The way Mr. Asif Zardari backed out of verbal and written agreements with the PML-N over the issue of restoration of judiciary made me wonder if there wasn’t something wrong with him, especially when he said more than once that agreements can be broken, because they are not like the Holy Koran and the Hadith. So I wasn’t surprised to read that he’s been suffering from mental health problems. According to a report in the Financial Times, he “was suffering from severe psychiatric problems as recently as last year“.
The report further adds, he “was diagnosed with a range of serious illnesses including dementia, major depressive disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder in a series of medical reports spanning more than two years”.
In court documents seen by the Financial Times, Philip Saltiel, a New York City-based psychiatrist, said in a March 2007 diagnosis that Mr Zardari’s imprisonment had left him suffering from “emotional instability” and memory and concentration problems. “I do not foresee any improvement in these issues for at least a year,” Mr Saltiel wrote.
Financial Times further adds, “Stephen Reich, a New York state-based psychologist, said Mr Zardari was unable to remember the birthdays of his wife and children, was persistently apprehensive and had thought about suicide”.
With this background, can Mr. Asif Ali Zardari be allowed to contest elections for the post of President of the country?
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