The norm in Pakistan has come to be the rulers reading speeches.
PM Nawaz Sharif for some unknown reason appears to be incapable of saying a few words without reading his notes. When he met President Obama, he could not even utter a few sentences without looking at his notes. This was embarrassing as Hina Rabbani Khar said that even Malala at such a young age was communicating without any notes with President Obama in the same setting and our PM could not.
The fact is that this is noticed by rulers of the other countries and they cannot help lament the intellectual bankruptcy of Pakistan’s rulers.
One however expects a better performance from President Mamnoon as he is an educated person. He has a ceremonial office with hardly anything concrete to do. However, it was distressing to see him read his speech to the Joint Session of Parliament on June 1 amidst the opposition protest and slogans of `go Nawaz go’ without saying a word. The least he could have done was to say a few words to the opposition; he could have acted statesman like and tried to meet opposition’s demands. But it did not happen.
If all one has to do is read, then anyone with a command of either English or Urdu can do this as teachers of even elementary schools very well know.
The Last Stop 