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Flying out
OUR aviation industry is once again in the midst of a crisis. The slashing of pilots’ salaries and a steep increase in taxation during a period of high costs means their disposable incomes have taken a huge hit. Recently, the Senate Standing Committee on Aviation was told that 15 pilots had left the country recently, owing to the decrease in their purchasing power. The director general of the Civil Aviation Authority said that “all PIA pilots want to quit”, as the pilots’ association claimed that pilots had not received a raise in seven years, and are now further burdened by high taxes.
Pilots looking for greener pastures is just one aspect of a larger problem in a country where the unrelenting economic crisis has made it very difficult for salaried individuals, amongst others, to make ends meet. As the country battles high inflation and security threats, scores of people want to leave for a better life abroad. According to one report, up to 1m people left Pakistan in 2022 — a staggering figure that reflects poorly on multiple governments that have failed to address the country’s serious economic and security challenges. Pilots in Pakistan came under intense scrutiny under the PTI government, when a senior minister claimed on the floor of the National Assembly that the licences of over 30pc of the country’s pilots were dubious. It prompted the US and Europe to ban pilots from Pakistan, and sent officials here scrambling to examine, verify and clear the licences of scores of pilots. In all of this, what is worrying is that passengers are facing more cancellations and delays as there is a shortage of aviation staff. More dangerously, pilots are forced to fly overtime, and are not able to retire to plug holes in the staff crisis. Authorities must urgently look into this issue as it has serious implications both for the safety of passengers and the well-being of the aviation staff.
Published in Dawn, April 2nd, 2023
Handover halted
SOMETIMES individuals and institutions need to be saved from themselves. The Lahore High Court’s ruling on Friday to stop the handover of 45,267 acres of land on a lease to the army for the purposes of corporate farming can be seen in such a light. The security establishment has in recent months been the target of trenchant criticism for its alleged political meddling, and it scarcely needs to open up another front. When news emerged last month that the Punjab caretaker government had signed an agreement to transfer over 45,000 acres located in three districts of the province to the army under a joint venture agreement with the provincial government and private firms, social media lit up in indignation. A public interest litigation organisation filed a petition on the grounds that under the Elections Act 2017, a caretaker government was limited to performing day-to-day functions and was not empowered to take policy decisions of a permanent nature. Giving the said acreage on lease for 20 years (extendable to 30 years), they contended, was therefore not in its purview.
While this argument is in the context of a caretaker government’s powers, even an elected government cannot parcel out public land so arbitrarily. The lawyers for the petition expanded on how the aforementioned transfer was also a violation of the Doctrine of Public Trust, a legal principle according to which the government holds in trust certain natural and cultural resources for public use. Questionable use of public land has been the subject of several decisions of the superior courts. In January last year, the Islamabad High Court ruled that the Pakistan Navy’s sailing club and farmhouses on national park land were illegal and ordered their demolition. A few days later, it also declared illegal the military’s claim to 8,000 acres of Margalla Hills National Park. When news of the transfer of land for corporate farming emerged, military sources clarified that ownership of the land will remain with the Punjab government and that retired army officers will manage the project, whose profits will go to the locals, the provincial government and the firms investing in the project. However, one knows only too well that when corporate interests get involved, local beneficiaries are relegated to the bottom of the totem pole. Powerful sectors should be more mindful of their duty to the people.
Published in Dawn, April 2nd, 2023
Stampede deaths
THE breadlines are growing, highlighting people’s desperation as making ends meet under conditions of galloping inflation is becoming increasingly difficult. Unfortunately, public and private efforts to get food to the deserving have been hampered by mismanagement, as was witnessed during Friday’s tragic stampede in Karachi.
Hundreds of women, accompanied by children, had gathered at an industrial unit in the city’s SITE area to collect food aid and zakat being distributed by the factory’s owner. Panic ensued when staffers reportedly closed the doors, resulting in the death of at least 12 people. Both the local administration and police say they were not informed of the charity drive by the organisers.
Regrettably, the state’s efforts have hardly been better organised. A number of people have died at official free flour distribution events in KP and Punjab, while trucks have been looted in KP. In several cases, people have complained that flour is either being given to those with ‘connections’, or to those who grease the palms of officials.
Moreover, the sight of women and the elderly standing in long queues for hours to secure a sack or two of flour, and being jostled and manhandled in the process, is a sad one. And if the finance ministry’s prognostications are anything to go by, people’s misery is unlikely to end soon, as even higher prices are round the corner.
As the ministry noted on Friday, the “second-round effect” of policy decisions was likely to push up record inflation further. Factors contributing to high prices include supply and demand issues of essentials, a plummeting rupee, and high fuel costs.
With inflation unlikely to ease in the near future, efforts need to be made by the state and others with means to help the poor as well as the ‘new poor’ to get by with dignity. Better organisation is the key to preventing the tragic deaths and injuries that have been occurring at charity distribution points. For the state, the distribution of food aid or cash needs to be streamlined and transparent. Inviting hundreds of people to stand in line is obviously not the most efficient way to get help to people.
Established charities in the country have well-developed networks and systems in place, and the state needs to replicate these to prevent chaos in the distribution of food. For example, people can be asked to register on the phone for help, and then be called to spacious, well-manned distribution points to collect cash or food.
Meanwhile, a large number of people many not be comfortable publicly collecting handouts, so efforts need to be made to provide them with help at their doorstep. Finally, private persons distributing charity in large numbers need to alert the local authorities, and follow SOPs to ensure there are no mishaps.
Published in Dawn, April 2nd, 2023