Learning from the liberation of China and America
“…the fourth Khaki dictator – said that, “Dictators have brought development to the country while politicians have caused its derailment”. There is no truth in this statement.” In July this…
Mian’s non-existent mandate
That’s the least of our problems with coming by-elections With their long stints in power they exercise complete control over the administrative machinery of Punjab with Police being their private…
Berries in the belly
There are times we must be grateful for those odd old sayings Proverbs in Punjabi language are meaningful, direct, to the point and lesson orientated. Carrots and berries are extensively consumed…
Dirty stables and tainted riders
Pakistani leadership in a nutshell “I want to be the King of England but not without the women I love,” these are the parting words of Edward-VIII before he abdicated. He…
Heal thyself
We need hospitals, not graveyards Someone has convinced the ‘Khadim-e-Aala’ that the city of Lahore has a serious crisis of burying their dead. These days he is seen inaugurating graveyards with great…
From Sui natural gas to synthetic natural gas
We cannot swim against the tide In 1952 Pakistan discovered the world’s largest gas deposit of 12 TCF (Trillion Cubic Feet) at Sui in Dera Bugti Area of Balochistan.…
The elections are coming – time to clean out the stables
With the military in the barracks, civilian leadership needs to pull up its socks October 27, 1958 is etched in my memory when as a five year old I stood on…
In the battle of accountability vs development
“Hisab do” indeed For once I tend to agree with the Prime Minister that development cannot be stopped to pursue accountability. Retrospective steps to recover looted money are much more difficult…
The devil versus the divine
It’s the oldest fight in history The age old idiom, ‘The devil is in the detail’ holds good for all manmade systems. Divine networks have the luxury of self-correction as such…
The road goes ever on and on
… and when it comes to galvanising movements, history shows all roads lead to Lahore Having lived through two movements (1977, 2007) and getting ready for the third (2017), I thought…
Aam admi ka vote
Relying on the common man While addressing a public meeting at Jacobabad Saad Rafiq roared that they will rule the province of Sindh by Aam Admi Ka Vote (Vote of the…
Seeking Justice
My late father was a habitual litigant. When I took over from where he had left in September 1991 there were twenty court cases pending. He believed in a black…
Neutral Ballot
…and miles to go before I sleep The election in 1970 was free and fair as it was the first experience. Manipulative mechanisms were not in place. The people voted…
Water, water, everywhere
And a crisis, ever looming “NO armies with bombs and shell fire could divest a land so thoroughly as Pakistan could be devastated by the simple expedient of India’s permanently…
Cleaning Beijing and polluting Lahore
Now that’s a fine kettle of fish As smog enveloped the Chinese capital last weekend, state news agency Xinhua reported the closing of the last large coal fired power plant in the…
Our fake fakirs
“Lord of himself though not of lands; Having nothing yet hath it all” Sadeqian – one of the greatest calligraphists of the 20th century – declared himself a ‘Faqir’. That meant…
Trump’s shake-up
“An east wind is coming” I’ve been in favour of progressive politics all my life, and yet I support the shakeup of the establishment initiated by President Donald J. Trump.…