Nearly 40 years ago, the late Naseer Haider, CEO of IAL (then a 100% owned subsidiary of PIA) introduced me to Arshad Zuberi, Business Recorder’s Deputy CEO and responsible for advertising in the paper. He would become a mentor and an inspiration to me, and today, I am reminded of the countless ways he shaped not only my knowledge of advertising but my understanding of integrity and humility.

When I first met him, I was the client services manager at IAL; I was also young, eager and green. Meeting him for the first time at Business Recorder and later at All Pakistan Newspaper Society (APNS) was daunting. But Arshad sahab had a way of disarming pressure with his calm demeanour. I remember the 1988 PIA campaign, a project that felt colossal to me at the time. It was the first time that PIA was launching a colour corporate campaign and we were very worried about whether we (Naseer Haider, Nasr-ud, Advertising Manager, PIA and myself) would be able to get the printing right. For Arshad sahab, PIA wasn’t just a client; it was a symbol of national pride, and he treated it with the reverence it deserved. “Quality is not negotiable,” he said.

In the corridors of APNS and later Pakistan Newspapers and Publications Organisation (PNPO) – APNS split in the nineties into APNS and PNPO – Arshad sahab was both a gatekeeper and a guardian. He taught me that rules were not constraints but commitments – to fairness and to transparency. “If we cut corners today, we lose trust tomorrow,” he would say. What struck me most was how fiercely he compartmentalised his roles. At APNS, he was the unflinching secretary general; at Business Recorder, a collaborator. And never once did he blur those lines, even when temptations surely arose.

When I joined the Jang Group in 1993, our dynamics changed, but his mentorship only deepened. By then, he had served at APNS and PNPO in various capacities and wore his achievements like a well-loved suit: comfortably, without flash. When I confided my desire to run for the position of APNS president, he offered very useful advice. I still see us sitting in the APNS building after the executive committee elections. When a group of people suggested that he offer himself as an alternative candidate, he shut them down with a firmness that left no room for debate. “The publishers have given Sarmad the mandate and we should respect that mandate,” he declared. In that moment, I felt the weight of his trust – and the privilege of his friendship.

A few years later in 2013, when Raja Pervez Ashraf’s term as prime minister of Pakistan was ending, he approved the payment of long overdue advertising dues to the print media at Arshad sahab’s request on behalf of the APNS. Adil Gilani of Transparency International wrote a letter to the then Chief Justice of Pakistan Iftikhar Chaudhry asking him to stop this payment as it looked to him like bribing the media before the general elections. The Supreme Court took sou moto notice of the letter and stopped the payment. As Arshad sahab knew Gilani well, I requested him to help us. He not only went to see him, he convinced him to withdraw the letter because these were genuine dues. It was Arshad sahab’s integrity that made Transparency International withdraw the letter. What happened to the case is another story!

However, it was the smaller, quieter gestures I cherish the most. Years later, when I needed a proposer for my membership to the Boat Club, I first hesitated to ask him. When I eventually called him with the request, his response was instant: “Of course. Let’s do this properly.” True to his word, he showed up – not just as a signature on a form, but as a proper supporter. Together, we navigated the mandatory lunches and obligatory introductions.

Even when his health made it difficult, and later almost impossible, to continue working, he still came to the office. And that was where, a couple of years ago I met him last. He was all there. He could understand everything said to him but was unable to respond. And despite his illness, he was able to travel to Islamabad, where, dressed as smartly as he always was, he received the APNS’ Lifetime Achievement Award from the then-president of Pakistan, Arif Alvi in February 2020.

Arshad Zuberi was a rarity – a man who wielded influence without arrogance, who commanded respect without demanding it. He laughed easily, listened intently and never once let titles or roles define him. To his colleagues and friends like myself, he was simply Arshad sahab, steadfast, humble and unwaveringly loyal.

As I write this, I picture him in his APNS office, sleeves rolled up, a half-smile playing on his lips, scribbling notes in the margins of a document. “Details matter,” he would say. Yes, they do, sir. Just as you mattered – to your industry, your friends and to me.

Rest in peace, sir. Your legacy lives on in every life you touched, every standard you upheld, and every quiet act of kindness you never thought was worth mentioning.

Senator Sarmad Ali is MD, Jang Group and Secretary General, APNS