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Goodbye, Babar!

Babar Ayaz, a veteran journalist of many sterling qualities, was an excellent human being and a comrade who was always keen to help others.

By Jaffer Bilgrami | February 2024

Adecent man loaded with cheerful humility but known for his gregarious laughs, Babar Ayaz bade farewell to his vast number of friends and admirers when left for his journey to eternal abode in the last days of the previous month after braving a protracted illness. An excellent human being and a comrade who was always keen and time to help others, Babar had many sterling qualities. He was, all in all, a veteran journalist, author, civil rights activist and PR practitioner.

Hailing from Sukkur where he had his academic education and also entered the realm of politics, Babar Ayaz started his journalistic career from the defunct SUN newspaper and then after moving moved to the Business Recorder he finally ended up in DAWN where he proved his mettle as an economic reporter.

With his incredible strength and clear vision of politics and economics, he succeeded in carving out a dignified place for himself in the world of print media. Babar’s pragmatic wisdom again came into light when he made debut in the world of electronic journalism and grabbed the opportunity of producing the economic and commercial news bulletins from Pakistan Television (PTV). That was the first time that in the state-owned television, the opportunity of producing news was given to the private sector.

Soon, the change was noticed by viewers who were tired and sick with hackneyed and outdated style of presentation and economic news gathering on TV screen. Credit goes to Babar Ayaz who brought innovation and freshness in the newscast by raising a formidable team of economic reporters and analysts appearing on TV screens. This practice which Babar initiated in the 1990s is now in vogue with the mushroom growth of private TV channels in the country.

His art of smooth talking and assured presence also enabled Babar to initiate another new concept in the country of setting up a public relation company handling the image building exercises of top corporate houses. But all said and done, the dynamic field of journalism was his first love.

His book titled ‘What’s Wrong with Pakistan?’ was the manifestation of Babar’s deep insight into the political history of the country and reflected his keen journalistic observations and deep understanding of the socio-political landscape. In his notable work, he highlighted the leading factors behind the prevailing socio-economic instability in the country and commented on the spectre of religious fanaticism along with the islamisation of Pakistani laws primarily meant by the Zia-ul-Haq regime merely for political scoring. The book explains ‘What’s Wrong with Pakistan?’ by Babay Ayaz also sheds light on the country’s struggle to find its own identity in the comity of nations, deploring the unwritten yet ubiquitous national security policy that steers the course of Pakistan foreign policies but mostly in the wrong direction. He continued to contribute his analysis on vital issues as a freelance journalist.

Owing to his protracted illness in his sunset years, Babar Ayaz turned into a virtual recluse. Be that as it may, he will remain alive in the hearts of his friends and admirers.
Rest in peace, Babar Ayaz!