Humane strategy
DOG culling has ended in Sindh, the high court was recently told, marking a shift towards a more humane and scientifically sound method of rabies control and stray dog population management. Under the Rabies Control Programme, some 125,000 strays will be neutered/spayed and vaccinated by June 2025. This strategy has been endorsed by recent studies and has been successfully implemented in several countries. A notable example within Pakistan is the Indus Hospital’s Rabies Free Pakistan initiative, which dramatically reduced dog attacks in a small fishing village through vaccination and sterilisation. The RCP’s ambitious goals, including the establishment of rabies vaccination centres across 20 districts, are commendable. However, the success of such programmes hinges on sustained funding, community engagement, and transparent progress monitoring. As dog bites and rabies cases continue to pose a significant health risk, the RCP’s efforts must translate into tangible results on the ground. The high court’s directives for the release of funds, and to launch a dedicated helpline and mobile applications to report dog bites are steps in the right direction, fostering a proactive community response.
Dog culling has never been the answer. It is a brutal, short-sighted solution that fails to address the root causes of disease transmission and overpopulation, such as lack of sterilisation, vaccination, and responsible pet ownership. It merely offers a temporary dip in stray dog population. New dogs quickly fill the void left by those culled, perpetuating the cycle of overpopulation and rabies risk. The evidence is clear: vaccination and sterilisation programmes not only save lives but also promote coexistence between humans and animals. The RCP’s approach, emphasising public education, jabs, and respect for animal life promises not only to safeguard human health but also to uphold ethical and sustainable public health and animal welfare practices. As Sindh adopts humane strategies to manage the challenge, other provinces should follow suit.
Published in Dawn, February 16th,2024
Hiking gas prices
BY increasing gas prices by up to 45pc to recover an additional Rs242bn from all categories of consumers, the caretaker government has met another goal of the $3bn IMF programme. The cabinet approved the price hike recommended by the ECC on Thursday — the deadline for the implementation of the IMF condition. The significant part of the decision is the approval of uniform gas rates for the cash-rich fertiliser companies, largely revoking massive subsidies being pocketed by them for decades. However, the powerful textile industry again got away with a much smaller raise than proposed by the energy minister for already hugely subsidised captive power — despite the condition to make gas supplies for inefficient captive power plants expensive in order to divert the resource to cheaper RLNG power plants for generation. Apparently, the industry minister, a former Aptma chairman, got his way on the pretext that higher captive power gas prices would affect textile exports.
While the increase in fuel prices has been made to ensure the timely release of the last tranche of $1.2bn under the Stand-by Arrangement facility ending in April, it was also crucial for the gas sector’s stability. The new government taking over soon will be constrained to negotiate another longer, bigger IMF bailout to prevent the nation’s finances from collapsing and avert a potential sovereign default. It was also crucial to improve the cash flow of the two public gas firms and slow down the increase in the circular debt in the gas sector, as well as discourage the wasteful use of the fuel. Higher gas prices would not only put more burden on the common man reeling under the rising cost of living, it will also potentially raise food and other prices further, and might delay monetary easing. The State Bank, which has maintained its key policy rate at 22pc, last month revised up its inflation projections for the fiscal year to 23-25pc from earlier estimates of 20-22pc. In its last monetary policy statement, it said that the impact of the tight monetary stance to bring down inflation was “diluted by sizeable adjustments in administered energy prices … The large adjustments have significantly impacted the inflation outturns and its near-term outlook”. Unless the authorities undertake serious reforms to address the underlying structural issues in the energy sector to avoid such periodic shocks, price stability will remain elusive.
Published in Dawn, February 16th, 2024
All the king’s men
KING’S parties — political parties believed to have been created and nurtured by unelected forces — have a long and chequered history in Pakistan.
While some parties have developed a genuine popular following, other projects have fizzled out rather quickly. Three king’s parties suffered the latter fate in last week’s elections.
The Istehkam-i-Pakistan Party, constructed by assembling PTI deserters, was being touted as the next big thing, particularly in Punjab. Yet this prediction failed spectacularly as it managed only two National Assembly seats, also putting in a dismal performance in Punjab. Chastened by the rout, IPP supremo Jahangir Tareen retired from politics. One wonders if the IPP will survive till the next election cycle.
The PTI-Parliamentarians did worse, winning no NA seats, while the Balochistan Awami Party, created by the powers that be in 2018 and comprising mostly ex-PML-N members, was also humbled in the polls.
As mentioned, cobbling together king’s parties is not a new phenomenon. For the longest time, the name of the Muslim League — Pakistan’s grand old party — was used by military strongmen, including generals Ayub Khan and Zia, to form parties that could give their projects a civilian face.
Gen Musharraf patronised the PML-Q in 2002, carving it out of PML. But whereas the party of the Sharifs has survived, the Q-League is not a potent political force. Today, there are countless factions of the Muslim League, many of them the products of military rule, or one-man parties. In other instances, electoral alliances were carved out to keep popular parties in check, such as the Islami Jamhoori Ittehad in 1988.
Yet some parties have earned their democratic stripes, despite being products of dictatorship. The PML-N is a prime example; Nawaz Sharif began his political journey in the Zia era, but today, has a genuine following. Other than parties custom-built by the gentlemen in Rawalpindi, other political forces, while not being the king’s men, have served the purpose at critical junctures.
The MQM is one example, as it has done the bidding of the establishment at various times, and been rewarded with ‘heavy’ mandates in Karachi. The PPP also played ball with the powers, particularly in the turbulent 1990s. These alliances with unelected forces — while serving the short-term interests of these parties — have done long-term harm to Pakistani democracy.
The only way to stave off the continuous crises that afflict Pakistani politics is for powerful quarters to stop creating and patronising political parties, and to let representatives genuinely elected by the people chart the future course of this country.
Inorganic creations have short shelf-lives and limited appeal, and despite widespread manipulation of the system, are rejected by voters. Only those political forces thrive that either turn away from their creators, or look only to the people for legitimacy.
Published in Dawn, February 16th, 2024