In search of hope
Is the ideological scrutiny of our future lawmakers largely a reflection on the existing religiosity in Pakistani society or an indication of the inefficacy and lack of capacity permeating most…
Good news?
Sir Michael Barber, a British educationist, has good news for all of us, or at least he claims so in his recently published report ‘Good News from Pakistan’. The report…
Caretakers’ mandate
The concept of a caretaker government to run the country during the elections is now firmly rooted in the constitutional practice of the parliamentary system. If it is a constitutional…
Law’s makers and breakers
Democratic values are taking roots in Pakistan, as is evident from the recent successful completion of a democratic government, as also the role of the media, judiciary and civil society…
Five long years
I have been writing on economic issues for almost four years. In each article, the growing weaknesses of Pakistan’s economy and policy inaction have been identified and suggestions made to…
Are we that helpless?
"If you think of yourselves as helpless and ineffectual, it is certain that you will create a despotic government to be your master. The wise despot, therefore, maintains among his…
Lollywood: an obituary
In terms of production, the late Lollywood was once rated as one of the world’s top ten film industries. Until the 1980s it was not called Lollywood. It was on…
Mirrors shown by India and UK! Articles 62, 63: Don’t falter Fakhru Bhai! 180 million are with you!
The hue and cry over Articles 62 and 63 of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan never appears to quite die down. It rises in tandem in noise…
Losing both war and peace
Inscribed on the wall of a Buddhist temple in Hawaii are the words: ‘Every man is given the key to the gates of heaven. The same key can open the…
Harsh lessons from regime change
Although the event went largely unreported in Pakistan and elsewhere, a Coptic church was burned down in the Libyan city of Benghazi on March 4. Earlier, there was an assassination…
