December 27, marking the assassination of the former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, is going to be observed as a public holiday in the Sind province. This decision was declared by the Sind Cabinet and announced by Shazia Marri, the Information Minister of the province. She also told that the cabinet had resolved to ask the federal government for declaring December as a public holiday throughout the country.

As the number of public holidays increases in Pakistan from time to time, the need to increase working hours is felt more closely. With an overburdened economy and ragged administration in many departments, we really are in need of Quaid-e-Azam’s precious advice of ‘Work, Work, and Only Work’. However, I must add that we need some good work that means ‘work’ instead of ‘showing work’.

In my humble opinion, each holiday should be centered on a specific energy-efficient, productive, and health/environment-friendly activity. Planting trees is perhaps the best we can think of at this moment. And it is a wonderful way of paying tribute to a loved one. Let us hope that we see lasting peace on our land soon and our memories of this world are filled with roses instead of thorns.