KARACHI:
Pakistan is a strange country, where corruption is rooted deep in society but nobody ever gets punished. Whenever a political office-holder or a government officer is apprehended for corrupt practices, they claim that the case is either politicised or that they have been subjected to political victimisation. No accused ever responds to the charges in a manner that would satisfy the law. We all know that it is almost impossible to have work done in any department without a bribe or a strong reference, but somehow nobody is responsible for it.
Another issue with our system is weak prosecution. The responsible departments prepare weak cases based mostly on circumstantial evidence that does not stand in the court of law and the accused goes scot-free. I wonder if this farce is intentional to fool the people. Corruption can only be rooted out if there is zero-tolerance for any transgression committed by anyone, regardless of power or position. For this the department responsible for accountability needs to prepare and present strong evidence in the court to get strong sentences. I remember from my days in service, an official working in the commissioner office in Rawalpindi was apprehended by the anti-corruption department. The commissioner appointed an inquiry officer who asked the accused for his plea. The accused instead of refuting the evidence or providing proof of his innocence took a stand that other officials in the office also took bribes. The inquiry officer asked the accused to defend himself rather than blaming others. He was eventually found guilty and dismissed from service. This sent a clear and strong message to everyone. As a result, there was no corruption in the office for quite some time after that.
I believe we need a strong system where people irrespective of their political or departmental affiliations are prosecuted and sentenced based on evidence. Unless we do that, accountability in our country will remain lopsided and as controversial as it is, and the corrupt will keep getting away with their wrongdoings.
Raja Shafaatullah
Islamabad
Published in The Express Tribune, January 1st, 2021.
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