کلثوم سیف اللہ کی کتاب میری تنہا پرواز
کلثوم پلازہ بلیو ایریا کی مالک
On completion of 50 years of her political career or meritorious services to the State of Pakistan, the sons of former Federal Minister Begum Kulsoom Saifullah launched her autobiography namely meri tanha parvaz(My Solo Flight) on 14th of Sep 2011, in Islamabad.
In her book she narrated events right from Z.A Bhutto era to Nawaz Sharif’s last tenure and talked about her fiery speeches in the National Assembly and the accolades she received. She also wrote that General Akhtar Abdur Rahman the khamosh mujahid once told her that he could not even afford to buy a bicycle but later on he and his family accumulated wealth and property worth billions, which was incomprehensible.
While describing the character of Hamayun Akhtar Khan she revealed that when a deal was being brokered on the purchase of a famous beverage company , Hamuyun threw one crore rupees on the table and then asked the other party to begin the negotiations. This was being done by someone whose father could not even afford a bicycle, she added.
She also stated that since on the orders of General Zia a sizable quantity of stinger missiles were taken out from the ammunition dump to be sold to Iran, Zia ordered that the Ojheri camp be blown up before the arrival of US inspection team.
On September 15, the very next day of the launching ceremony Begum Sahiba rendered an unconditional apology that whatever was written about khamosh mujahid and his family was not her opinion and was included in the book by someone else as due to her weak eyesight and hearing problem the book was written, edited and proof read by others. The same day her son Saleem Saifullah rang Hamayun Akhtar, Secretary General of his party PML (LM) and sought forgiveness for including the misleading material in the book.
The lady told that she herself was surprised as how that (obnoxious) material got into the book and she would remove all that matter. Meanwhile she said that she had ordered to inquire as to who was behind it. She also spoke high of Genral Akhtar and his sons Hamayun Akhtar and others whom she said were like her own sons.
While a book has been launched with Kalsoom Saifullah as its author who actually wrote it is still not clear. By the way Musharraf’s book was written by Hamayun Gohar.
Presently Begum Sahiba’s son Hamayun ex Federal Minister is a sitting MNA of PML (Q), Anwar is an MPA of PPP in KP(Federal Minister thrice, Senator 90-97,MNA 88-90,son-in-law of GIK and father-in-law of Omer Ayub Khan)Senator Salim is President PML (like minded)(Chairman of three committees of the Senate, twice provincial minister KP)hence it would be advisable that Begum Sahiba should send a copy of the book to Ch.Shujaat, President of her son Hamayun’s party and Asif Zardari, co-chairman of her son Anwar’s party and the family of Zia-ul-Haq, her ex mentor, and all others who matter in the power game lest any offensive material annoys them and had to be excluded before the next edition of the book is out.
However if everything which is likely to annoy anybody who matters in this country is deleted from the book there would be hardly anything left to be published. Let me give you some material to be included in the book in case the major part has to be deleted.
Kindly add that your family is in politics for six decades manipulating business for politics and politics for business with the distinction of being part of almost every federal or provincial government in Pakistan, be it democratically elected or military dictatorship.
Since the days of Z A Bhutto. Under Zia ul Haq, your good self and son Salim Saifullah were federal ministers. In second Bhutto government when a reporter accused Petroleum Minister Anwar Saifullah, your son of planning privatization of OGDC for his personal benefit, observing that if he succeeded in his plan he would become Pakistan’s richest man, he retorted angrily with remark, ” But I am already Pakistan’s richest man”
Some of the known units your family owns are Kohat Textile Mills, Frontier Textile Mills, Saif Textile Mills, Bannu Flour Mills, Nasa Construction, Saif Beverages, Saif International Combine, K K A Co (pvt) Ltd, Sarhad Pre-stressed Concrete, ASTRA Ltd, Pakistan Mobile Corp, Saif holdings Ltd, and K A K Investment (pvt) Ltd.
As an NRO beneficiary your family from Lucky Marwat got four loans written off from different banks. The names of Anwar Saifullhah Khan, Javed Saifullah, Hamayun Saifullah, Arbab Saddaullha Khan, Shah Jehan Khan, Nisar Khan are part of the list submitted in the NA in 1994 in response to a question by MNA Barjees Tahir. First, the Saifullah brothers got loans written off against their mill— Ms Kohat Textile Mills from the National Bank. Your good self also got a loan of Rs12 million written off from NBP against Ms Frontier Towel Works, Kohat. Industrial bank also wrote off loan of Rs 26 million of Javed Saifullah, Salim Saifullah, Hamayun Saifullah and others against Kohat Textile Mills. The MCB also wrote off loan against Kohat Textile Mill.
Presently Hamayun Saifullah has debt worth rupees 11.70 million in the name of Saif Holdings Limited.
Begum Sahiba please also enlighten the people as to how you acquired the land for Kalsoom Plaza at blue area Islamabad worth billions and how the design for the underpass was altered to cater for a huge parking lot for the plaza.
And by the way please also include in the text that you were a regular visitor of general Agha Mohammad Yahya Khan. For example the army house record reveals in the Hamood-ur-Rahman Commission Report that on 16-04-1970 at 10.30 AM you alongwith one Begum G A Khan met Yahya Khan in army house Rawalpindi. Please include in that book as to what transpired during that meeting. How many permits, licenses, loan sanctions and loan write-offs in exchange for being a pretty lady. We know the benefits ladies derived from that luxurious character. And not in exchange for cash but kind!
While the poor and downtrodden languish in this country, here is a stark example of a ruthless rent-seeking family like several others, which, ever since the birth of this country, continues to derive incalculable economic benefits out of their political affiliations of sorts, networking and anything which can be exchanged for anything.
On the night between 14th and 15th of August 1947 many thought that now they would live as free citizens in a free country.
The grim reality remains that the power from the British was transferred to families like these who were later joined by other powerful groups. Tragically 64 years have passed and power transfer to the common man remains a distant dream.
