An editorial in Dawn’s OP-ED pages recently rightly pointed out the lack of leadership in the country. Pakistan’s army is engaged officially in Waziristan and unofficially all across the country. We are reminded, Pakistan is at War. But where are the leaders, and where are their assurances to the people of Pakistan. Do the citizens not deserve to be informed what the plan is, assured that they will be protected and given the hope that all will turn out well? For that you need a campaign to give them hope and get their support. But as Cyril Almeida pointed out, that effort is lacking. No word from the PM, no appearance by the President.

And if you think that is bad, there is something worse. Driving through certain parts of Karachi known for its political affiliations, I saw “others” stepping into this vacuum of despair. With blaring speakers pointing the “right” way, stalls dot the roads telling people what to think while giving them the satisfaction of feeling they have made a choice. These stalls have the space and the freedom to impose their way of thinking, their version of the story, their sense of what is right and what is absolutely unacceptably wrong. This is something the government should be wary of, as we all know that this war is a war of the minds. The war against the brainwashed suicide bomber, the potential terrorist, and those who create them.

As Pakistan struggles to win against this unconventional war, the state of mind of the people of Pakistan cannot be ignored.