The Pakistani Spectator

Dear Mr. Musharraf: Just till a year after you took office, I was your greatest fan but after that, I never was! Finally, a year ago the public made you give away your charge, into the hands of the public themselves, the same public, which cried their eyes out. I will, in this content, therefore term you as a ‘Thrown’ President.

There are reasons behind it which have compelled me to dislike you and your party - the Chaudharys. The first reason is the approval of “The National Reconciliation Ordinance” which is a ‘signal free highway’ for the corrupt bureaucracy of past and the present.

The National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO) has proved out to be a ‘corruption welcoming’ ordinance as it has given a clear message to all the “high-ranking corrupt bureaucrats” that their looted money is now safe for them to spend on their luxurious lives.

As a part of a common taxpaying community we should be worried in this case because it was our money (as collected in form of tax from the government) which was looted and pilled in the foreign banks by these fraudulent and dishonest bureaucrats to whom you now term as the “democratic leaders”.

There may be other salient features of this ordinance that may help in the empowerment democracy but the main point that this ordinance enlightens is that all the corrupt society is now free to wander around the country because they have been cleared from the corruption charges. They are also free to come in power whenever and however they want even if they are not allowed by the constitution and repeat their previous practices. The people who were termed by you (some years ago) as threats to Pakistan’s progress are now good governors of democracy and dialog able, but how?

The second reason is the “wastage of state economy” by you and your party. The billions that were shattered by the government on the ads promulgating you and your party, during the Elections 2008, is surely a thought provoking point for the poor people of Pakistan. Those billions that were paid to the commercial companies, TV channels and ad promotion corporations came either from loans or taxes collected from common people that were firstly meant to be spent on the welfare of public.

The commercials with dreadful jingles were a permanent source of income to the media but were of no use to the public. I had read in several leading news papers, very regretful though, that over ten million rupees a day were spent in this way; it makes three hundred million rupees a month. I don’t need to confirm it as I myself saw all the TV channels, radio stations and news papers flooded by your ads.

If you say that you informed me from these ads about the development done in Pakistan then I would reply that Sir! Most respectfully, if my country is still lacking protection then what advantage will I get from knowing what have you done in the other part of the country?

Dear Mr. President (Thrown): I now feel hesitation in obeying my national duty i.e. paying tax as I see it being ruined as it was ruined in your time.

The third reason is a bit different from the above two. Mr. President! (Thrown) Let us now take the Laal Masjid issue. There was of course some breach of law by the duo brothers but there are some things that make a disagreement between your and my views. In one way or the other the Laal masjid administration was involved in religious extremism but what bad did the female students of jamia hasfa do? Their educational career has ruined. I personally know many of the jamia hafsa students as one of them is the teacher of my younger sister who is doing hifz-ul-Qurran. I don’t see in any way that she is or was a terrorist; she is an excellent teacher, a great scholar and a pious woman.

I admit that the Jamia Hafsa was run by the Laal Masjid administration heads but after you had removed them by killing one and capturing the other why did you demolish the Jamia? Was it illegal? If it was, then why aren’t illegal all those ‘billions’ that were spent on your personal political interests through ads paid from the national treasury? Also! Why aren’t illegal all those thousands of “Khokhaa shops” (small steel made shops) that are placed permanently on roadsides, streets and government owned land? The reality is that the Khokhaa shops have become legal because their owners pay monthly bribery to the CDA inspectors.

Dear Mr. President (Thrown)! I was your fan; I used to draw your pictures in my mind. I used to hang on the TV whenever you were presenting a speech or were talking on a talk show as I loved to hear you. I had pictures of yours framed in my room, I had many of your speeches downloaded from your website to read them daily. I used to mark you amongst the most respected people of the era but it’s very miserable to say for me that you changed and you were “thrown” away as one should be.