PTI’s top slot

Whether Imran Khan has achieved by his dharnas what he wanted to is a matter of one’s opinion, but he has proven himself a good agitator. Someone with such a quality may not make a good prime minister. For top position in the party, therefore, Shah Mehmod Qureshi is more suitable. First, unlike Imran, he belongs to south Punjab where the people nurture a sense of deprivation, quite erroneously though. Second, he is a gadi nasheen with plenty of following in the Seraiki belt and Sindh. Compared to him, Imran stands nowhere. Third, Qureshi has had a stint in the Foreign Service. Hence, he can be suave and diplomatic when needed unlike haughty Imran who kills a fly with a hammer and uses foul language against his political opponents. Imran Khan should act as PTI’s ideological guide following the footsteps of MQM Chairman Altaf Hussain. If not Qureshi, Shirin Mazari could be the candidate for the premiership after the next elections. As woman prime minister, she would give the world a soft image of the country. Whether she reminds one of Golda Meir is another matter.

DR A P SANGDIL

Oslo, Norway