Education Reform: Signs of Hope

The INDEPENDENT has an article written by the real Hamid, M ... of the ``Moth Smoke`` fame.

General Pervez Mushrraf: Pakistan`s big beast unleashed

``It`s boom time under the rule of General Pervez Musharraf. But can you ever really trust a dictator? Ahead of this year`s elections, the novelist Mohsin Hamid takes an ambivalent look at the top cat who dragged his country into the 21st century``

To read all of it Click here

...SR

a good article prof sahib. However, as has been pointed here by others ( and many times elsewhere on this site), with the majority of the IQ of pakistan residing in the military and spare change with the mullahs, I wonder ho far this will go.

Given that almost 3.5 generations (it been 60 years since independence- hence 3.5 generations), have passed and new ones already inflicted with the old paradigm, how long before this new version takes roots and bears fruit. Perhpas we will have to wait another 3 generations before real change become s apparent.

A question, will the root cause be there. Will, as Urstruly sayz, Pakistan finally realise its history and culture and civilisational roots, or will hanker after something which was never there in reality but only in imagination.

a good article prof sahib. However, as has been pointed here by others ( and many times elsewhere on this site), with the majority of the IQ of pakistan residing in the military and spare change with the mullahs, I wonder ho far this will go.

Given that almost 3.5 generations (it been 60 years since independence- hence 3.5 generations), have passed and new ones already inflicted with the old paradigm, how long before this new version takes roots and bears fruit. Perhpas we will have to wait another 3 generations before real change become s apparent.

A question, will the root cause be there. Will, as Urstruly sayz, Pakistan finally realise its history and culture and civilisational roots, or will hanker after something which was never there in reality but only in imagination.

dear Hoodbhoy -- with this article you may no longer be consisdered the Nattering Nabob of Negativity for the establishment -- but still the proof of the pudding is in the eating -- White pepper or Black pepper.....

as Hamidm says between Mulla Fazooloo and Maulvi Musharraf askari -- and between Qazi Ashraf or Qazi Ahmeq -- this ``Murghi`` will also become haraam .....kay khooshi say mur nu jaatay agar eetabaar hota....

but You do get A+ for Apt-imism!

Re: # 18

Hamidm2;

I am convinced ,Its useless to argue with your likes, who only aim to show their adeptness and mastery in the abusive liguistic skills on the chowk. Perhaps it portrays your wonderful background and upbringing. I can only hope that your children would do a little better than that.

Having said that, I would only recommend you to restict yourself to the matter under discussion and don`t divulge your rotten idiosyncracies publicly.

Re: # 17

colonel sahib,

....... do you really think that jernail saab is qualified to run the education department because he studied war and strategic studies (probably taught by other worthless generals and colonels at the defence `college` ) ? ........... and how will the bare-footed and bare-assed children of pakistan benefit from his german skills ? ..........

.......... i know that the foolish goons in khaki think they know everything - from making cereal and fertilizer to running wapda and the cricket control board - but they know diddly ! ........... they have been running almost almost everything for the past fifty years and see where that has brought us ........... for god`s sake, these people cannot even do the job that they are supposedly trained to do and have lost every single war that they have got us into ......... let`s not trust them with our children`s future - between the generals and the mullahs the poor kids don`t have a chance ...........

p.s. the only thing these people know how to do is make housing `schemes` and distribute plots

Re: # 15
To the self acclaimed Bullehya; Perhaps Mr Qazi is the most qualified and experienced minsiter in the present cabinet ;

Civil Qual:
MSc War Studies;
MSc Strategic Studies
German Language Interpretership (from Germany)

Military Qual:
Gunner Staff Course
Staff College Camberley (from UK)
Armed Forces War Course

Instructional / Teaching Experience
Instructor Pakistan Military Academy ( a degree awarding institution)
Instructor Artillery School
Instructor Staff College Quetta ( degree awarding institution)
Instructor National Defence College ( degree awarding institute)

Experience in Civil Government
Federal Secretary Science and Technology
Federal Secretary and Chairman Pakistan Railways
Federal Minister of Communication and Railways
Federal Minister of Education
Add to that his wast experience of management as a unit, brigade, division and corps commander; head of Ordnance and Maintenance Services, Head of Military Intelligence, Head of Iner Services Intelligence and many other challenging appointments.

By the way, I am no spokesman for the minister, I have no personal or official affiliations with him. I am not a benficiary , nor desiring or expecing to be one. All the above information is available on Pakistan Government web site http://www.moe.gov.pk

Re: # 11 bulleya {``.......where exactly will you be moving to, and what are your immediate plans.......``}

Generally speaking the idea of moving to Pakistan, at least for a few years, has occurred to me off and on since 1996, but I never got around to executing it. During my visits in the last two years I could see that the time was passing us by and that if there was going to be a move it had to be soon. Part of it also had something to do with my less than spectacular experience of having moved to the UK after spending a quarter century in America. Then, after the earthquake I had some first hand experience of what enormous potential existed to do much needed work. Besides, my hidden agenda included a wish to expose the children to the language and a to a multicultural living, which in rural England they cannot possibly get. Three years of England is now enough. It`s time to move on. I had originally kept Dubai in mind as a possible resting pad. But my recent trips there have turned me off from Dubai as a place of residence. It is a soul-less city, an open air brothel, a vulgar Las Vegas wannabe. No thank you. I still think Dubai a great place for weekend ``business trips`` and for actual commerce and trade, but not not to live.

So to answer your question I`ve set us a deadline of the end of March. By or before then we`ll be out of here regardless of whether we can dispose of our worldly possessions here or not. Most likely we`ll fly into Lahore, but I doubt if my family can adjust there. We`ll most likely find a landing pad in Islamabad. Weather, geography and atmosphere all argue for it, and against Lahore or Karachi.

The agenda is to be in the area for three to five years. No one can plan beyond that time horizon. I certainly cannot. As to what I will do there? Frankly, as yet I do not know for sure. I do know, however, that as I approach the traditional retirement age its getting to be time for me to come out of my 20 year old semi-retirment and get usefully occupied as a contributing member of society. I looked into the financial world and discovered nothing but rancid vermin, sloth and slime. Plus I am a mere ``layman`` and unless I get involved in the private sector with people I know, I have to remain a lone-ranger as I have been for all these years. So I was think more along the lines of getting involved with some NGO work related to either Public Health and disease control, etc. or to Education. I`ve spoken to people with International Agencies and NGOs etc, and have picked up the impression that there is a lot that need to be done and that could be done, particularly in Public Health and Disease Control. Since this is an area in which I am not totally illiterate, I was thinking of looking a bit deeper to see if there was something meaningful or constructive I could get involved with. I would, of course, not wish to fool with anything that amounts to being a mere paper pusher. There are plenty of those already. For me to get out of my long slumber and ``do something`` I have to feel right about it. But, the bottom line is that I am wide open to ideas.

...SR

PS: You are correct in stating that there is Billions od Dollars worth of business potential, and I agree that many fortunes can be made, but that is not my top priority in life. As long as I can comfortably feed and clothe my family and have a reasonable living I`m happy with what little I have. My wife does not demand an expensive life style and my children don`t need to shop at Oxford Street. We gladly live a spartan, contented life. If making an extra ten million means being away from my loved ones for many months out of a year, it does not interest me. We started off butt naked and we`ll end up being eaten by maggots.

colonel #14: ``The education minister, Javed Ashraf Qazi, after retirement from the Army, for the last 10 years, been serving in various senior positions``

.....could you highlight which positions he has been working at........also does he have any qualifications in the academic and education field?.......

Re: # 13
The education minister, Javed Ashraf Qazi, after retirement from the Army, for the last 10 years, been serving in various senior positions before becoming a senator and federal minister. Rather than debating upon the contents of the white paper, which would been relevant, Mr Shah has only rolled in useless, absurd and irrational remarks about anyone who has military back ground. He is, after all, a civil bureaucrat, albeit retired.

A very informative article by Hoodbhoy as usual but the question arises what can one expect from the people in the uniform who play like a monkey on the tune of `dugduggi`, taking one step forward and then two steps back. They took one step forward by demolishing (`martyring` as the mullah say) an illegally constructed mosque (Hamza mosque) and have now plunged back to reconstruct (demortify) it, as today`s news indicate, only to keep the writ of government in place, perhaps, no doubt at public cost, both ways.

From what you describe, the “white paper” appears a step in the right direction. But the lack of resources is perhaps only one of the problems in its implementation. The question is: is putting together the “white paper” or even following its conclusions enough to correct the cumulative damage done over six decades of indoctrination? And how does one undo the damage of the growth of religious fanaticism without touching what was planted at its root by the original founder himself?!

Thanks for a good laugh – the idea of using satellites to identify “truant” schools. I recently used “Google Earth” software to look down at my house and yes, it looks like my house – exactly like my house – at least the way it was two years ago!

I personally think perhaps it is better to ask the affected parents to squeal.

Empower the average Joe and let him or her use his or her ingenuity to address his or her problems.

SR#9: ``What perfect timing I`ve chosen to take up Romair`s challange to move to Pakistan. The moment has arrived. Come hail or high water, next month I`m moving to Islamabad, lock, stock and barrel....``

....where exactly will you be moving to, and what are your immediate plans.......another ten days or so, and i should be able to let you know if i am going also.....after that, in about one to two months i will be in the area.........

......i have researched the area quite a bit......you may want to keep yourself in a position, where you can move between the middle east and pakistan easily.......there is a whole lot of business going on in between these two areas......it is well into the billions of dollars......middle easterners are buying up everything in pakistan from telecom companies to banks to housing societies etc.....they are even buying islands and are thinking of putting up a whole city next to karachi.....malaysians are coming in quite strongly also....

......i really think the action now is in the area from saudi arabia to india........(and china).....

Re: # 5

[A nation that has no history, has no future.]

So, you mean that it should be based on historical events of nation to which pakistani nation claims its connection. It seems very plausible, but the problem arises when we try to figure out that what are the events that need to be part of framework that can be taken as basis. For example whole of our history (means islamic history in the sub-continent) is filled with imperial expansionism in the name of islam. You want the invasions of barbaric central asian or middle eastern looters to form the basis of our curriculum or you have something else in your mind.

Finally a ray of optimism shines through the gap between Pervez Hoodbhoy`s incisors. He was the one person whose pessimism I could have reliably counted on. Even he has succumbed to the power of hope. Three cheers for the good doc...

Not one to be left behind, now I too believe in miracles. If (i) Moses can part the Red Sea, (ii) Jesus can turn water into wine, (iii) Muhammad do space travel, (iv) Virgin Mary appear in the clouds above Guadeloupe, (v) Elvis shows up at a Best Western in rural Tennessee, (vi) UFOs visit trailer parks in Arizona desert, and (vii) crop circles appear on a Shropshire farm ten miles west of my village, then there is no reason to doubt that ministry of education will set up GPS monitoring systems for schools in rural Baluchistn.

I must be smart after all. What perfect timing I`ve chosen to take up Romair`s challange to move to Pakistan. The moment has arrived. Come hail or high water, next month I`m moving to Islamabad, lock, stock and barrel.

...SR

#7 Take it easy - Urstruly is an involuntary immigrant.