“The Man, Who Must Remain Nameless and Faceless, has reportedly agreed to Gandapur negotiating on his behalf.”
“Negotiating really?”
“Yes, if the government can successfully renegotiate contracts with the Independent Power Producers, then why not with The Man Who Must Remain….”
“Are you for real?”
“Yes because….”
“Stop. I would use the word rapprochement when speaking of politicians, which has an element of compromise.”
“Renegotiation has an element of compromise too, you know, to look at an existing agreement and negotiate changes.”
“That depends on the players, doesn’t it!”
“Explain.”
“Well, let’s say a T-20 is being played.”
“Didn’t we lose all of them, I mean you have been watching our cricket team in action since…oh, since the Brown Pope returned from hibernation….”
“Speaking of The Brown Pope, he wasn’t present when the Prime Minister announced the electricity price reduction, and why are you laughing?”
“The Brown Pope is a man to reckon with. Nawaz Sharif may refuse to meet the President, but he was forced to meet the Brown Pope recently and reportedly pledged to keep his daughter in check.”
“I never asked you….”
“Nawaz Sharif is a politician, may not be popular anymore but a politician, the Brown Pope is a Power Player…”
“Aren’t politicians power players?”
“Lao Tzu, the famous Chinese philosopher, said, mastering others is strength, mastering yourself is true power.”
“OK, so the Brown Pope has a standing that rivals no one else – not Nawaz Sharif, not President Zardari, not …”
“What about Faisal Vawda?”
“Vawda is a politician a la Nikita Khrushchev’s definition who said politicians are the same all over, they promise to build bridges even when there are no rivers.”
“Punjab has five rivers….”
“A lot of scope for building bridges.”
“Don’t be facetious.”
Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
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