TV THOUGHTS: Plundering the country's wealth since 1971? Confrontational stands on all types of issues

With all this welcome focus there is on the subject of bank loans default and write off and the impatient, angry tone that is reflected in the talk shows atleast, one could assume that it is going to make the common man wonder whether all that plundered and misappropriated money will ever come back to the country's exchequer.
And were that to happen is it possible that the economy of Pakistan will improve, and if and when that happens, will the benefits be passed down to the common man? That Pakistan's wealth lies in the black economy that exists and also in the wealthy that has been taken away and invested and hidden abroad, by Pakistan's rulers and decision makers and so on, is something that is stating the obvious.
So if all that money comes back into the country will the rising cost of living that is strangulating the ordinary people, take a U turn? What the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Pakistan Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry has said on the subject of the State Bank of Pakistan list of loan defaulters (period 1997-2009) reflects the resolve and the determination to cleanse the system.
He has directed the SBP to furnish a list of defaulters from 1971 to now, keep in mind the 1971 is the new face of Pakistan, after the Fall of Dhaka. What kind of action lies ahead, is a simple question that can implies complex issues, of course. Said the chief justice of the last chance to defaulters that "If anyone says that the SC has crosses its limit, we are ready to take the blame in nation's best interest".
Such thoughts and other thoughts came to mind as I watched Kashif Abbasi in Off The Record (ARY News on Wednesday evening) exploring the subject of bank loans write off, with participants like Shaikh Rashid, Fauzia Wahab and Khawaja Saad Rafiq. A former Chairman of the National Development Finance Corporation (NDFC) Mian Asif Saeed was also in the discussion. One does wonder why almost the same set of participants are there for subjects that could easily have new and relevant people. The discussion was absorbing all the way.
But then this is not the only theme that is challenging Pakistan's authorities. There is the intermittent surfacing of speculation, both at home and abroad, that a coup is in the making in Pakistan, and Nawaz Sharif cut short his visit to London, and returned on Wednesday.
There is the PML-N stand that there will be no demand for President Asif Zardari's resignation if the Supreme Court verdict against the NRO is implemented in letter and spirit. Zardari is a major theme on all channels, and his defenders have come out in the open, making citizens wonder whether there is confrontation born of a conspiracy?
The TV news channels, possibly for the first time, in the media's history in the country are very much in the mainstream of the political battles that are being fought, and it needs to be noted that Prime Minister Gilani has said that "no one should be under any illusion that he can dislodge our government and keep enjoying power himself." He is reported to have said this to Shahbaz Sharif during a one to one meeting in Lahore on Monday.
It is pertinent to note here that the gradual rise in the political heat is also evident in not only what is being said in the TV talk shows, but also what is being said by political leaders (PPP in Lahore and Islamabad) in some rallies supporting Zardari.
The anger and harshness, as well as the language being used reflect the hardened stances of the leaders in this raging storm, as it were. What are the messages that are coming out of all this war of words? Is it beyond reconciliation now? Veiled threats, and open ones are being made, without a thought of much damage can come as a consequence.
And what about the bitterness and the anger that was evident in the news clips that showed PPP leaders Raja Riaz Ahmad Khan and Rana Aftab Ahmad Khan specifically referring to anchors Kamran Khan, Dr Shahid Masood and Editors Shaheen Sehbai and Ansar Abbasi, warning them that were they to not mend their ways the consequences would be grave.
I have avoided using the language that was telecast. Also, the language used by a PPP woman leader in Islamabad Nargis Faiz Malik on Wednesday warning the critics of Zardari was reflective of the mood of the street power that is being demonstrated by the ruling party.
Can there be mid-term polls keeping in mind that civilian governments run into serious survival challenges in about two years or two years plus time? Of course the TV channels keep repeating that the Army is not likely to step in to run the country, as its hands are full, with the war against terror that is on, and which is likely to continue for the foreseeable future.
There are many such themes being discussed with almost an agonising concern which when viewed collectively, all paint a tormenting picture at the end of 2009. This is the last column of the year and one views with apprehension the New Year that begins next week. 2010 is unlikely to bring good news, especially on the economic front for the ordinary people.
From Aaj News, (Midday News) one learns from its news presenter Nadia Mirza that a mini budget is likely to come sometime in the first half of January. Energy costs are going up, ending loadshedding promises by 31st December 2009 have been in vain, and the overall rising costs of living, as well as unemployment levels are some of the reasons to make one cynical about what the New Year is likely to bring.
Hot Frontier: The solitary story that Farzana Ali was examining in detail in Hot Frontier (Aaj News) on Tuesday evening was about the attack on the Peshawar Press Club, in which four people died, and a very pertinent question that she was raising was this: whether the journalists in Lahore or Karachi fully comprehend the grave context within which the journalists in Peshawar are working.
The larger context that she was referring to was that of the ongoing war against terrorists whose fall out is having a direct physical, psychological and economic impact on the province. Peshawar, of course, being the most hit in recent months. I have seen many of the regular programmes Farzana Ali has been doing for sometime now. They appear to be fairly comprehensive each time, and are rounded off with a neatness that she manages well.
And as against the emotional and assertive manner that some presenters and anchors have, her style is modest, firm, and she appears to have opinion based on the homework that she has done. Needless to say that the impassioned manner that some of our popular anchors have carries an appeal that is both immediate and enduring.
I find myself being quite happily accommodating when it comes to our TV news and current anchors. There are a variety of newspaper columnists or sports commentators for that matter. The variety reflects the diversity there is in the audience. That evening Farzana Ali had Syed Talat Hussain (Aaj News) talking on the specific theme of the day's suicide attack on the Peshawar Press Club, and the wider context of the challenge that lies ahead in the immediate future.
Talat suggested that the media owners should look into the urgency of providing adequate security to journalists, especially where they assemble collectively, places of work, presumably, and places like Press Clubs which are dotted all over the country today. He added that owners had the resources to do this, and in a reference to the economic factor he said that sometimes owners had a drop in profits. That was all.
From Lahore the President of the Lahore Press Club, Sarmad Bashir and from Karachi, the President of the Karachi Press Club, Syed Imtiaz Khan Faran also expressed their deep concern on the attack on the Peshawar Press Club and viewed the immediate future with anxiety.
Farzana Ali asked the two participants whether the media in Karachi and Lahore were fully appreciative of the dangers and the growing threats that are being faced by the journalists in Peshawar. Sarmad Bashir said that there was every possibility that such attacks could take place in Karachi and Lahore and elsewhere in the country, and underlined the need to improve security cover, as the existing deployment was inadequate.
And Imtiaz Faran felt that it was possible that the terrorists would dictate to the media in the days ahead. Anchor Farzana took notice of the fact that the news channels had focused most of the time that day (Tuesday) on the Interior Minister and what he had said, as well as bank loan default stories, rather than on the suicide bomber who had targeted the Peshawar Press Club, which she said was akin to a warning and a threat to the media community in the country.
The overall gravity of the situation in the provincial capital was what she had in mind. In fact on Wednesday evening Hot Frontier focused on the neglected state of the health sector in the province, which when viewed in conjunction with the blasts that have so far hit the provincial capital do bring troubling questions to mind. Can the existing medical system cope with the load that has come so far?
Private hospitals: In a way, first it was the unfortunate death of Huma Akram, wife of Wasim Akram that brought into sharp focus the working of a private hospital (Doctors Hospital) in Lahore, thereby also throwing up the subject of how mismanaged and careless private and public hospitals in the country can be.
The public grievances against private and public hospitals is a constant problem that also mirrors the rising expectations that patients and their families have from doctors, paramedical staff, and hospitals in general. And as societal awareness of what to expect from the health system rises, the pressure on the medical staff to deliver efficiently is steadily rising.
TV channels have focused on the subject, making viewers wonder whether the remedy lies in having relevant modern law that will ensure that private hospitals in particular perform efficiently. What is somehow not attached due significance is the context that the educational standards of the institutions that produce these doctors, nurses, and other categories of medical staff remain a source of concern.
Then almost a month ago surfaced the sad and shocking death of a three year girl Imanae Malik, daughter of young Lahore resident Aqeel Malik, who died due to the alleged negligence of doctors in the very same Doctors Hospital. A large number of families having serious complaint against this hospital have come together on a single platform, demanding justice. Wasim Akram is also amongst the protestors.
A point to note and to emphasise is the proactive role that many of the private news channels played in following up the Imanae Malik story, and some channels like Express News to mention an instance, also telecast photographs of the Imanae in varying happy moods, with her parents, or playing or simply smiling close-ups that enhanced the human value of the disturbing story.
For viewers this was an occasion to contemplate about the working of hospitals in the country, and that it happened to be from Lahore was possibly a matter of chance. Hospital negligence or hospitals being understaffed or ill equipped, seem routine matters really, and stories of appalling negligence come from the best hospitals in the country.
It was significant that the Imanae Malik case was able to get media attention, as well viewer interest despite the fact that major stories of national importance were in the editorial mainstream. It reflected a realisation within the news channels that here was an incident that deserved time and space, not just the Punjab government but even Islamabad was in the larger picture.
The girl's angry father that he wanted justice and the guilty should be punished. Wasim Akram lent voice and valuable support and even though Huma's death was sometime ago (as compared to Imanae's) the two stories when put together added force to the issue.
I am reminded here as I write on this little girl's death of other news stories that the channels and the print media have campaigned and crusaded for, which does appear as a welcome dimension to the sense of moral purpose that journalists demonstrate at times. That there are glaring drawbacks and lapses as well, is point that I do have in mind here.
The Imanae Malik case is being investigated in Lahore by the authorities and its outcome will be watched with patience and interest. Some patient and extraordinary interest. That it is a healthy sign to see TV channels focusing on such grim subjects from our daily lives is something that needs to be appreciated, and welcomed.
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