Dear Readers,
One of the greatest misfortunes for a nation that prides itself on being on Islamic Republic is the pervasive corruption that eats away at its vitals like cancer. Despite the promises and vows of successive government functionaries to stop the rot, corruption hos thrived. Many institutions like NAB, FIA and Ehtesab Bureau were created to fight and curb corruption but none could deliver effective results, albeit for different reasons. Unless such institutions are truly depoliticized and made independent of political pressure and interference, we
will see no change. The powerful feudals hove been the dominating power in Pakistan since independence, they being the major hurdle hindering the concerned state institutions from taking meaningful action against corruption. This has resulted in the slow demise of accountability; those who indulge in corrupt practices do so with impunity, safe in the knowledge they will not be taken to task. It is therefore not surprising why some of our most dynamic institutions such as PIA, Pakistan Steel Mills, Pakistan Railways and Wapda, to name just a few, once considered top profit earners, have run into losses?
While combating corruption is the responsibility of the state this cannot be achieved unless good governance is provided. But for good governance to be achieved there has to be the political will to curb corruption at all levels of government; corruption thrives in environments characterized by weak checks and balance mechanisms. Good governance con be achieved only through the establishment of strong institutions, laws, procedures and mechanisms to enforce accountability and transparency. Today, almost every sector in Pakistan reeks of corruption but no one seems to care. That is probably why honest and sincere people are seldom allowed to hold high positions in Pakistan for long. For the benefit of readers I am reproducing my article “ANOTHER REKO DIQ SCANDAL”
Located in the sparsely populated Chaghi district in northwestern Balochistan and accessible from the Quetta-Zahedan highway, Reko Diq has extreme weather, ranging from searing summers to freezing winters. High wind and sandstorms demobilise local activities and trade. A large low-grade copper porphyry deposit, Reko Diq has mineral resources totalling 5.9 billion tons of ore with an average copper grade of 0.41 percent and gold grade of 0.22 grammes/ton. The economically mineable portion has been calculated at 2.2 billion tons with an average copper grade of 0.53 percent and gold grade of 0.30 grammes/ton.
Reko Diq’s annual production is estimated at 200,000 tons of copper and 250,000 ounces of gold from 600,000 tons of concentrate. At today’s international prices, the profit worked out by Tethyan Copper Company (TCC) is about $1.14 billion for copper and $2.5 billion for gold, totaling $3.64 billion approximately annually. The TCC’s calculation of a $200 billion-plus profit over the 55-year life of the mine is disputed, higher estimates ranging up to $450-500 billion.
BHP Billiton initially signed the exploration licence with the Balochistan government in 1993, forming the TCC later in Australia, having 75 per cent and 25 percent stake respectively. With gold and copper established in substantial quantity, BHP sold its stake, 37.5 percent each to the Chilean conglomerate, Antofagasta Minerals, and Canadian company Barrick Gold.
With Significant oil and gas business, BHP Billiton is the world’s largest supplier of iron ore and sea-traded hard coking coal and the largest producer of thermal coal, lead and zinc. Producing 3% of the world’s diamond supply, it is the third-largest producer of copper and the world’s sixth-largest producer of aluminum. Originally incorporated in 1888 in Chile as a railway line servicing the copper mines, Antofagasta Holdings Plc (renamed Antofagasta Plc in 1999) diversified into mining and is today the largest copper-producer in the world. With the world’s largest reserves of gold, industry leader Barrick Gold operates 25 mines and multiple projects across five continents. Its resources on Dec 31, 2009 included 6.1 billion pounds of copper and 1.06 billion ounces of silver. Barrick produced 7.42 million ounces of gold and 393 million pounds of copper in 2009 alone.
Who gave the waiver to BHP Billiton to palm off its 75 percent share in the TCC, and at what profit, even before a ton of ore was mined? Why were the Chileans and Canadians risking life and limb, as well as their investments, in such a dangerous area? And most mysterious of all, why were they not making the smelting plants in Pakistan, instead of shipping the concentrate abroad?
Malik Riaz Hussain, a renowned land developer with incredible connections at the highest levels in all major sectors of Pakistan, claimed in mid-June 2012 that Dr. Arsalan Iftikhar, son of the then Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJ) of the Supreme Court, Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry, had blackmailed him out of $3.63 million over a three-year period. Receipts, housing agreements and even passport and flight details were produced by an associate of Malik Riaz (and Arsalan’s friend) about Arsalan’s trips and hotel stays in London (Hilton Park Lane) and Monte Carlo (Hotel de Paris). While Arsalan called the allegations “propaganda”, his father launched a preemptive judicial strike, taking suo-motu action to initiate an investigation against his own son. Shoaib Suddle uncovered a lot of incriminating evidence against both, Malik Riaz and Arsalan, recommending their prosecution for massive tax evasion. Both having a lot to lose, a compromise seems to have been reached. With the bureaucracy terrified by Justice Chaudhry’s penchant for suo-moto actions and shaming honest upright officials publicly in his courtroom, not surprising that nothing came of it.
Arsalan is not new to controversy reflecting negatively on his father, The former CJ was accused of getting him into medical school despite insufficient grades, and then rapid promotion in his first government assignment. Arsalan ultimately abandoned medicine and started his own telecommunication business, reportedly doing extremely well in “the operation management and maintenance of the network of the telecom side.”
Controversially appointed vice-chairman of the Balochistan Investment Board (BIB) despite having no conceivable expertise or experience in attracting foreign investment, Arsalan immediately honed in on the Reko Diq gold mines, announcing an open global tender. Jan Buledi, official spokesperson for the Balochistan government, said his government was “acting on advice from the federal government, trying to reach an out-of-court settlement with the TCC as it would not be able to bear the financial losses in case a financial penalty is inflicted by the International Court of Arbitration”. Revealingly, Buledi added, “It will be unfair to prevent the TCC from participating in the bidding for a licence.” The legal lacuna was created on January 7, 2013 when a three-member Supreme Court bench, headed by Arsalan’s father, declared the July 20, 1993 agreement between the Balochistan government and the TCC void and in conflict with Pakistan laws. Sheer coincidence that the former chief justice plans to establish a ‘consultancy office’?
Attracting widespread criticism, Arsalan was forced to resign within 12 days into the Reko Diq controversy. Scrupulously honest Dr. Abdul Malik, Balochistan’s Chief Minister, courageously admitted it was a gross mistake. National Party’s Hasil Khan Bizenjo, illustrious son of one of Pakistan’s most honest politicians, Ghaus Bux Bizenjo, illegally removed as Governor Balochistan by President Zulfikar Ali Bhutto in 1973, categorically contradicted Arsalan’s blatantly false assertion that his father knew nothing about it. Infact, defending Arsalan’s appointment, a PML-N stalwart, Mushahidullah Khan, touted this as a “reward” for Iftikhar Chaudhry’s “many services to the nation”. Was this a reward for services rendered to the nation or to the PML-N? Arsalan’s federally-inspired appointment was ‘Reko Diq-specific’. Who else was in on the attempted scam?
Arsalan Iftikhar is desperately trying to divert attention from the scam by attempting Imran Khan’s character assassination and subsequent disbarment by the Election Commission of Pakistan. Bereft of his feared seat of power, can Arsalan’s father rely on colleagues in his former power base to aid and abet in his machinations?
