgorge their loot and plunder? Not, I regret to say, by due process because we know where in this land of ours due process leads. Summary justice, of the kind which Lenin had in mind when he said that in order to make an omelette you have to break a few eggs, is what the people of Pakistan want. But are they likely to get this from soiled and faltering hands? That is why the public mood is misguided. To satisfy their yearning for justice and accountability they would gladly make a sacrifice of the February 3 elections. if today a strongman in the Kemalist mould  that Sardar Farooq Leghari, let me quickly add, is not  were to say that he was drowning the Election Commission and its works in the Arabian Sea and making an example of corruption by stringing up a line of fatcats on the lamp-posts of the capital, the awam would cheer him and urge him on. Such is their anger and the blackness of their mood. But if such a thing were really to happen  elections sacrificed at the altar of accountability  the people would be the biggest losers: elections they would have lost in any case, and accountability at the hands of their present masters, who are dealing in tepid milk, they will not get. They will be worse off than before, for let us not forget the entertainment value of democracy. It keeps the masses amused. What would you rather have: misery and corruption in a circus setting or misery and corruption under the leaden grey of an authoritarian sky? Give me the circus any time. The awam, therefore, have to guard against the conspiracies that might be woven in their name. Apart from the Muslim League in whose nostrils there now rests the smell of victory, no other party or even school of thought is keen on elections. Not the caretakers who, if only they had the courage of their ambitions, would gladly push them aside; not Qazi Hussain Ahmed who would dearly like a thunderbolt to fall on the major parties so that his path to glory became smoother; not Imran Khan who is jumping into an electoral contest prematurely; and not even the Daughter of the East who, if I have her measure, would welcome a postponement because it would give her party a reprieve and spare it the rubbishing which is likely to be its fate if elections are held on February 3. If the prayers of all these malcontents are heard and elections are indeed postponed, the awam would not be greatly upset because, as I have said already, their heart is set on the vague but tantalising prospect of retribution from the skies. If vote they must, they will in all probability make Mian Nawaz Sharif prime minister again. But if, for whatever false reason, this opportunity is denied them, they will not pull the heavens down. The soil for planting conspiracies, therefore, could not be more fertile. The Muslim League, however, is in a curious trance-like state. It is preparing for elections and there is no shortage of ambitious souls wanting to clamber aboard its bandwagon. But accost the more knowing of its stalwarts in private and the worms of doubt eating away at their hearts are easily revealed. Mian Nawaz Sharif says ...it is the job of the people and not the government to remove anyone from power. While true, this sentiment is not mindful of the lessons of Pakistani history. In 1958, for instance, the country faced a similar situation. The Muslim League, then led by Khan Qayyum, was considered the clear favourite to win the elections that were to be held in February 1959. As part of his election campaign Khan Qayyum led a massive rally from Gujrat to Serai Alamgir, an event still remembered in political folklore as a great manifestation of popular strength. Yet when martial law was imposed a few months later there was not a squeak of protest from the Muslim League. At the moment if there is any pressure on the caretakers to stick to their election promise it is from the Press, not from any political quarter. I personally think, for whatever my bedraggled opinion is worth, that elections will be held on time, if for no other reason than that the caretaker regime is too weak to postpone them. But there are so many straws in the wind, the smell of so many different conspiracies wafting from dark and secret corners that even the brave and the hopeful are being bent, even if against their wishes, to the uses of scepticism. The paradox confronting the Muslim League is thus a strange and unfamiliar one. For much of its post-independence history the hand-maiden of various dictators, today it stands as the foremost defender of democracy. But the tragedy is that in the very hour of its glorification a gulf of apathy yawns between it and the fervour of the people. If today the constitutional goal-posts are shifted, it is a disheartening thing to realise that no one will come rushing to the barricades. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 961128 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Responding to the challenge of change ------------------------------------------------------------------- Benazir Bhutto HOW realities change. Nothing remains the same; everything has to change. One is neither prime minister nor political prisoner forever... one is neither great nor weak forever. Those words were spoken to me by my father  before he was forced out of power in a military coup, before he was executed. But those words still ring true today. Only when a people, a group or a leader acknowledges that nothing lasts forever can one respond to the challenge of change. As most of the world probably knows, the latest challenge I face comes in the form of a coup led by a former friend and ally, President Farooq Leghari. And now my country is under a presidential, civilian equivalent of martial law. My father died for this country and for parliamentary democracy... our workers were hanged for parliamentary democracy. I get very emotional just thinking about the sacrifices weve made. When Leghari was elected, he pledged that he wouldnt use his political power to dismiss the assembly before its five-year term was complete. Perhaps the recent events in my country are an indication of a larger trend. Maybe its result of the decline of ideology following the end of the cold war  casting its shadow on the internal politics of nations around the globe. Now that the world is no longer divided into two camps of black and white, the people at large are finding it more difficult to distinguish between political parties, political leaders and political programmes. Everyone talks of deregulation, liberalisation and privatisation. Everyone talks of combating crime and terrorism, and promoting human rights. So, how can people tell the difference between one set of leaders and another? I think its this lack of ideological clarity that has led to confusion, and those who are greedy for power use this to their advantage. With issues undefined and hard to understand, politics becomes more personalised, with accusations and smears becoming the easiest way to define ones opponents. The media thrive on scandals, and trial by the Press has become the order of the day. True or not, much of the mud sticks and the result is cynicism toward government and political leaders  which leads to disenchantment with existing political structures and systems. If there can be a solution to this problem, it lies in the creation of new yardsticks by which to judge political parties and leaders, standards such as how they handle the economy, how much they invest in human resource development, and whether they promote womens rights and minority rights. This is what the debate in my country should be about. Unfortunately, we have sunk to new lows of character assassination and constitutional upheaval. And while Im confident we will win in the end, it is frustrating to waste so much time and energy when we could be working to improve our peoples future. And so, I wait as our Supreme Court considers my revised petition to reinstate the legitimate government to power. Such an action is not without precedent, since in 1993, the court overruled the firing of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. If the assembly dissolution in that case was wrong... well, the charges against me are even flimsier and the assembly will be returned to power soon. As I try to explain to my children what has happened to our family in the past few weeks, more of my fathers words and lessons come to mind. It is because realities change that one should act so as to seek redemption in the eyes of history rather than the transitory phase that one lives through. Thats why principles are important. Its because principles, whether popular or not, mean fighting for something larger than ones own self. They give a moral basis to the pursuit of life and make our time on earth more meaningful, more satisfactory.Copyright 1996 Dawn-Creators Syndicate, Inc.

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SPORTS

961123 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Cricket success after two years in Sharjah ------------------------------------------------------------------- Lateef Jafri THE recently concluded triangular at the Sharjah sheikhdom, clinched by Pakistan in a final which had its own ups and downs, was full of surprises and thrills. And in the maze of happenings the controversies too cropped up to raise the eyebrows of the competing teams as also cricket officials and the connoisseurs. It is still debatable if the New Zealanders should have entered the final or it were the Sri Lankans who had earned the right to lock horns with Pakistan. The world champions had the better run-rate but since the round- robin results had given the Kiwis the edge with one tied match the latter sneaked into the final. The decision was handed out to the Champions Trophy referee Mike Smith of England by the ICC Chief Executive, David Richards. In fact Lords had initially ruled that Sri Lanka were the finalists. But then the New Zealand management appealed to the ICC and gave their version of the rule at which Richards got confused and sought an interpretation from Dr Ali Bacher of South Africa, the person behind the rule and its amendment. No doubt Ali Bachers ruling prevailed but the confusion over rule 11.1 and the injustice done to Sri Lanka would be discussed for a long time in the fora of cricket experts of the three participating countries of the tournament as also in Sharjah whenever an international competition is organised there. However, many may enter into a debate about the fate of the final if the ICC verdict would have gone in favour of the Sri Lankans. A team with a deep batting order and a keen and resourceful attack would have been hard to be beaten. Pakistan would then have been called lucky winners. But was Pakistans Singer Cup victory entirely well-merited and deserving or was there an element of luck or what the purists call uncertainties of cricket? No enthusiast of the game would have thought even in his wildest dream that New Zealand would fail to chase Pakistans modest score of 160, reached with considerable struggle after the early and quick fall of Saeed Anwar, the linchpin of their batting. The sudden collapse of the New Zealand middle and lower order was unthinkable even if sometimes cricket becomes a quick- motion film. Many are of the view that Abdur Rahman Bukhatir, the main organiser of the show, masterminded the result of the final through the umpires. Five leg before decisions, starting from a set Adam Parore to Dipak Patel are unimaginable. The New Zealanders were cruising serenely and easefully to victory at 66 for 2 when Bukhatirs ploy was used and the Kiwis were overwhelmed by a bowling which is capable of reducing to littleness any batting line-up in any setting and at any place of the globe. There was procession to the pavilion and the New Zealanders did not know how to tackle and face Pakistans ferocious pace and double- spin attack. If New Zealand had five lbws why Pakistan had only one, many observes of the game ask? The bookmakers must have minted money and the New Zealanders were cheated of victory. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 961123 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Jansher clinches World Open title, sets record of wins ------------------------------------------------------------------- A. Majid Khan KARACHI, Nov 22: Pakistans formidable racket-wielder Jansher Khan, defending champion, maintained his all-conquering record in the PSO 20th World Open squash to extend his winning sequence to eight for his fifth successive victories wearing down by Australian Rodney Eyles in a tense title battle 15-13, 17-15, 11-15, 15-3 here before a packed-to-capacity championship court gallery of the DHA Squash Complex on Friday afternoon. Having surpassed legendary Jahangir Khans six wins record last year at the Nicosia World Open, the impeccable Jansher today also equalled the retired senior Khans five wins in a row. The champion of the world lifted the prestigious cup and kissed it. Jansher also received a cheque of Us dollar 21,000 and runner-up Rodney Eyles dollars 13, 8000 of the highest US dollar 1,20,000 prize money of the tournament organised by the Pakistan Squash Federation. The hotel bonus was US dollars 10,000. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 961128 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Wasim Akram has to show his fitness ------------------------------------------------------------------- Sports Reporter KARACHI, Nov 27: The Chief Executive of the Pakistan Cricket Board, Majid Khan, on Wednesday said Wasim Akram will have to show his fitness before he is considered for selection for the tour of Australia. Speaking from his Lahore residence, Majid said Akram will need to play in the first-class competition and show the selectors that he has completely recovered from his `shoulder injury. Wasim Akram, the Pakistan captain, had pulled out from the series opener on the morning of the first Test citing pain in his shoulder. Because of the same injury, he had withdrawn 15 minutes before the World Cup quarter- finals against India at Bangalore. Wasim Akram had refused to bowl because of the same shoulder injury in the second innings of the Faisalabad Test against Sri Lanka when Majid Khan was the tour manager and Mushtaq Mohammad cricket manager. There is no conspiracy, was the first reaction of Majid Khan, who added: Professional cricketers do get injured. It is Wasim Akrams bowling arm but he will hopefully recover and show the selectors he is fit. Interestingly, Wasim Akram has never complained of the injury in his seven years with Lancashire in the English County Championship. DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS*DWS 961126 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Shahbaz Jr opts out of Champions Trophy ------------------------------------------------------------------- Walter Fernandez KARACHI, Nov. 25: Olympian inside-left Mohammed Shahbaz Junior has ruled himself out of the 18th Champions Trophy World Hockey Tournament scheduled to be held in Madras (India) from Dec. 7 to 15. The highly experienced Pakistan inside-forward told `Dawn at the Hockey Club of Pakistan (HCP) Stadium here on Monday that he is still suffering from blurred vision sustained during camp training a week ago because of lacerated blood vessel behind his right eye. Mohammad Shahbaz Junior added, he has since undergone two complete eye test, one at the Akhtar Eye Hospital here and another under the supervision of an eminent eye surgeon of Lahore of Dr. Mukhtar, who has arrived at the conclusion that Mohammad Shahbaz would have to get his eye lacer treated to correct the problem. Dr. Mukhtar had programmed the laser treatment sometime on Tuesday and only after that he would inform Shahbaz as to how long it would take for his eye to get all right. In view of Dr. Mukhtars advice, Shahbaz Junior has decided to skip the National one-day trials slated to be held at the HCP on Nov. 30. As such he has forgone his selection for the Champions Trophy squad. Of course, Id like to be honest where Pakistans hockey is concerned. I do not feel fully fit. So what is the point in going to India, said the dashing Olympian inside-left. Mohammad Shahbaz Junior has won a World Cup gold medal in two campaigns, a Champions Trophy gold medal in seven tournaments and a bronze medal in two Olympic Games, having picked it up in 1992 at Barcelona.

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