ANWAR Abbas is absolutely correct when he says in his letter (Feb 22) that building the world’s tallest building in a country and city which need almost every essential facility and amenity like education, healthcare, jobs, gas, power, water, food, sewerage and so on and don’t have efficient rail and road services, is a very bad idea.

Putting a silk patch on a beggar's robe won’t make him king. Rich western and, perhaps, a few Muslim countries can afford such ego-boosting landmarks but not a developing country like ours. It is akin to playing that childish game of ‘Mine is better,’ penned by the famed psychologist Eric Berne in his masterpiece work, ‘Games People Play.’

Given the clarification by the Abu Dhabi group about this project (Feb. 22), it appears that the UAE sponsors supposed to finance Malik Riaz’s mind b oggling proposal, have withdrawn all association with it and it may not be built after all, unless Mr Riaz is able to find some other partner.

However, I wish to point out some additional risks in creating such a skyscraper. The civil defence and other agencies aren’t even adequately equipped or trained to deal with fires or other accidents in much smaller buildings. What would happen if there is an earthquake, cyclone, air attack or other act of terrorism (such a site will surely become a prized target for terrorists)?

It would be much better if the Pakistani tycoon does something to alleviate the chronic transportation problem of this financial hub of the country by finding sponsors and using his influence with the government to construct a mass transit system.

A. G. CHAUDHRY Karachi