I had just entered college, and in those growing years, I would passionately watch every single speech and press conference of President (later prime minister) Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto.

In one such press conferences, I recall vividly him stating that in politics there is never a point of no return.

I learnt that not merely in the political arena, but in life, generally too, no individual should get carried away to reach a destination of ‘point of no return.’

No doors should be shut on possibility of negotiations. All doors in life must be left ajar. The objective in doing so should be noble. There should be no motive of entrapment. Any purpose to avail undue advantage renders the effort to be devoid of good intentionality.

In any time and space, anyone, who is possessed of the quality of operating with intentions of expedience and duplicity, doesn’t represent the process of ‘reconciliation’. Two equally powerful but opposite parties, each filled with deep-seated sense of egotism, will find it difficult to absorb the process and results of reconciliatory actions.

The purpose of reconciliation is not meant to serve to either the idiosyncrasies or obduracy of an individual or an institution. The objective must relate to obtaining mutual benefit without causing any loss, damage or hurt to either party.

For reconciliation to be meaningful exercise it must necessarily be accompanied by willingness to adapt, change, amend and alter; a pronounced joint responsibility for the outcomes; and the process must have in-built features of creating trust, accountability and transparency.

Reconciliation requires the participants to possess a strong sense of focus to details, and preferably analytical thinking that must serve the need of finance and accountancy.

Reconciliation demands that the opposing individuals/institutions would have the capacity/ability to take a step back on their stated positions. Both have to demonstrate willingness to be malleable in order to be courageous enough to alter from the stance and position taken.

Politicians........

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