PARTLY FACETIOUS: Nawaz Sharif’s exposure to British culture limited to…

“I tell you it’s Rwanda or bust!”

“So you reckon instead of London plans and need I add all three leaders of our national parties have deep ties with London, our political parties should congregate in Rwanda?”

“Rwanda is a poor country and perhaps just perhaps the poverty would make these leaders think of the poor people of Pakistan for a change…”

“Well talking of London the three leaders have had different experience — The Khan’s first wife, much loved by all Pakistanis though not at the time she was married to him…”

“See that’s the thing about us Pakistanis – we don’t appreciate what we have till we lose it.”

“Ha ha, that’s right, anyway The Khan’s children are British nationals, but Nawaz Sharif has yet to have a British national, born and bred, in his family…”

“His sons may have married British women — his older son is as you know following the path blazed by his Uncle Shehbaz — two concurrent wives — and then we don’t know much about the younger son’s wife and…”

“Let’s put it this way they are probably not married to women whose grandfathers were British nationals.”

“Right, so Nawaz Sharif’s exposure to British culture is limited to the facilities shall we say.”

“Facilities can also mean toilets.”

“I hear the Sharifs’ toilets have gold plated taps and the bathtubs are made from the finest porcelain in the world.”

“How fine?”

“Well you can probably afford only to plate your bad teeth with porcelain.”

“And then Zardari sahib’s children went to school in the UK and…”

“Right, so the narrative for Nawaz Sharif is that he has the weakest link to England though perhaps he owns the most expensive real estate there, Zardari sahib may be taking all political decisions but the future rests with those educated abroad like The Khan was…”

“Speaking of the need to educate our children Miftah Ismail says we must educate our children to achieve development!”

“The country paid foreign exchange to educate Miftah Ismail, his predecessor Hafeez Sheikh, our previous Governor of State Bank and the acting Governor today in fancy universities abroad and can you tell me the state of the economy today?”

“Maybe it’s all down to the little over a year of Shaukat Tarin as the finance minister, you know he was educated in this country and…”

“Well if you ask Ismail and Sheikh and…”

“Don’t be facetious.”

Copyright Business Recorder, 2022