The Nation Editorials 8th September 2026

Systems, Not Scapegoats

Pakistan cricket has reached a point where changing a few cogs in a broken machine will achieve nothing. The latest disciplinary inquiry, following two heavy Test defeats against England and another round of squad and coaching changes, is a familiar response to a familiar crisis. Yet inquiries, dismissals and replacements have repeatedly failed to address the deeper malaise.

The PCB has confirmed it is reviewing matters concerning discipline and conduct, without naming those involved or confirming allegations surrounding players’ mobile phones. Any investigation must respect due process. But another inquiry cannot become a substitute for institutional reform. Shifting blame from one player, coach or selector to another will not repair a system that consistently fails.

Lifetime of Educational Service
Pakistan cricket needs to function like a modern high-performance sports organisation. Consider Arsenal Football Club or Mercedes’ Formula One team: professional structures, clearly defined responsibilities, performance-driven decision-making and an environment where winning and harmony are collective objectives.

Instead, the PCB too often resembles a badly run government department. Entrenched officials protect positions and privileges, patronage shapes appointments, and short-term decisions replace long-term planning. A culture that rewards loyalty over competence cannot consistently produce excellence.

New Provinces
The required change must encompass governance, recruitment, selection, coaching, player development and performance assessment. Transparent appointments, independent expertise, measurable objectives and genuine consequences for failure should replace personality-driven management.

It is also time for the PCB to become a proper portfolio of its own, rather than effectively sitting under the Interior Ministry. With Pakistan’s complex security and geopolitical challenges, the interior minister cannot reasonably be expected to simultaneously firefight cricket’s recurring crises.

Global Warming
Pakistan does not need another round of musical chairs. It needs systemic change: a professional structure that rewards competence, develops talent, encourages harmony and holds every level accountable for results.

Burning Nation

Pakistan’s buildings are becoming death traps, and the same culprits continue to escape accountability. From factories and commercial plazas to hospitals, unsafe electrical systems, inadequate exits, deficient firefighting arrangements and negligent oversight repeatedly place lives at risk. Each disaster produces inspections, suspensions and promises, only for the cycle to resume elsewhere.

Monday’s fire in Karachi’s Landhi Export Processing Zone, which caused part of a factory to collapse and spread to an adjacent building, is another warning. Earlier this year, a fire in the same zone engulfed several factories. No casualties had been reported in the latest incident, but that should not be mistaken for evidence of safety.

Lifetime of Educational Service
The recent Pims tragedy, which killed 14 infants, exposed the consequences of institutional negligence. The subsequent fire at Bannu’s Khalifa Gul Nawaz Teaching Hospital demonstrated how training and rapid evacuation can prevent catastrophe. Yet the operating theatre fire in Rahim Yar Khan shows the danger remains widespread. The lessons of Gul Plaza must not become another forgotten inquiry.

The responsibility extends beyond building owners to authorities that approve construction, overlook violations and permit unsafe premises to operate. Reactive inspections and cosmetic compliance drives cannot substitute for a functioning fire safety regime. Those responsible for regulatory failures must face consequences.

New Provinces
It is time for the National Assembly and Prime Minister to intervene. The NDMA could coordinate a nationwide assessment of high-risk buildings with provincial authorities, establish minimum safety benchmarks and oversee time-bound compliance. Independent audits, public inspection records, mandatory evacuation drills and enforceable penalties must become standard practice. Buildings presenting immediate danger should be closed until hazards are rectified, regardless of ownership or influence. Pakistan needs a permanent system that prevents the next tragedy before rescue teams are called, rather than another inquiry that merely records the lives already lost.

No Respite

Pakistan’s environmental calendar now moves from one emergency to another without respite. Heatwaves give way to monsoon floods, and before the waters have fully receded, the smog season approaches. On September 7, the International Day of Clean Air for blue skies reminds us that air pollution cannot remain a predictable winter inconvenience.

The country’s ecological condition is such that each season brings a new threat to public health, livelihoods and economic activity. Floods demand emergency mobilisation, extreme heat strains communities and infrastructure, and smog poisons the air for months, disrupting schools, workplaces and daily life.

Lifetime of Educational Service
Pakistan already has a National Clean Air Policy adopted in 2023, while Punjab has its own policy and phased action plan. The challenge is no longer policy formulation but translating commitments into measurable action before pollution reaches hazardous levels.

As with flood preparedness, the coming smog season requires all hands on deck. Provincial and district administrations must coordinate with environmental regulators, agriculture departments, transport authorities and industry. Crop stubble burning must be monitored and discouraged through practical alternatives for farmers. Factory chimneys, brick kilns and other industrial sources require rigorous inspections, while old and smoke-emitting vehicles must face meaningful fitness checks instead of occasional roadside campaigns.

New Provinces
Reliable air-quality monitoring and transparent public reporting are essential. Authorities must identify pollution sources and repeat offenders, and ensure penalties are enforced. Financial support for cleaner technology and crop-residue management should complement regulation, particularly for smaller businesses and farmers.

The government has little time to waste. Smog season is almost here, and another round of emergency school closures, temporary restrictions and public advisories would demonstrate that preparation has again fallen short. Clean air must become a year-round responsibility, backed by sustained enforcement and political commitment, rather than another seasonal reaction to a recurring crisis that can largely be prevented.