Gilgit Baltistan: Corrupt system wreaks havoc on the masses

SKARDU

18 February 2013

Chairman of the Gilgit-Baltistan United Movement (GBUM) Manzoor Hussain Parwana has said that due to incompetency and lack of vision on part of the so-called political leaders and rulers of the region, the lives of the residents have become miserable. These corrupt elements occupying key government posts are wreaking havoc with the system of governance that was already disputed and fraught with hollowness. The prominent nationalist leader of the region dwelt at length on the poor socio-economic situation, lack of peace, unemployment and backwardness of the area.

He said that when the provincial government was established, there was a ray of hope among the masses that now their issues lingering for the last so many decades may be resolved. However, just four years down the lane the reality on the ground has dawned upon the people and they have become more hopeless and disgruntled than ever before. Rising unemployment, lack of peace, backwardness and above all rampant corruption by the rulers have broken the back of the masses. The so-called package given to the region in 2009 has worked like rubbing of salt to the wound of the people while the rulers were exploiting the citizens for their own vested interests. Parwana said that in order to continue their king-like lifestyles and corruption, the rulers had divided the people of the region on the lines of sectarianism and ethnicity. They are also giving the people the gifts of suicides and income taxes instead of introducing some types of relief’s for them.

 The GBUM chief said that Pakistan knew well that Gilgit-Baltistan was a disputed region and could not be made as a province. Even then, it misled the world by introducing the so-called autonomy and self-governance order of 2009 to force a powerless and fraud system in the area. He said that the area was one of the richest of the world and Pakistan took away over Rs60 billion from the area under different taxes every year but in return gave the indigenous people a paltry sum of around 10 billion annually that too in instalments. On the other hand, an impression had been created that Gilgit-Baltistan has no resources of its own and always dependent on Islamabad. He said as a result Pakistan has been exploiting the region and adopting all illegal ways to prolong its illegal rule in the region. Because of the colonial system imposed in the region in the name of democracy, he added, there was no semblance of real democracy, human rights and rule of law.

Mr Parwana claimed that his party, the GBUM, was the real and true representative party which had been struggling for achievement of all the basic rights of the people of the region. He said the leaders of the party had already suffered imprisonment and harassment because of its unflinching resolve to work for achievement of the basic rights of the people of the area.

Mr Parwana demanded that the autonomy order of 2009 should be abolished without any delay because it had failed to ensure the rights of the people and instead created more problems for the people of the region. He said Gilgit-Baltistan was a disputed region and Pakistan had no right to impose tax on the people of the region. As such, the decision to levy income tax in the region should also be withdrawn, he added. The latest bombshell by the government to charge fee from patients in public sector hospitals is also illegal and should be withdraw, he further demanded. He said that the decision of the government to levy tax on the NCP vehicles was also condemnable and should be taken back. Besides, the government should also announce a service structure for the public sector employees in the region, he added.

Bangesahar

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