
PARTLY FACETIOUS: How many constitutional clauses are followed in letter and spirit?
'I heard Chaudhary Nisar was visited by the Prime Minister at his home.'
'Two things, first he is not born – or reborn for that matter, as he left the party but didn't join another.'
'So, you define rebirth as when one join's another party?'
'Yes, like Madonna the superstar, she has survived this long because she reinvents herself every few years and remains relevant.'
'One of our Madonnas' is Bugti sahib, then there is…'
'For your information our first amendment stipulates the right to change one's mind.'
'Not true…the first amendment…'
'Hey, how many constitutional clauses are followed in letter and spirit?'
'You are being facetious.'
'Going back to Chaudhary Nisar my question is did the First Uncle clear his visit first with the Chief Minister of Punjab and her daddy?'
'I reckon the choice became between a rock and a hard place and the rock seemed easier to move around what with the heavy lifters/movers…'
'Now who is being facetious? Besides, if the portfolio in question is the same as before; Chaudhary Nisar's contacts have long retired or passed away and…'
'May or may not be so. Anyway, when I said a star is born I wasn't referring to our local politicians because all, including the True Heirs, were born a long time ago.'
'You can't be referring to President Trump, surely - I mean, he too is into his second act.'
'I was referring to Mamdani the Democrat standing for New York mayoral elections, the Muslim who defeated Cuomo, a former governor who had access to money from the rich Jewish lobbyists in New York.'
'That's true, though now Trump is accusing him of……'
'Doesn't matter, the point is that if he wins New York, he will not be beholden to the powerful and rich Israeli lobby…'
'Mamdani is under 40 and as survey after survey reveals the under 40 Americans are overwhelmingly not pro-Israeli, and maybe he can spearhead a change in the Democratic establishment…'
'Speaking of establishment, Modi's actions post-Pahalgam relegated his country to a level below ours in regional and international politics, and the lesson learned is….'
'Lesson learned is; do not allow hatred, however justified, to dictate policy, for therein lies the eventual downfall.'
'What if the life span of…'
'Enough.'
Copyright Business Recorder, 2025

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Following the same pattern, Pakistan was cast off after the fall of Kabul in 2021, too. Hence, it must remain wary in the future as well. Considering the post-ceasefire events, Pakistan may again be lured to find solutions to its internal and external crises in forming strategic partnerships, especially with the US. Previously, Pakistan has leveraged its geographical location for geopolitical gains, but apart from temporary relief, it has only guided towards much deep-rooted problems. The country gravely suffers from growing poverty, economic inequality, policy discontinuity, unemployment, poor education and healthcare facilities, etc. The current situation presents Pakistan with a dilemma: whether it would keep using its strategic advantage for temporary gains or realise the vision of geo-economics that the country's National Security Policy introduced in January 2022. Becoming a melting pot for global economic interests through strengthening regional connectivity and development partnerships will help Pakistan address its structural problems related to non-traditional security aspects. Additionally, it will also ensure that the country has enough resources in the pool to improve its traditional security apparatus. Certainly, now this is more important because Operation Sindoor is not over yet. Pakistan needs to build its economic muscle against India, which is reportedly set to become the fourth-largest economy in the world. It is also arguably correct that the path to geo-economics will be long, and considering the world today, which has almost become a war theater, Pakistan will have additional hindrances when anchoring geographic location for economic benefits. Nonetheless, with the alternate strategy, Pakistan has tried and failed again and again, and not changing the approach will not help address the deep-rooted structural issues the country has been suffering from since its inception in 1947.