Pakistan Army’s Long Tentacles

Washington Post has an article on the perks the military in Pakistan enjoys as a result of its hold on power for 27 of the last 55 years. Here is an excerpt:

There is no denying the military’s dominant role in Pakistan. The military owns the best farmland and several of the largest industrial conglomerates. Retired or active-duty military officers run the ports, postal service, electric utilities, sports federations, telecommunications authority, culture ministry, mineral development agency, anti-drug police, railroads, civil aviation authority, national shipping company and Pakistan’s biggest steel mill. They hold top administrative posts at the best universities. Many ambassadors are retired officers.

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Categorized as Pakistan

By Zack

Dad, gadget guy, bookworm, political animal, global nomad, cyclist, hiker, tennis player, photographer

31 comments

  1. Feudal Military

    It is the usual story about a feudal landlord’s repression, killing, torture and expulsion of tenant farmers, something that probably has happened countless times in Punjab’s history. But there is a twist. The landlord in this case is the P…

  2. HELLO ALL READERS ,let me clear you one thing pakistan army is the best in asia and one of the best in world.now is the question why it is the best it is best because its selection procedure is very tough and fact and figures revealed that only 2percent of the candidates get selected in army and the best of pakistani youth are in army .now when it comes to appointement of steel mills , ambassadors or any other big post of any big company or firm the best of the best must be appointed here and no one deserve better than pakistan generals .believe me paksitani people are very slow ,lazy and corrupt. when it comes to appointement of big firms we have no other choice than generals to be appointed there.our civil service cant be appointed there as you all might know that pakistani burecrats are famous in world for corruption and than its only genrals left that deserve these posts of course theser are better in sense that they are not corrupt and not lazy . i would suggest you people to see ground reality and than comment on anything

  3. I agree with you that Pakistan Army has got unprecedent history of conquering their own country many times and 100,000 soldiers surrendering to the Indian army in 1971, and mis adventures of 1965 and Kargil. They have main role in dismembering the country in 1971. They are best in plundering the wealth of the Pakistani people. Pakistani people have to starve to pay for their luxury life. They are good in anything except for their main job i.e., fighting with enemy. They were trained for military purposes but they want civil administrative jobs for which they have no training and experience. The job they are supposed to be doing can’t do it properly. Which Army in the world has been exempt from Tax, Not answerable to the Government or Public? – off Course it is Pakistan army.
    The biggest cause of the plight of pakistani people is the 28 years of Army rule out of 55 years. It is not India that is our Enemy it is the Pakistani Army that is the biggest enemy of Pakistan. Look at India, this year their GDP is >8% and look where we stand!!!!. Look at India their army never muddled in the Government affairs and let the Democratic process grow.
    When I say Pakistani army it means Army Officers , not the poor simple soldiers whose ‘KISMAT’ has not changed and will never be.
    May GOD save us from our BEST army

  4. Dear readers the article above might be written with a view to bring bad name to Pak Army let me clear u the wars cant only be fought and won by armies its always nation which fights and win.Dear readers look above the response of a nation if u never believe in ur institutions(like above) and help in increasing hatered, enemy will always succeed in her plans. What so ever the Pak Army or its officers are today, its just because of mismangement of civil servants. Pak Army had not only successfully guarded the borders but also provided security and relief effort internally when civil administration failed to coup up with the situation recent earth quake is the best example.Now answer to last part why army is on top posts is basically the failure of civil administration of all thoes organizations which resulted into the loss of revenue to nation.Readers let me tell u since independence army is not only cleaning the corruption of our politicians but also putting the economy on right path which was distracted by civil administrations time n again.

  5. capt naveed: I don’t know what you are smoking since the army has been in charge of Pakistan for about half its years. So it must share any blame for the mismanagement.

  6. Just look at the application forms for Army Officers for DHA, Lahore. An officer on the average gets five plots and a house, for looting this country for 30 years of service. Why are poor air force and naval officers not part of this so great a benifit scheme.

  7. The failure of the civil servants is common is many countries. What one does is try and improve the quality of people appointed through the set process. Agreed that some fo the representatives may be corupt but that does not give the Pakistan army the right to replace civil with martial rule. They are themselves replicating the same corrupt practices that their civilian predecessors were doing and in some cases to a higher extent. Army people are even less competent than the politicians and bureaucrats and undeservingly placed in big slots. The fact that there is no accountability for the army personnel makes it even more difficult to tackle them. The example of India is comonly quoted but I give the example of Nepal where the might of the people displaced the entire corrupt government. The Pakistani people should come up as they did 4 decades ago and put an end to this mockery of the state.

  8. aoa every body….my dear pakistanis dont blame army or army officers.it has always been army who has been takinh the country out of the fuss and shit.these civil authoririties have not been competent enough.i pray that ur sincere nawaz mian comes or ur dear and sincere bhutto cumz they will do much more shit than ever b4.u ppl will cry. i wish that u ppl shud face the reality.i think army shud quit now the day army is going to quit pakistan is going to dem0olish…….its strength of army who has kept pakistan stable what so ever the case may be

  9. waqas: The army has ruled Pakistan for the majority of its existence. If Pakistan is in bad shape now, it is fair to say that the army is to blame.

  10. Well, Pakistan Army is a band of bandits. It is the most corrupt organization in Pakistan. This fact has not come to the surface because of the internal audits. If any other governmental audit deptt conducts its audit on army affairs, the auditors are not allowed to leave the premises until they declare they found nothing wrong.

    They are the ring leaders of land mafia and have been awarding the most expensive land to its officers almost free of cost. The most important thing, these bandits have been conquering our country again and again.

    You know what? we have to get rid of this army before doing any reconstruction work to our national spirit and image.

  11. I totally agree that Pakistan army is a corrupt organization and is responsible for more of the problems Pakistan has today. If the Pakistan Army and it’s generals leave Pakistan alone for sometime we will recover from all this turmoil eventually. My worry is that one day the people of Pakistan will rise up against the Pakistan army and there will be lots of bloodshed. Before this happens, army should come to its senses and leave us alone and do the job they are being paid to do, that is guard our borders.

  12. Well I applied for P.A.F and the reason why only 2% of the candidates get selected is that no one talented enough goes there. This may seem funny or sarcastic but its the truth! I can say that 95% of the lads who applied with me were the students who had no where else to go! they hadnt scored enough! the majority was of students had scored 45-60 % marks. Evryone looked at me as if i was sent down frm heaven (i had scored 88% marks). so there goes pakistan army’s talent. As far as selection is concerned i must say tht they concentrate upon getting physically fit lads rather than the thinktanks and decision makers. And no constitution in any country in any part of the world gives army the right to GOVERN the state. Its an extremely unethical and inhuman act. So I think our army is no less than money-looting barbarians.

  13. I think right now our only choice is the army bcoz it is the only efficient institution in Pakistan. as we all know our political leaders. even staunch supporters of their respective parties know that their leadership is absolutley corrupt. they dont want to suffer hardships. can someone tell me why the hell Benazir Bhutto left the country on the so called ” Self imposed Exile” and why Nawaz Sharif left for Saudi Aeabia by doing a deal?

  14. Saad: It was after Ayub and Yahya’s rule that the East Pakistan debacle happened. I won’t even start on General Zia’s misrule. And the last year of Musharraf’s rule has been disastrous. So I have no idea why you think army rule is the best option.

  15. iam full agree that pak army is nothing but the organized criminal in uniforms they are the protectors of peoplle with black money and are true enemies of the country i live in this country and i hate to say that this because of army that americans say “THESE BLODDY PAKISTAN’S THEY WILL SELL THERE MOTHER FOR 5 DOLLERS

  16. If anyone wants to see the true picture of Pakistan Millitary’s “Luxury and Comfort Zones ” in one city i.e. Karachi only, take a stroll down the Sharae Faisal, the Karsaz Road, Dalmia Road, General’s Colony on Stadium Road, the Zamzama, the Askari’s , The Naval Housing schemes, the NORE 1 and 2, The Naval admiral’s lodges besides Kashif centre on Sharae Faisalm the millitary owned cantonement areas and a parade of Millitary Encroachments in every prestigious high priced area in Karachi. These looters have ruined our economy and our institutions. They grab lands and positions and even made booming businesses in our educational sector. Their high officials r puppets of America, going & getting trainings and brain washed in the US. They are getting perks from America also in return for destroying our own landscapes and killing innocent civilians in return for apprehending and killing handful of millitants. With a hefty GDP percentage going into Millitary spending while the nation is impoverished, the whole nation helplessly sees the literacy rate and health sector provisions being deprived. The defence budget in billions of Dollars is not just for equipments etc. but a fat amount goes into providing the crisp Lords of millitary luxurious services/ messes, gyms, swimming pools, dining facililities, the “Arena”, an army officer’s lifestyle is a king’s lifestyles. Defending their country has always taken a back seat in their lives since the 1965 war, they are more concerned about their children taking swimming and riding lessons in Millitary residential facilities and clubs, wearing a NIKE / CK outfits and taking almost free of cost O and A levels education at Military run institutions and eating with fork and knife (while most of them are from villages and small towns) where it is customary to eat in Thaals with bare hands on Chatais). Ayesha Siddiqa’s “Military Inc.” has the whole story there, a must read book!
    God will see them on the day of judgement InshAllah, because although they are highly paid for protecting the borders, where there is no war. They just claim lands , positions and places and remain in luxurious “Millitary Cities” within our cities and towns.

  17. MY dear readers,why r we discussing army over here?why not dicuss the civilians first who upbrings bad soldiers at their childhood,bad moms and bad dads give out bad soldiers.There had been times when a soldier was selected by its cast,tribe or family back ground.British army never had hired a lower class ,kamee kameen type of soldiers.Now we have soldiers from lower class ,idiotic families,greedy,dishonest,lazy just like any other civilian we have here in Pakistan.But such jerks never stay that long in the army and due to their ugly natures just like ugly civilians ,r kicked out in a very early stage,only born soldiers stay for ever.PLS keep your evil kids back home and dont mess up with the forces,fork and knife or thaali,it doesnt matter,a civilian can never freez its ass in siachin or get baked in the desert of Cholistan.long live Pakistan Army.

  18. How do you stop a Pakistani tank ?
    Shoot the men who are pushing it.
    How do you disable a Pakistani tank?
    Hide the wind-up key.
    How do you disable Pakistani missiles?
    Cut the rubber band.
    Pakistani Air Force officials have recently motioned for a name change for the PAF.
    They want to call it the PMC, the Pakistani Mining Corps. This is because their planes
    end up in the ground anyway.
    Pakistani military researchers have recently ordered for the enlargement of the
    hatches on tanks and other armoured vehicles. This is so they can be more easily
    abandoned in enemy territory.
    Have you ever seen Pakistani war heroes?
    Neither has Pakistan.
    Did you hear about the latest Pakistani invention?
    It’s a solar powered flashlight.
    Did you hear about the other latest Pakistani invention?
    The new automatic parachutes. They open on impact.
    How do you sink a Pakistani battleship?
    Put it in water.
    Did you hear about the 747 jet which crashed into a cemetery in Karachi?
    The Pakistani officials have so far recovered 3000 bodies.
    Did you hear about the Pakistani admiral who had asked to be buried at sea?
    Five Pakistani sailors died digging his grave.
    Did you hear about the other tragedy in Karachi ?
    There was a terrible power cut in Karachi’s Four Square Shopping Mall. People were
    stuck on the escalator for four hours.
    Did you hear about the Pakistani family that froze to death outside a theatre ? They
    were waiting to see the movie “Closed for the winter”.
    Did you hear about the Pakistani helicopter crash ?
    The pilot felt cold, so he turned off the fan.
    Why do Pakistani dogs have flat noses ?
    They get it from chasing parked cars.
    Did you hear about the Pakistani who studied diligently for five days ?
    He was scheduled to take a medical test.
    Did you hear about the shutdown of the Karachi National Library ?
    Somebody stole the book.

  19. Seems alot of guys didn’t get selected in ISSB. My father serves in the pakistan army. I am a very high achiever, i even scored 93 percent marks in 1st year and i am a very good programmer, still i cannot compare my iq to my father while mine stands at 165, even at this age his stands at roughly more than 180. He is a quick thinker, and is fit physically. The fact stated above is true that the best of Pakistan gets recruited in the army and that is a big problem. My father haa also been a part of the internal auditing branch. The budget money which is about 16 percent is totally spent on the defence while the lavish lifestyles are mainly supported by the chain of messess and swimming pools etc. Uh those assholes who have the misconception that they don’t pay taxes are idiots, cuz they are still government officials who happen to pay sometimes more than their normal governement counterparts, with their lives. The success of army as an organization is probably it’s structure. Uh and i thank God we lost east paklistan, we can barely handle ourselves, how cud we have handle them? And also because the whole bengali awam was against west pakistan, we would have eventually lost to them, which we did. Still you guys are losers, probably didn’t get selected, I pity you.
    And hey, the places like defence, were bought by the pakistan army and the officers still have to pay for them at their original prices. The askari houses usually cost around 50 lacs. And hey these areas get so pricy because army takes care of them and spends the money wisely atleast better than civilians.

  20. Sorry for the grammatical ,istakes, was posting from my phone, the itchy bitchy keys nag me alot…..

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