ISLAMABAD: As if we were short of issues that divide this country left, right and centre, Jamshed Dasti had to bring up the issue of Kalabagh Dam in the National Assembly.
Not only did he ask for the construction of the controversial dam but also described its opponents in words that had to be expunged for the sake of decency. This self-declared Robin Hood of Muzzafargarh has a knack for creating news. He first hit the headlines by coming to his polling station on a donkey cart. Then he became prominent for returning to the assembly after his resignation to avoid disqualification for presenting a fake educational degree. Finally, he attempted a crude attempt at publicity by advocating an extension for the former chief justice. The latest statement on Kalabagh dam, we suspect, is caused by our Robin Hood’s desire to patch up with the Sheriff of Nottingham. Basically, he wants to move to the Treasury from the independent benches if offered a lucrative offer.
But made the debate on the ‘illegal’ construction of dams by India on our waters go haywire. The members from the smaller provinces were quick to lash out at Punjab instead of discussing the Indus Water Treaty.
The whole exercise was futile as the minister for water and power was off to a world capital. For obvious reasons, Khawaja Asif likes to focus more on his additional ministry of defence than on the likelihood of future water wars or, for that matter, power shortages.
No wonder our energy crisis keeps going from bad to worse.
Latest figures indicate that receivables of government-run oil and gas companies have exceeded Rs225 billion and the monster of the circular debt is, once again, touching the Rs400 billion mark in only six months. This is largely because remedial steps were not taken after dubiously paying Rs500 billion to energy companies. People should get ready for another electricity-starved summer once the winter crisis of natural gas is over.
But government actions do not reflect the state of urgency that the hoi polloi have to go through every day. All eyes were set on the government for the final verdict on the Taliban. We all wanted to know the result of the talkathon at the PML-N parliamentary party meeting. What next? You may wonder why it took the government eight months, and a thousand dead, to simply check out from party members: hey guys! What do you want me to do? But we are concerned about a more important question: will it take another eight months for the government to arrive at a decision?
The government, we suspect, has a rather myopic view on the issue.
The military operation, important as it may be, is just a small tail of the larger terrorism mammoth. Our politicians have to match it with a comprehensive package of reforms for the de-radicalisation of the whole society. It’s not just about the KP, Fata or Balochistan but every nook and corner of this country where people need to be cleansed of the extremist religious narrative. Madrassahs need to be reformed; mosques should be regulated and stopped from spreading hate material, the educational curriculum needs to be revised.
The police and administration need to be restructured and trained for the task. A complete cultural transformation is required. A holistic model that should take into account local and international factors needs to be devised. It is only the politicians who can tailor such a package.
Unfortunately, we do not get those vibes from our politicians. We have not heard any government minister talking on these lines.
It’s not just a question of capacity, vision and grit. The government needs to at least own the problem and declare war against the miscreants. This seems unlikely as many thought that they were safe as long as they stayed away. It was not a coincidence that the army is being made to take the lead. Others are simply scared to own it. Our moles also claim that Imran Khan has asked his party to go slow against the Taliban because this threatens the lives of his extremely scared MPAs. Credit must be given to the ANP, which stood against the onslaught despite heavy losses.
The question remains: who will do it and how? Whatever the answer, the most important issue is that the government should initiate a real parliamentary debate — as opposed to the sham one going on right now — and devise a comprehensive policy that should incorporate all strata of society. It should not revolve just around the military operation.
So far, this seems to be missing. We may need special laws and institutions but not in the way the latest security bill is being bulldozed. There are serious issues over powers to shoot suspects at sight and the 90-day detention without trial.
Tailpiece: The news about the discovery of mass graves in Balochistan is most disturbing. The number of bodies varies from 13 to 25. This has already set alarm bells among hundreds of people who have their family members missing. This is as grave as any other issue in this country.
The News
January 29, 2014