Daily Times

As a rule wealth that is stolen is gleefully plundered once again by those left behind. Saddam Hussain’s famous palace, Muammar Gaddafi’s gold dinner sets, Hosni Mubarak’s billions of dollars stashed abroad and Shah of Iran’s kingdom were all left behind, like many mighty monarchs and billionaires before them. The kind of inglorious end that they met is an objective lesson in history. Hussain was smoked out of a hole and hanged. Gaddafi pulled out of a road side culvert and shot. Mubarak was literally tried in a cage where his stolen treasure was of no use to him. And Shah of Iran was disallowed to be buried in the country where he once ruled with such pomp. A few yards for his grave were lent by Egypt where he rests unattended. A similar fate befell Philippines Ferdinand Marcos, and the African strongmen like Nkrumah and Idi Amin. Yet every other potentate believes that an end like that would not be his.

There is a different category of public figures that millions would want to emulate yet they remain self-effacing, humble and unpretentious. Nelson Mandela was reputed to have refused to try his infamous jailer who tormented him with all sorts of indignities for decades in jail. The iconic Abdus Sattar Edhi is seriously unwell. There are innumerable standing offers for his free treatment abroad, but he steadfastly refuses on the grounds that such a facility is not available to the poor in Pakistan. Sardar Abdur Rab Nishtar was the governor of West Pakistan, and his children cycled to school and back. These are the signs of truly great men and their superb character.

Our otherwise compassionate prime minister, and for that matter, everybody who is anybody in the scheme of power, heads abroad literally on the first sneeze. It should really have been a matter of principle and national pride, a sense of proportion and personal example to desist from such ill-considered indiscretions. No amount of pious talk, passion soaked speeches and self-serving pity can erase an avoidable impingement like this one at public expense. One prays that the prime minister recovers soon. “His must have been the only miraculous open-heart surgery where a patient was up and about within five days,” opined a renowned heart surgeon hwo felt that “it was medically not possible.” There is also noise about the strange absence of any customary press release by the host clinic in London or an official spokesperson. This raises uncomfortable questions on the entire episode. A more transparent and informed approach to a simple medical issue could have been more helpful, preventing it to become a butt of needless speculations. The prolonged absence of the prime minister is adding to the haze, making Pakistan look rather dys functional.

Boris Yeltsin had a heart problem, and was to be operated upon. One of the aides suggested that he be flown to the USA. Yeltsin simply refused, and was operated upon in Moscow by Soviet doctors. Similarly, Mahatir Mohammad had his heart surgery done in Malaysia. We are still to hear a of Chinese or an Indian leader seeking to be treated abroad.

As history tells us, there was a governor of a city during the early Muslim period who was accused of negligence of duty, and was ordered to appear before a court of enquiry set up in the town square .The charges against him were read out, and he was asked to explain. The first charge was that he was constantly late coming to the office. His reply was, “I have no servant, therefore have to knead flour myself, wait for it to absorb yeast, cook my breakfast and then leave for office. That causes the delay as complained.” The second charge was that he locks himself up in the house on Fridays, and only appears for the Friday prayer, wasting an entire working day. “I have only one presentable pair of clothes that I wash on Fridays. I have to wait for them to dry up before leading Friday prayers,” he deposed. The third charge was that once in a year he suffers a bout of madness, and is heard crying aloud in his house the whole day. The governor requested to be relieved of his duties after his response, “I was a child when a newly converted Muslim was being tortured by pagan Meccans. We would make fun when he would scream from pain. Whenever that day arrives, I am gripped by the terrible fear if God would ever forgive me.” The crowd was dumbfounded. There was pin-drop silence as the governor gracefully got up, dusted his clothes and slowly walked out of town.

No one is asking our leaders to behave like that, but at least a realisation of wrongdoing must exist, something is utterly missing.

The Panama leaks have affected administrations, businessmen and bureaucrats across the world. There have been honourable reactions, and there has been pitiable evasiveness. We are a part of the latter minority, and regrettably so. India has just signed a European-led convention against corruption to unearth money siphoned out of that country, while we are busy conniving to raise a ToR smokescreen to hide behind. The difference here is not in the amount of money or power but in the quality of character and measure of self-worth, between a principled lifestyle and ruthless extravagance at public expense. Character is what Prime Minister David Cameron showed when he resigned after the British nation voted itself out of the European Union, which he was supporting. No one had asked him to step down but his praiseworthy moral make-up.

(To be concluded)

The writer is a retired brigadier of the Pakistan army and can be reached at clay.potter@hotmail.com