Baithak Desi May 09: Ayaz Amir, Harris Khalique, Masooda Bano, Khurram & Sajjad, Ishaq Dar, Naeem Chishti on Rehman Malik, Headlines, Cartoons

If a single party had emerged clear victor in the Feb 18 elections Pakistan would have been in real, deep trouble. Our problem has not been parliamentary, presidential or military government. It has been the concentration of a power in a single centre or a lone pair of hands. So I think we need not grieve or despair beyond a certain point. The situation on so many fronts is bad but we only have to look at neighbouring Afghanistan to realize that it could be much worse. And who says a transition from years of military authoritarianism to something approaching democracy is easy. It can be a messy affair but all said and done it has so far proved to be a reasonably smooth transition. Ayaz Amir's spin on the prevailing coalition chaos and Harris Khalique agrees somewhat while Masooda Bano lays it all on PPP and Samad Khurram and Aqil Sajjad agree and the Frontier Post calls it a Bug-bitten leadership


“I have not issued a charge-sheet against him(Shaukat Aziz), it was his own people, the officials who served under him during his tenure who prepared the reports that I presented to the parliamentary committee. If I had got this report prepared by a different team then I would have been accused of indulging in personal vendetta,” Finance Minister Ishaq Dar said. If they are the same people, what gave?

His rebuttal together with the way PPP has tried to defend Rehman Malik and cover up the incident shows that the Interior Advisor had at least tacit approval of his party high ups. It will not be entirely wrong to assume that Rehman Malik is the second most important person in PPP. In fact, Zardari ensures that he is present in all important meetings which he or the party may hold. Having been born in Sialkot in a modest family and having joined the Federal Investigation Agency in a humble position, he was able to rise high in his service career purely because of his own talents. Because of BB's patronage, he was able to get out of turn promotions to become Additional Director General in the FIA. Soon after President Leghari dismissed Benazir Bhutto's government in 1996, Rehman Malik was taken to task by Prime Minster Nawaz Sharif. Rehman Malik has never hesitated in blaming Mian Nawaz Sharif for his unfair dismissal from service in 1997 though the same had been effected under the E & D Rules after an enquiry committee found him guilty of all the charges levelled against him. The charges against Rehman Malik were many. It was alleged that he had received two Honda cars from Ms Toyota Central Motors, Karachi, as illegal gratification for purchase of jeeps; he had implicated two persons namely Abbas Raza Rizvi and his son Ahmed Ali Rizvi in false cases and took bribe from them; he, as a public servant, had committed breach of trust; he lived beyond ostensible means; he stole electricity and misused official transport and his residential phone; and above all, he investigated into Abbas Sharif and others' accounts without lawful authority. Rehman Malik has always denied all these allegations maintaining that all these allegations were levelled against him only to dismiss him from service for the reason that he had sent a 200-page report to President Rafiq Tarar "disclosing large-scale corruption of Sharif family". While his assertions are not entirely unfounded the fact remains that as a civil servant he went out of his way to please the then Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto. However, that could not be the only reason why Benazir Bhutto chose him as her 'security advisor', took him to secret meetings with President Musharraf in Abu Dhabi and held all important party meetings at his London home. To find out all this, perhaps we will have to go further into his past when he was working in subordinate positions in the FIA. The Man behind the Trouble

Headlines

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Enemy of my enemy...: Imran mediating between Haqiqi factions
On Toronto 18: Canada's little Guantanamo Bay Dr Muzaffar Iqbal
Thank you Uncle Sam: Controversial US general’s posting put on hold
Revisiting feudalism By Ayesha Siddiqa
As it should be: Islamic divorce ruled not valid in Maryland
MF Husain cleared of obscenity charges
Iftikhar Chaudhry: He should launch Justice Party
Hum DaikhaiNgay....: Nawaz Sharif warns against another delay