By Farrukh Saleem
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani has said that the “Army neither intends to come to power nor will it come to power. The judiciary is independent and pro-democracy” adding that there is no “threat to democracy as the civilian government came to power after making numerous sacrifices and winning the 2008 elections.”
Read More »Is Pakistan heading for a change?
| By Amir Mateen |
| GWADAR: The news that Gwadar port is all set to be taken away from the Port of Singapore Authority (PSA) and is likely to be given to the Chinese may have repercussions that go much beyond its white sand shores. Official sources confirm that “an understanding to that effect has already developed at the highest levels but it will take a while before the legal and administrative constraints are removed.” The biggest constraint remains the agreement with the PSA, which was given the right to run the port for 40 years. However, official sources are confident that the PSA had given them sufficient grounds to revoke the agreement. Apart from its failure to bring a single commercial ship to the Gwadar docks, the PSA has not invested even a fraction of the $525 million it had committed to spend in five years. Read More »Gwadar Port may be given to China |
BY QAISAR SULTAN
What should we do when it is obvious that the state is failing rapidly? Should we rely on a failed democracy? Should we stay silent knowingly that the elected leaders are incompetent, corrupt and destroying the country? The democracy in Pakistan has failed over and over again. There is no doubt that the democratic system of the government provides fairness and progress, not only on social grounds, but also economically benefits the country. Instead, we have experienced the social decay and weak economy during the democratic governments. The democracy seems to bring in the worst ethnic feelings among provinces in Pakistan. The political parties are more bigoted than the people of Pakistan- They exploit their constituency by bringing out the uncalled fears of others. From Nawaz Sharif’s “Jag Punjabi Jag” to Zardari regular threats to the state on Sindh card to Baluchistan’s separatism and popularity of Taliban in Pakhtoonkhwa and the killing of Pathans in Karachi, the country is coming apart. In the Pakistani style democracy, the feudal lords, Jagirdars, vaderas and rich get the best opportunity to expand their power and making money. If the democracy cannot provide security and bring about the happiness to its people, what is the purpose of a democratic dispensation that denies all the virtues of a democratic government? There are no individual rights and protection to the minorities. In the absence of utilitarian consideration of democracy, the rich get richer and the poor get poorer as the elected rich groups and their cronies make more money through corruption.Read More »Is It the Right Time to Overthrow the Democratic Government?