ROAD RECONSTRUCTION: The 5km road between the Race Course and Pahelwan Goth in Karachi needs to be reconstructed on an urgent basis. The road is full of potholes and craters. The construction was sanctioned in December last year, but the work is moving at a snail’s pace. All materials and equipment are ready, lying at the Saturday Bazar Ground, but even basic progress is nowhere to be seen. The workers are focusing only on repairing the divider. The city mayor should have this road reconstructed on a priority basis because all other adjacent and alternative roads are also closed.

Rafi Ahmed
Karachi

HYPOCRISY: The prime minister of Bangladesh used a commercial flight, having a stopover in Istanbul, to travel to New York for a short visit to attend the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) session. On the other hand, the prime minister of Pakistan and his delegation travelled to New York in a chartered plane. It is not too hard to realise why Bangladesh has marched ahead economically, while we have regressed over the years. While the public is repeatedly asked to practice austerity in everyday life, the leadership continues to practice extravagance.

Shaista Anwar Kirmani
Karachi

QUIET INTEGRITY: In any setting, integrity is the one asset that compounds over time; it is slower to build than skill, but, once it is there, it remains forever. When faced with pressure to look away from evils like wrongdoing or favouritism, people should focus on doing good work without any compromise. A career built on compromised values rarely sustains.

Shahid Ullah Khan
Dera Ismail Khan

EXTRAVAGANCE: The recent reports about planes taken by two senior politicians to foreign countries and having them parked there, costing massive amounts, reminded me of the Quaid-i-Azam who had refused to go abroad for medical treatment as Pakistan happened to be a poor country. This is a classic example of extravagance.

Shakir Lakhani
Karachi

Published in Dawn, October 23rd, 2026