“The airwaves are full of discussions on who is agreeable to negotiating with whom?”

“Well, The Man Who Must Remain Nameless and Faceless…”

“No, don’t go there – that’s like going into quicksand.”

“Nawaz Sharif, reportedly, right after the high level meeting in Lahore…”

“Where the two brothers were seated at the head of the table!”

“Yes, I noticed, but I think that was fair – the deputy prime minister…”

“Dear, dear, me.”

“Well, why wasn’t he seated closer to the seat of power – I mean, he was seated next to Ayaz Sadiq…”

“There you go…he was seated next to sadiq and as per our constitution only a sadiq and ameen is eligible to sit in parliament.”

“I don’t get you?”

“Form 45 or it’s possible tally with form 47 may not…”

“Dear Lord. Don’t be facetious, anyway what I wanted to say was that I am baffled at the time given to who is willing to negotiate with whom and what is appropriate and what isn’t…”

“Well, politicians must talk amongst themselves to resolve the deadlock and…”

“Perhaps, but while the airwaves are focused on who is right or wrong and what is the right way to move forward, the media is in synch on the subject of the X factor.”

“X factor as in…?”

“Don’t be obtuse, but I ask you one question: yes the social media needs to be regulated but don’t forget that the US congress, with members on average more educated than most of our senators and parliamentarians have gone after TikTok because it’s a Chinese platform and need I add it carried many heart-rending uploads by Palestinians in Gaza and now in West Bank and…”

“You are linking the two! There is freedom of the press…”

“Yes, but the narrative in mainstream media remains pro-Israeli in spite of human rights violations, in spite of Israel provoking the Iranians twice - once by attacking the Iranian embassy in Syria and assassinating Ismail Haniyeh on Iranian soil, and Hezbollah…”

“Hmm, and what about the Telegram’s Durov picked up by the French police as he landed…”

“There is a separation of powers in France, right!”

“Right, but Telegram does present an alternate view to Western view on Ukraine-Russia war.”

“Coincidence, my friend, mere coincidence.”

“All I want to say is that our X factor pales into insignificance when one sees democratic governments…”

“Right it’s a war of narratives everywhere, so don’t get sanctimonious about our X factor. Look at the picture holistically….and you don’t have to salute me.”

“Yes sir!”

Copyright Business Recorder, 2024