Tazeen Akhtar
When a department that itself publishes books on literature is buying books of the same category from private market , it naturally looks unnatural and fishy fishy, some critics allege it seems to be fifty fifty actually. Our conformity with them is not necessary but matter of fact is the departments like Pakistan Academy of Letters do not buy books but publish themselves and sell them.
PAL has been in the news for its disputed working, hire fire, performance and other things most often during the tenure of many Chairmen in the past but the advertising in the newspapers for purchase of books on literature has never been observed as has been done by the incumbent administration.
Here it is worth mentioning that PAL is a department that was set up by former PM ZA Bhutto to take care of the literary people. PAL is authorized and funded by government of Pakistan to promote literary activities, support poets writers in shape of remunerations, help them publish their books etc. Unfortunately , most of the Chairmen used it more to develop their own clout of writers than providing a level playing field to all writers and authors. Postings, promotions of favorites and demotions of “dis-obedients” has been the fashion here.
The resources of the PAL including vehicles and writers’ house have been misused by the concerned ministry most often only because the Chairmen and Director Generals were not strong in their person and standing. The employees have mostly been complaining about the violations of merit in this department. The pensioners , in the near past were wandering here and there in search of their pensions that were not paid for months.
In this state of affairs, two advertisements have been published in the newspapers on 21 April 2024 to buy literary books for library and equipment for literary museum. This is first time in the history of PAL. Secondly, the person to contact is a Deputy Director while phone numbers are different. Simple Deputy Director is another objectionable matter. There are many deputy directors under one Director General.
This scribe have long working on the reporting of PAL, having met most of the Chairmen and holding own events there in collaboration is privy to many wrong things there and reported time to time, contacted one of the highest office bearers of PAL to take their side of version on the question why a publishing organization having stocks of published literary books is purchasing books from market.
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The questions sent to the higher authority are :
1 – PAL itself is publishing books of all big literary names – then why buying books from others ?
2- PAL go downs are packed with PAL published books on all topics and types of literature – Where are those books and what is their purpose?
3- How much the funds have been allocated to buy books from outside?
4- What types of books are being bought – categories etc ?
5- Is it PAL’s own decision or anyone from the Ministry has asked for it ?
And there is no response even after 48 hours passed. That is routine of our officers. Most of them live in state of denial when Russia even has come out of that state.
It is common in our ministries and departments that they create the necessities only to benefit their friends, relatives or for personal gains in shape of commissions and kick backs. A demand is raised from the concerned department, an advertisement is prepared in which the same conditions are noted that the same item can fulfill that is to be purchase to accommodate the favorite.
The matter may not have been so, but the state of denial and silence to the questions make it suspicious. Here it is also important to share that most of the people attached to PAL are not aware that where the Library and the Museum are existing in the Pakistan Academy of Letters.As long as museum is concerned , here many have different opinion. Some ask where is museum in PAL, the others comment “Actually PAL as a whole is a Museum”. Here too, our conformity is not necessary by the way.
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