Zubair Qureshi Islamabad
A prominent road in the federal capital has been named after the late journalist and Founder Editor-in-Chief of Pakistan Observer, Zahid Malik, in recognition of his services to Pakistan.
The Capital Development Authority (CDA) took the much-awaited and welcome step acknowledging Mr Malik’s contributions for Islam, the Ideology of Pakistan, Unity of Ummah and the cordial relations with neighbours particularly China and the Arab countries.
The F-10 Double Road from Fatima Jinnah Park’s Gate No. 2 in direction of the F-11 will be called and written onward as Zahid Malik Road, a CDA handout said. This is the same road that Mr Malik travelled during his decades’ long daily travel from home to his office of Pakistan Observer in G-8 Markaz.
After Mr Malik’s demise in 2016, the then government had announced naming of a road in his memory but the implementation of that decision kept delaying owing to the typical culture of red tape and status quo. However, the current management of the civic agency on the directives of the government fulfilled all the requirements and expediting the process finally installed a plaque “Zahid Malik Road” on the juncture of F-9 and F-10.
The noble gesture has made the Malik family proud as a day earlier Zahid Malik was awarded the highest civilian award Hilal-e-Imtiaz (posthumously). His widow Mrs Rehana Zahid Malik received the award from President Asif Ali Zardari.
It is a moment to celebrate the memory of late Zahid Malik who dedicated his life to the uplift of the country and defence of the ideological borders of the country, said a member of the Malik Family.
In his decade-long glittering career, Zahid Malik exemplified the highest standards of journalistic integrity. He fearlessly uncovered the truth and gave voice to the voiceless through his columns, speeches and articles.
Zahid Malik was earlier awarded Sitara-i-Imtiaz in 2012 for his distinguished services to the nation and the country. Even before that, in 2011 he was awarded Sitara-i-Imtiaz for his contributions towards journalism, promotion of the ideology of Pakistan and writings about Islam.
He authored a dozen books and over 2,000 articles and comments. He received a Writers Guild of Pakistan First Prize for his book ‘Public Relations’ first published in Urdu in 1971.
‘Mazameen-i-Quran-i-Hakeem,’ an 800-page subject-wise classification of the verses of the Holy Quran, is one of Mr Malik’s matchless works. The collection was translated into English, French, and German.
Malik delivered several lectures in Pakistan and abroad. He was Founder Chairman and Patron-in-Chief of the Nazriya Pakistan Council, Chairman of the International Seerat Centre and the Foundation for Coexistence of Civilizations. He was also the Founder Chairman of the think tank ‘101 Friends of China.
In 2013, he was conferred honorary PhD in Philosophy at the 6th convocation of the Dadabhoy Institute of Higher Education in Karachi.
