The constitutionally elected PM of Pakistan has proceeded on yet another foreign official trip. He is going to Maldives, a country with population of under 400,000 only, having a 100% Muslim population and whose capital Male is smaller than Karachi’s Nazimabad or Lahore’s Samanabad. In the prevailing critical conditions, the President should have gone instead to attend 52 Independence Day celebrations of this tiny Muslim state.
Maldives spread over 1192 coral islands has an airport located on a small island which is few hundred yards longer than length of runway. For the PM to depart on this trip within a day of a terrorist attack at Lahore killing over 26 innocent citizens, injuring over 60 citizens of this country, displays total lack of sensitivity and complete disconnect with people, who voted him to power. The least that was expected of him was to share grief not proceed on yet another trip to a country which is basically a tourist resort. What could be significance of numerous MOUs which would be signed? It has become almost a joke, in a country whose exports are lowest in the region, yet the foreign junkets by its leadership are higher than those by heads of states of others in this
region. This affluence, extravagance lifestyle and waste at expense of tax payers has assumed almost an epidemic addiction for every public holder. Exports by every country including India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka have shown an increase in past few years, in spite of global recession, while ours are declining and imports escalating, debts rising with no austerity measures adopted by those at helm.
ALI MALIK TARIQ
Lahore
