Adil Najam
Disgraceful behavior by Pakistani politicians is not restricted to our Federal Minister of Law, Justice and Human Rights Chaudhry Mohammad Wasi Zafar… see the earlier ATP post accounting his ‘encounters’ with lawlessness.
It turns out that a certain Mr. Abid Ali Umang, MNA from Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) has similarly confused ideas about what the ‘priviliges’ of being a politician should be. This is how Dawn (16 July, 2006) describes the events under the headline ‘MNA carrying gun creates scene at airport’:
Unruly scenes were witnessed at the Islamabad airport’s VIP Rawal Lounge on Friday night when a parliamentarian belonging to the ruling coalition insisted on carrying a firearm aboard and hurled threats at the Airport Security Force (ASF) official on duty. Sources said Muttahida Qaumi
Movement (MQM) MNA Abid Ali Umang along with his colleague MNA Mohammad Pervez Qureshi arrived at the Rawal Lounge to take a PIA flight (PK-319) to Karachi. The two legislators were allowed to enter the lounge without a security check after they identified themselves as MNAs. However, when the ASF official on duty inquired about the contents of a bag carried by Mr Umang, the latter replied: “There is a pistol in the bag.� The ASI told the lawmaker that carrying firearms was strictly prohibited, therefore, he could not proceed.
This infuriated the MNA and he entered into a fiery dialogue with the ASF official. Later, the ‘protestingà¢ÃƒÂ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚¬Ã¢â€žÂ¢ MNA was also joined by his colleague. As tension mounted, the ASF chief security officer rushed to the scene at around 10:30pm and settled the issue through talks. The security chief also tender an apology to the minister and transferred the ASF official to some other section of the airport. The sources also quoted the MNA as saying that he would move a privilege motion in the National Assembly if the ASI concerned was not dismissed from service.
Meanwhile, the MNAs never made it aboard the Karachi-bound flight as they were not holding confirmed tickets.
I am certainly glad that they did not board the plane with the gun. I do think that a privilege motion (or some sort of a motion) should be moved in the Assembly on this incident. But it should be against the two MNAs and to commend the ASI.
Please, don’t anyone tell me that this proves that we are not ready for real democracy. No. This does not mean that at all. It only means that we have to start electing a better set of people and it means that we still have people like the ASI in this case who are willing to stand up for law and justice; even if the Minister in-charge of that portfolio is not.
My thanks to Talha Masood (blog: My cosmos…) for altering me to this news through a post in Metroblog Islamabad.
Adil, this is not an uncommon occurance. Our politicians all think they are above the law, perhaps they are right, depending on who you ask these days, the law can be bended to suit anyone…Two years ago i was flying on a PIA flight from Karachi when a man lit a cigarette behind me. Everyone else carried on like this was normal, he continued to puff away. When a PIA air hostess came up to him to admonish him, he looked at her with contempt, like a dog looks at meat and said out quite loudly, “dont you know who i am?” she did and she walked away…I didnt know, so i got up and asked him politely to put his lit cig out. He didnt appreciate it but since my voice was quite loud and a lot of people were turning their heads he did so. Over the years ive learnt that embarrassing these people works…
The ASI man should be commended and make an example of, he did his duty well and he deserves a pat on his back. Our country is being run by thugs, uneducated people who somehow find themselves elected or selected and so they are above the law, because for them there is no law!
As a foreign general once said:
“Politics is too serious a matter to be handled by politicians”.
We are very fond of blaming America for everything that is wrong… as if everything wrong in the world and in our country is because of them. But here is the difference. Some months back, Senator Ted Kennedy who is amongst the most senior and most powerful politicians in USA was stopped at the airport and given the full treatment because his name came up for a check on some list by mistake. But the point is that even he had to face the law and follow it. That is the difference. My question is why are MNAs in Pakistan exempt from the security measures that apply to all other Pakistanis. And not just MNAs, the generals in the land scam, the bureaucrats. We can never have a rule of law until the law applies to all Pakistanis equally.
Adil to comment on your post, we won’t have people like the ASI for long and have a following such as our feudal lords to in their areas, if corrective action isn’t taken to set an example for all folks working to know that if they abide by law and order and what is the correct policies they will not be penalized rather recognized for their efforts in a VIP society that we live in. Where MNA ‘s think they can do whatever or Ministers think they slap people around for holding a post, I say we “book em all” This would be a step towards reform and democracy.
What is wrong with our society? I think these MNA’s need to be given a dose of reality and told that law and order applies to them as well. To begin with the ASI who questioned the MNA should definitely not be transferred to a different part of the airport to ensure that we are setting an example for our airport security that those who do their job well irrespective of whom they deal with whether it be some “paindo” politician their job will not be jeopardized. Secondly, an inquiry should be made as to why this MNA even feels he can pull such a stunt.