TV THOUGHTS: President's election; KESC limits TV viewing;: Brass Tacks to counter economic terrorism

In a continuously changing, worrying, depressing overall context, comes the end of the ruling coalition, with Mian Nawaz Sharif making that predictable announcement of the pull out. Asif Ali Zardari, reacted at once, and apologised if he had hurt Mian Sahib's feelings and reiterated his point of view on the judges.
The end of the ruling coalition has changed the country's political course. More questions, old and new have surfaced. And while the issue of the deposed Chief Justice of the Supreme Court Mr Iftikhar Mohammed Chaudhry still remains unresolved, there are curious and contradictory indications on what could happen in the near future.
With the exit of Pervez Musharraf the country is in the midst of a process in which the elections to the office of the President are now scheduled for 6th September. And the three main contestants, who are being focused upon by the media, are Asif Ali Zardari, Former Justice Saiduzzaman Siddiqui and Mushahid Hussein Sayed.
BRAHAMDAGH AND BALOCHISTAN: This week saw the second death anniversary of Nawab Akbar Khan Bugti and there was not only an observance of the occasion but both print and electronic media highlighted the occasion. Nusrat Javed and Mushtaq Minhas were discussing the assassination of the late Akbar Bugti in Bolta Pakistan (Aaj TV) and talking to Nawabzada Brahamdagh Bugti, a grandson of the late chieftain of the Bugti tribe.
The conversation reflected the extent to which the Baloch people carry the hurt and the what they perceive as the insult and the humiliation that they have received throughout the country's history.Both the TV anchors tried their best to convince the young Baloch leader to look at some workable ,practical solutions to the problems of Balochistan. To which Brahamdagh Bugti said that they had suffered for so long, and the distrust of the establishment was so deep-rooted, that the answers did not appear to lie within the context of Pakistan.
Brahamdagh Bugti was asked about the prospects of his meeting with Asif Zardari and responding to the moves that the PPP Co Chairman had made for the Balochi people. The young Bugti was not convinced, and said that even after Musharraf the Baloch people were being targeted daily.
On the subject of what more was known about the circumstances in which Akbar Bugti was murdered, the young Bugti leader said that while the government claims were contradictory, little information has been provided on the actual incident.
BRASS TACKS ON ECONOMIC TERRORISM: I have heard of the programme Brass Tacks from some TV viewers and for want of opportunity been unable to see this programme, and indeed many others. After all, there is only that much TV that one can see. Zaid Hamid is the eloquent and passionate speaker in this programme,(on News One) and the interviewer is an attentive Mahrukh.
From what I saw on Monday night the programme is also characterised by a somewhat infectious, and welcome missionary zeal -in which the individual viewer, the solitary recipient of the message of Islam is advised to do his bit, in his personal capacity. It is pertinent to mention here the increasing number of easy to understand motivational programmes, on the subject of Islam, which is certainly a reflection of the swiftly changing role of the electronic media.
The programme I am referring to was part of what appeared to be a series on "Economic Terrorism," and from all that I heard it was directed against the Zionist Economic Model. Zaid Hamid almost pleaded that each one should do, his own bit and challenge the Zionist Economic Model.
Underlining emphatically the need to feed the poor in society, and not be discouraged by the obstacles that come in the way, he added that it was vital that we share what we have in our lives. He said that there were already a large number of organisations and, therefore, there was no more any need to create more of them. He said that media had a vital role to play in this regard, and that the message should be disseminated far and wide.
Referring to the Zakat that we give, he stressed that real wealth should be given as Zakat and not what he termed as "paper money". He advocated the practice of keeping savings in the shape of real wealth, which could be in the form of gold or investment in land.He added that gold could be kept in bank lockers or at home, , even if it meant burying the assets underground.
Zaid Hamid advocated the need to avoid keeping assets in the banking system, and said that the contact with the banks should be at a bare minimum. He expressed himself very simply on the subject of shares (stocks) and explained under what circumstances this was permissible. What was central to what he was saying was that the Almighty Allah will, of course, put to test and trial one's faith and there is no doubt whatsoever, that He will come to the help of the seeker.
On the subject of an Islamic programme like this one, thoughts go out to some of the others that are telecast on various channels, besides the QTV and the Peace TV. I am referring to those of Dr Javed Ahmed Ghamidi, Dr Israr Ahmed, Allama Tahirul Qadri, Dr Amir Liaquat Hussein and many others .
With the holy month of Ramazan due within a couple of days (September 2nd or 3rd) TV viewers are going to have a wide and impressive variety of Ramazan programmes (for Sehri and Iftar for example) which will certainly go a long and welcome way in the creation of a tranquil and thought provoking environment. Indeed TV channels have done well to bring to Pakistani homes the mood that Ramazan carries. One hopes that the Kesc and other organisations like Wapda and Kanupp and Pepco etc are able to provide citizens the electricity needed to ensure that Ramazan 2008 doesn't get diminished due to loadshedding, in these days of worship.
SHAHZAD ROY, AYESHA KHAN: This time on the Late Night Show with Begum Nawazish Ali on Sunday (24th August) the Begum was buoyant and her two guests were singer Shahzad Roy who has initiated the Zindagi Trust and actress Ayesha Khan. And to both of them she said very convincingly they were both her favourite people. The interesting thing about this is that she says it to very many of her guests. That is the power of the alluring charm that she has, and they go along with her, sending out signals that they believe her. Atleast as long as they are with her, in that hypnotic drawing room, they are captive to her conversation!
For those who have seen the Begum Nawazish Ali show for some time now, and those who know of the enigmatic personality of Ali Saleem who plays the Begum, so impressively, it is almost a compulsion to watch as much of the show as one can. It's just that at the back of the mind is the "Breaking news" or "News Just In" or "News Alert" that one desires to get updated with. After all, it is primarily a political environment, and political times that we are in. That is one reason why as a viewer I am unable to see so much of the non-political programming which I am sure has improved in quality with the passage of time.
The Begum Nawazish- Ayesha Khan dialogue was lively and entertaining, with the latter being repeatedly asked on why she was playing the role of a home breaker so often in TV plays. She said that even she could not understand why she was being assigned such characters in which she plays the "other woman". Word play is an integral part of the Begum 's script and therefore she wanted to know whether Ayesha Khan was a home breaker or a "heart breaker".
For those TV viewers who are not very familiar with Ayesha Khan it was interesting to hear some details of her personal life --- and at one stage she told the Begum that she was unlikely to consider marrying someone from the glamorous world of show business. This surprised the Begum who responded by saying that this was not very complimentary to the people from the showbiz world. Ayesha Khan explained that she was a very demanding person, and would expect her husband to be with her all the time, and not be away for work abroad for several months altogether. She hoped to quit working after marriage.
Shahzad Roy, a singer who has been able to create an image for himself with the welfare work that he has lined up for his ambitious Zindagi Trust, spoke on the subject of falling in love, very explicitly. He was categorical that when someone falls in love, there are no questions asked and no conditions imposed.
Ali Saleem has been indicating for sometime now that he is looking at other options, for himself as a writer and for the Begum so as to lend diversity and depth to her life and experience.There is visible insistence on change, in the way he has been expressing himself in some TV interviews. Perhaps this is the creative impatience -- which is born of what, one wonders. Where does Ali Saleem go from here, and what does the Begum do for him or to him?
POWER CRISIS: With the power crisis making life still more frustrating and with rising electricity tariffs reflecting the state of the economy and the state of the planning that were done in the last eight years plus,the impact of it all on TV viewing needs to be underlined.Not just complain, but actually protest. TV viewing is being hit hard. That life and life's routine are being derailed also needs to be underlined. And there are no early and easy solutions in sight, and nor are they going to be affordable in the sense that we are accustomed to. No subsidies for life's essentials in the days to come. Things are changing. But whether as a society we are willing to happily and wholeheartedly facilitate the process is something that that keeps one guessing.
Experiencing or rather confronting a power crisis, with loadshedding making life tougher still, watching Television is a very annoying proposition. If one is watching TV alone, the silence of the TV set initiates a conversation with oneself. If there is company it is possible that most viewers will blame the government, and accuse the power companies for being inefficient and thereby creating the acute countrywide power shortage.
Various officials ranging from the mismanaged KESC to the minister concerned have said that there isn't available the electricity that the country needs at the available tariff. Evidently it is the cost of the fuel that restrains the Kesc for instance, from trying to meet the power demands that are rising with time.
So many times during this week as well, I had to go without watching Television (which I enjoy I might underline) or have to bear with interruptions when one was watching the closing ceremony of the Beijing Olympics, or the live press conference that was addressed by Mian Nawaz Sharif when he quit the ruling coalition, or when there was the latest news on the decisions of the lawyers movement that were being announced.
DISCUSSING UMRA, HAJ ON METRO ONE: I do not know why the Waqt TV was not available for almost two days on the World Call cable system, to which I subscribe. I also have another smaller cable network available, which was telecasting the Waqt TV during the two days.
So on the World Call cable network the Metro One channel was being shown, and the discussants were Yahya Polani, Hanif and Shoaib Bokhari. The compere was Bilal Ehsan.It appeared to be a conversation focused on a broad range of issues, related to the travel business, with an emphasis on Haj and Umrah .One of the points of that was detailed was that while there was no decline in air travel due to the increase in air fares, it was unfair to assume that most travel operators and agents were indulging in alleged malpractices.
There was also a mention of the problems arising from Pakistanis who go for Umrah or Haj and then disappear there .One of the participants mentioned the guarantees of one lakh Saudi riyals that are at stake if and when there is a violation of the rules. He felt that this and many other rules were against the interests of Pakistani travel agents and tour operators and that the Pakistan government should take up the issue.
He added that it was unwise and unfair to assume that the Pakistani would always be on the "wrong side" of the law. It was a useful discussion and provided a window into the travel world. By the way I have seen Metro One channel more than once, recently. It appears to be picking up. ([email protected])