Apropos to news in which the Interior Minister Rahman Malik said the government would provide arms licenses to political and religious parties in Karachi to secure their offices from terrorism. By now he should have known that more or less all political parties have their armed wings and are fully equipped with most sophisticated weapons, and law enforcement agencies have miserably failed to disarm them. Their proud display of weapons while moving from one place to another and using these weapons openly against unarmed people has become a routine affair.
Since he assumed the portfolio of interior minister thousands of innocent people have lost their lives. He should be ashamed of his performance. Instead of issuing statement he should have resigned as he failed to protect the life and property of citizens guaranteed under the constitution.
It is very strange that he is worried on the criticism of politicians and their cartoons appearing in the print media. The cartoons reflect the state of affairs of the state apart from providing humor to the people. He even asked the media why the cartoons of Chief Justice and Chief of Army Staff could not be made and printed. The answer is simple: there is a big difference between him and the two personalities. To put the record straight, his statement is not correct because in some newspapers the cartoons did appear. This amply reflects his state of mind and hatred against judiciary and the army.
Nevertheless, the interior minister deserves appreciation in allowing the import of weapon toys that have flooded Karachi market and the replicas of most sophisticated weapons are now in the hands of young boys. Well done, Mr Malik.
The Taliban have spread throughout the country and are already playing havoc. The government should avoid rhetoric and do something practical to avert the looming dangers instead of wasting time in disregarding the decisions of the Supreme Court or be prepared to face the wrath of the people.
MUKHTAR AHMED
Karachi
