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Pakistan isn’t banana republic, it’s absurdistan

How nice of you to have tunnel vision, has the said member, ever posted ANYTHING positive? But how can I expect you who speaks the same language, to be neutral.

Forget my tunnel vision, for a second. Compare your posts. His and yours. And check yourself, who's made more posts of value. And by value and positive, I mean posts which express ideas, criticize, explain or define. Making positive posts doesn't mean distorting reality, suppressing facts just to feel-good and pretend thats its all fine. For instance, these are your contributions to the thread.

In Pakistan people don't post from mental asylums, but on PDF we have you.

Definitely not as absurd, as a monkey proudly running around on a bike, in his masters backyard.

Rubbing salts on his wounds eh! :lol: A typo on an envelope, and you got your knickers in a bunch. Whats new? Certainly not the monkey licking his wounds, and jumping at his masters every beck and call.

This post must be for the consumption of your masters, to justify a pay raise.

Btw, how much do you get paid per post?

And yet you still have the audacity to continue to argue that what you are doing is correct and justified, while posting nonsensical one liners persistently and to raise the question as to why your posts are being deleted. Speaking the same language in this thread means squat, he and I disagree on a lot of things too. Should I then start attacking him personally like you? No, there are better ways to express disagreement and displeasure.
 
Forget my tunnel vision, for a second. Compare your posts. His and yours. And check yourself, who's made more posts of value. And by value and positive, I mean posts which express ideas, criticize, explain or define. Making positive posts doesn't mean distorting reality, suppressing facts just to feel-good and pretend thats its all nice. For instance, these are your contributions to the thread.

And you still have the audacity to continue to argue while posting rubbish, every now and then.

Why should we forget your tunnel vision? He posts nothing but nonsense, that is marginal at best, but you cheer him on. Good, I'm loving it. Nonetheless don't expect me to support Tarek Fatah of PDF, while you make such ridiculous statements:

I have lived in the UAE for quite some time and seen young Pakistanis with bachelors, masters, double masters and what-not do security work in Dubai. Not unhappily, they actually pay agents in this country to get that job! Because it pays 3x than whatever the hell, an average honest highly qualified person can get in Pakistan. Assuming one can find a job here, which in itself is an achievement at times. Most of them were fresh and had little experience and thus couldn't get a job in their own field there. Made me sick. I still feel depressed when I think about it. What sort of future do we have if smart, bright educated people are forced to leave the country and do such things?

Nah, these people will keep waiting for the messiah and some, for the world to end. Talk about self-defeating ideology!

Out of the 1.6m ~ 1.7m+ Pakistanis in the UAE, do tell me how many "with bachelors, masters, double masters " degrees, work as security guards? Coming form a TT chairman, it is nothing but ridiculous.

@WebMaster @Horus Do note this conversation.
 
Why should we forget your tunnel vision? He posts nothing but nonsense, that is marginal at best, but you cheer him on. Good, I'm loving it. Nonetheless don't expect me to support Tarek Fatah of PDF, while you make such ridiculous statements:

Out of the 1.6m ~ 1.7m+ Pakistanis in the UAE, do tell me how many "with bachelors, masters, double masters " degrees, work as security guards? Coming form a TT chairman, it is nothing but ridiculous.

@WebMaster @Horus Do note this conversation.

See, still the same response over and over. I don't expect you to support anyone. I don't expect you to whole-heartedly agree with anyone. I just expect you to express your disagreement and displeasure constructively, positively and with basic human decency. Not much to ask, is it now? I cherish diversity and difference of opinion. How many of your posts have I deleted just because you disagree with me? Not one! How many times have the poster whom you are constantly subjecting to personal attacks responded in the same manner to you? Not one!

I do not agree with what you have to say, but I'll defend to the death your right to say it - Evelyn Beatrice Hall

Oh, I didn't count them unfortunately. But it was a large number of Pakistanis, I can tell you that. I just wrote, what I saw. It seems ridiculous to you, because you didn't try to understand, what was being said, once again. And as I have explained earlier to you, the explanation part is the last and best of my abilities. You have to understand things yourself using your faculties, I can't help you in that regard. Not to mention that this post wasn't even made in this thread but since your intention is to make posts of no value and troll un-necessarily, you posted it here. Just as how you were asking the price of vegetables in that thread, when the psyche of the nation was the topic under discussion.
 
See, still the same response over and over. I don't expect you to support anyone. I don't expect you to whole-heartedly agree with anyone. I just expect you to express your disagreement and displeasure constructively, positively and with basic human decency. Not much to ask, is it now? I cherish diversity and difference of opinion. How many of your posts have I deleted just because you disagree with me? Not one! How many times have the poster whom you are constantly subjecting to personal attacks responded in the same manner to you? Not one!

I do not agree with what you have to say, but I'll defend to the death your right to say it - Evelyn Beatrice Hall

Oh, I didn't count them unfortunately. But it was a large number of Pakistanis, I can tell you that. I just wrote, what I saw. It seems ridiculous to you, because you didn't try to understand, what was being said, once again. And as I have explained earlier to you, the explanation part is the last and best of my abilities. You have to understand things yourself using your faculties, I can't help you in that regard. Not to mention that this post wasn't even made in this thread but since your intention is to make posts of no value and troll un-necessarily, you posted it here. Just as how you were asking the price of vegetables in that thread, when the psyche of the nation was the topic under discussion.
You didn't answer the questions I raised. You deflected.

You did delete two of my posts, although technically they weren't my posts, I was just quoting the hater with his own posts, but your sentiments got hurt.

Large number of security guards = how much? 50%, 60% or more? of the Pakistani Population in the UAE. Rethink what you said, with a cool mind, and you will realize on your own, how ridiculous it sounds.

I asked you about the prices of vegetables, because as shown above you are out of touch with reality. To top it off you sit on your high horse and say: "And as I have explained earlier to you, the explanation part is the last and best of my abilities. You have to understand things yourself using your faculties." While oblivious to the fact, that Artificial food shortages are created so the lowest of the low, in a society can make money of peoples misery. This is not the first time, there has been a wheat shortage, sugar shortage, and now tomato, and onions shortage created. But unfortunately you failed to connect the dots, and mis-understood something else.

Can you justify this idiotic post of his, where he idiotically gloats about a typo on an envelope. This is the level of hatred he has for Pakistan. You should be ashamed of yourself, for defending a sellout like this.
No words for this one ...

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You didn't answer the questions I raised. You deflected.

You did delete two of my posts, although technically they weren't my posts, I was just quoting the hater with his own posts, but your sentiments got hurt.

Large number of security guards = how much? 50%, 60% or more? of the Pakistani Population in the UAE. Rethink what you said, with a cool mind, and you will realize on your own, how ridiculous it sounds.

I asked you about the prices of vegetables, because as shown above you are out of touch with reality. To top it off you sit on your high horse and say: "And as I have explained earlier to you, the explanation part is the last and best of my abilities. You have to understand things yourself using your faculties." While oblivious to the fact, that Artificial food shortages are created so the lowest of the low, in a society can make money of peoples misery. This is not the first time, there has been a wheat shortage, sugar shortage, and now tomato, and onions shortage created. But unfortunately you failed to connect the dots, and mis-understood something else.

I answered everything you asked. The problem is that he can talk politely while you can't. I am sorry but I can't keep repeating it again and again. Yes I did and I told you why they were deleted. One sided personal attacks are sufficient grounds for deletion of posts. Moderators will confirm it, if you think that you were wrongly treated by me, on that.

I said what I said, because I used to work for Facilities and Accommodations Unit, Emirates Group Security as an Administration assistant, not so long ago. I used to process the paperwork for the security guards being recruited in Transguard, coming from Pakistan by paying third party recruitment agents or directly hired people on visit visa. I used to listen intently when they were being interviewed and when they were being profiled for induction into specific units. There are highly qualified students from Pakistan, who have to work as security guards in the UAE, because they can't find a job here in the country or their salary isn't competitive or rational. The percentage part is irrelevant. I am not saying that all Pakistanis are doing this thing. A large number of security guards and even cargo loaders going to work for Transguard, specially those from Pakistan (Indians have a similar story) are educated people! It was something really depressing for me. Think why this sad stuff is happening. Why can't they be offered good opportunities in this country so they don't have to do that? What part of it, don't you understand now so to label it ridiculous earlier?

I understood what you meant by asking the price of vegetables. It was in response to my posts saying that people just want Pakistan to exist, that is all and that they don't really care about improving things. Its something that I have seen in a lot of people in this country, who when asked the reasons for this abysmal state of the country, reply that certain countries conspire day and night against Pakistan and that is the reason, we cant prosper. Since we have to utilize most of our resources in countering them and since they cause a lot of damage. I don't know how it would make you think that I am not in touch with reality. Because the survival mode thing in Pakistanis is well known and the persistent desire to maintain status "quo" is too. I doubt that I am saying something, which others haven't said before. And how am I supposed to derive the artificial food shortage part from someone's post asking the rate of certain vegetables? :D

Can you justify this idiotic post of his, where he idiotically gloats about a typo on an envelope. This is the level of hatred he has for Pakistan. You should be ashamed of yourself, for defending a sellout like this.

You aren't serious, are you? Because, the typo on the envelope represents a serious problem. Its not just a typo on any random envelope. Its something related to a institution of higher education. If they can't even print the envelope properly, what hope is there for the rest of the things they are doing? Not to mention, the BIET is known to be highly corrupt regarding tampering with the examination records and allowing cheating to occur in colleges.

Why can't we take criticism, true valid criticism as a basis of improvement? How do you know that it was the hatred for this country, which prompted him to do that? Why do we have to pretend that everything is fine, when in reality its anything but such?

No, nobody has to be ashamed of himself/herself for pointing out or acknowledging obvious mistakes, flaws and blunders. Even if an Indian was pointing these, I would still listen and try to refute or accept without getting abusive or personal.
 
I said what I said, because I used to work for Facilities and Accommodations Unit, Emirates Group Security as an Administration assistant, not so long ago. I used to process the paperwork for the security guards being recruited in Transguard, coming from Pakistan or directly hired people on visit visa. I used to listen intently when they were being interviewed and when they were being profiled for induction into specific units. There are highly qualified students from Pakistan, who have to work as security guards in the UAE, because they can't find a job here in the country or their salary isn't competitive or rational. The percentage part is irrelevant. I am not saying that all Pakistanis are doing this thing. A large number of security guards and even cargo loaders going to work for Transguard, specially those from Pakistan (Indians have a similar story) are educated people! Think why this sad stuff is happening. Why can't they be offered good opportunities in this country so they don't have to do that? What part of it, don't you understand now?


If you think that is bad, wait until you get into a taxicab in Toronto driven by a Pakistani doctor or ex-Army officer. Kid you not.



PS: Canadian Immigration quite often demands an undertaking that a qualified physician from Pakistan will not seek registration in Canada in order to qualify for immigration, and not every physician can pass the exams required to seek residencies in USA. What leads professionals to make this compromise is the basic question being asked here.
 
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If you think that is bad, wait until you get into a taxicab in Toronto driven by a Pakistani doctor or ex-Army officer. Kid you not.
@Secur Look at this post, as usual, a one off incident, being used to paint the whole nation. As usual.

@Syed.Ali.Haider Doctors, migrating to any where in the world need to pass the host country's equivalent exams, until that is done, how does one feed himself? You being a medical professional, should know this better than anyone else! But no, another cheap shot.

I answered everything you asked. The problem is that he can talk politely while you can't. I am sorry but I can't keep repeating it again and again. Yes I did and I told you why they were deleted. One sided personal attacks are sufficient grounds for deletion of posts. Moderators will confirm it, if you think that you were wrongly treated by me, on that.

I said what I said, because I used to work for Facilities and Accommodations Unit, Emirates Group Security as an Administration assistant, not so long ago. I used to process the paperwork for the security guards being recruited in Transguard, coming from Pakistan by paying third party recruitment agents or directly hired people on visit visa. I used to listen intently when they were being interviewed and when they were being profiled for induction into specific units. There are highly qualified students from Pakistan, who have to work as security guards in the UAE, because they can't find a job here in the country or their salary isn't competitive or rational. The percentage part is irrelevant. I am not saying that all Pakistanis are doing this thing. A large number of security guards and even cargo loaders going to work for Transguard, specially those from Pakistan (Indians have a similar story) are educated people! It was something really depressing for me. Think why this sad stuff is happening. Why can't they be offered good opportunities in this country so they don't have to do that? What part of it, don't you understand now so to label it ridiculous earlier?

I understood what you meant by asking the price of vegetables. It was in response to my posts saying that people just want Pakistan to exist, that is all and that they don't really care about improving things. Its something that I have seen in a lot of people in this country, who when asked the reasons for this abysmal state of the country, reply that certain countries conspire day and night against Pakistan and that is the reason, we cant prosper. Since we have to utilize most of our resources in countering them and since they cause a lot of damage. I don't know how it would make you think that I am not in touch with reality. Because the survival mode thing in Pakistanis is well known and the persistent desire to maintain status "quo" is too. I doubt that I am saying something, which others haven't said before. And how am I supposed to derive the artificial food shortage part from someone's post asking the rate of certain vegetables? :D



You aren't serious, are you? Because, the typo on the envelope represents a serious problem. Its not just a typo on any random envelope. Its something related to a institution of higher education. If they can't even print the envelope properly, what hope is there for the rest of the things they are doing? Not to mention, the BIET is known to be highly corrupt regarding tampering with the examination records and allowing cheating to occur in colleges.

Why can't we take criticism, true valid criticism as a basis of improvement? How do you know that it was the hatred for this country, which prompted him to do that? Why do we have to pretend that everything is fine, when in reality its anything but such?

No, nobody has to be ashamed of himself/herself for pointing out or acknowledging obvious mistakes, flaws and blunders. Even if an Indian was pointing these, I would still listen and try to refute or accept without getting abusive or personal.
Bhai Sahab, I can also tell you of two gentlemen Azeem J. and Naeem J. who started out in Transguard as security guards, but today are Flight attendants with Emirates Airlines. You can check with your ex-colleagues in Transgauard.

Good decent jobs, are hard to come by in Pakistan, agreed, and people do what they have to feed their loved ones. I see no shame in them working for a word class org like Transguard, and then moving on.

Being in the job I am, I have seen certain countries conspire, for sure, but they succeed because of the traitors within. People like NS, AAZ, and Hussain Haqqani. Without inside help it is not possible. On the opposite spectrum you have people like Sir @Indus Falcon, who have facilitated both of the current COAS's visit, as well as his third one, which will be the real cherry on the cake.

As to the typo on the envelope, Pakistan's national language, last time I checked wasn't English. This whole envelope business, most probably handled by a lowly clerk who is barely metric pass, to expect otherwise is stupidity.

We can take criticism very well, if you present something positive with it. All he does is sit and abuse all day long. Open up a PM with me, and I will show you screenshots of his disgusting comments on a "Septic tank forum". I can't post it here, because webby has asked me not to.

After you go through the screenshots, you can determine yourself what agenda this person is on.
 
If you think that is bad, wait until you get into a taxicab in Toronto driven by a Pakistani doctor or ex-Army officer. Kid you not.

In UAE, I noticed something else too. The country which you are from and the color of your skin, matters a lot too. One one hand, you have Europeans, Americans, South East Asians and Australians getting the finest cabin crew jobs (you would say "wow" if I were to detail the salary and amenities) easily with basic education (without even graduating first since cabin crew are no experience necessary and basic literacy jobs) living a life of luxury and progressing into promising career opportunities even after they decide, they no longer want to fly anymore with Emirates. They are accommodated afterwards into Security, Cabin service delivery and Ground training/Air training units. You won't find many people from sub-continent there and specially not from Pakistan. Even Indians fare well in that regard. All I am saying that UAE has an obsession with Westerners and natively speaking Ingles/white skin certainly helps.

So, one hand, basic education and such a great job. On the other, you have graduates and post graduates, working as security guards and loaders. Speak about Ce'st La vie!

@Secur Look at this post, as usual, a one off incident, being used to paint the whole nation. As usual.

Just a continuity of what I am saying.

Please calm down, sometimes when you dislike someone, everything that he/she is saying automatically becomes intolerable. Its not so bad.

Bhai Sahab, I can also tell you of two gentlemen Azeem J. and Naeem J. who started out in Transguard as security guards, but today are Flight attendants with Emirates Airlines. You can check with your ex-colleagues in Transgauard.

Good decent jobs, are hard to come by in Pakistan, agreed, and people do what they have to feed their loved ones. I see no shame in them working for a word class org like Transguard, and then moving on.

Being in the job I am, I have seen certain countries conspire, for sure, but they succeed because of the traitors within. People like NS, AAZ, and Hussain Haqqani. Without inside help it is not possible. On the opposite spectrum you have people like Sir @Indus Falcon, who have facilitated both of the current COAS's visit, as well as his third one, which will be the real cherry on the cake.

As to the typo on the envelope, Pakistan's national language, last time I checked wasn't English. This whole envelope business, most probably handled by a lowly clerk who is barely metric pass, to expect otherwise is stupidity.

We can take criticism very well, if you present something positive with it. All he does is sit and abuse all day long. Open up a PM with me, and I will show you screenshots of his disgusting comments on a "Septic tank forum". I can't post it here, because webby has asked me not to.

After you go through the screenshots, you can determine yourself what agenda this person is on.

Good for them, but again you won't find many of them. Statistically speaking. And lately, things have changed for the worst, for Pakistanis. Its not about shame, the job pays well and there are certain benefits of course, but the students ruin their careers mostly. I have seen people getting stuck for 3+ years easily, despite having good degrees. Not working in your own field can result in very disastrous consequences later on, specially when in such a low-end job and having no experience in your own field. Its a respectable job sure, since you aren't stealing from someone, but thats not what you trained for. I really don't think that our students should have to do that. I hope that things change for better here.

Agree to disagree, brother. The verbal altercation and little debate has run its course and we are repeating stuff now to ad nauseam. Take care. And please don't take everything so seriously.
 
In UAE, I noticed something else too. The country which you are from and the color of your skin, matters a lot too. One one hand, you have Europeans, Americans, South East Asians and Australians getting the finest cabin crew jobs (you would say "wow" if I were to detail the salary and amenities) easily with basic education (without even graduating first since cabin crew are no experience necessary and basic literacy jobs) living a life of luxury and progressing into promising career opportunities even after they decide, they no longer want to fly anymore with Emirates. They are accommodated afterwards into Security, Cabin service delivery and Ground training/Air training units. You won't find many people from sub-continent there and specially not from Pakistan. Even Indians fare well in that regard. All I am saying that UAE has an obsession with Westerners and natively speaking Ingles/white skin certainly helps.

So, one hand, basic education and such a great job. On the other, you have graduates and post graduates, working as security guards and loaders. Speak about Ce'st La vie!
It's not an obsession, it has to do with the quality of education. You can't honestly compare Western education with Eastern. Plus the communication skills. When we can afford the best, why should we settle for second best?

Secondly, I am aware of the cabin crew selection methods, that's why I mentioned to you two guys, as an example, whose full names, and even contact numbers can be provided, and you can independently verify them. Nonetheless, point is how well you do in the battery of tests. You are talking about cabin crew being high school pass, there are pilots who are the same, it is not about education, but about certification and skills in the aviation industry.

PS: Canadian Immigration quite often demands an undertaking that a qualified physician from Pakistan will not seek registration in Canada in order to qualify for immigration, and not every physician can pass the exams required to seek residencies in USA. What leads professionals to make this compromise is the basic question being asked here.
Well you being in upstate New York, so close to the Canadian border, that must be their only motivation :D
 
It's not an obsession, it has to do with the quality of education. You can't honestly compare Western education with Eastern. Plus the communication skills. When we can afford the best, why should we settle for second best?

Secondly, I am aware of the cabin crew selection methods, that's why I mentioned to you two guys, as an example, whose full names, and even contact numbers can be provided, and you can independently verify them. Nonetheless, point is how well you do in the battery of tests. You are talking about cabin crew being high school pass, there are pilots who are the same, it is not about education, but about certification and skills in the aviation industry.

No, there's preferential treatment to a large extent. But you are right about communication skills, plus a certain set of basic life skills they demonstrate. Yeah, why settle? I believe you, guys transferring from security to cabin crew was extremely rare but not unheard of. There's a certain discrimination I always noticed and you will rarely find recruitment days being organized in Pakistan now. The few cabin crew from my country I saw, were mostly old hires. I believe that its on purpose, for various reasons and people from subcontinent on a whole are discriminated against. Yeah, I have seen Westerners displaying a trait of not studying excessively, needlessly and without purpose like us. Or maybe its their educational system.
 
I, now believe, with high confidence, that Nawaz Sharif most likely stepped on the toes of the powers that be and got beautifully tackled, by the book. The courts acted, on the whim of the those-who-must-not-be-named and labeled him corrupt and not worthy of running in elections anymore. See, this is the beauty of it. If they acted directly, Nawaz Sharif would become a political martyr, they would risk coming into spotlight and letting the public see what they really are. But since they are experienced been running this game for long and work with an extremely effective strategy, they acted through a third party - the judiciary. Now, they have created a valid reason for his dismissal and made certain that he's not a problem for them anymore. Everything they desired has been executed, while maintaining the cover of vagueness and without exposing their identity.


For a third timer who ruled the country or parts of it for more than 30 years, who had 2/3rd majority twice, who got to select all his Army Chiefs .......... how difficult was it for him to win heart and mind of many many Pakistanis ....... look at the scale of opportunity and time he had, and then look at the support he got?

All the conspiracy theories fail when they fail to gather support in their favor ........ "They" don't come knocking at doors of ordinary people to stop them from coming out in support of Ogre and co.

There is no selective accountability ............ this ogre's case doesn't even come close to how MQM has been brought back into Pakistan. It's only law of requital at play. They have proven their mentality twice ..... they don't believe in reasoning and justice ........ they believe in violence and thuggery.
 
For a third timer who ruled the country or parts of it for more than 30 years, who had 2/3rd majority twice, who got to select all his Army Chiefs .......... how difficult was it for him to win heart and mind of many many Pakistanis ....... look at the scale of opportunity and time he had, and then look at the support he got?

All the conspiracy theories fail when they fail to gather support in their favor ........ "They" don't come knocking at doors of ordinary people to stop them from coming out in support of Ogre and co.

There is no selective accountability ............ this ogre's case doesn't even come close to how MQM has been brought back into Pakistan. It's only law of requital at play. They have proven their mentality twice ..... they don't believe in reasoning and justice ........ they believe in violence and thuggery.

Okay, a simple question then. Who else has been convicted and disqualified by the courts since Nawaz Sharif and his family, got the sharp end of the sword? Anyone? I mean its been long since then and if this isn't a facade but a genuine systematic beginning of accountability in the country, then there must be others facing the heat and/or getting burned by it.
 
Who else has been convicted and disqualified by the courts since Nawaz Sharif and his family, got the sharp end of the sword? Anyone? I mean its been long since then and if this isn't a facade but a genuine systematic beginning of accountability in the country, then there must be others facing the heat and/or getting burned by it.

Seriously !!!!!!

Who else has created so much drama about resolving this panama issue in Parliament? Please do tell was it ISI, MI, IB, FIA, SECP or Pakistan's military that landed this case in SC? Let me recall who tops the list of attacking Pakistani courts ...... hmmm let me guess who could be this much stupid retard, is it that hard to guess? Or lets see who is that idiot who appoints an Army Chief and every time he has problem with his own selection ..... hmmmm?

I won't go into what came out of JIT ............. AL HAMDOLILAH.

IK I believe is still defending his case in SC ......... even though he hasn't held a public office in all his life.

As I said its the law of requital at play .......... they got what they deserved. Others are not that smart to make a mess like them.

Do you see Zardari coming back to politics? He successfully destroyed his son's chances. And these two families are the apparently the only two dynasties ........ the biggest hurdle for true democracy in Pakistan.
 
You aren't serious, are you? Because, the typo on the envelope represents a serious problem. Its not just a typo on any random envelope. Its something related to a institution of higher education. If they can't even print the envelope properly, what hope is there for the rest of the things they are doing? Not to mention, the BIET is known to be highly corrupt regarding tampering with the examination records and allowing cheating to occur in colleges.

From envelopes to CSS examinations, the rot in education, selection and professional advancement based on merit, is deep and wide:

http://www.thefridaytimes.com/tft/why-do-so-few-people-pass-the-css-exam/

Why do so few people pass the CSS exam?
11.jpg

M A Siddiqi 13 Oct 2017


tft-101317a-m-600x368.jpg

Quaid-e-Azam addressing civil servants 25 March 1948



The Federal Public Service Commission has declared the results of the written part of its 2017 annual competitive examination for people who wish to join government service as a bureaucrat.

This year, 23,205 people applied but only 9,391 actually sat the exam—an abnormal gap between applications and candidates for the Central Superior Services (CSS) 2017 exam in February. Out of this, 3.32% or 312 candidates passed. This year’s performance is at par with that of the previous five years; there has been no improvement despite a constant country-wide clamour that the success rate has been dropping. One third of the successful candidates are young women (109). In spite of the generalist nature of their work, CSS cadres attract skilled personnel from almost all professional fields, the prominent ones being medicine, engineering and business management.

The CSS of Pakistan, a powerful part of the government machinery commonly known as the bureaucracy, uncannily reflects the inherent anomaly in human existence. The bureaucracy has assumed a central role in governmental decision-making and implementation despite having no detailed reference in the constitutions of nation states and having no role in policy designs of political regimes. It has evolved from a desultory imperial organizational apparatus to an integrated leviathan, becoming part of the power structure of a nation state. The growth of its influence may not be essentially underwritten by ideology but it is certainly the outcome of necessity and convenience. Bureaucracies may not be loved or respected but they are tolerated and considerably depended upon.

In Pakistan our bureaucracy owes its existence and influence to paperwork it churns out and then guards jealously. The intricate file work keeps its grip intact, frustrating political dispensation that frequently raises a hue and cry even in well-developed bureaucratic systems such as that of the United Kingdom that boasts of a well-entrenched tradition of firm political control on administrative institutions. Even in as late a year as 2014, former Prime Minister (also minister-in-charge of civil service) David Cameron publicly vowed to scrap more than 3,000 rules “dreamt up by Whitehall bureaucrats” potentially saving over 850 million pounds a year.

CSSPassRate.jpg


A history


Responding to accusations of nepotism and favouritism, the civil service of the East India Company was thrown open to competition in 1853. The gradual widening of administrative divisions increased the number of occupational groups for which the competitive examination was held.

Currently it is held for the recruitment for intermediate supervisory positions designated as BPS or grade 17 in twelve occupational groups categorized as administrative, financial and auxiliary services. The range of control of civil services on governmental activity in Pakistan is almost all-pervasive: they control 80% of state land through the Pakistan Administrative Service (PAS) and the ‘deputy commissioner’ set rate of the price of land is still the countrywide benchmark; the rest of the 20% of state land is under military control but that too is regulated by the CSS occupational group, Military Lands & Cantonments (MLCG), in which uniformed services vie to appoint their nominee as its head honcho (DG MLC).

Law and order, although labeled a provincial subject, is mostly taken care of by the Police Service supervisory cadre (PSP), recruited through the CSS exam. The entire foreign affairs of the land are supervised by the Foreign Service mandarins (FSP), proud to work in the exclusive FO building in Islamabad (most civil servants operate from the Pakistan Secretariat or scattered offices). The Pakistan Customs (PCS) and Inland Revenue (IRS) are exclusive revenue-collecting agencies which every government keeps close, sheltered and pampered. No internal or foreign governmental payment is received, made or audited except through the offices of the Pakistan Audit & Accounts Service (PAAS).

The CSS occupational groups run the railways through the Railways Group (RC&TG), deliver countrywide post via the Postal Group (PG), manage imports, exports, commerce and trade courtesy the Commerce and Trade cadre (CTG). They try keeping an eye on the countrywide information dissemination network through the wobbly Information Group (IG) and manage the vast secretarial activity of government through trained office managers (OMG).

The recruitment to the civil service is done through the CSS exam conducted by the Federal Public Service Commission (FPSC) every year in spring. The nine-member FPSC is a sought-after resting place for former bureaucrats who fiercely lobby for this influential sinecure. The current FPSC is composed of a chairman (former uniformed officer absorbed in the PAS), six PAS officers (including the redoubtable Nargis Sethi), two FSP officers and one two-star army general. The CSS exam is, however, considered to be the exclusive domain of the chairman and members only participate in the exercise as part of panels interviewing successful candidates of the written part (constituting a major part of the examination as it comprises 1,200 of the total of 1,500 marks of the competition). The FPSC altered the course material for 53 subjects offered in the competition and revised the marks of certain subjects by reducing or increasing them. The revised syllabus was implemented in 2016.

Pass or fail

The dwindling success rate of the CSS exam is debated countrywide and the results of the last few years have raised concerns about the competition as a whole. In 2011, 9,063 candidates appeared and 786 finally qualified, yielding an 8.6% result. The success rate, although lowered, remained almost at par with that of the next year, 2012: 10,066 people appeared and 788 qualified (7.8%). The success rate plunged in 2013: 11,406 people sat the exam but only 220 qualified, shrinking the success percentage to a meagre 1.94%. No improvement was witnessed in 2014; 24,640 candidates applied out of which 13,169 appeared (a record of sorts, half of them not appearing!) and 377 candidates finally made it at a paltry 2.86%. The downward trend continued in 2015 as 12,176 appeared and 379 qualified at 3.11%. And finally in the dismal performance of 2016 only 202 or 2.09% qualified out of 9,643 candidates taking the examination.

There are many reasons for these numbers. The cardinal reason attributed to the incessantly dismal success rate is the corresponding lowering of academic standards. This is, however, a debatable point as the current academic milieu churns out successful professional output that is rising in every field of endeavour it becomes part of. Entire generations cannot be dismissed as substandard just because so few are qualifying this competitive examination.

A more probable reason is the failure to fit in the round cog of specifications bequeathed by a colonial emphasis on labyrinthine classical academic pursuits, the square peg of the specific requirements of current academic practices. It is precisely the search for this elusive ‘well-rounded’ species by the civil service guiding principles that continuously raises the bar of success that, in turn, puts tremendous pressure on intellectual credentials of precision-oriented candidates. The current emphasis on exact, and in certain cases, selective study, invariably falls short of the inferential knowledge and critical grasp of subjects CSS competition requires. The candidates will be well served if they appreciated and acquired a wide spectrum of understanding and interpretation of skills the CSS demands. It is not only advisable but also desirable to expand the contours of learning and not keep it limited to contrite subject material evaluated through multiple choice questions and specific answer regimes.

The failure rate conveys the impression that the CSS is an elitist, forbidden exercise whereas in actual fact it is not, as it gives young men and women from every segment of society a fair chance. Since the FPSC holds this competition it must devise a plausible standard of assessment that takes into account the current academic priorities and practices. Asking candidates to do a précis of passages written in rabid stultifying 19th century prose can surely give way to modern constructed versions of the English language. The sprawling range of inference required in equally gawky questions needs to be narrowed down. The extraordinarily huge discretion allowed to the examiner (he can conveniently and merrily fail 98% of candidates!) should also be curtailed. Although the government machinery can function through the tried and tested method of adding multiple duties to an assignment as a stop-gap arrangement to offset the paucity of personnel, there is a desperate need to promptly review the recruitment process as the 2016 result roundly belies the long-held conviction that the government gets the numbers it wants despite raising the bar as high as it wishes. In 2016, for the first time in recent memory, the government fell short by 158 qualifiers required to fill 351 vacancies as only 193 were finally available.

Ali Siddiqi is a former bureaucrat and runs an academic training outfit in Karachi. He can be reached at tviuk@hotmail.com
 
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The continuing failures in the provision of justice make for a poor social milieu:

https://www.economist.com/news/asia...istan-mainstreaming-misogynist-tribal-justice

More blinkered than blind
Pakistan is “mainstreaming” misogynist tribal justice

It is fast and cheap, if not always edifying

Print edition | Asia
Oct 13th 2017| Rawalpindi
ONE evening in August Bakht Jan, a 15-year-old girl, attempted to elope with her boyfriend. Before she could meet him, relatives found her and brought her home. Although both families agreed on a swift marriage for their children, a jirga, or tribal council, demanded blood. Obeying its edict, Ms Bakht’s father drugged and then electrocuted her. Her boyfriend was murdered by his own father in the same way the next day, restoring “honour” in the eyes of the jirga.

Such barbarism has become synonymous with jirgas, a traditional form of justice that blends tribal and Islamic customs with the whims of participants. Despite a law passed in 2011 that allows police to arrest members of jirgas suspected of “anti-women” practices, grotesque abuses continue unabated, activists say. Mukhtar Mai, who was gang-raped on the orders of a jirga in 2002 as recompense for a sexual assault supposedly committed by a male relative, recently lamented that her subsequent campaign to curb the use of jirgas had not succeeded. Just three months ago a girl, aged 16, suffered a horrifically similar “revenge rape” in the same province.

Instead of trying to stamp out jirgas, however, the government has decided to integrate them into the formal justice system. Earlier this year it won parliamentary approval for a law that gives their rulings force, subject to certain reforms. The government will appoint “neutral arbitrators” to each jirga, who must approve their verdicts—a measure it hopes will eliminate misogynist horrors.

MPs seem untroubled by the plan. Just 23 of the 342 members of the lower house bothered to vote on it. The debate centred on whether to use the term jirga, given its diabolical reputation, rather than on whether the reform itself was a good idea.

Support for jirgas stems as much from the disrepair of the formal courts as from respect for tradition. The judiciary is smothered by a backlog of 2m cases. Lawsuits take almost a decade to resolve, on average. Lawyers often charge exorbitant fees, in advance. All this puts the formal justice system out of reach for many Pakistanis. This is not just a gross injustice in itself; it is also bad for security, says Syed Ali Akhtar Shah, a former chief of police of the state of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Such was the frustration with the courts in the northern district of Swat that the Taliban won local support by promising “speedy justice” when they took control of the area in 2009.

From his seat in a circle of plastic lawn chairs, Mahfooz Waheed, a former bureaucrat who runs a popular jirga in the city of Rawalpindi, close to Islamabad, argues that informal justice does not deserve its grim reputation. Only a sliver of the caseload concerns sexual or marital disputes, he argues, and only jirgas in illiterate backwaters produce the sort of decisions that end up making shocking headlines. Jirgas offer more than speed and economy, he notes: whereas judges in murder cases can only punish, he can offer compensation. Through his mediation, a widow whose husband and son were killed in a land dispute was paid $60,000—something of far more practical benefit to her than a conviction. Even the well-to-do seek his help. When a group of businessmen embroiled in a commercial dispute start to shout at one another, he snaps: “This is not a mall, or a court, or a police station, it is a jirga—so behave yourselves.”

Support is growing in unlikely corners. In 2016 a report commissioned by Britain’s Department for International Development (DFID) advocated studying the “merits” of jirgas, given the power they wield. Accordingly, DFID has recently funded gender-sensitivity training for tribal elders in Peshawar, a conservative northern city.

But activists for women’s rights tend to snort at such moves. British colonialists, points out Nazish Brohi, a researcher, also tried to preserve jirgas while eliminating their most abhorrent practices. But threats to banish those guilty of “honour killings” merely led to a spike in the number of violent deaths labelled suicides.

Lawyers, too, snarl at the idea of “mainstreaming” jirgas. Whoever drafted the new law “should be shot”, says one, since it grants licence to a system totally at odds with Pakistan’s constitution at a stroke. Rather than indulging mobs of senescent villagers, another suggests, the government should give the authority to resolve petty disputes to nazims, the lowliest of elected officials. Another option is to produce a proper land register. Given that, by some estimates, 90% of civil cases involve disputes about land, that would drastically reduce the burden on the formal courts. Instead, Pakistan is on the verge of cementing into law a tribal code that considers the term “property” to include women.

This article appeared in the Asia section of the print edition under the headline "More blinkered than blind".

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Okay, a simple question then. Who else has been convicted and disqualified by the courts since Nawaz Sharif and his family, got the sharp end of the sword? Anyone? I mean its been long since then and if this isn't a facade but a genuine systematic beginning of accountability in the country, then there must be others facing the heat and/or getting burned by it.

That will happen only if and when the time is right to derive maximum benefit, not for justice. If it ever happens.
 

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