By

Dr Shahid Qureshi 

The London Post

British actor Ross Kemp’s program about ‘Gangs’ in the world gives an interesting insight. I was watching one of his programs about the ‘gang war in El Salvador’. He interviewed rival gangs, their everyday lives in the streets, role of police and lives in prisons. After interviewing all the notorious gangs like MS13 he asked a local journalist Lino Gomez with great connections to comment about the gang war 12 murders a day in a population less than London. Lino Gomez said; ‘According to DEA (US Drugs Enforcement Agency) report there is a movement of 570 tons of pure cocaine from El Salvador to US worth around $30,000 million ($30 billion) every year.

These gangs or its members can not move that amount of cocaine (570 tons worth US $30 billion) and live the way they live. He was of the opinion that to run a drugs business of $30 billion smoothly there is need for a clique of tattoos, violence, corruption because it catches the attention of the media, press and international bodies. The real (gangsters) movers of 570 tons of cocaine are the most powerful people in the rich, the elite with connections in the governments or part of the government, essentially they like to do business, or buy corrupt officials to get their jobs done instead of coming in to politics themselves directly. They don’t wear tattoos (like gang members) but they do wear expansive ties and Rolex watches too, said Lino Gomez.

They live in expansive villas with no trail of their money. Can some identify these characters around them? A senior journalist said; ‘these people are funding all terrorists’ gangs voluntarily so much so they have lent their licensed weapons to these criminal gangs.

A new recent trend emerged is to hire a retired army officer as manager to protect them from nuisance. The funny situation arises when most of the ‘wood cutters’ have similar stories of growth or finding ‘treasure troves’ like in children books. The queen bee formula really applied creates one character very honourable in public eye and give all your black money to him for investment than sit back and relax. This dummy is not going to betray the rest of the syndicate’. These young men ‘target killers’ or even their leaders from lower working class families are like bubbles for them. They made them feel powerful, get them do dirty jobs for them some times on the behalf of the ‘outside players’ even enemies of the state. ‘The secretive closed structure keeps all the mess inside’.

A senior Pakistan journalist Mohammad Malick said; ‘some one asked my son in school what does your father do? My son said; ‘he makes enemies for his profession’. No journalist, judge of general or politician is bigger than the multi billion $ dollar international game being played in Pakistan especially Karachi. A senior British – Pakistani journalist formally informed the British authorities and police with the names and addresses of the alleged plotters planning to assassinate him linked with the target killings in Karachi. These people have rented their whole gang to the international players. He said; ‘no one should be allowed to play with British values and democratic norms’.

A former Pakistan army officer said; ‘I followed the orders and my oath but was let down by the institution when they left me on my own to the foreign backed terrorist mafia. It was never a personal fight. It was a heart breaking story of this former army officer. All he is asking is justice? No doubt these people are cowards as some one said; though brave don’t live longer but cowards don’t live at all’. When institutions don’t look after their people the rate of their dissolution is quicker than one can think. When you have demoralised force be it police or military it’s functioning soon become minimal. Who will protect the protector? The most interesting part is the US has been able to restore NATO supplies without any extra costs and also hasn’t paid money it owes to Pakistan? That trick could have been only possible if it has friends in high places. Who says Pakistan is not a US friendly country? There was an interesting dialogue in movie ‘a state of play’ between a senator and chief of private military company; “we paid to train these (now terrorists) and you are getting paid to kill them”.

I have said many times that if US solve its internal problems for example financial terrorism and mismanagement by the banks, financial institutions and the bankers over 70% problems it is having internationally will be resolved. The closure of manufacturing industry in the US and conversion of manufacturing based economy to consumer based economy has caused mass unemployment and promotion of ‘temporary and part time workers’. Private sector companies are taking over service industry i.e. health, military and social sectors. They are following ‘PBR payment by results’ model which is causing lot of trouble in the systems designed to function as a service and not as a corporate business for example a hospital cannot be run as a business or profit making machine or state armed forces cannot be used profit making machines. The job cuts and reduction in the military spending has ended US in more spending in financial as well as human costs.

It is like to save one dollar they ended up spending 5 dollars. When a hospital closes down crucial services to save money they end spending more money in buying those from private sector because in some case they lose the building, human resource. Private sector hires them on cheap rates and makes profits. Congratulations to NATO for completing successful mission in Pakistan by restoring supplies route free of charge. That could only be possible if it has friends in very high places with broader vision than normal Pakistani. Congratulations to all and sundry for whatever is achieved and leave the rest for next time. The enemy monger elements must be discouraged as not whole world is enemy of the country. One must congratulate the vision and ‘donor kebab’ strategy of the President against his opponents.

It might not make sense to many but this mind set is causing misery, death and destruction worldwide including Pakistan. This mind-set creates or sometimes manufactures crisis and wars on the issues which could be resolved without any trouble or need. For example if a private company do a ‘cost benefit analysis’ of US air craft carrier it has to be ‘rationalised’ and tools they will use to do this analysis will definitely make ‘military leadership nervous’ as it will create fear of cuts in their mind.

My response to this rationalising (cuts in) military, health and social services is simple – PRACTIALISE it. As imagination is better than knowledge and practical wisdom is far better than anything else?