The other day, I watched a video showing Hamza Shahbaz, a leader of the Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz), addressing schoolchildren at a function at some school. I was shocked at the manner in which he tried to teach the “basics” of democracy and the concepts of corruption and accountability to such young children. What was Hamza Shahbaz thinking while addressing those young minds? It seemed as if he were addressing a political rally. This is indeed very sad that such people are aspiring to become leaders of tomorrow. They can’t even differentiate between innocent children who are not even aware of the concept of governance and people suffering from electoral hysteria. A few months ago, another budding “leader” of the rival dynasty tried to address his supporters. That young man had somehow managed to memorize the speech written by his advisers but he miserably failed in mimicking his maternal grandfather late Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. It is not just the current crop of politicians, which is completely divorced from the realities of the country but even their heirs are also completely ignorant of the problems facing the masses. Coming back to the main issue, Hamza Shahbaz’s speech earned a spot in the classics. I am surprised that he did not even feel uneasy while uttering those words in front of schoolchildren. Secondly, whatever he told those children tantamount to poisoning their innocent minds. — Yasir N. Khattak, Jeddah
The upcoming leaders
