S.M Naseem

Those who did not vote

THE recently concluded elections to the central and provincial assemblies have aroused serious debate about the... Published 17 May, 2013 10:32am

Between hope and despair

HAVING survived five years of a democratic dispensation and on the cusp of an election, most people are inclined to see a faint ray of hope through the dark clouds. Published 24 Mar, 2013 05:00am

No change on the horizon

AFTER keeping the country on tenterhooks for almost a month, one of the most farcical melodramas of Pakistani politics ended a week ago in Islamabad — having been taken to the brink of a human tragedy. Published 24 Jan, 2013 12:20am

The silent bystanders

THE curious rumblings being witnessed on the eve of yet-to-be announced elections in Pakistan can be perceived as a game between entrenched political insiders, mainly consisting of the two major political Published 06 Jan, 2013 12:05am

Power failure and politics

THE transformational role of energy generally, and of electricity in particular, in the modern world was first articulated by Lenin with the dictum, “Communism is Soviet plus the electrification of the whole country”. Published 19 Aug, 2012 08:00pm

Mirage of education

THE manner in which the goal of universal primary education has been pursued in Pakistan over the past few decades is a matter of national shame. Published 20 May, 2012 12:20am

The growth pendulum

IN an impassioned lecture, under the auspices of the Pakistan Society of Development Economics some days ago in Islamabad, the deputy chairman of the Planning Commission, Dr Nadeemul Haque, tried to swing back the pendulum of development strategy in favou Published 11 Apr, 2012 10:00pm

Welfare state & democracy

IN the last few years, as the economy has continued to regress, the disenchantment with the prevailing political structure has generated a vigorous demand for political change as a means of reversing the economic free-fall and halting public misery. Published 20 Feb, 2012 11:50pm

Times of change

IMRAN Khan’s re-entry into the orbit of mainstream Pakistani politics, after several unsuccessful attempts to launch himself with the aid of a variety of unreliable boosters appeared to have succeeded last month Published 24 Nov, 2011 12:05am

New global ‘intifada’

IT is hardly a coincidence that after a decade of a purposeless ‘war on terror’ to avenge the equally senseless 9/11... Published 31 Oct, 2011 12:00am