Daily Times

Instead of comprehending and replicating this unique paragon, with no parallel anywhere around the globe, the experts refuse to come out of their iron-clad groove. Key problems listed below, which were addressed on the Motorway for the first time, are the fundamental problems of the police:-

1. Command and Control

2. Backlash of the Society

3. Management Quagmire

4. Impractical Laws and Plans

5. Paramilitary Approach

6. Centralisation of Authority

7. Poor Accountability

8. Rule of Law

9. Political Will

10. Leading from the Front

Command and Control

The most critical factor in the exceptional performance and conduct of Motorway Police was the unity of command, as there was no intruder. Police were fully authorised and empowered. In my judgment, the main reason for the high-handedness, corruption and failure is dual control at all levels. Police are responsible for almost everything on earth, but have no authority in the presence of a Magistrate. Can anything go right, whether it be a force, an industrial unit or even a family, where there is no unity of command and control? Few people realise how much we have suffered due to this legacy of duality bequeathed by the British and nurtured by the “Kala Saabs.” Simply speaking, two cooks spoil the broth.

It is also critical that Authority and Responsibility lie in the same place. During riots in Karachi, when the mob attacked us with firearms, we had to shoot back, killing six miscreants. When I looked around, the Assistant Commissioner was missing. He turned up a few minutes later. Seeing that the crowd had dispersed, he stated that he had ordered the shooting. It came to me as an utter shock when he deposed before Chief Justice High Court Sindh that he had stomach pain and was not on the scene, and had not ordered fire. The rest is a long story of my ordeal.

Police are responsible for almost everything on earth, but have no authority in the presence of a Magistrate

It may be of interest that the entire cabinet was against my proposal that there should be no Magistrate on the Motorway. It came down to my offer of relinquishing charge of IG Motorway Police, if the Magistracy was around, that the Prime Minster agreed with my proposal. And how wonderfully well it is working, one only has to see. Why can it not be practised elsewhere?

Backlash of the Society

Police and the public are at a tangent. The public firmly believes that the police are corrupt, inefficient, and a promoter of organised crime. Conversely, the police have a grouse that no one comes to them with the true story. Resultantly, the foundation raised on falsehood, corruption, and manipulation makes the entire structure inevitably shaky, which eventually falls like House of Cards.

b) It is a misnomer to call it “Thana Culture,” which some ignorant people like to do. I would prefer to call it “Criminal Justice System Culture” as each and everyone is involved and it is not just the police. The magistracy, police, lawyers, public, witnesses and local politicians, all contribute to this culture. With this scenario, how can things improve by just reforming the police? The whole system has to be overhauled. Any other course will only land us in serious trouble and would be a naïve approach at best. When reforms are initiated from this broader base, all solutions will start falling into place automatically.

Management Quagmire (Lopsided Pyramid and Powerless Force)

Management of Police is extremely poor with commanders having little rapport with their subordinates. The span of control is so wide that only a state of welter can prosper. For example, IG Punjab, a grade 21/22 officer, has a force nearing 200,000 policemen, which can only be managed with a magic wand as this command is more than six Corps Commanders force. I am told that he cannot even remember the names of his Deputy Inspectors General. Added to this is a tragic fact that nearly 90 per cent of the force has little or no authority.

b) To restructure the police is a crying need of the hour for two critical reasons. Firstly, the span of command of senior officers is so wide that management is impossible. Secondly, nearly 90 per cent of the force is without power or authority.

c) One can see that bulk of the force is unemployed, or under-employed and uneducated. Officers ratio has to be improved for:-

Better administration;

Easier management;

Effective supervision;

Greater avenues for promotion and

Incentive for hard work.

d) On the Motorway, this issue was addressed to perfection. For M2, there were only two SSPs, having four beats, each to Command 250 odd officers. Each SSP knew his force, their problems and their needs. Therefore, it is working like a well-oiled machine till today.

Impractical Laws and Plans

Most of our laws are flawed and have little relevance to the ground situation. For example, the Evidence Act is so stringent that it is almost impossible to secure a conviction. Likewise, the Police Order 2002, being so reformist, reactionary, and without any mechanism for implementation, had the portent to flounder from its very inception. After 20 years of its legislation, it is still in a state of flux. It also suffers from poor alien borrowed ideas. We must revise the Evidence Act. Cr.PC and Police Order 2002, keeping in view the obtaining cultural, social and local imperatives.

Paramilitary Training

British had designed the police on paramilitary lines. There was more emphasis on training, parading, riding and shooting i.e. all brawn and little brain. They were trained to only obey and not command. The real master was without a uniform, who wielded complete authority but little responsibility. Success meant a feather in his cap, and failure had police as the scapegoat. Unfortunately, very little has changed, and we are still suffering from the same syndrome. We need to get out of this vicious circle and usher community policing responsive to the real needs of society; providing shelter to those who come in contact.

Centralisation of Authority

The system we inherited is based on mistrust, as even the confession of a criminal before a police officer was not admissible as evidence in court. This culture prospered after independence and tragically further compounded through administrative orders without legal authority. The powers of lower ranks were withdrawn or curtailed. Today the Constable, declared as a Police Officer in Cr.PC, having wide powers of arrest, even on suspicion, has no power, at all. Similar is the unfortunate plight of head constables. According to one estimate, only 12.2 per cent of the force is working while the rest are dummies. To a large extent, this is true and needs to be reversed with alacrity. On the Motorway, there was a total delegation to the lowest level, coupled with total trust, which worked exceptionally well.

(To Be Continued)

The writer is a PSP ex-officer who has served as federal secretary for communication, IG police and chairman PEMRA. He can be reached at: iftirashid@yahoo.com.