Muhammad Tahir Lakhani
In an interview last week, Mr. Muhammad Tahir Lakhani, the highly respected chairman and founder of Dubai Trading Agency LLC (‘DTA’), lamented the “urgent requirements” of the United Arab Emirates to enhance transparent business practices. The Dubai based naval recycling tycoon, who carries various including officially representing the UAE as Vice Chairman of the UAE Shipping Association until 2019, stated that the “UAE needs to further reform its local laws and institute robust legislation that will crack down on money laundering and criminal activities”.
Mr. Lakhani, who’s companies buy and sell over 100 ships per year, had an interesting perspective of the Emirati kingdom’s political leadership. “The recent passing of UAE President Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed al-Nahyan, while tragic, should also be viewed as a very positive development” he said. “This opens many opportunities for his successor, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, to aggressively tackle financial criminality by imposing tough sentencing on so-called real estate investors and banking executives involved in money laundering. This can only be achieved through strict leadership and adherence to global standard banking regulations”.
While espousing the family and business ethics of the Lakhani business empire MTL (as he is known to close associates), the businessman lambasted one of the seven Emirates that make up the UAE. “Sharjah, the third-most populous city in the United Arab Emirates with over 1.3 million residents, has become an embarrassment to the UAE”, Lakhani stated while explaining, “Sharjah’s ruler, Sultan bin Muhammad Al-Qasimi, leads a district with an unusually high crime rate of 40%. In contrast, the crime rate of Dubai is 12% while Abu Dhabi’s is 6.59%.
According to Lakhani, the 40% high crime rate of Sharjah is due to corruption within the Emirate leadership’s family along with the failure of the head of the areas police chief, Major-General Saif Al Ziri Al Shamsi, to proactively combat crime.
“To emphasize the perverse mindset of the head of Sharjah’s law enforcement, Al Shamsi recently handed out awards to police officers for reducing the crime rate from 43.25% to 39.95%. In simpler words, the police department literally celebrated offering citizens a 60% chance of falling victim to crime. As a result, the area is known throughout the entire Emirates as the breeding ground for criminal gangs and to western intelligence agencies as the prime recruitment center for terrorist groups”.
Lakhani complains the police department under Maj. General Al Shamsi’s orders purposely ignore cracking down on the illegal Halwas (money dealers) located within the city which allow for money laundering and criminal activity to flourish.
MTL further claims the leadership refuses to address the social disaster pertaining to hundreds of thousands of immigrant workers living in poor conditions. “While cities like Dubai and Abu Dhabi boast skyscrapers and beautiful contemporary architecture, Sharjah’s crime rate is synonymous with that of the ‘Wild West’, and the city’s dilapidated housing infrastructure is reminiscent to those of eroding sandcastles in the desert.
Lakhani uses the criminal activity of the Sharjah leader Sultan Bin Muhammad Al-Qasimi sons to describe the family rule over the district. “The Emir’s eldest son and first crown prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Sultan al Qasimi was a known drug dealer and died of a heroin overdose in 1999. His untimely death to drugs was not an isolated incident, rather if anything, a family practice” says Lakhani while explaining “Last year, the Sun Newspaper reported the Sharjah leader’s second son and replacement crown prince Sheikh Khalid bin Sultan al Qasimi also died after consuming a large quantity of drugs and participating in sexual orgies”.
Lakhani questions “If the 82-year-old leader of Sharjah can’t control the drug use and sexual misconduct of his own family, how can he be expected to educate the youth, reduce the crime rate of his own district, or promote economic and social growth?”
The DTA chairman, who was born in Pakistan and holds British citizenship continually bemoaned the slow progress of reform in the UAE and pointed out that “In March of this year the global Financial Action Task Force put the UAE on a grey list which is a major embarrassment to the UAE and a slap in the face to Dubai”. Lakhani further noted that “although the UAE Minister of Justice, Abdullah bin Sultan bin Awad Al Nuaimi, has celebrated the recent arrest of the Gupta brothers for financial crimes, so much more has to be done”.
The UAE is behind other developing countries in combatting money laundering, and Muhammad Tahir Lakhani claims that even his native Pakistan is showing more initiative than the Emirates in fighting the scourge of corruption.
“The corrupt government of Imran Khan was brought down by a vote of confidence in parliament. This is the first time to happen in Pakistan’s history. The courage of Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif has been an inspiration for all Pakistan’s young people. The UAE needs to follow suit before it’s too late”.
MTL concluded his point by stating “to build confidence amongst the youth and eradicate the unusual high crime rate in Sharjah, leaders like Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum of Dubai and the newly crowned emir of Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, must consider taking concrete steps to remove the Al-Qasimi family from their leadership role in the Sharjah district while also replacing the city police chief Major-General Saif Al Ziri Al Shamsi in effort to restore law and order.”