Pakistan faces the biggest existential threat to its sovereignty and existence from within its own borders
LAHORE: The brutal, cold-blooded targeted killing of Amjad Sabri on June 22 cut short the life of an icon who can rightly be called Pakistan’s Luciano Pavarotti. He had a strong, resonating and controlled voice, which he inherited from his late father, Ghulam Farid Sabri, and in a short span of time, had carved a name for himself. Amjad Sabri’s rendering of qawwalis will continue to resonate in the hearts and minds of millions who are his fans all over the world. It is unfortunate that the scourge of terrorism and intolerance has deprived Pakistan of many talented and brilliant sons and daughters who excelled in their fields. Thousands have fallen prey to this devilish pursuit of blind power, greed and battle for turf in the financial hub of Karachi.
Amjad Sabri was one of the rare breed of men who owned and loved Karachi, and continued to live in the area where he was born and in the house where his father lived. He was a devout lover of the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him), and a loyal son of Pakistan, which unfortunately, cannot be said for many of those for whom this country has offered numerous opportunities. They made fortunes here and yet abandoned it. Fame and fortune did not get to Amjad Sabri’s head. As usual, there have been numerous messages of condolences by those at the helm lacking the will to launch a ruthless drive to root out criminals and enforce writ of law. Pakistan faces the biggest existential threat to its sovereignty and existence from within its own borders compounded by a lack of commitment by both, the political elite and the establishment, who are slaves to their greed and conflicts of interest.
Malik Tariq Ali
Published in The Express Tribune, June 25th, 2016.
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