Daily Times

“Because hypocrisy stinks in the nostrils, one is likely to rate it as a more powerful agent for destruction than it is” — Rebecca West.

The politicians are in the news yet again. It is a ritual that is being observed every year since the so-called media freedom in Pakistan, portraying politicians as villains with insatiable greed and wealth in abundance but unwilling to pay taxes. And the hero role is played in this thriller by a journalist who sets himself up as a crusader undertaking a holy war putting these villains away by naming and shaming them, and also to send a message across to the masses that the politicians they elected to govern do not deserve their positions.

An exhaustive report was published by this hero, obviously after putting a fine effort sifting through bundles of documents, spending several sleepless nights in completing this uphill mission. The report says that a majority of political leaders failed to submit income tax returns last year, implying that politicians are corrupt and thus unfit to lead this country. No sane person will defend politicians for not paying their taxes, no second opinion will exist that, as public representatives, they should set an example for others and be the harbinger of a culture where every person pays taxes on his/her taxable income.

However, I dare innocently ask: are politicians the only rich class in Pakistan that eats up public money and indulges in tax evasion? As the fourth estate, should the media be chasing politicians only to make sure there is corruption-free governance? Suppose if other institutions or members of institutions get involved in corrupt practices, will the investigative reporters report their corruption as vigorously as they do for public representatives or, for whatever reasons, be lenient on them or, worse, shy away from reporting it? The spirit of modern democracy dictates that all shall be treated equally.

Unfortunately, unlike other democracies, the culture of investigative journalism could not take root in Pakistan and the reason behind this is very simple: a major portion of the budget goes to one institution of which a breakdown is not presented in parliament. To report how and where that money is being spent is a taboo falling within the ambit of national security. In a nutshell, a reporter can file a story on misappropriation of a few million rupees but he is not allowed to do that in the case of billions of rupees. Call it self-censorship or the pressure of media houses owners.

Granted, politicians are inept, visionless and corrupt but so are the bureaucrats, judges and generals. Then, why target the politicians only? Please, enough of this argument that since politicians legislate they should maintain a high moral ground by paying taxes and avoid corruption. If we go by this argument, what moral authority do the generals possess when they conquer this country after every decade or so? And what moral authority do the judges have when they sanctify every martial law?

I am not here condoning tax evasion by politicians but, as a journalist, I know that it is easy to prey on politicians. A few years back, I was part of the same newspaper that published the story and its editor told me to file stories against politicians. I timidly asked how I could write against politicians when I had nothing against them. In a dismissive tone, he told me to just write against them.

Once I asked a prominent anchor of the same group why they were after then President Asif Ali Zardari when his own group was accused of not only avoiding paying income tax but also evading general sales tax in billions of rupees. His answer was, “Ek stage se aagay par jal jatay hey” (our wings burn going beyond a certain stage).

Some commentators on talk shows and social media called this revelation shocking. What is so shocking about this when the entire society is corrupt to the core? Why only bracket politicians? Why this selective justice? These were the grounds used by every dictator for political interventions and the court legalised their intervention excoriating Pakistan’s civilian politicians for corruption and lack of morality but we know that the usurpers ended up being more corrupt than the politicians.

Corruption is not the main issue in this country. It is the mindset promoted by our textbooks that only the military is honest and competent enough to run and protect this country and that such media reports further strengthen that assertion. No wonder, in a latest survey conducted by the British Council of Pakistan, 66 percent people opted for military rule in the country. When it comes to politicians, our media men get very scathing in their criticism. Alas, the media called Benazir Bhutto a security risk and the same media became so soft and tender on General Kiyani despite his grave failures on the national security front, singing his praises for not imposing martial law as if it was his inborn right that he forwent in the larger national interest.

The people of this country have the right to ask this reporter when he is going to file his next report profiling how many land plots each general has and its source. It is okay, we do not want to get reporters into trouble so they should focus only on the retired ones. How many plots were given to top judges and how much tax was deposited by Arsalan Iftikhar who created history by becoming rich in such a short time?

Pakistan is in a transitional phase shifting away from authoritarian military rule to civilian supremacy and such reports risk further delegitimising representative institutions that are not yet fully consolidated. Mr Crusader, this is the beauty of democracy — you share the same panel with politicians, stare them in the eye and criticise them. Dare do that with a military general and we the people shall acknowledge you as a credit to investigative journalism, whatever that means.

The writer is a freelance journalist and can be reached at kaharzalmay@yahoo.com