Interview | Khawaja Ahmad Hassan
This interview was published in Family magazine 21-27 August 2016
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Thursday, August 25, 2016
Thursday, July 28, 2016
چوہدری نثار کی کہانی۔۔ اعزاز سید کی زبانی
Take a look at @pkpolitics's Tweet: https://twitter.com/pkpolitics/status/757850450229989376?s=09
Sunday, June 19, 2016
"اقتدار کی چُل"
"اقتدار کی چُل"
انڈیا کی فلم کا گانا ہے ' ارے لڑکی بیوٹیفُل کر گئ چُل' جو کہ پاکستان کےچند سیاستدانوں پر انڈین گانے ' ھائی ھیلز تے نچے تہ تُو بڑی جچے' کی طرح بہت جچتا ہے بس فرق اتنا ھے کہ پاکستانی سیاستدانوں کو کوئی خوبصورت ناری نہیں بالکہ وزیراعظم کی یا پھر کسی وزارت کی کرسی ہر وقت ایک چُل میں مبتلا رکھتی ہے۔
یہ چُل اس قدر شدید ہے کہ اِن بدبختو سے مزید دو سال اور برداشت نھیں ھو رہا اور ہو بھی کیسے، جس صوبے میں ان کو حکومت ملی اس کا بجٹ تو انھوں نے چائے بسکٹ میں اڑا دیا اور رھی سہی کثر خونخوار چوہوں نے پوری کردی ۔ تو بھییاء جب تین سال اسی حسرت میں گزار دیئے کے صبح ھو، سب مر جائیں اور میں کالی شیروانی پہن کر وزیراعظم بن جائوں تو یہ تو ھونا ھی تھا ۔
خان صاحب کو غشی کے دورے پڑتے ھیں جب وہ اگلہ الیکشن ۲۰۱۸ میں دیکھتے ھیں۔ پنجاب سے جیت نھیں سکتے اور اگر پنجاب نہ جیتے تو کالی شیروانی الماری میں ہی لٹکی رہ جائے گی۔ لہاذہ انکا حکومت نہ چلنے دینا سمجھ میں آتا ھے اور وہ ۲۰۱۸ تک کوئی نہ کوئی جواز تلاش کرتے رھیں گے۔
آجکل حولداروں کے ساتھ ملکر انھوں نے نیا آئیٹم نکالا ھے اور وہ ھے شہباز یا نثار میں سے وزیراعظم بنانے کا ۔ عقل کے اندھوں کو یہ بات زہن نشین کر لینی چائیے کہ مسلم لیگ نون ھے ھی نون کے دم سے ، یعنی نواز شریف کے دم سے۔ آٹھ سال جلہ وطنی کے بعد بی لوگوں نے ووٹ دیا تو نواز شریف کے نام پر۔ تو پھر مائینس ون فارمولا کیوں؟ مشکل وقت گزر گیا، اب کون پاڑٹی چھوڑتا ہے جناب ۔ بہرحال جسکا بھی یہ منصوبہ ھے ، بہت بوسیدہ ہے اور یہ ۲۰۱۸ سے پہلے آخری کوشش ہے حکومت گرانے کی جو کے ناکام ھوگی ۔
بس اتنا کہنا چاہتا ھوں کہ اس ملک کو چلنے دیں ۔ اگر وزیراعظم بننا آپکے نصیب میں ہے تو آپ ضرور بنے گے مگر خدارا اس ملک کو اپنی انا کی بھینٹ مت چڑھائیں۔ شکریہ
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Wednesday, June 1, 2016
Nawaz Sharif is the only viable option for Pakistan
Nawaz Sharif is the only viable option for Pakistan
With no alternative vision for governance and two insurgencies, Pakistanis must support Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.
by
Tom Hussain
![Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif [Reuters]](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_ueoVnSFYrg5TE6DfwVfRei00WlPRMIzWMcBjwY6Z_xluWTdcLYrLa6LMu2Div0nRxdjz5oPqgDywT0NrYQRLlwbU_OkD6kAcmDb5JsaNUUbIhCyrmnOrSWckymqdzA1xB0fip1s6BiCqzXZvFnXT8_bzrO1g_ZPwowDp_RTcteA9XT8rhzSGsGmZT56jTmC6T-B_D4Teo5WJrY=s0-d)
Pakistan has undergone a breathless eight years since its third transition from military rule to elected parliamentary governance in 2008.
The elections that year were overshadowed by the tragic assassination in December 2007 of Benazir Bhutto, who was on course for an unprecedented term as prime minister, amid a wave of national optimism. Her murder heralded the onset of a Taliban insurgency that has cost the country dearly.
As significantly, it robbed Pakistan of a leader acceptable to the public across the country's four federating units. The wave of sympathy that followed ushered into power a coalition government engineered by her widower, President Asif Ali Zardari, but his reputation for corruption, justifiable or not, has made him a hugely divisive figure, and certainly not one with whom most Pakistanis wish to identify.
Naturally, the spotlight shifted to Bhutto's career-long rival, Nawaz Sharif, whose sweeping victory in the 2013 general election reflected the electorate's frustration with the Zardari administration's preoccupation with consolidating power, and inability to arrest the declining security situation and economy, in particular crippling power shortages.
Allegations of corruption
Sharif, too, has struggled. Like Zardari, he has been dogged by allegations of corruption, but unlike the former president, he has been hamstrung by a lack of political wiles.
His naivety was exposed by his attempt to seek a negotiated peace with the Pakistani Taliban who, unlike their Afghan colleagues, have no popular support whatsoever.
Khan, while the obvious candidate, has yet to turn rhetoric into a practical course of action...
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Similarly, he was tricked into launching a treason prosecution against General Pervez Musharraf, who had ousted him in an October 1999 coup, whereas he should have realised that it would antagonise the country's powerful military, thereby weakening his ability as prime minister to govern.
Thus barely more than a year after being elected, Sharif's government was nearly toppled by raucous protests led by former sports star Imran Khan, who has latched on to the exasperation of many Pakistanis with the country's pervasive culture of corruption, nepotism and lawlessness to emerge as a potential prime minister.
Indeed, had it not been for the outspoken support within parliament of Zardari's coalition, now in opposition, and an embarrassing surrender of defence and foreign policy decision-making to the military, Sharif would have been overthrown.
Nonetheless, his public approval ratings remain very high, according to opinion pollsconducted late last year.
With the odd exception, where by-elections have been necessitated, his party has retained seats in the federal parliament and the assembly in populous Punjab province, his political heartland. It also swept to victory in recent local government elections held there.
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| Pakistani opposition leader Imran Khan [Reuters] |
Nor is that level of support likely to change significantly because of the Panama Papers' revelations that his adult children have owned offshore companies.
It is not that Sharif is well endowed with with the charisma, eloquence, instincts and forceful personality that traditionally define a "leader".
Rather, it is because Sharif is acceptable to the majority of Pakistanis, including the the three of four provinces in which his party has no popular support to speak of, because he is perceived as a safe pair of hands.
Confrontational and ruthless
Another factor is the lack of a credible alternative. Khan, while the obvious candidate, has yet to turn rhetoric into a practical course of action, and because of the involvement of an army general in the 2014 protests, is not liked in the southern provinces of Balochistan and Sindh, where people are distrustful of the Punjab-centric military.
Khan is yet to mature the way Sharif has. Whereas he was a confrontational and ruthless political protagonist in his two brief stints as prime minister in the 1990s, Sharif is now cautious.
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Undoubtedly, his forced exile from Pakistan during General Musharraf’s regime, spent mostly in Saudi Arabia, gave him time to reflect. During that period, he also grew close to Bhutto and was profoundly affected by her assassination.
With her gone, Sharif is the only politician in Pakistan with the stature of a credible national leader, albeit it a highly flawed one. Thus Pakistanis have good reason to feel nervous about their prime minister's scheduled open-heart surgery on Tuesday.
Sharif's detractors, after pausing briefly to pray for his recovery, have created a furore about who, constitutionally, can rule Pakistan while he is indisposed.
Minus Nawaz Sharif, Pakistan would be leaderless at a time when it is deeply involved in fighting two insurgencies...
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Perhaps they should broaden their perspective.
Minus Nawaz Sharif, Pakistan would be leaderless at a time when it is deeply involved in fighting two insurgencies - one against the Taliban, the other against Baloch rebels. Its economy is tentatively emerging from eight years of austerity.
Meanwhile, Pakistan's relations with neighbouring Afghanistan and India are uncomfortably antagonistic, and it is being diplomatically squeezed by the United States on matters of national security, as evidenced by the US drone strike that recently killed Taliban leader Mullah Akhtar Mansoor.
As such, any pursuit of Sharif's political demise that is not focused on a legitimate transfer of power after the 2018 general election is rooted in callous disregard for Pakistan's stability.
Those political actors are either blind to the nationally divisive consequences of their actions, or just don't care.
Tom Hussain is a journalist and Pakistan affairs analyst based in Islamabad.
The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeera's editorial policy.
Source: Al Jazeera
http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/2016/05/nawaz-sharif-viable-option-pakistan-160530095043904.html
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Wednesday, May 18, 2016
Monday, May 16, 2016
Tax details of PM Nawaz Sharif
Follow @VoPMLNTax returns of Sharif Group of industries & Prime Minister Sharif: pic.twitter.com/zfh7Y5hBel— Maryam Nawaz Sharif (@MaryamNSharif) May 16, 2016
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Friday, April 1, 2016
Wednesday, January 20, 2016
Is Pakistan ready for a take-off?
Is Pakistan ready for a take-off?
The latter half of the 20th century has seen many countries successfully emerge as regional powerhouses. Unfortunately, Pakistan has been struggling to make this happen despite being endowed with rich resources. In the 1960s, Pakistan was touted as a rising economic power like Japan but its progress was derailed due to the 1965 war. In the early 1990s, Pakistan again captured the attention of the world when it took the lead in pioneering economic reforms in South Asia. However, this dream once again proved to be short-lived as the country plunged into a decade of political instability. Governments lasted no more than two years, and eventually the country was caught in the talons of martial law. In 2013, the Western media was calling Pakistan the most dangerous country in the world. Just two years later, due to economic reforms and security-related measures taken by the government, Pakistan is being projected as an emerging economic success story by the same media. Today, we are again poised for an economic take-off. The improving security situation, improving economic indicators and the establishment of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) offer many opportunities for the country. The million-dollar question is whether we will seize this moment for an economic take-off or will once again squander it.
There cannnot be a better analogy to understand Pakistan’s trajectory than learning from the concept of ‘take-off’ in aviation. In order for a plane to successfully take off, besides having a clear runway and favourable weather conditions, in the tug of war between opposing vertical and horizontal forces of lift versus weight, and thrust versus drag, the forces of lift must prevail over weight and the power of thrust must prevail over drag. During a take-off, all the weight on the aircraft must also be stable, otherwise the take-off can turn into an accident. The aircraft cannot take off if its engines are not working in sync to provide the required thrust. An aircraft can land with one of its engines shut down, but it can never take off without all engines working together. If all these conditions are not met, the plane can’t take off successfully.
This example is instructive in understanding Pakistan’s potential for a take-off. Firstly, we are a nation of 200 million people, of which almost two-thirds consists of the youth, with heightened aspirations and expectations. Our institutions are weak due to a fractured political history featuring long shadows of various martial laws. Moreover, due to the lack of investment in human capital over a prolonged period means that we still have high levels of illiteracy, disease and poverty. This translates into a heavy weight of social underdevelopment that has to be lifted. We need an extraordinary force of lift to overcome the drag and downward pull and achieve a successful take-off. We possess a rich endowment base. However, this can only be harnessed effectively by adopting the right strategies and implementation mechanisms with a clear focus on the economic agenda. Additionally, just as an aircraft can’t take off if the runway isn’t clear and is not of the desired length, countries also need to ensure that their policies are sound and provide a consistent and stable span for take-off. Finally, equally important is the favourability of the socio-political weather, as political thunderstorms and social jolts are capable of subverting take-offs.
The nation’s institutions must work harmoniously to produce the positive synergy required for an economic take-off. It is absolutely critical that all national institutions align themselves with a national vision and function with harmony to overcome the inertia of forces of the status quo to ensure a national take-off. Pakistan is an evolving society in which new power centres are emerging alongside traditional structures of power. After the Eighteenth Amendment, provinces have assumed added responsibilities and roles. Coordination between the federal government and provinces for realising the national development agenda has become critical. The media, the private sector and civil society are new and powerful players in national affairs. The judiciary has assumed a new role in the wake of Judges Restoration Movement. The role of parliament and the legislatures has become critical for effective democratic governance. The civil and military bureaucracy play a key role in our context.
Based on these fundamentals and lessons from our history, in order to ensure Pakistan’s take-off, it is critically important that all stakeholders, institutions and players join hands for a team effort. Political differences must not come in the way of the pursuit of national goals. Vision 2025 has been developed through elaborate and extensive consultation of all stakeholders. It has been approved with the consensus of all political parties represented in the governments of our federation, with the PML-N at the Centre and Punjab, the PTI and the Jamaat-e-Islami in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, the PPP in Sindh and the nationalist parties in Balochistan. The nation has declared its aspirations and intent to join the league of newly emerging economies with the goal to be among the top 25 economies of the world by 2025. In order to reach this goal, we will need to achieve an annual growth rate of over seven per cent. Though this may seem daunting, with the great dividend of the CPEC in our grasp, this goal is achievable. However, to realise this dream we need to follow the rules of a successful take-off — maintaining favourable political weather, ensuring a smooth platform of consistent policies, and working together as a united, determined and focused nation.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 20th, 2016.
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Saturday, January 16, 2016
A good year for the PML-N
A good year for the PML-N
LAHORE:
The start of 2015 was a time for reflection for the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N). The ruling party assessing the financial and political losses caused by the 126-day-long sit-in by the Pakistan Thereek-e-Insaf (PTI) in front of the parliament. The PTI ended its sit-in after the December 16 massacre in Peshawar. It then appeared that the PML-N was struggling to keep things under control.
By the end of the year, the PML-N appears more comfortable with the political situation. Analysts say it is a rare moment in the country’s history; all three tiers of a democratic government (federal, provincial and local government) are in place.
Politically speaking, it was a good year for the PML-N. The party swept local government and Cantonment Board elections. It also won four out of five National Assembly seats in the by-polls this year.
In the NA-137 by-election in Nankana Sahib, PML-N’s candidate Shazra Mansab won comfortably by polling 77,890 votes. His opponent Ijaz Shah got 39,363 votes.
In NA-108 Mandi Bahauddin, PML-N’s candidate Mumtaz Ahmad Tarar defeated the candidate fielded by the PTI by over 28,000 votes. Tarar took 70,638 votes. His opponent, Muhammad Tariq, obtained 42,029 votes.
Riazul Haq, an independent candidate, won the NA-144 Okara by-polls and later joined the PML-N.
The by-election in NA-122 Lahore was arguably the most anticipated event of the year. Sardar Ayaz Sadiq of PML-N defeated Abdul Aleem Khan of the PTI in a close contest. Sadiq was once again elected speaker of the National Assembly.
The PML-N also won four out of six Provincial Assembly seats where by-election was held. Mumtaz Quraish won the by-election in PP-24 DG Khan, Mahmoodul Hasan in PP-196 Multan and Chaudhary Akhtar in PP-100 Gujranwala. In PP-16 Attock, Jehangir Khanzada, son of slain home minister Shuja Khanzada, secured victory in the by-poll. The PML-N candidates were defeated by the PTI’s Nasir Cheema in PP-97 Gujranwala and Shoaib Siddiqi in PP-147 Lahore.
What’s next?
PML-N central leader Hamza Shehbaz said the party had shown that it wanted to resolve people’s problems. He said those who did staged sit-ins had wasted time and resources. He said by 2017, the PML-N government will have overcome the load shedding crisis.
All’s well for democracy in Pakistan
Analyst Hasan Askari Rizvi said while all three tiers of democracy were formally place in Pakistan, the country was being governed in a very personalised manner.
“The question is that is National Assembly being strengthened as an institution? Does the prime minister or the chief minister go to the assembly? Are decisions made inside the assembly or outside? We have seen that the prime minister rarely goes to the parliament and same is the case with the Punjab chief minister.”
He said it remained to be seen how things would change with the elected local governments. “Democracy has definitely strengthened in 2015. However institutions need to be strengthened and we hope this happens in the future,” he said.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 30th, 2015.
http://tribune.com.pk/story/1018521/a-good-year-for-the-pml-n/
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Friday, January 1, 2016
Thursday, December 31, 2015
WSJ report on How Pakistan’s National Health Insurance Program Will Work ?
How Pakistan’s National Health Insurance Program Will Work
Pakistan’s government launched a national health insurance program for its poorest households Thursday, marking the start of the most-ambitious public health project in the country’s history.
The Prime Minister’s National Health Program will from Thursday cover families that make less than $2 a day through a gradual rollout. In the first phase, over 3 million families will get health insurance in 23 districts, with the ultimate aim to cover 22 million households across the country, officials said.
“This is another step towards the welfare state that we promised to create when we came into power,”said Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.
The Pakistani government already subsidizes health care to varying degrees in public hospitals, but officials acknowledge these facilities are unable to handle the patient load or achieve public health targets.
The government said earlier this year that it wouldn’t be able to meet the United Nation’s targets for child and maternal mortality rates that formed part of the Millennium Development Goals, which had a deadline of 2015. Critics have blamed Pakistan’s low health spending and inadequate management as key factors in the poor health provision. Between July 2014 and March 2015, Pakistan spent just 0.42% of its GDP on health. The U.S. government spends about 8.3% of GDP on healthcare.
The new insurance program will cover treatment at both public and private hospitals. Private hospitals that sign up will then be offered loans on easy terms to upgrade their facilities, officials said, without providing further details about interest rates and conditions.
Saira Afzal Tarar, minister of state for health Services, regulations and coordination, said most Pakistanis pay out of pocket for treatment. “There is treatment at government-run hospitals, but there are long lines. Those who don’t have a recommendation have to wait months for treatment,” Ms. Tarar said at the launch ceremony in Islamabad. “With this [health insurance] card, you’ll be able to go to the hospitals where you weren’t allowed to even go to the front door. Now, you’ll be treated there with dignity and respect.” Ms. Tarar said.
The national health program, with an initial funding of 9 billion Pakistani rupees ($86 million) will pay for the treatment of the types of illnesses identified by the government as critical: heart disease, diabetes and related illnesses, cancer, kidney and liver diseases, complications from infections like HIV and Hepatitis, road accidents, and burn injuries. Officials said coverage can be extended to other conditions considered life-threatening.
The government said Thursday that the program will be run in partnership with provincial governments, which will share the financial burden. Beneficiaries will receive insurance cards, after selection from a database of low-income Pakistanis set up in 2008 for a separate cash support program.
The coverage includes 50,000 rupees for general treatment, and 300,000 rupees for serious illnesses. Mr. Sharif said on Thursday that the government is making arrangements for an emergency fund that would extend coverage to 600,000 rupees for cases that require longer treatment.
Officials on Thursday didn’t provide specific timelines for the rollout of the next phase, which is expected to cover another 3.3 million households. The finance ministry said earlier this year that the program aims to cover 22 million families.
The finance ministry, quoting World Bank data and 2008 population estimates, said last year that if living on $2 a day is taken as the poverty line, over 60% of the population would fall in that category.
http://blogs.wsj.com/indiarealtime/2015/12/31/how-pakistans-national-health-insurance-program-will-work/
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