July 23 , 2010

The Saga of Fake Degrees and Violation of Media Freedom

 

Some two weeks have passed since the circus began in the Punjab Assembly in the first week of July excoriating the media mainly for highlighting the cases of fake and forged degrees submitted by the legislators while seeking elections to the august body. In speech after emotionally charged speech, they gave vent to their frenzy and fury, rage and ferocity, against the media, converting their ire into a resolution drafted by an all-party, 18-member panel.  Unanimously approved by the Assembly on July 9, the resolution read:
“This session of the Punjab Assembly looks at an irresponsible propaganda being spread by a section of the media against democratic institutions, political leaders and public representatives, with strong reservations and is of the opinion that it can have negative impact on the future of democracy and supremacy of the law and the constitution of Pakistan.

 “All members of this session unanimously condemn this unnecessary propaganda campaign being launched against the democratic institutions and public representatives and demands media organisations avoid presenting baseless, humiliating and irresponsible programmes.”

Even after the resolution was passed, the parliamentarians continued giving lengthy speeches condemning the media personnel as “blackmailers” who indulged in “character assassination of politicians for ulterior motives”.

Although some references were made to the objectionable portrayal of some lady political figures, the chief cause of the chagrin appeared to be the media exposure of those members who had submitted certificates of graduation from colleges whose portals they had not entered.  It is perhaps relevant to point out here that President Clinton was severely denigrated by the US media not for having an illicit affair with Monica Lewinsky but for telling a lie about the affair.  President Nixon too had to quit because of the media exposure of his lies in the Watergate scandal.  Honesty and integrity are universally expected of public representatives.   Not so now in Pakistan.

President Musharraf had in 2002 imposed the condition of college graduation for all aspirants to membership in the federal or provincial assemblies.

For the last general elections, quite a few candidates, who were known to have never seen the face of a university, filed applications with forged or fake degrees.

The Chief Justice ordered the Election Commission to enquire into the matter and take action against the culprits. The task was assigned to Higher Education Commission who till the time of writing had identified 37 such cases. More might follow.

Mr. Sanauallah Mustikhel, the member of the Punjab Assembly, who tabled the resolution against the media, held “the three ‘J’s responsible for the situation  -Generals, judiciary and journalist”.  Carried by the intensity of his own rhetoric, he forgot that the word General is not spelled with a ‘J’. 

What is surprising is the fact that the majority of the members who held genuine college degrees stood up in support of the forgers and cheaters, thus admitting the passage of the resolution unanimously. They might attribute it an observance of the
espirit de corps but cynics might view it as a unity among thieves.

Many of them hail from feudal families and they command the respect of their vassals and tenants because of their official status and clout. The graduation condition had blocked for them the path to the official and social status they craved. They wanted to retain their dynastic political clout by hooks or crooks.  Hence their resort is desperation to fake or forged certificates. 

Mr. Asif Ali Zardari, according to Wikepedia, the encyclopedia that can be reached on the Internet, claims to be a graduate of the London School of Economics and Business.  There is no such institution in England, the London office of a leading Pakistani daily reported.

Mr. Babar Awan’s PhD degree is from an institution in Hawaii which is, according to the US authorities, not a chartered and recognized University.

No wonder, one of the first actions taken by the PPP government after assuming power in February 2008 was to knock out the graduation condition.

Mr. Jamsheed Dasti, MNA, decided to resign instead of being disqualified for not possessing a college degree. After the condition was removed, he fought reelection and won. The PPP is reported to have poured a lot of money in his constituency to ensure his success.  President Zardari hailed his victory by declaring in a public speech: “No matter what you do, our Jasheed Dasti will win.” He was obviously making a dig at the Supreme Court that had ordered the enquiries.

He is the major beneficiary from the political commotion stirred by the degree issue. Attention has diverted, though temporarily, from the failures of his party’s governance and its inability to solve the problems of power, high cost of living,  non-availability of essential commodities, failure to maintain law and order, in particular the almost daily suicide bombs and daylight robberies. Above all else is the gloomy outlook of the country’s economy. The Finance Minister and the IMF have made no bones about it.  

As for the clash with the media, the PML (N) which led the attack in the Punjab Assembly, has already started distancing itself from the anti-media resolution. Similar duplicity has been reported on the part of the other major parties too.

The Pakistani media, which had been in earlier times strictly controlled by military rulers, were liberated by another military man, Gen. Musharraf.  Barring stray instances, the media have given a fair account of their conduct. And, both the print and broadcast media have served the nation well as viable opposition to keep the government under check, particularly as the opposition party, Nawaz’s PML (N), had abdicated its elected role and become a ‘friendly’, ‘silent’ opposition. A ‘friendly opposition’ was a novel concept in the political lexicon. Perhaps Nawaz Sharif’s obsession with settling scores with Musharraf was behind the unusual stance to cooperate with the PPP in order to ward off another army take over.

Whatever the reality, it is a pity that the politicians, who had been crying hoarse in the past for the freedom of the media, are now trying to place fetters on the thriving, throbbing media endeavoring to promote a viable and responsible democracy. The media have stood as interpreters between the government and the people.  To allow it to be fettered is to fetter the people.

The 18 th century French philosopher, Voltaire, claimed, “ Liberty of thought is the life of the soul”. And, Benjamin Franklin, US Founding Father, elaborated Voltaire’s adage by declaring: “Without freedom of thought, there can be no such thing as wisdom; and no such thing as public liberty without freedom of speech.”

Listening to Sanaullah Mustikhel‘s rhetoric on the floor of the Punjab Assembly, on a YTV channel, I couldn’t help recalling an old Chinese saying: Zeal without knowledge is a runaway horse. His party too appears to have lost, at least in this episode, its sense of direction.

    arifhussaini@hotmail.com