Most of the shops and business centres in Pakistan, especially in the posh areas of the major cities, did not abide by the government instructions to close their businesses by
8 p.m. Either they did not take the orders seriously and treated it to be yet another one of those orders that this government is known for rescinding soon, or, it was sheer defiance on their part to challenge the writ. In either case it is undesirable and must not be taken lightly by the government. The traders argue that it will affect their businesses adversely as most people shop during the late hours. Ironically, this argument should have come from the shoppers as some of them work 9 to 5 and would find little or no time for their shopping. However, in either case it is not tenable. Firstly, it is mostly the ladies and the housewives who do most of the shopping for the family and they will have all the time to do it. And, in the case of the working class it will have to find ways and means including adjusting their commuting routine to do their buying. Such marketing push & pull will force all to adjust their timings soon and the business of the traders will not suffer at all. After all in more than 3/4th of the world and in countries like USA, Canada, all Latin American countries, the entire Europe, entire Far East, Japan, Australia and the New Zealand etc. all shops close before dusk. Why not here?! Incidentally,it will also have a salutary effect on the society as people will spend their evenings with their families instead of loitering in the streets and markets.
Col. Riaz Jafri (Retd)
30, Westridge-1
Rawalpindi 46000
Tel: (051) 546 3344
