Of ethics and hypocrisy

In the land of the ‘pure’, hypocrisy reigns supreme. A glaring example of this is Punjab Law Minister Rana Sanaullah Khan’s recent and not-so-recent antics. The law minister was able to get his own high-rise plaza exempted from scrutiny. Not only did he get illegal paper-work done to show his three-storey building as a two-storey building, he also papered over the fact that the building was being used for commercial purposes and was not a residential building as he had claimed in the official documents. Not only is Mr Sanaullah Khan a member of the ruling party in Punjab, the PML-N, he is also the provincial law minister. If the law minister himself is breaking the law, how can the government of Punjab have the moral authority to ask the citizens to follow the rule of law?

With the Punjab chief minister’s drive against ‘illegal buildings’ and the Punjab government on a rampage against high-rise commercial plazas, the omission of Mr Sanaullah’s own property is a grim reminder of the double standards of the powers that be. Many in the PML-N, including the Punjab law minister, have been asking for the resignations of NRO beneficiaries in the federal government despite the fact that no charges have been proved as yet. Is a person not innocent until proven guilty? On the one hand, the PML-N demands resignations of the PPP ministers and on the other hand, one of its own ministers has a prima facie charge against him of manipulating the system. The PML-N should immediately sack the law minister from his post and tear down his illegal plaza. If this is not done, then the Punjab chief minister will not only be complicit in this crime but the ‘Khaadim-e-Aala’ will also lose the trust of the people.

On another note, this is not the first incident of Rana Sanaullah’s law-breaking spree. Just a few days ago when President Zardari was on a visit to Faisalabad, the motorway had been closed for the president’s security. Given the grave terrorist threat, considerable security measures were necessary during his visit to Punjab, barricading the motorway to other travellers until his motorcade had passed Faisalabad being one of them. The Punjab law minister thought nothing of breaching presidential security and broke the barricades in a show of bravado. He also boasted about this ‘heroic’ act on various television channels. Such is the sorry tale of our so-called law minister, who should change his portfolio to Punjab’s ‘law-breaking’ ministry as this attitude of highhandedness and utter disregard for the law does not befit a law minister.

(my editorial in Daily Times)

Comments

Ali khan said…
i like this article...
12:48 pm
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Persecution without reason

Universities all over the world tend to hire people with a sound academic background as they want the best for their students. The Higher Education Commission (HEC) of Pakistan did the same when they hired Dr Ghazala Anwar as Deputy Dean of Usul-ud-Din (Islamic jurisprudence) at the women’s campus of International Islamic University (IIU) in Islamabad. Dr Ghazala earned her PhD in philosophy and religious studies from the Temple University (USA) in 1993, with teaching and research interests in Islamic jurisprudence, gender issues, Sufism and sexuality. She was appointed at the IIU under the Foreign Faculty Hiring Programme after her application was reviewed by a Peer Review Committee of scholars. Dr Ghazala Anwar has been part of a movement that has been trying to fight for the just treatment of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Intersex and Questioning (LGBTIQ) Muslims. The movement does not preach to others to become homosexuals, but asks Muslims to be tolerant of these “sexual m
Read more

Protesters demand Imran Khan resign

Islamist party leader Maulana Rehman leads thousands to capital, gives PM two-day ultimatum Tens of thousands of protesters, led by Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam leader Maulana Fazlur Rehman, took out a march in Islamabad on Friday, demanding the resignation of Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan. “You have two days, we cannot show more patience,” Mr. Rehman warned the Premier. If Mr. Khan doesn’t resign in two days, “he will not be able to stop people from entering the Prime Minister’s House”, he said. “Nawaz Sharif had heard this, so had Asif Zardari. Now, they [establishment] should also hear what we are saying,” said Mr. Rehman in a pointed message to the establishment. ‘Stay here’ “Only the people of Pakistan have the right to rule over Pakistan; no institution has the right to impose itself over us,” said Mr. Rehman. “Stay here my friends, do not move... they have to resign in two days, you the people will decide what your decision is. It was your vote that was snatched from yo
Read more

We will shut down entire Pakistan, says Maulana

Maulana Fazlur Rehman says the protests will continue and that Imran Khan’s government should go. As the two-day ultimatum he issued to Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan expired on Sunday night, Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI-F) leader Maulana Fazlur Rehman has said the protesters will continue the sit-in until their goals are met. “We have decided that we will not go to any tribunal or Election Commission or any court. The PTI’s (Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf) foreign funding case is still lying around with the Election Commission after five years. This ‘illegitimate’ ruler’s foreign funding case has not been decided, how will this Election Commission settle rigging cases?,” he said while addressing ‘Azadi March’ in the capital on Sunday. “This is a movement. After this march, we will not stop our journey… Today, we have shut down Islamabad. Tomorrow we will shut down the entire country. Today, we have a huge rally here; tomorrow we will make the entire Pakistan a rally-ground,” he said.
Read more