Articles and letters may be edited for the purposes of clarity and space. They are published in good faith with a view to enlightening all the stakeholders. However, the contents of these writings may not necessarily match the views of the newspaper.
Congratulations
It has been a matter of honour for our nation that Pilot Officer Abdullah Younas has become the 1st ever trainee officer to receive the Sword of Honour at Australian Defence Force Academy, a distinguished award for the young Pakstani pilot who brought pride to the country.
People like him are the inspiration for every Pakistani. A big salute to him. The potential in our blood is awesome; we only need appropriate opportunities and a bit of polishing and then sky is the limit. In the words of Iqbal, Naheen hy naumeed Iqbal apni kisht e veeran sy, Zara num ho to yeh mitti bari zarkhaiz hy Saqi. (But of is barren acres Iqbal will not despair; A little rain, and harvests shall wave at last, Oh Saqi!)
IFTIKHAR MIRZA
Islamabad
Mandviwala’s anger
The Deputy Chairman of the Senate is well within his right to seek clarifications from Chairman NAB and other officials about the credibility of their academic qualifications and full public disclosure of assets held by them and their family members. According to the Constitution of Pakistan, the Senate and National Assembly are part of the three constitutional pillars of the State namely Parliament, Executive and Judiciary. NAB exists as a statutory body, created through an Act of Parliament and is answerable to Parliament for any act done which violates the constitutional right of any citizen of Pakistan, or any act done by it which exceeds or violates its jurisdiction.
An independent judiciary is the sole constitutional institution, which has the power to interpret laws in accordance with the letter and spirit of the Constitution. However, NAB and other institutions of the State are well within their right to probe into assets, bank accounts of Ijaz Haroon who has held important posts in PIA, starting from 1993 onwards to 2008 when he was appointed as MD PIA, despite being just an O’Level. In 1994-95 an investigation was conducted by AVM Mushaf Ali Mir into gross irregularities in recruitment which held him responsible.
Apart from this, he has been allegedly involved in financial irregularities, while employed in a state-owned enterprise in controversial real estate ventures such as Overseas Housing Society, Kidney Hill Park etc. It was during his tenure as MD PIA that fake degree holders were employed in PIA apart from other irregularities such as appointment of Saleem Siyani as DMD etc.
He is also allegedly involved in money laundering and owns properties in the UK, UAE etc held in the name of self or family members. He is amongst those responsible for the mess in PIA.
GULL ZAMAN
Hayatabad, Peshawar
Corrupt country
Corruption has been enormously grown, cultivated and nurtured in Zimbabwe and the effects of such profound level of corruptions are pushing the country into severe economic conditions. Politicians are number one corrupt people in Zimbabwe particularly those who belong to ZANU PF party.
Funds which were donated for the constituencies have been diverted to personal use by politicians. It is deeply worrying that the judges and the judiciary system have also been tainted by corruption. The redistribution of land from white farmers was also marked by corruption. The corrupt, careless and clueless Zimbabwean government should be removed from power because corruption in Zimbabwe is pushing Zimbabweans to go and live in other countries such as South Africa, Botswana and Namibia in search of better economic conditions.
KUDZAI CHIKOWORE
London
Mysterious disease in India
An unidentified disease is spreading in the Indian State of Andhra Pradesh that is one of the worst Covid-19 hit states with over 800,000 Covid positive cases. The first case of this mysterious illness was detected just a few days ago. According to the Indian government officials, outbreak of the disease has led to hospitalization of at least 400 people and killed one till now.
The person who died of the disease was a 45 years old man. The patients of this disease are experiencing symptoms ranging from nauseas, anxiety, vomiting, headache, seizures and loss of consciousness. Harsh Vardhan, India’s Health Minister said all the patients of this disease have been tested negative for Coronavirus and their blood test did not find any evidence of a viral infection. The government officials also said that the illness has not yet spread from one person to another but also found in the people living in the other areas.
The Indian government has sent a team of medical experts to investigate. One of the team members said in an interview that they have collected more than 70 blood samples, 70 food samples, water, milk and oil samples for analysis and that they would only be able to conclude and find the reason behind the disease after analysing. He further said that the team is suspecting that it could be metal toxicity and pesticide toxicity.
MARYAM KHAN
Islamabad
