State of Corruption in South Asia 2000-01

Ketan Parekh=2 thousands crores rs

Harshad Mehta=2 thousands rores rs.

Just the latest booty (loot ) of white collar ,insider trading & banking fraud.

This is only the recent atleast Harshad Mehta has been charged with many large sums of money more than this borrowing from Nationalised banks(essentially govt.of India=taxed ppls money)easily & declaring bankruptsy or disappearing.This all may seem to god to be true ,but its much eaier than robbing nank the hard way like bonney & clyde or Dillinger .!That is the fun part of it.No gun shooting or risk to there life involved.

Our corrupt leaders are more incompetent than other people`s corrupt leaders!!

Maybe that will someday be a blessing??

``In Pakistan, five successive elected governments have been dismissed on charges of corruption and mismanagement since 1988``

Dismissed by the purest of the pure no less?

Ras

(My friend Naveed Qamar just ``celebrated`` the start of his third year in jail without a trial
in Pakistan on ``corruption`` charges!``

Someone should actually research how many people have died BECAUSE of corruption. How many school teachers did not get their salaries, how many hospitals ran short of medicine or staff, how many pot holes in the roads caused fatal accidents, and punish the people in a way proportion to the deaths caused.

Reappointment of Fernades as Defence Misnister is height of corruption.

Mona

Aqil Shah:

Thanks for a timely thought!

Although your article talks about the trends and current malpractices in great detail, but I feel you should have incorporated the impact of the current events in your analysis as well. Fine, we(Pakistan) are in a ``sick`` region and do get affected by what happens in that region. But, we should be ``least`` interested and involved in ``any`` neighbor country and their crooks. They all can go to hell and die there! The emphasis, outside our borders, is a complete distraction. That`s what we have been wasting our time in. Could you all please avoid going there ? Could you all please focus on the future of your own country? Could you all please invest your analytical skills in the interest of your own country?

At present, due to the changing attitude of the world towards Pakistan, we need to have a well-defined structure in place. Many countries have promised to offer economic assistance and it`s extremely important that that money is wisely utilized. All the more reason, we should NOT permit any change at the government level. Many politicians(with a well-defined character)will try to come forth with their hidden agendas, to take advantage of the current situation. From that point of view, I think you should have emphasized on the next steps than informing the readers about the trends and malpractices of the past leaders(ruin-ers).

Well, no one is 100 % perfect when it comes to running a state, but we need to come up with very well defined rules and regulations for our own good. And the masses should be well aware of all the development projects and their implementations that are underway. I have personally come across some genuine folks in bureaucracy, who have taken on quite a few challenging tasks and are doing very well. There are quite a few great steps underway, by the current government, and I strongly feel that they should not do the mistake of letting any political party come forth at this crucial time. Some, would come forth, with their plea, that a soldier`s role is to defend the country only and he should not be responsible for running a state; but in the present situation and based on the past dramas, one has to let the soldier drive the ship to its destination with prudence and care. I feel your article should have had this component. But, probably, by giving the history of all the politicians and events, you wanted to imply what was out there. Sometimes reading between the lines works very well; on other occasions, things have to be spelled out. Just my thought!

``A further problem is the absence in the region of functioning judicial systems. While all South Asian countries have rigorous anti-corruption laws, conviction rates are low and sentences rarely carried out. The judicial process is open to manipulation and cases drag on for years.``

There is another point here. We have quite a few excellent lawyers, law-enforcers and judges out there. Ironically, in the past, many have lost their lives for taking a stand. Many were threatened to death if they took a step in the right direction. The judiciary is not a stand alone entity. Same is true for the civil servants! Another very dear friend`s late father was the Vice Chancellor of my university(UET)in Lahore; whenever he tried to implement a positive step or a disciplinary move, he and his family would receive threats. Still, he stood up many times and had to face dire-consequences for his positive steps. In a way, it was damn ironic that the ones who meant well had to face criticism, death-threats and mental agony. Probably, it says something about the social-mental-sickness that needs to be looked into. I am not a social scientist, but I think that in our country, the flow of actions, takes the top-down approach. So, if you end up living under a corrupt regime, you are left with very little power, to implement your positive input. It does not mean that your conscience dies; it simply means that you lose the vigor and the drive. And that`s a big loss for a nation!

Shah Sahib

Thank you very much. Thank you very much.good write. You are professorsahib and I just hotel worker but our mental thinking is same. Surprise.

Too much corrouption all always.But Prof. man is needed to be good practical. Agree?. I deal with big people rich, powerful (not like Babus of Kachheris)they need power, drink and little else to relax.We can give no power but other things ok, you understand sir. Good.

Corrouption is ok sir. No problom with ahmed madani.If everybody corroupt means no corrouption correct. its like lubrication for engine. Engine burnt no lubrication ok. You agree.No lubrication piston does no move ment same way soshal life of country stop. WE need corrouption for poor to survive life ok. What poor man and woman do with out Bakshish?. Our bakshish make real money.Without lubrication Pakistan will come to standstill. Case give example.Our company steals power( have you heared K..U..N....D...), we give money to line man and engineer babu, good food and booze. No problem. Our co. does not make much money. Say no free power, price goes 30%, less cool, no guests, madani get shaft ok. Madani fired. No problom for you but what about Ahmed Madai?.Rich and powerful ok no corrouption but what about poor.Police can live on salary be honest. He has to earn ok.He can no make sandwhich with honesty ok. Just tired of pompous babus write essays. good bye. our business down due to OSB and this talking corrouption. We have prof.s we provide girls it is corrouption? or not/Even college Prof are corroupt. They make tutions no good teaching. they take money to `bad score` all scondrels

Ras Siddiqui #3 Would you care to post the details on this (your friend jailed for 3 years on corruption charges) case?

The true effects of corruption (bribery and comissions) on the problems highlighted by the author will rank pretty low in a list of causes. Of course, no corruption is better than corrupyion but mismanagement, poor plannimg, inept leadership, high population growth rate, a culture not kind and fair to women, tropical climate and many many other factors cotribute to our problems.

Take for example PIA. They have been in trouble for several years. They are basically over staffed-too much spending for a small airline. The bribery and comissions only matter when they buy any new planes and that has not happened for a while. I do not know of any case of BB or NS making money from PIA.

Overthrowing 5 successive democratic governments on the charges of corruption is the biggest corruption itself.

SameerJB #9: ``Take for example PIA. They have been in trouble for several years. They are basically over staffed-too much spending for a small airline. The bribery and comissions only matter when they buy any new planes and that has not happened for a while. I do not know of any case of BB or NS making money from PIA.``

Your comments regarding the PIA are partially correct. It is one of the most over-staffed and inefficiently run airlines in the world. It is a tiny little airline with 45 or so aircraft, yet its staff is in 5 figures.

However, BB and NS have a lot to do with this over-staffing. Infact, they are the main causes of it. PIA has the strongest labor unions in Pakistan. I have a lot of friends in various positions in the PIA, and know this for a fact.

Its pilots union is notorious for, ``going by the book,`` while its ground employee unions are mini-PPPs and mini-PMLs. It is said that these unions are the next strongest political groups in Pakistan, after the PPP and PML, themselves. One union is supported by PPP and the other by PML.

Due to the above, it has been impossible to reform PIA. PPP and PML stuff the airlines with their jiyalas and followers. This is why it is over-staffed. And they ensure, these guys never get fired. Even the ones who are fired, are hired back years later, with full back-pay (this actually did happen). BB is well-known for filling top PIA positions with her PPP Sindhi mahnos, who had no qualifications for the jobs. Even Air Marshall Daudpota (ex-governor of Sind, and a Sindhi himself) resigned as MD PIA, when he got tired of BB appointing one unqualified Sindhi, after another, from her pool of PPP wallas.

And of course, NS appoints people like Shahid Khaqan Abbasi as MD PIA, whose only qualification was that he was the son of an ex-PAF fighter pilot.

It is infact a fact that these labor unions, went into the office of one of the MDs (or VPs), tied him up, and urinated in his office. That is how powerful each of the PPP and PML backed groups is in PIA.

Luckily, BB and NS can`t use their influence in the PIA at the moment. I believe the present govt. is trying hard to lay-off all the PPP and PML cronies from the PIA. I have heard they have laid off, or are planning to lay-off 5,000 people. The PIA unions will fight tooth and nail, to stop the airlines from being privatized, because they will then forced to earn their pay. It would have been impossible to privatize it under BB and NS. However, now there is hope. That is if anyone is willing to buy this white elephant.

There are very few problems in Pakistan of the 90s, in which BB and NS did not have a hand. They robbed the country silly, in all areas (of course, Shahbaz Sharif did widen two roads in Lahore, so perhaps it was all worth it). And PIA was a primary cash cow for their party members.

What is heartening is that the current cabinet, and Musharraf himself, have not had a single corruption case or rumour against them. I never thought I would able to say that in my lifetime about any Pakistani cabinet.

To all respondents:

I will make a few general comments with regard to the replies I have read on my piece.

Let me make it very clear at the outset that the excerpt that appeared on chowk was from a Global Report which had regional reports with fixed TORs to cover trends, prospects in relation to the period June 2000-July 2001. Obviously, this approach had many flaws. Regional coverage disguised peculiar country developments/trends, the report was event driven and hence newsy/journalistic. The point: expecting a state of the corruption report to apportion blame or dissect the deep rooted causes of corruption

in South Asian countries is asking for too much.

Secondly, the military in Pakistan is the problem to which it pretends to be the solution. For almost our entire history, this institution

had determined the dos and donts of how Pakistan should be run. The siege mentality all Pakistanis grow up with is perpetuated in our minds through

different transmission mechanisms (media, textbooks) the distribution/content of which is under the strict control of the establishment. That the military is honest, and civilians corrupt is something that we unfortunately take for granted. That civilian politcians are corrupt is a moot point. If you compare the bank accounts/assets of some of our illustrious khakis who have made billions cranking the machinery of lucrative defence deals/contracts, civilians will come out as angels. There are more twists to this sordid tale though.

Who are these corrupt politicos? Who is NS? The product of the military`s direct political and financial patronage who was propped as a counter to the People`s party. History is repeating itself once again. The military is hell-bent on engineering the political process to give us ``real`` democracy through some of the most corrupt, opportunistic political actors around. In turn, when these politicians try to assert their control over govt, much like Nawaz Sharif`s India policy, they will be branded corrupt and send packing.

I am willing to make the assumption that we can become fit through democracy, the we are not fit for democracy argument is the resort of those who think that it is a luxury illiterate Pakistanis can ill-afford. These are the same people who have brought Pakistan to ruins, whether they be khakis or civilians.

On PIA and other public agencies, political processes, distorted by by repeated military interventions, will only result in the kind of patronage politics that politicians have to resort to. Insecure civilian govermments, pressed to the wall by defence and debt expenditures on the one hand, and political compulsions on the other, have simply got no choice but to dole out jobs. Dont forget that politics is an evolutionary process, and politicians

have the sole purpose, just like the generals or anyone else in the power game, to maximise their hold on power. This is as true for Pakistan as it is for the world`s so called established democracies. But in countries where the democratic process is allowed to operate, institutions take root. Political parties,

independent election commissions, so on and so forth. These checks and balances in return ensure that power is not monoploized by one institution/individual. As I emphasised earliear, all this takes time. I ask all the readers, has the military ever allowed a govt to stay in power? have they every given democracy a chance for more than a few years before they have decided to come and take over in the `national interest`. On a traffic ``chowk`` yesterday, I saw a car sticker which said:

``We dont overtake, We take over. Pakistan Army.`` These seemingly benign words reflect a self-important, arrogant institutional mindset that has held us hostage to its vested interests for long enough.

Corruption is a complex phenemona, in fact too complex for the black and white solutions conceived by the army. I know on good authority how govt deals are clinched these days, corruption has only been swept under the carpet.

A civilian defence ministry official known to me was transferred last week when he refused to approve a cement contract in favour of one of the military foundations (which pays no tax)as their bid was far higher. That particular foundation is down Rs 15 billion in debt, has been bailed out twice in the past three years by govt guarantees to private banks. Talk of corruption?

Would someone care to explain why they are offended by political cronies, when Musharraf has militarised each and every civilian institution by appointing his khaki cronies. Btw, how was the cabinet selected and under what authority?

The bogey of corruption, in my opinion, has been used by the military in tandem with the conservative religious right to undermine the political opposition. Would anyone care to tell me if Nawaz Sharif was less corrupt when the ISI

used millions (an affidavit to this effect by the then head of the ISI is still in the Supreme Court)to prop up the IJI against the the PPP.

Was Nawaz Sharif any less corrupt when he was catapulted to power with a ``heavy mandate``?

It was only when he crossed the lines drawn by the GHQ for civilian PMs, that he became unacceptable to the messianice guardians of our ideological frontiers. Would you rather live in a country hostage to the whims of one man appointed by the power of the gun to lead us into the new millenium?? or

a ``corrupt politician`` in a ``sham`` democracy. I would certainly opt for the latter.

Military Corruption in Pakistan:

Corruption under Musharraf …..

The Army declares it cut its budget by 7% as a cost cutting measure – Instead it moves its pensions ( retired personnel) into a civilian budget overhead…( Rs 26B) . In real terms the army increases its budget by about 11% even though the country is on the brink of Financial default. IN one of my earlier posts I had all the financial numbers.

Lt Gen Jahansher Gulzar Kiyani ( former X Corp Commander Pindi) uses strong arm tactics to replace key contenders for the Nazim’s position with a kinsman as the only exclusive candidate in Pindi. The Candidate wins the election…when all other candidates withdraw in his favor…. Musharraf later transfers Gen Kiyani to the administrative post of Adjutant General.

Under IMF pressure the Govt is forced to implement a tax on agriculture on the Books. The law is not enforced nor a re any taxes collected from the feudals.

The Military Govt hires Several advisers of huge salaries ( some in dollar amounts ) yto advise the various govt ministries – Most of these advisers are kinsmen of the Army staff. Upon criticism by the media many of the advisors were subsequently let go.


The NAB practices selective accountability using strong arm tactics which has resulted in custodial deaths. The pliant politicians - Saifullahs and the Chaudhries are hardly touched. Former Army beneficiaries who were declared to be US dollar billonaires ( ny the same regime) included Gohar Ayub, AsLam Beg, Humayun Abdur Rahman and Ijaz ul Haq have not been brought to justice.

Aqil #11: ``Would you rather live in a country hostage to the whims of one man appointed by the power of the gun to lead us into the new millenium?? or a ``corrupt politician`` in a ``sham`` democracy. I would certainly opt for the latter.``

In case of Pakistan, it depends on who the one man happens to be. If it happens to be Musharraf, then I would prefer the former option. If it were someone like Zia, I would go for the later option. If it were Ayub, then it is a tough call. Five years ago, I would have opted for the later option, but now I am tilting more and more towards the former option.

AnyvPakistani who commits corruption, specially in a position of power, needs to be pointed out and sent to the slammer, be they in the military or civilian sectors. If people spent more time doing this, rather than attempting to get into a pissing contest to decide whether civilians are more corrupt than the Generals or vice versa, Pakistan would finally start progressing. No one holding a gun to BB and NS`s head or to a military leader`s head when they committed corruption. It`s about time, we put the blame on the people who committed these acts, rather than blaming, ``other forces.``

Pakistan is a feudal society. Until this feudalism is finished, there will never be democracy. Uptil that time, Pakistanis have to just hope that the military or civilian dictator (every Pakistani ruler in my lifetime has been an elected or non-elected dictator) that ends up ruling them, is personally honest and patriotic, and worldly wise. And when through some miracle, someone like that does show up, we should swallow our prejudices and likes and dislikes, thank our lucky stars, and wish him/her luck, and hope he/she can dismantle the feudal society, so we can for once have real democracy.

I am all for activism and rennaissance etc. But the last thing I will be active about is a pledge to let the likes of BB and NS back into power. I have and will be active for honest guys like Imran Khan and company. And the day, such people have even an iota of a chance of forming a govt. in Pakistan, I will become a full-fledged Pakistani lover of democracy.

The feudals, who still control approximately 66% of every election, must be laughing their pants off, when they hear educated Pakistanis wanting them back into power. Aaa bail, mujhay maar.

I just want a leader who can raise the living standard of the poorest Pakistani. For the time being, it makes no difference where the person originates from. If ABV was to resign as the PM of India, and show that he could do the above for Pakistan, I would even support him.

The oft repeated phrase, that elections after elections, will lead to democracy in Pakistan, has no meat in it. This rule only applies in non-feudal societies. And a National Assembly run by the feudals themselves will never reform this system. Just like Generals themselves will never reform the Army. And beaurecrats themselves will never reform the civil services.

Dear Mr.Shah:

Thank you for a very educating, enlightening, well-put and josheelee post :) I really enjoyed reading it. Chowk is full of all kinds of writers and interactors; and everyone has his/her own style, but your flowing articulation was quite captivating!

[Secondly, the military in Pakistan is the problem to which it pretends to be the solution. For almost our entire history, this institution
had determined the dos and donts of how Pakistan should be run.]

What`s their interest? Power? Or what else? I cannot comprehend this.:(

[The siege mentality all Pakistanis grow up with is perpetuated in our minds through different transmission mechanisms (media, textbooks) the distribution/content of which is under the strict control of the establishment. That the military is honest, and civilians corrupt is something that we unfortunately take for granted.]

I have been following Chowk, on this point, for sometime now. Naive people think that if a person is writing in favor of the current regime that means zaroor iss kae chachae mamae will be in the armed forces. If it`s otherwise, then zaroor chacha mamas will be on the other end. This is so silly! What about if your family is mashallah big enough to be everywhere: armed forces, civil services, government services and private sector? I remembered when I wrote in favor of Musharraf after the coup, I read the same remarks, that you`ve come up with: text books, brain-washing and pata naheen kya kya.

Being from Lahore, I strongly feel that the democratic government added a very positive change to the map of Lahore. There were some great new developments underway in the area of IT in my university in Lahore. I am not sure what happened to them at the end, but I know now the students have access to the internet in their hostels and that`s excellento, aside from many other things!!! Also, UET, Lahore had a General, as the VC, way before the coup[as far as I remember].

On the other end, I feel the gallons/pints/litres of alcohol our army-men consume, if that`s sold outside, probably enough money will be generated to run some schools for the illiterates. But on second thoughts, that`s a gender based corruption; it has nothing to do with an institution? But, it is corruption? Isn`t it? Kind of, I guess?

With all said, when it comes to training and discipline, I feel these traits are only found amongst the armed forces and the civil servants. Every maja gama should not be allowed to come forth by paying money to their party-heads and occupying the seat to become Shae`hen`sha`e`Hind. That is very unfortunate! Ironically, that has been happening for a long time. Well, someone will come back with the argument: of course, we will select the rasheeds and badars as they are part of our community. Well, we also have eunuchs, criminals, and many others as significant chapters of our country`s book; why not allow them to come forth?

[That civilian politcians are corrupt is a moot point. If you compare the bank accounts/assets of some of our illustrious khakis who have made billions cranking the machinery of lucrative defence deals/contracts, civilians will come out as angels. There are more twists to this sordid tale though.]

No arguments! I agree!

[The military is hell-bent on engineering the political process to give us ``real`` democracy through some of the most corrupt, opportunistic political actors around.]

Can we have a govt with representatives from both, military and civilian side? Well, if you go for that, then you are again in trouble. The interests won`t match. OK. Then? Why do you need military, as part of your ruling clan? In my view, because of their strategic take on certain issues. In fact, I heard Musharraf the second time, while getting some groceries at a local Pakistani Store for a friend, yesterday. He was speaking to a congregation of journalists within Pakistan. Surprisingly, his verbiage on certain issues, was exactly what I had on my mind :) His mun`toar jawab daenaa kaa tareeqaa was also very amusing. I liked it! I have been away for almost 8 years now, and I do visit home once every year or every other year, but I do not follow any Pakistani Programs. So, it was a delight for me to watch and hear what I was hearing. Somehow, there was a sad point out there too, and I would come back to it later.

[I am willing to make the assumption that we can become fit through democracy, the we are not fit for democracy argument is the resort of those who think that it is a luxury illiterate Pakistanis can ill-afford. These are the same people who have brought Pakistan to ruins, whether they be khakis or civilians.]

I really liked your rationale! Specially, the way you`ve put it! :) I want to add more here, but I`d rather not. Out of sheer respect, I would skip my thoughts!

[As I emphasised earliear, all this takes time.]

Can we have some definitive time on the above, based on your research and studies? 5 years? 10 years? how many years? whole life?


[I ask all the readers, has the military ever allowed a govt to stay in power? have they every given democracy a chance for more than a few years before they have decided to come and take over in the `national interest`.]

From the perspective of discussing our social structure and its fabric, I agree with your above stance. But before the military took over, we had nothing, but chaos. Our institutions were being molested right and left. Now, you may come forth and say that the chaos should have been allowed to continue as it would have ``subsided`` with time.

Question:Should not we give the devil its due, when it deserves?

[On a traffic ``chowk`` yesterday, I saw a car sticker which said: ``We dont overtake, We take over. Pakistan Army.`` These seemingly benign words reflect a self-important, arrogant institutional mindset that has held us hostage to its vested interests for long enough.]

Indeed, the benign words had some malignancy, that could not be detected by the naked eye only.

[It was only when he crossed the lines drawn by the GHQ for civilian PMs, that he became unacceptable to the messianice guardians of our ideological frontiers.]

[Would you rather live in a country hostage to the whims of one man appointed by the power of the gun to lead us into the new millenium?? or
a ``corrupt politician`` in a ``sham`` democracy. I would certainly opt for the latter.]

That`s a perspective! In fact, a strong opinion!

Dear all,

I`ll try to respond to all the issues that have been raised, though Syed Ahmed`s reply should lay to rest any illusions held by Pakistanis of the transparency in the military/current regime.

I don’t for a second think that anyone who favours Musharraf is plainly brainwashed. Some of our leading intellectual lights share the same illusion. They say Musharraf is secular, honest and well meaning. He wants to reform Pakistan. No quabbles there. But it’s not about good or bad individuals. Musharraf heads Pakistan’s largest political party with clear corporate interests: strategic, financial and political. The military is right wing, conservative with a heavy stake in the status quo as it derives its legitimacy and influence in Pakistan from the existing alignment of political, social and economic forces. To expect an inherently conservative institution to do what a liberation army might is at best fallacious.

Secondly, no matter what the argument is against democracy, and how chaotic it was, which it wasn’t really, a professional army is in most civilised countries of the world under civilian control, no matter how feudal/corrupt the civilians are. The army`s job is to fight wars, use force, conquer territory. That is what they are trained for and paid for. If a civilian was appointed as a Corp Commander, I don’t doubt it will be an utter failure. This is as simple as that.

It is not fair to lay all the blame squarely at the military`s door though. Politicians are corrupt and self-serving just like most interest groups in society are including the military. But as I pointed out above, it is our continuing belief in individuals, as opposed to institutions, that leads to unending disappointment. We like BB one minute, NS the other, and when we are done with them, we wouldn`t mind courting a man who is trained to kill his enemy, not run the affairs of government. So the choice is not between Zia, Bhutto or Ayub, it is between systems and individuals. Individuals are dispensable, institutions are not. Countries with functioning democracies and institutions survive the death or loss of one leader, countries with Suhartos and Zias have no mechanisms for smooth transfers of power. In place of effective institutions that could outlast charismatic legacies, the hunt for another visionary begins every time. Just look at Pakistan`s history and you will understand the point I am trying to make.

Whether uneducated, feudal societies are fit for democracy is presumptuous to say the least. If you look at the results of elections 1988-1997, many feudal stalwarts lost. While this could be attributed to many factors, one major reason was the empowerment that the ballot brings. I am not claiming this to be a generalised truism but it`s a step in the right direction. If you compare data from 1985-1997, the composition of the National Assembly has gradually changed from overly feudalistic to feudal-cum-industrialist. Democracy is evolutionary, and if you think there is any other way of abolishing the feudal curse, please enlighten me. Our reformist military has been in power for more than half our independent history, why didn’t they institute land reforms? Why didn`t Musharraf do it? I`ll tell you why, some of Pakistan`s senior Khakis hold the largest tracts of land bestowed upon them by the state. According to a former finance minister, later sacked by the army, the land owned by the military in Lahore will fetch enough money to retire half of our internal public debt. I am not condoning feudalism in any way, but the democratic process, however flawed, has the ability to purge itself. Painfully slowly but surely.

I condemn what happened during our `sham` democracy. The attack on the Supreme Court, for instance in Sharif`s time was one of the darkest episodes of our history. But insecure civilian rulers in ``follower`` democracies ( a term I borrow from Princeton Political Scientist Atul Kohli) see existing institutions as a direct threat to his/her authority. These inevitably become the first targets of their power consolidation. There is no time limit on democracy. Could be ten years, could be a hundred. My point is this: if corrupt politicians can run a extremely diverse (religion, ethnicity, language) country like India (and I`m not saying that`s a perfect example) why cant they run Pakistan?

Corruption is part of all systems. From Germary to South Korea to Italy, politicians have been found guilty of misuse of power and financial misappropriations. But because these countries have functioning institutions, constitutions that lay down the minimum legal and systemic standards, corruption is minimal, detected and punished. In countries like Pakistan, where the only law is Khaki, where Supreme Court judges have to take an oath of loyalty to a self-appointed President, where society is polarised along ethnic and linguistic lines, where institutions are seen as employment agencies for favoured groups, democracy is bound to run into snags in the short to medium term. That does not in anyway mean that the military should come marching in to save us from corruption, when it is subject to zero accountability for its own actions. Was any General ever held responsible for the artocities, professional negligence and criminal activities in Bangladesh in 1971 despite the fact that the Hamood ur Rehman Commission Report is now in the public domain. General Mush as an ‘honest son of the soil’ should start cleaning the military’s stinking Augean stables before taking on civilians. After all, charity begins at home.

Zahra

I like it. Military should be ruling Pakistan because they have a certain *strategic take on certain issues. * Very good.