People are talking about —

-- the budget and the different reactions it has generated from various strata of society, with some praising the government and others saying that not enough was done to give relief to the populace. People say when expectations are high as they were in this case because elections are around the corner, so to say, there is bound to be disappointment because the general public thinks there will be many benefits doled out to garner votes for the ruling party.

-- the fact that according to a survey, more than 20,700 women of District South Karachi are out of voters lists, mainly because they have not been issued computerised national identity cards. People say if this is the case then the political entities who are crying over the results of the recent census are correct in protesting and the concerned authorities should try and set things right before the next general election.

-- how a slip of the tongue causes problems if the right words are not used in context, especially by political entities. People say the chief minister of KPK has set the ball rolling by using the phrase ‘orders from the top’ when he meant his leader, on why he voted as he did during the senate elections, immediately giving the opposition the opportunity to put the blame on the ‘hidden forces’ they all talk about without naming who they really mean.

-- the unnecessary security protection given to many persons who are supposed to be ‘public servants’ and how it is gratifying that the SC has taken notice of this situation and ordered that such teams be withdrawn and used instead to protect the general public, which is what they are supposed to do. People say with so many security personnel deployed in ‘protecting’ political entities, there was always a dearth of them in places and situations that needed their services.

-- the passing of a bill in the Sindh assembly that strips the provinces public sector universities of their autonomy and gives power to the chief minister to run their affairs according to his own preferences. People say this transfer of power will not benefit these higher seats of education in any way and there is a danger that the power he holds can be misused for other purposes when the need arises, since he belongs to a political party.

-- the fact that the SC has said judicial reforms are the need of the hour and is preparing to take action. People say three mechanisms are widely used in trial cases to enable high profile prisoners to get away with an offense or delay investigation, plea bargaining; stay orders and exemption on medical grounds and laws need to be framed so these facilities are withdrawn as they allow influential persons to use them and get away with criminal behaviour.

-- the mind boggling case of how a veterinary doctor was hired to work in a hospital for human beings and had been doing so for quite some time until someone brought the matter to the notice of the SC and he was removed. People say it can well be imagined in what shape the health facilities of government hospitals are when such ‘mistakes’ take place and it is shameful that rulers still claim they are ‘a peoples government.’