Pakistan is passing through one of the worst patches of time in our entire history. Not that we have had smooth sailing in any one segment, but in my reckoning, nowadays Pakistan is at it lowest ebb. We are having unimaginable crisis in relation to the basic necessities of our lives. Electricity, gas, water, petrol, and if we go beyond, the list is endless. Yes, the successive governments are responsible for that. There is no doubt about it. They let the things slide to an extent from where recovery is either impossible, or very difficult. From an unfettered nine years military rule of Musharraf to seven years of civilian rule, poor governance was, and is order of the day. Things kept on going from bad to worse but the leadership at the helm of affairs remained embroiled in frivolous or non-issues. Important projects like construction of Kalabagh Dam was neglected, and let become a political issue, which is having disastrous effect on Pakistan today. All state institutions were destroyed and mega industries were made a burden on the national exchequer instead of being a contributory pillar. All corrupt people with shady background, court cases in NAB and anti-terrorism courts, were made and are being made CEO/Head of state organizations. Political interference is at peak, inefficiency and mismanagement has become the hall mark of these organizations. How worse can a country become? While all this was happening, in utter chaos and anarchy, there was an exponential rise in influence and numbers of non-state actors. They grabbed the opportunity of poor governance and multiplied themselves. Of course they were assisted by our not so friendly countries, in the region and beyond. It includes India, Afghanistan, Israel and USA to name a few. Even friendly countries such as Saudi Arabia, Iran, UAE, Qatar etc act against our national interests by funding extremist organizations. The non-state actors cleverly used our religion Islam as a tool to further their nefarious designs. They know they can get away with murder if they fool the gullible people that they are killing/blowing people into pieces in service of Islam. The poor and illiterate people buy that and consider them as heroes. A considerable section of our society offer ghaibana namaz e janaza for killed terrorists. They give a damn if children are being murdered in cold-blood. Few masajids were named in honour of Qadri, the murderer of Salman Taseer. Non-Muslims are burnt alive in brick kilns whenever someone alleges blasphemy against them, without any remorse and the government feels helpless to arrest/prosecute the culprits. Devils like Moulana Aziz of Lal Masjid fame, is still an employee of CDA. Nobody can dare fire him. He and his ilk spew hatred against other sects day in and day out in thousands of mosques all around Pakistan. Madrassas are free to fan extremism and brain wash young minds to their brand of Islam, and label all others as non-Muslims. They are taught to be intolerant. Not only they are violent against non-Muslims, but Muslims from other sects. Under these prevalent glim circumstances in Pakistan, terrorist organizations are furthering there agenda to the fullest. They are extremely innovative, audacious and meticulous in planning and executing their attacks. They attack at their time of choosing. If one reviews the terrorist attacks, one is bewildered. How are they so good and accurate. Not very long ago, Pakistan Army was considered invincible within the country. Terrorists have carried out numerous attacks on various installations, the culmination being the daring brazen attack on GHQ in broad daylight. The Air Force and Navy have also not been spared. They have had their share of unfortunate incidents. Other para-military forces like Rangers, Levies and Police etc are piece of cake for them. Having humbled the once invincible Armed Forces of Pakistan in their bastions, terrorists have sent a clear message of their unbridled power and strength. Attack on Military Bases (Kamra, Mehran, Samungli), Karachi Airport, Naval Dockyard etc involved meticulous planning and intense recce and intelligence gathering. How come they were all missed by our scores of intelligence organizations? Shows lack of cooperation amongst them, which is alarming to say the least. But the worst and sordid fact of all these attacks, was the involvement of insiders. In all the attacks on sensitive places of high security, there were inside help. Without such support, it is not possible to carry out such precise attacks with deadly accuracy. Of course they get intelligence help from countries which are our enemies. The Armed Forces can do only so much to protect themselves. How many walls can they build, how high, how much barbed wires, how many scanners can they install at entry points, or how many guards can they deploy. Or for that matter, on airports, ports or other sensitive installations. The answer to defeat the enemies of the state is for the Security Forces and the civilian Government to work in unison. If divergent efforts are made, it will result in nought. One has to complement the other. Today I see an aggressive response from the Security Forces, specially after the APS attack in Peshawar. But I do not see a matching effort from the Government to respond to the crisis. As they are inept, incompetent, or simply unwilling to take drastic steps due to political expediencies (like not kicking out JUI (F) from the coalition Government, who are open sympathisers of Talibans), the COAS is doing much of the running around to decisively counter the menace, once and for all. The Cabinet is full of incapable ministers, who talk mostly nonsense and our more interested in minting money and complete their five year term. Though even now under the dismal state of affairs, we should not expect or invite the Army to take over once again, but we must call on them to twist the tails of relevant people. And ever harder. The public must not blindly support a political party, but guage them based on their performance. All type of pressures must be put to bear on the Government to act against terrorism, transcending all other considerations. For the Armed Forces, I would suggest to have introspection, look within and identify people who have sympathies for the terrorists (based on whatever consideration), and take stern action against them. Have zero tolerance on this issue. Being a veteran, unfortunately I see a lack of seriousness to weed out such people from the ranks and files (such people take shelter of religion). Only then will our sensitive installations and organizations will become more safe. To conclude, the momentum created by the drastic attack on APS, must not lose its steam in the decisive fight against terrorism. Notwithstanding other day to day issues which requires Governments attention, anti-terrorism efforts must not wane at any cost. Nor should we let anyone do that in our individual capacities.
Posted on: Tue, 27 Jan 2015 15:25:36 +0000
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