I first met M.A. Zuberi in the late 1960s at a seminar in Karachi. I complimented him on launching the daily Business Recorder and said Pakistan desperately needed a daily newspaper that is devoted exclusively to economic and commercial news and issues. After that we met regularly in Islamabad and Karachi, until I went to Rome in August 1971, to join FAO. These contacts were resumed in 1984 when I returned to Pakistan.
My interaction with M.A. Zuberi became much more frequent after 1990, when I joined the Cabinet as Finance Minister. He was very pleased about the wide ranging economic reforms introduced in the first 100 days of the new government. Ever since the 1970s, he had been advocating the importance of a strong and dynamic private sector for improving the living standards of the people. He therefore welcomed the advent of a market economy in several editorials of Business Recorder, but at the same time, emphasised the need for proper regulatory bodies to protect the interest of consumers and investors.
During that eventful period, I used to read Business Recorder regularly and valued its objective and balanced reporting. In April 1991, M.A. Zuberi, especially met me in Islamabad and complimented me on two further landmark achievements: the historic agreement of March 1991 among the provinces on the apportionment of Indus Water and the unanimous NFC Award of April 1991.
As the founding father of economic journalism in Pakistan, M.A. Zuberi demonstrated a remarkable contribution of incisive understanding of economic issues, and a deeply patriotic approach to policy options. This combination provides a valuable source of inspiration and guidance for future generations of economic journalists.