What is important is that they are all Pakistan citizens, some accused of criminal acts while others are alleged to have enriched themselves in varying degrees at the state’s expense.
The 9th December is “World Anti-Corruption Day.” In Pakistan, this year, interestingly, though ironically, it coincided with painful saga of the notorious NRO which was promulgated by General Musharraf in October 2007 as a shoddy deal to secure his otherwise illegal and unconstitutional re-election as president. More than eight thousand beneficiaries of this politically-motivated “let bygones be bygones” defunct law are now facing reopening of their cases in courts of law. This is an evil versus justice standoff and a backhanded effrontery of the privileged class against the poor of their country. Who wins and who loses is a foregone conclusion.
Selective "amnesty" to public office-holders facing charges in different corruption and criminal cases between July 1986 and October 1999 in the name of “national reconciliation” and "political harmony” was blatantly discriminatory to the fundamental right of “equality of citizens before law and for protection under law” as guaranteed under Article 25, and any law inconsistent with fundamental rights conferred in the Constitution shall, to the extent of such inconsistency, be void as per Article 8 of the Constitution.
It is not important how many politicians or how many bureaucrats are included in the NRO beneficiaries. What is important is that they are all Pakistan citizens, some accused of criminal acts while others are alleged to have enriched themselves in varying degrees at the state’s expense. Allowing them amnesty is a circumvention of judicial process and negation of political justice. Even if the applicability of NRO “amnesty” is extended to include “other persons” besides “public office-holders,” the malafide nature of this insidious “crime-laundering law” would still remain questionable under the Constitution
General Musharraf had engineered this deal only to secure for himself an otherwise inadmissible second term as president from the same assemblies that had elected him for his previous term. It was a clever move on his part to kill two birds with one stone.
He managed to besmear the image of Pakistan's politicians by showing them as a corrupt “kleptocratic” class just as he had depicted them in his book "In the Line of Fire." He also neutralised the country's largest political party in his controversial re-election in violation of the Constitution.
There is already an air of excitement all over the country on the prospect of these high-profile cases of corruption and malfeasance coming up in the newly independent judiciary’s courts. Everyone wants justice. It is in the public interest that those guilty of corruption are convicted and punished. It is also required by justice that all those who are found falsely implicated in politically-motivated cases are exonerated with honour without any delay. The propriety also demands that pending a decision on these cases, no “accused” should be holding a public office.
Unfortunately, our flawed judicial system has never inspired confidence among the people. A system that cannot deliver quick and fair justice can never remedy the situation. But now that we have an independent judiciary, expectations from the reinstated Chief Justice and his reconstituted superior courts are understandably very high. Everyone wants the NRO-related cases to be decided on merit and legality. It will be of utmost importance and urgency for the nation to have a final decision on NRO’s legality as a constitutional issue to close this sleazy chapter once for all. .
Howsoever controversial and scandalous, the NRO has brought popular focus on high scale corruption in Pakistan, whipping up public wrath on shameless exploitation of state resources by public officials, be they politicians or non-politicians. The people now know the names of “looters and plunderers” who have been prospering through abuse of power and fraudulent means of extortion, exploitation, patronage, influence-peddling, graft, jobbery and payoffs. In our politics, campaign contributions, kickbacks, defaulting bank-loans and soft money have been a common form of corruption.
Ironically, while common man in our country is suffering the worst ever hardship, the plunderers, profiteers, and the looters, murderer and the killers could not have a safer haven anywhere else in the world. No other country is familiar with the normatic practice of forgiving as a matter of rule the elite loan-defaulters and the known highly placed criminals and plunderers of national exchequer. This also clearly puts us at odds with our international obligations under the UN Convention against Corruption which lays down legally binding international anti-corruption codes and measures.
The UN Convention against Corruption to which Pakistan is a party constitutes a major instrument of international cooperation in every aspect of the “global fight against corruption”, including prevention, investigation, and prosecution of offenders. It obliges countries to “criminalise” not only the basic forms of corruption such as bribery and embezzlement of public funds but also trading in influence and the concealment and laundering of the proceeds of corruption.”
There is already an air of excitement all over the country on the prospect of these high-profile cases of corruption and malfeasance coming up in the newly independent judiciary’s courts. Everyone wants justice. It is in the public interest that those guilty of corruption are convicted and punished. It is also required by justice that all those who are found falsely implicated in politically-motivated cases are exonerated with honour without any delay. The propriety also demands that pending a decision on these cases, no “accused” should be holding a public office.
Unfortunately, our flawed judicial system has never inspired confidence among the people. A system that cannot deliver quick and fair justice can never remedy the situation. But now that we have an independent judiciary, expectations from the reinstated Chief Justice and his reconstituted superior courts are understandably very high. Everyone wants the NRO-related cases to be decided on merit and legality. It will be of utmost importance and urgency for the nation to have a final decision on NRO’s legality as a constitutional issue to close this sleazy chapter once for all. .
Howsoever controversial and scandalous, the NRO has brought popular focus on high scale corruption in Pakistan, whipping up public wrath on shameless exploitation of state resources by public officials, be they politicians or non-politicians. The people now know the names of “looters and plunderers” who have been prospering through abuse of power and fraudulent means of extortion, exploitation, patronage, influence-peddling, graft, jobbery and payoffs. In our politics, campaign contributions, kickbacks, defaulting bank-loans and soft money have been a common form of corruption.
Ironically, while common man in our country is suffering the worst ever hardship, the plunderers, profiteers, and the looters, murderer and the killers could not have a safer haven anywhere else in the world. No other country is familiar with the normatic practice of forgiving as a matter of rule the elite loan-defaulters and the known highly placed criminals and plunderers of national exchequer. This also clearly puts us at odds with our international obligations under the UN Convention against Corruption which lays down legally binding international anti-corruption codes and measures.
The UN Convention against Corruption to which Pakistan is a party constitutes a major instrument of international cooperation in every aspect of the “global fight against corruption”, including prevention, investigation, and prosecution of offenders. It obliges countries to “criminalise” not only the basic forms of corruption such as bribery and embezzlement of public funds but also trading in influence and the concealment and laundering of the proceeds of corruption.”
Instead of providing shady covers to criminal acts, we should have been exploring how to bring our anti-corruption strategies in line with the global anti-corruption normative framework.
UNODC’s Global Program against Corruption should have been be used as a catalyst and a resource to help implement our own anti-corruption preventive and deterrent measures in both public and private sectors including in high-level financial and political circles.
Transparency International this year has placed us among the top most corrupt countries out of a total of 180 countries included in its survey for the year 2009. Our country is today the classic example of ingenuities for bribery, exchange of favours and illegitimate pre-requisites. “You scratch my back and I’ll scratch yours” is the common approach followed by public officials, be they parliamentarians or civil and military officials.
Distribution of residential plots to parliamentarians as well as civil and military officials and showering undue post-retirement facilities upon senior government servants in the form of state-provided domestic servants, utilities and chauffeur-driven vehicles are no less than gross misappropriation of state resources and assets. On top of it, hefty bonuses and lavish perks and privileges to state-owned banks chiefs are a huge ‘suck dry’ load on national exchequer.
Corruption is not a natural calamity or disaster; it is simply the cold, calculated theft of opportunity from the men, women and children who are least able to protect themselves.
Although corruption has wide-ranging deleterious effects on society and governance, it’s most deadly impact is always on the poor. It undermines democracy, hinders good governance and weakens democratic institutions. It hampers economic growth and sustainable development. When countries improve governance and reduce corruption, they reap a “development dividend.”
But corruption cannot be measured in economic terms alone. Where corruption abounds, society at large suffers. It debilitates the judicial and political systems by weakening the rule of law and silencing the voice of the people. A corrupt judiciary cripples a society’s ability to curb corruption. Corruption in elections and in legislative bodies reduces accountability and distorts representation in policymaking; corruption in the judiciary compromises the rule of law; and corruption in public administration results in the unfair provision of services.
In every respect, it is a déjà vu scenario in our country. The difficulties and sufferings of the poor and the underprivileged have only been aggravating. They are burdened with liabilities that normally belong to the state. Parents pay teachers illegal fees to have their children educated, patients pay extra to get proper health care, citizens give public officials “gifts” or money to speed up procedures, and drivers bribe police officers to avoid a fine. What many see as simply a way to get things done is, simply and in fact, nothing but a crime.
In Pakistan, corruption has been a source of serious concern from the very beginning of our independent statehood. In his presidential address to the Constituent Assembly on 11 August 1947, Quaid-i-Azam had warned us against what he called the “evils” of bribery, corruption, black-marketing, nepotism and jobbery. He wanted the government and the Assembly to take “adequate” measures to put these evils down with “an iron-hand.”
We as a nation have not only failed to grapple with these challenges but are in fact living remorselessly with these problems as an “integral” part of our society. Governments and the Assemblies have been part of the problem rather than solution. Aversion to the rule of law is endemic. Poor governance is our national hallmark. There is constant erosion of law and order in the country. Crime and corruption are rampant and galore both in scope and scale. The only hope for fixing the fundamentals before it is too late now lies with the Supreme Court. Or shall we wait for a Harry Potter to come and save us?
Transparency International this year has placed us among the top most corrupt countries out of a total of 180 countries included in its survey for the year 2009. Our country is today the classic example of ingenuities for bribery, exchange of favours and illegitimate pre-requisites. “You scratch my back and I’ll scratch yours” is the common approach followed by public officials, be they parliamentarians or civil and military officials.
Distribution of residential plots to parliamentarians as well as civil and military officials and showering undue post-retirement facilities upon senior government servants in the form of state-provided domestic servants, utilities and chauffeur-driven vehicles are no less than gross misappropriation of state resources and assets. On top of it, hefty bonuses and lavish perks and privileges to state-owned banks chiefs are a huge ‘suck dry’ load on national exchequer.
Corruption is not a natural calamity or disaster; it is simply the cold, calculated theft of opportunity from the men, women and children who are least able to protect themselves.
Although corruption has wide-ranging deleterious effects on society and governance, it’s most deadly impact is always on the poor. It undermines democracy, hinders good governance and weakens democratic institutions. It hampers economic growth and sustainable development. When countries improve governance and reduce corruption, they reap a “development dividend.”
But corruption cannot be measured in economic terms alone. Where corruption abounds, society at large suffers. It debilitates the judicial and political systems by weakening the rule of law and silencing the voice of the people. A corrupt judiciary cripples a society’s ability to curb corruption. Corruption in elections and in legislative bodies reduces accountability and distorts representation in policymaking; corruption in the judiciary compromises the rule of law; and corruption in public administration results in the unfair provision of services.
In every respect, it is a déjà vu scenario in our country. The difficulties and sufferings of the poor and the underprivileged have only been aggravating. They are burdened with liabilities that normally belong to the state. Parents pay teachers illegal fees to have their children educated, patients pay extra to get proper health care, citizens give public officials “gifts” or money to speed up procedures, and drivers bribe police officers to avoid a fine. What many see as simply a way to get things done is, simply and in fact, nothing but a crime.
In Pakistan, corruption has been a source of serious concern from the very beginning of our independent statehood. In his presidential address to the Constituent Assembly on 11 August 1947, Quaid-i-Azam had warned us against what he called the “evils” of bribery, corruption, black-marketing, nepotism and jobbery. He wanted the government and the Assembly to take “adequate” measures to put these evils down with “an iron-hand.”
We as a nation have not only failed to grapple with these challenges but are in fact living remorselessly with these problems as an “integral” part of our society. Governments and the Assemblies have been part of the problem rather than solution. Aversion to the rule of law is endemic. Poor governance is our national hallmark. There is constant erosion of law and order in the country. Crime and corruption are rampant and galore both in scope and scale. The only hope for fixing the fundamentals before it is too late now lies with the Supreme Court. Or shall we wait for a Harry Potter to come and save us?
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