The people of Pakistan have for very long been duped to accept that the worse democracy is better than the best dictatorship. What we fail to realize is that what has been in practice in Pakistan for last three years cannot be termed even as a worse democracy, because no benefit has filtered down to either any common man or the state. The most recent statement by the only PhD Minister of this government that terming the Moonis Elahi case a bargaining is an insult to the court, is just like adding salt to injury. It seems that theover Rs 60 billion scam of BOP, or the Rs 20 billion pilfered in NICL scam and numerous such heists involving state funds, or public money are too small a price to beoffered to retain what is being termed as the worse democracy. The great contradiction is that while this government wants to set the record straight in the judicial murder of Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, it wants to obstruct the investigation of several scams involving hundreds of billions of rupees just because it serves their political objectives. Why should the people of Pakistan be denied a democracy, where the rule of law prevails and men who are assigned to run affairs of the state havetheir major stakes and assets located in Pakistan, instead of in Europe, America, Canada or theGulf. Why should the state hesitate tohold accountable former bureaucrats,instead of just focusing on Hamesh Khan alone. After all, men like Hamesh KhanorNiazi were just pawnsusedby the corrupt politicians and bureaucrats to deprive public exchequer of billions.If this governmentisto be accepted as a poorly managed democracy,the least it is expected to do is punish those who have been caught stealing the people of Pakistan, failing which they are as worse as military dictators like Musharraf or Zia-ul-Haq. TAHIR HASSAN, Lahore, April 24.