Zardari makes an appearance; raises eyebrows

President Asif Ali Zardari made a surprise appearance as the chief guest on Turkish national day.

ISLAMABAD: It was probably one of the biggest receptions of the year hosted by Turkish Ambassador Babur Hizlan at his residence on his national day.

Enormous flags of Turkey and Pakistan covered the embassy building lit up with spotlights highlighting the significance of the day. A red carpet welcome awaited the exclusive guest list. The ambassador, his wife and other embassy officials stood greeting their guests and directing them towards a tent where everyone was seated. There were hundreds of guests, including former and incumbent ambassadors, UN officials, politicians, bureaucrats, Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, General Khalid Shameem Wyne and Chief of the Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal Rao Qamar Suleman and others.

Pakistani women were in their evening dresses with mostly embroidered long shirts whereas women from other nationalities were either in their traditional attire or in formal lavish silk and chiffon dresses. Traditional dishes such as ‘Borek’ (cheese in samosa wraps or minced meat), ‘Pilav’ (Turkish rice with vermicelli) were laid on the table and longest line was for the ‘shawarma’ where people stood in queue with patience, but it was worth the wait.

While some had their appetite for food others were looking forward to some juicy gossip. “So I’ve heard the President is also coming tonight,” said a diplomat to another with raised eyebrows and quirky smiles. Yes, the most interesting sight of the night was the surprise appearance of President Asif Ali Zardari as the chief guest. Before his coming, there were rumours going on about his arrival, where some knew about his plan others were puzzled as to when and why was he coming?

President Zardari walked down the carpeted stairs towards the tent where all the guests were waiting, of course with an entourage, smiling, saluting, and waving. The president began his brisk round of the tent shaking hands with guests, and left leaving the guests with mixed feelings where a lot were puzzled, a few happy, some with smirks and a handful least bothered faces were spotted which were sweeter than desert.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 1^st, 2010.