The frustration and anger that marked Chief Minister Mian Shahbaz Sharif’s statement that corruption, bad governance and loot and plunder of state assets were exacting a heavy toll on the system is understandable.It was good to see the CM laying special emphasis on the need to uphold the rule of law, without which the system of governance would veer off its track and become vulnerable to corrupt practices of all sorts. The problems at present afflicting the country can be largely attributed to bad governance and corruption rampant in virtually all government institutions and departments. One fully agrees with Mian Shahbaz that the common man suffers the most when state assets are plundered. He pointed out that it were scandals like NICL that had tarnished the image of Pakistan. It is a fact that if these state institutions are run in a fair and transparent manner, revenue generation will be so huge that the country would not need the crutches of foreign aid.
Instead, because of the corrupt men who are running important state departments, revenue worth billions is stashed away in secret bank accounts abroad each year and the resultant financial deficit becomes so huge that it is the entire economy that suffers. While there is hope that the Supreme Court is in the vanguard to fight corruption and bring the culprits to book, the defiance by the federal government and disregard of its orders only makes a travesty of justice and the rule of law. The Chief Minister also stressed the need to resurrect the energy sector to strengthen the economy. That again is inextricably linked to the question of maladministration and corruption at the federal level. The financial scam in the rental power plants is a case in point but the pity is that the men who were responsible for these shady deals went scot-free. Our energy sector will not be able to bridge the supply and demand gap unless it is managed by men of integrity and impeccable character. – Nation
