A 13-MONTH-OLD girl from KP`s Tank district became Pakistan`s 69th victim of polio in 2024. The numerous fullpage advertisements and a commemorative `polio free` postal stamp showing a photo of Aseefa Bhutto-Zardari, issued in 2009, could not eradicate polio in Pakistan. A disease for which the only reliable remedy is clean drinking water cannot be cured by newspaper ads or postal stamps of family members all at the taxpayers`expense.

On Jan 7, 2025, the Punjab chief minister launched a project, naming the 150 existing basic health units (BHUs) across the province as `Maryam Nawaz Health Clinics` (MNHCs). No one questioned the legal or ethical basis for her seeking personal publicity by adding her name to government institutions to which she had contributed not a single penny of her own.

Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan, renowned for his pivotal role in Pakistan`s nuclear programme, had a similar penchant. He loved to see his name on government buildings and institutes. He was most agreeable to the naming of Khan Research Laboratories (KRL), Dr A.Q. Khan Institute of Computer Sciences and Information Technology, A.Q. Khan Institute of Technology Mianwali, Dr A.Q.

Khan Institute of Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering (KIBGE) Karachi besides scores of schools, stadiums, and roads that were named after him.

Having never attended medical school, Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi managed to get the Government Institute of Cardiology in Multan named after himself. Not to be left behind, Mian Nawaz Sharif (no colleague of Steve Jobs), managed to get a Rs100 billion government project named `Nawaz Sharif IT City`. Likewise, despite no contribution to the advancement of dentistry, a dental college in Larkana was named `Bibi Aseefa Dental College`.

Bilawal Medical College for Boys (BMC) at Jamshoro, Bakhtawar Cadet College Nawabshah, Nawaz Sharif Interchange in Lahore and Afza Altaf bridge in Karachi are just a few drops in this ocean of accelerating narcissism that makes political leaders seek personal glory at taxpayers`expense.

Be it a road, hospital, school, bridge or distribution of laptops or health cards, government-funded projects are distastefully accompanied by elaborate and extravagant media campaigns and opening ceremonies. Millions are spent on billboards, TV and newspaper advertisements displaying politicians` photos (often those of the entire family) and taking credit for initiatives funded entirely by taxpayers or international donors.They are showcased as their own personal achievements, creating a perception ofpersonalcharityratherthan statefunded initiatives.

In developed countries, placing personal photographs in government advertisements or giving one`s own or a family member`s name to a government project is considered illegal and an undesirable act of self-glorification. What is their legal and ethical standing in Pakistan? The Supreme Court of Pakistan, while hearing a civil petition (No. 4734 of 2018) wrote in its judgment dated Nov 22, 2022, that, `Paid servants of the State, constitutional office holders and politicians in government must not use their positions for personal, partisan or pecuniary gain. If someone names a public/government place or property after themself or affixes their own name or image on a public/government document, it is self-glorification, and if this is done by others, it would constitute flattery, nepotism or corruption.

Pakistan is not a kingdom, principalityor fiefdom in which the people are to be beholden to their rulers.

The judgment went on to further state that, `To name public/ government properties and anything planned, developed or managed from public/ government funds or to project oneself by getting one`s photo-graph affixed on th‡ documents, violates the Constitution, undermines Pakistan`s Islamic moorings, is without lawful authority, and, if one may add, is also in bad taste.

Misuse of taxpayers` money for selfpublicity diverts funds from critical public services, exacerbating issues like poverty, illiteracy, and poor healthcare.

Furthermore, it erodes public trust in government institutions, fostering cynicism and disengagement among citizens. A progressive Pakistan calls for leaders who do not blur the line between public service and self-promotion by leveraging state resources to boost their political image.

Perhaps a beginning could be made by civil society in Pakistan to form a citizens` commission for independent oversight and highlighting of incidents where personal or party glorification is sought at the taxpayers`expense.m The wnter is an industrial engineer and a volunteer social activist.

naeemsadiq@gmail.com