KARACHI – Commenting on President Asif Ali Zardari’s statement that he wants to strengthen government institutions, Sindh National Front Chairman Nawab Mumtaz Ali Bhutto said on Tuesday that this was a big joke as he [the president] has destroyed every institution in the country by removing honest, efficient officers and replacing them with corrupt, inefficient and disreputable officers.
“The state of thriving public-owned enterprises such as Pakistan Steel Mills, Pakistan International Airlines, National Insurance Company Limited, Pakistan Railways and other such enterprises is a good example,” he said. But in particular, he added, Zardari has converted National Accountability Bureau from an anti-corruption establishment into a ‘corrupt-practices protection institution’ by appointing Deedar Shah as its chairman while assigning the post of Federal Investigation Agency director general to Wasim Ahmed.
“It has been disclosed that since their appointments, corruption cases involving Rs 60 billion scams have been dismissed and no wonder the Supreme Court could not remain a silent spectator and was compelled to dismiss both these office holders,” said Bhutto.
“Since Zardari has landed the presidential chair, serious crimes such as murder, armed robbery, theft, kidnapping etc have become a daily routine as if they are no offences at all,” he said, adding ‘the most amazing fact is that Zardari, who boasts being a friend of friends, albeit at government expense, has made notorious criminals high-ranking government functionaries and even planted them in the Senate.’
A recent visitor to the President House, on condition of anonymity, disclosed that the President House has assumed the appearance of a robber’s roost. “It seems that all jails are empty of the most wanted criminals, who are visible everywhere in the President House,” he added.
