My Beautiful Rizwan

Samina,

You made my day! i don`t have any words to express myself and Thank you. I have just registered on chawk to express my feelings and to say thanks. Few words which may not relate to this article, but they remain one of the reason i landed on this page with my own story and went on reading the whole contribution of yours.

I was just checking for some stories posted by others regarding the corruption or abuse of power by military men. Recently i became a victim to one such incident. An ex- group captain of airforce who is now serving as director / secreatry of a division in establishment with some properties and God knows what other businesses. I rented an office from him at SF, but this person was not able to address the basic requirements like electricity and phone which were documented in the agreement even after 15 days of possession as promised by the owner, so i decided to leave the premises and thats the point which ignited the owner and started the saga. Right now he is trying all the ways he has to keep all the payment with him (12 months in advance), though i haven`t stayed a single day in that office. As per terms i have to pay 2 months rent and get rest of my money back but its not the case here. He is looking to `harap` everything! by using all his resources, even threatning police.

In simple words after researching more into his profile i came to know he is among the 109 offices who are re-employed in various civial departments ( which is a norm in military establishment to fulfil ex-military men in civilian posts ) under grade 19.

I had so much trust in military and i really like to admire army men and airforce in particular since i was child, i became entrepreneur instead of becoming a pilot, but still that feeling still remains inside me. But after this incident the whole image of air force was tarnished and i started to dislike them. I know few people in Airforce from whom i got to know about this person that he has long hands and a history of fraud, even they also disliked him. Its something which is happening in front of eyes but no one to stop it.

But thanks to the article by Samina, as it really bring in a refreshing feel in me and i told myself that after all if there are corrupts like the above mentioned person then there are untold Heroes like Mr. Rizwan and his company as well!

Thanks again Samina and i wish you best of luck and hope your children brighten the name of their father the way he brightened the name of Pakistan!

God bless us, God bless Pakistan and shame to people like that ex-group captain who is still fleecing the blood of ordinary citizens and most important Pakistan!

Faryal,

Actually, paying not a penny to anyone working on the Trust. In fact, all of us are spending from our own pockets. Zeb and Sheraz are working pro-bono during their off-work time for the next 6 months since we feel we can not afford to hire anyone during this time. We have an admin assistant, Zeeshan Samuel, who is interning with us for a small stipend. This is paid from the expense account we have established which is replenished once a month from Rizwan`s pension which the children and I receive. The office space has been donated by my father and mother, while my family and Rizwan`s friends are helping w/ the funds collection. We have 3 separate accounts - one for endowment, one for Zakat and a separate one for expenses. Our accounts will be posted on our website.

Insha Allah, the Trust shall be in a position to pay salaries soon for no project worth its name can be sustained long term without professionals handling it. For now, we only hope that our personal efforts will reap benefits and our first scholarship programs will begin within the next month.

Keep the faith my friend - good intentions bring good rewards.

yeh good article but really how much are you paying your management staff, few thousands i suppose!!!!!

Good article and a good effort too. You need good and reliable friends and family to carry out your work and from the reply of you mngt committee member you seem to have agood bunch of people. if you command respect than people will do things for you that you cannot imagine so best of luck. can you please give me your mailing address so that i can make a donation. and i would request other people to do the same.
Thank you Samina and Zeb

Samina,
It seems that Rizwan had found the `handle`, and so have you. :)
Samir

I have gone through each and every reply to Samina’s article and feel that I should tell you about my association with her and working for Air Cdre Rizwanuallah Khan Shaheed Memorial Trust and what it means to me personally.

I have known Samina for the last few years. I first met her while working for Paktel where she joined to head the IT department. Working very closely with her, I found her to be an excellent person and an excellent friend, full of life and always there to help anyone who came to her. We were in contact with each other even after both of us left the organization. I still remember she always used to talk about her family, her husband and children.

I had the opportunity of meeting Rizwan Bhai very formally on company functions and weddings of colleagues. He seemed to be a very quiet person unlike Samina. But they were perfect together. Everyone who knew him always spoke very highly of him.

Then one day I heard the sad news of the air crash, it came as a shock to me. I went to their place and saw an otherwise extremely happy person in a state of despair and shock.

After few weeks we met again and she mentioned setting up a trust in Rizwan Bhai’s name. From that day onwards I have been involved with the management committee of this trust.

It is now my proud privilege to introduce Air Cdre Rizwanullah Khan Shaheed Memorial Trust to you, launched in the memory of Air Cdre Rizwanullah Khan, who embraced shahadat on February 20th 2003.

Air Cdre Rizwanullah Khan Shaheed Memorial Trust’s aim is to contribute towards nation building by facilitating quality education of young scholars to achieve excellence in academics and to provide this service regardless of ethnicity, gender or religion. We are not just looking for needy children but ones who are bright and capable. The promotion of literacy is one of the most fundamental way in which a person can improve the lives of others around him. Air Cdre Rizwanullah Khan Shaheed Memorial Trust seeks to educate the less fortunate and give them the opportunity and a better chance to survive in today’s world. With your help and support this venture will be able to provide sustainable scholarships to capable children so that they may get a chance to use their intellect, develop their skills, improve quality of life and eventually add to the nations pool of skilled human resource.

Our web-site is coming up shortly where a donor list would be provided for readers and much more details regarding the trust would then be available. Also, all donors would be able to participate in various fund raising activities throughout the country where a large number of people are expected to take part.

A system of credible monitoring and complete financial transparency has been maintained since the launch of Air Cdre Rizwanullah Khan Shaheed Memorial Trust. This trust has been registered under the trust act and has a legal standing. The Trust has also been registered as a non-profit, non-political, non-government organization with the Government of Pakistan under the Income Tax Ordinance. The registration number is 1054/1 and NTN no. 1530405-1.

Air Cdre Rizwanullah Khan Shaheed Memorial Trust needs your encouragement, enthusiastic and generous financial support so that many underprivileged children can benefit from the trust and bring about a value based improvement in the educational system of our country. The Trust is being managed on a voluntary basis for the first 6 months. The Trust’s bank accounts are held with Union Bank Limited, F-7 Branch, Islamabad. There are two separate accounts, one for the endowment fund (5801-048626-090) and the other for expenses. Please note that NO operational expenses are paid from the endowment fund account. All expenses are paid from the expense account which is funded by the monthly pension received by Air Cdre Rizwanullah Khan’s family.

Please if you need more information regarding the trust or for making donations, write to me on rizkhantrust@hotmail.com

Zeb Ayaz
Member Management Committee

Dear Samina Rizwan,
I`ve been browsing chowk for a while now but your touching tribute to your gem of a person and husband, has compelled me to actually activate an account and sign in.
I was so deeply touched by your account, I prtomptly made a colleague read through it...I intend to make copies and show them to my father, another airforce gentleman, and many others.
Unfortunate and tragic as it is, YOU TRULY ARE A BLESSED WOMAN TO HAVE BEEN MARRIED TO A MAN ALL WOMEN ASPIRE FOR AND DREAM OF BUT ONLY A RARE FEW LIKE YOU GET THE CHANCE TO.
Must confess, I felt a bit jealous too knowing here was a woman who actually had the opportunity to live and share her life with the quintessential ideal man...indeed very few men can respect, love, appreciate and encourage their wives the way your husband did...its even rarer for a man to have such a positive and all encompassing influence on his woman...A sensible and compassionate man can, not only make life beautiful but also meaningful.
You too must have had your share of qualities for him to be so completely besotted and committed.
My heart goes out to you and your kids...
I will not try to offer you sympathy or words of solace as your grief is unsurmountable and mere words will not help overcome it...but I also know that you are a courageous lady and will triumph over all adversities with the qazana of beautiful memories of your equally truly beautiful Rizwan.
And just in case you tire of your profession, take heart, another avenue is wide open...you could become a wonderful writer! I couldn`t help but notice the simple, lucid style of your writing...each verb and adjective was so apt and in its place.
May blessings of Allah be upon you and your children.
Samina Khan.

Well it was wonderful, really thought provoking and captivating. I heard quite a lot of Rizwan uncle from my phupha and phuphee....Air Commordore Wasim-ud-din and Norren Phupho ...who happens to be your good family friends and Rizwan uncle`s coursemate. It so happened that i was scanning few articles in my lab at LUMS, that this article of yours caught my attention.

umm....whatelse, this trust that you plan to make is also a brilliant idea. I am presently doing MBA from LUMS, lemme know if i can do anything in that regard.

God Bless U

Taimur

This is the first column I read on chowk.com and this is my first reply. With a truly sensational touch, this reality exists in many families who have lost their ``Rizwan`s`` in these kind of crises. As I too come from an army family, and have lost one of my best friend in Kargil. I can feel how difficult it is to lose someone who is very close to you. My best regards to your family and your shaheed Rizwan.

I`m very impressed you the power of expression Samina has...it takes a heart and true feelings to write these words in this way.

Remarkable and powerful!!!!!

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Hmm, Thank you Samina for sharing this. Very powerful, very thought provoking. I am confused on one issue though. It has been mentioned lot of times that ``wives are used as a tool to get promotions`` , and Rizwan was against it. Can someone tell us, what kind of activities by the wives help the husband get promoted? It seems interesting.

Samina:
I had asked about the education fund, so thanks for providing some more insights. Indeed, this is a very healthy trend as people donate funds for children`s education in Pakistan. You may be aware that there are a number of such initiatives underway, often funded by expatriate pakistanis. I dont think the trend has picked up so much with well-off Pakistanis within Pakistan as yet, but I am not sure.
DIL (Directions in Literacy) is a prominent such intiative: http://www.4dil.org/html/2000c.htm
Another one is MMBMT (their office is in Islamabad, headed by Retired Colonel Malik, but I dont think they have a website). MMBMT is interesting: they have funded 60 girls schools in the most remote areas of Mianwali.
I dont know if you have thought of different ways in which you can make sure the money is being used most effectively. In case it is of any use, I am describing a few models below that you may already be familiar with:

a. The MMBMT model: They open schools in villages with no girls schools. They pay for the teacher, the community provides the school building. They match individual schools to donors, so the latter have a sense of ownership of the school (which they can visit as well on parents days etc. as honored guests). You can try this yourself (requires work) or fund the NGO.

b. Scholarships: A friend of mine simply gives out college scholarships. He has a selection committee of three people in his village near Kohat for this purpose, and they go by certain criteria.

c. Taking over govt schools: Musharaffs govt started this scheme - there is an NGO in Lahore (I forget the name).

Anyway, I am sure you know what to do living in Islamabad. I just threw in my 2 bits in case they are any use.

Once again my condolences on your great loss.

Dear Samina:

Your response to all the comments, replies and not the least thrashing of the military, is as graceful as your glowing tribute to your late husband.

My own mother became widow at the age of 32 with four children and pregnant with my youngest sister. I was seven and half years old at that time.

Being eldest among siblings and raised by a mother with almost no source of income, no proper education, few readers at this forum would have closer acquaintance with the very bitter realities of life of ordinary Pakistanis, than me. I have personal experiences of being poor, a life without father, in the land of pure.

Today, I am 33, father of one 18-months old unguided missile.

Dear Samina, a long, periodically pretty hard, lonely journey is ahead of you. May Allah Almighty bless you with the strength, nerves and sabbr to execute your motherly duties in a nice way. Amen.

As far as military is concerned, please, allow me add few words. Rather simple, more power you have the more responsibility you carry on your shoulders. Right? So, is it unfair to hold military responsible, in proportion to the power, clout, resources they gobble, for the mess we are in? More on this some other time.

Take care,
With best regards and heartiest well wishes.
A A.

Friends,

From the bottom of my heart, thankyou for the heart warming replies. My children and I are overwhelmed by the love and affection flowing to us from all of you. Thank you also for the criticism - and the thoughtful defense some have put up on my behalf - for if expression of views does not initiate debate, what good is it. Even in the lines that trash the military, I havent seen a single comment degrading my Razi and for that too I am humbly grateful. It is great good luck for a human being to leave this world and not have a single person utter a foul word about him. Razi was blessed in life and remains blessed beyond it.

There was a comment that I had not used the word death. I didnt notice - it wasnt intentional. Admittedly, I dont feel his departure has ended my love story. I dont feel concluded. Perhaps I shall once I am able to do something in his name that has value, that says ``I paid my debt to the nation by losing him, and his by doing this``.

To another friend who asked about ``pilot error``, the irony is that Rizwan was not flying the plane, nor were any of the 3 other fighter pilots on board, ACM Mushaf Ali Mir, AVM Razzaq and AVM Saleem Nawaz. This was a passenger plane, not an F-16 or Mirage that these men flew. These 4 were undoubtedly amongst the most skilled fighter jocks of the PAF. They dodged death for an average of 25 years simply thru skill, attention to detail, following procedure. Tragically, they were passengers and not flyers on this fateful flight. Their regret, if they could voice it now, would probably be that they would rather have gone while ``in the cockpit, in control``. The Lord chose not to give them that satisfaction. Whatever the reason for the crash, it was not their mistake that took their lives.

As for the many critical remarks concerning the military, Rizwan would agree that it was high time that institutions in the country were questioned on many matters, not just the military but the bureaucracy and the political machinery as well. Extending the statement ``jaisi qaum waisa leader`` isnt it also true keh ``jaisi qaum waisi fauj``? I remember my husband saying often ``the military is a microcosm of our society at large. Why are we expected to be different? Because 40% of the budget goes to the military? Where are those decisions made - in the barracks, in the cockpit? No, they are made in the power corridors and these are inhabited by all sorts - politicians, military men, bureaucrats, civilian contractors, international dealers. The jawan and the young Captain continue to have a passionate desire to die defending their homeland, as does the fighter pilot who takes off in his aircraft - sometimes 3 times a day - knowing full well that this could be his last flight. Leave them out of this debate, for they are a special breed. Let us question the powerbrokers, and let us do so consistently and assertively``. So, bol keh lab azad hain terey.

But I request that we dont generalize. Just like all of us SPCs are not corrupt or depraved, so not all generals are either. I knew ACM Mushaf Ali Mir and Mrs. Bilquis Mushaf as my own family, and if my thoughts have touched your heart in any way, and if Rizwan`s profile has made a statement to you about integrity and honour, please just take my word on this; Mushaf Bhai was a good man, an upright and honest soldier, one who had the nation`s best interest at heart. There is sound defense for all of the allegations made here about him, but this is not the place to present it, nor am I the rightful presenter. I think we owe his 3 children, and the families of these fine men - officers and non-officers alike - the respect to dwell upon their goodness at this time. ``Ikhlaq`` too is a form of godliness.

Finally, someone asked about the Trust. Razi and I supported the education of a limited no. of children. This was something we hoped to do on a larger scale after his professional duties were complete. We hoped to retire to a country home in Chak Shahzad (which we both knew we could not afford!), tend a garden and read books - Razi sporting a pony tail and me losing some serious weight - and do some good for the children of Pakistan. Well, as I said, I`ve paid my debt but his still remains.

The Trust has been set up, half of Rizwan`s flyer`s insurance being the first donation. Our children have offered their monthly pension payment to foot the operational expenses (Bilal`s vote has been assumed since he is only 3 and can be bought for a spiderman toy). We now need to raise funds and launch our education campaign.

Our mission statement is: To contribute towards nation building by facilitating quality education of young scholars to achieve excellence in academics. To provide this service regardless of ethnicity, gender or religion.

Our website should be up within the month and I hope to seek support on chowk and other such. For now, in case of queries - and if you have money to spare - pls write to rizkhantrust@hotmail.com. Until the details are up on the website, my friends and family are doing their best to provide as much information thru this temporary communication channel as possible.

I request your prayers to keep Rizwan`s memory alive through this venture. I can only claim good intentions and hard work, the rest I leave to Allah and his shaheed.

this board says so much without really saying it all

samina
you have accepted a tremendous loss- the death of a loved partner, with grace and dignity... the kids should have off you and your husband both

akhan
why dont you then take your little rear behind out of the cockpit that is causing such condescension for us ordinary civilians whose rear ends remain on land?

hozeifa #60: Your points are generally on the mark.

However, 99.9% of the military retirees now are in poor financial conditions, after retirement. I believe more than 90% of the military is non-officer, i.e. jawans. So they are poorer than the common man. And around only 1 to 4% of the officers become Generals. And one has to be a General to become a millionaire, through corruption. So it is not theoretically possible for so many to leave as millionaires, even if we assume every retired General is a millionaire (which obviously isn`t the case).

The true ordinary people are the jawans and masis etc. However, some of the people I am talking about are the kids of jawans and masis. You would be surprised to find out how many. A very close friend of mine won the Sword of Honor in the Army. He is the son of a jawan. He beat out sons of Generals, businessmen etc. in the competition. There are, I believe, certain seats set aside for jawans` kids in Military College Jehlum. So he studied there, and went on to PMA. His elder brother is an airman in the PAF. This friend is going great guns in the Army, doing well in all his courses, and we all know he will be a General someday.

Now what should he do if he is offered a Generalship. Should he refuse it? Or should he take it. If he takes it, does he automatically become corrupt, and an, ``uncommon man,`` even if he is an honest man, which as long as I knew him he was.

Similarly a Captain who just got the Nishan-i-Haider was in the PAF in the airman (jawan) category. He left and was able to make it in the Army as an officer, and died valiantly in Kargil. Is he corrupt? Should we denounce him now, or if he had become a General? He was buried in his village. Is he not common?

People need to stop generalizing, and point out specific cases, with proof. If one starts generalizing than all Sindhis are lazy and all Punjabis are usurpers and exploiters.