To say that corruption is endemic across Pakistan is neither new nor an understatement. But last week, a statement by President Asif Ali Zardari’s handpicked head of the main anti-corruption body stunned even those Pakistanis who have become relatively immune to graft.
According to an estimate by the so-called National Accountability Bureau (NAB), led by Admiral (retired) Fasih Bukhari, corruption worth a staggering seven billion rupees (Dh263.3 million) takes place across the South Asian country every day. However, hidden behind these headlines were two other relatively obscure, but significant pieces of information.
In comments on a private television channel, a federal cabinet minister conceded for the first time that in spite of a ban by former prime minister Yousuf Raza Gilani in early 2008 against the installation of more stations to supply compressed natural gas (CNG), anywhere between 15 to 20 per cent of such stations have been installed in the four-plus years since that order.
In the face of a ruling structure which is often left speechless when confronted with matters related to foul play, it is certain that the government will have few convincing answers on the CNG issue. Indeed, as Pakistanis brave another winter with gas shortages reported from parts of the country, the government has few immediate answers to the challenge.
While there are daily long queues at CNG stations as motorists pull in to use an increasingly scarce resource, Pakistan’s gas shortages have only grown. Last winter, Pakistan witnessed public riots as low-income users came out on the streets after many were forced to turn to more expensive domestic fuels such as kerosene oil.
However, in the heat of the moment, it is easy for Pakistanis to ignore the large sums of money involved in graft in dealing with a natural resource that seems increasingly in short supply. Indeed, the increase of CNG stations by 15 to 20 per cent since 2008 speaks volumes over the incentives surrounding this resource.
Meanwhile, speaking of compelling but obscure news too, some Pakistani newspapers yesterday reported yet another controversy brewing within the ruling echelon. A close relative of Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf, who, according to one newspaper, happens to be his son-in-law, is being controversially backed by the ruling structure in Islamabad for a high-profile international position based in Washington. Once again, the issue at hand may smell of the failure to kick in a due process of law, ensuring neutrality by the authorities in pushing ahead with this appointment.
Away from the top structure of Pakistan’s political power, however, the mounting evidence of a rapidly collapsing country is all too evident in daily lives on streets across the country. In the past year, recurring turmoil — ranging from electricity shortages during the peak summer months to gas shortages in the chilly winter — has clearly brought out a distinct divide between the rich and the poor. While Pakistan’s impoverished homes suffer, well-endowed Pakistanis rely on alternative fuels to continue with their lives of comfort.
This troublesome picture indeed must be seen within the prism of not just a corruption ridden country, as pointed out by the head of the anti-corruption body. It is a picture that must be seen within the context of a land overseen by a largely tainted ruling elite that continues to fail in its obligations towards the nation. Ultimately, a day of reckoning must be Pakistan’s destiny — one way or the other.
With the next parliamentary elections not too far away, Pakistanis from the grass roots will find their moment to choose their next round of leaders. It is possible that many all-too-familiar public representatives with shady backgrounds will once again return to rule over the country’s destiny.
And yet, the writing on the wall may already be abundantly clear. With ordinary Pakistanis desperate over their futures, a battle may be brewing on the streets of Pakistan. If indeed the periodic riots over one popular issue after another are any indication, then it must be said that Pakistanis are becoming increasingly frustrated with the way their country is being governed and that is showing.
Farhan Bokhari is a Pakistan-based commentator who writes on political and economic matters.
