This year’s 78th Independence Day celebrations ought to have stirred national pride, yet the honours list has instead left many citizens uneasy.

The official parades omitted portraits of Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah and Allama Dr Muhammad Iqbal — the very figures whose ideas shaped Pakistan’s birth. Their absence was striking.

In the aftermath of the medal ceremony, I fielded numerous enquiries about the recipients. Apart from a handful whose public service is well known, most names were unfamiliar, and the government has released no explanation of the selection process.

More troubling was the spectacle of the President conferring the highest decorations upon his own son and daughter. Such gestures belong to monarchies, not republics committed to merit.

The roll of honour also included ministers, legislators, and coalition partners whose principal qualification appears to be political loyalty. When awards become instruments of patronage, they cease to inspire.

The media community felt this bias keenly. Veteran reporters who have defended press freedom at personal cost were passed over, while voices closely aligned with the government were rewarded.

Parliamentarians have raised these concerns before; they clearly persist. Unless the honours system is restored to open, merit-based standards, the medals will continue to lose their moral weight, and Pakistan will miss the opportunity to celebrate true excellence.

UROOJ RAZA SAYYAMI,

Islamabad.