AS the State Department and US Embassy at Islamabad desperately try to perform an impossible trick of retrieving the words of Defence Secretary Robert Gates, recorded by a private TV channel during his visit to Pakistan, admitting the presence of Blackwater and Dyncorp here, Interior Minister Rehman Malik insists there is no such thing around. Let us recapture in print Mr Gates reply, Well, theyre operating as individual companies here in Pakistan, to the question by a TV reporter, Xe International, formerly known as Blackwater and Dyncorp, under what rules are they operating here in Pakistan? and that should leave little room for doubt. Nevertheless, this obvious admission has not embarrassed Minister Malik. He has, in fact, once again come out with denying the presence of this murderous outfit, maybe because he had, some time back, sworn to resign if he was proved wrong. An interesting observation coming from Information Minister Qamar Zaman Kaira seems to acknowledge the fact that the firm is operating in Pakistan. In the backdrop of the medias call that after Secretary Gates admission Mr Malik should resign from his post in compliance with his commitment, Mr Kaira says that he should not have turned emotional when he was talking about the presence of this firm in the country. This paper took the lead in exposing the governments acquiescence to let the firm, with a reputation of committing targeted killings in Iraq, operate in the country and provided repeated evidence of their dark designs as well as deeds in Pakistan. Once again, the free media did a national service of crucial significance; earlier it had joined the lawyers and civil society to successfully restore the deposed judiciary. This effort must not go waste, nor any attempt at muzzling its voice be allowed. The ill-famed outfit must be made to pack up and go before it could do any serious harm to our security interests.