THIS IS MY STORY—46
MY JOURNEY THROUGH THE ERA OF AYUB KHAN TO THE TIMES OF IMRAN KHAN.
GHULAM AKBAR
Beginning of the Fall
This was the national scenario in which I was struggling to create for me a career which would, on the one hand provide me economic security and on the other hand be helpful or instrumental in the pursuit of my nationalistic dreams and longings.
My eldest son Inam Akbar was born in Karachi on the 28th of June 1963.
Well over a year had passed since I had landed in the city of the Quaid to explore the world of advertising, not as a part of it but as a media marketing executive.
At that time the Media constituted of a handful of newspapers which all competed with one another for winning the support of the advertisers and the advertising agencies. Pakistan Times of Lahore and Rawalpindi and Dawn of Karachi were the most powerful names, followed by Jang, Observer Dacca, Kohistan and Nawai Waqt.
In one year I had been able to lift Kohistan from an unknown entity (in the Karachi market) to a recognized frontline national daily.
For this I had built personal relations with a number of admen—including (as already mentioned) C.A Rauf, Mohammad Mushtaque, Chaudhry Abdul Ghafoor and S.H. Hashmi. With the last-named I was to enjoy a life-long relationship as friends and virtually brothers.
The other three were quite senior to me and enjoyed the reputation of being virtually the fathers of advertising in Pakistan. Chaudhry Abdul Ghafoor had been handling the advertising of two key industries of the country— Hamdard and Tibet. C.A. Rauf’s Lintas handled the products of the Lever Brothers (Lux, Lifebuoy, Rexona, Sunlight, and Dalda etc).
As mentioned earlier Rauf Sahib and Mushtaq Sahib had undertaken the tough task of cementing the differences between Nasim Hijazi Sahib and Enayatullah Sahib. Sheikh Hamid Mahmood who had been Managing Editor of Nawai Waqt before Majeed Nazami Sahib had taken control on the death of Hameed Nizami, had been assigned the arbitrator’s role.
Habibur Rahman Chapta had been transferred to Lahore.
What was to happen as the consequence of the mediatory role of Rauf Sahib and Mushtaq Sahib, and the arbitration conducted by Sheikh Mahmood, was to seal the fate of Daily Kohistan.
I had learnt that Enayatullah Sahib had flown to U.K. handing over the charge of the newspaper’s management to Mamoon Jan. His condition had been that no key changes would be made in the structure.
