Kashif Abbasi is one of the few journalists/analysts in the country who have kept the ship of independent-mindedness and conscientiousness afloat. The others in this category I happened to mention in one of my tweets the other day are Dr Moeed Pirazada, Rauf Klasra, Dr Shahid Masud, Amir Mateen and Arshad Sharif. I regret not having mentioned Nadeem Malik in that tweet. He is yet another luminary in the realm of conscientious journalism. I have deliberately avoided using the term ‘unbiased’. A person who is unbiased between what is seemingly right and what is seemingly wrong is in my opinion loose-minded or crudely speaking ‘up for the grabs’. I am not using here the phase ‘up for sale’ because that would be too harsh.
You will not find such ‘celebrated’ journalists as Nazir Naji, Hassan Nisar, Majeebur Rahman Shami and Haroon Rasheed in this list for very very obvious reasons. They are basically contracted promoters of ideas. I have very high respect for their talent, but to be talented doesn’t mean to be conscientious.
The reason behind this long introduction to this column of mine is a tweet of Kashif Abbasi in which he says: “Look at the optics. JKT and Aleem Khan sitting either side of Imran Khan. Thought everyone was to be investigated.”
Kashif Abbasi in most recent programmes of his, has forcefully advocated that the issue of investigating into the background which caused the appearance of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s ‘offspring’s’ in the Panama Leaks has no relevance to the other general cases of corruption which too need to be investigated.
Whereas the Prime Minister has no moral authority to indirectly sit in judgment to himself investigate his own misdoings, he does enjoy all the powers required to put all other confirmed or suspected misdoers on trial.
If Jahangir Khan Tareen and Aleem Khan are lying in their explanations, it is upto the Prime Minister to grab this opportunity to expose these lieutenants of IK in the eyes of the people.
The best way to expose them will be to proceed with proper investigations, and to follow it up with a trial.
Till the truth is not certified and is restricted to the statements of the PM’s cronies or lackeys, IK will not be doing justice to his party’s interests. Every party needs ATMs— with the exception of the PML (N) which has the whole national treasury and the entire Taxpayer’s money at its disposal.
This is the ugliest aspect of the Democratic system you love Mr Kashif Abbasi—-
