Despite an age difference of over two decades between him and myself, there was a bond of friendship that transcended age. While my respect for his seniority alone was only natural, my esteem for him was even greater because of his integrity, his candour, and his unflinching commitment to journalism in the public interest.

Yet, the pain one felt on the day of the soyem was not only about the permanent departure of an exceptional individual. There was also a disturbing disappointment. This was caused by the notable absence from the soyem of, to the best of my knowledge, any serving office-bearers of the All Pakistan Newspapers Society (APNS), the Council of Pakistan Newspaper Editors (CPNE) and the Karachi Union of Journalists (KUJ). These major organisations of the press in Pakistan are mentioned first because Sultan Ahmed had the singular honour of being the elected president of each these three important organisations.

There were also no senior office-bearers visible of the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ), the All Pakistan Newspaper Employees' Confederation (APNEC) and the Karachi Press Club (KPC). Even though Sultan Ahmed was not a past office-bearer of these three latter bodies, he was one of the most consistent and outspoken advocates for all of them, both in his writings and in verbal expressions.

A third category of absentees comprised the chief executives or chief editors or editors of any of the leading newspapers. A fourth category of absentees was officials from the information departments of the federal and provincial governments. There were six senior journalists present Ghazi Salahuddin, S.B. Hassan, Babar Ayaz, Nusrat Nasrullah, Agha Masood and Sarfaraz Ahmed. Syed Jawaid Iqbal, who hosted a thoughtful tribute to Sultan Ahmed in September 2004, was overseas, as were, perhaps, some other editors.

As an editor and senior journalist, Sultan Ahmed must have trained and guided dozens, if not hundreds of young journalists and newspaper workers. In sharp contrast to no written messages from any of the press bodies of Pakistan, his son Azam Sultan informs me that he is overwhelmed by the number of SMSs, phone calls and emails he has received both from within Pakistan, from Islamabad, Lahore, Multan, Faisalabad , Karachi and rural Sindh, as well as from overseas countries like the US,UK, South Africa, Dubai, Ethiopia, Canada, Bahrain and Oman, from perfect strangers who used to read Sultan Ahmed regularly in Dawn on the internet as well as many who knew him.

Sultan Ahmed's contribution to journalism spanned six long, spectacular decades. Commencing with his presence at the first Press conference held by Quaid-i-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah in Karachi at the birth of Pakistan, through all the tumultuous intervening decades, and concluding with his regular weekly analysis from a political economy perspective of the country's development, Sultan Ahmed remained an exceptionally prolific and versatile writer. He wrote on politics, economics, foreign affairs, development, painting and the arts, theatre and media. And topped it all off with the 'Rambler's Diary' that kept track of the social calendar of Karachi for over three decades in different newspapers.

His vast and varied experience of observing public affairs and the conduct of both leaders and followers took him into the dry, harsh land of cynicism. When I used to periodically remind him of his excessive cynicism, he would sometimes relent, sometimes argue in favour of his position, occasionally agree and exude a refreshing willingness to admit the excess. He also sometimes tended to be unfairly acerbic about even close friends. But he would bravely persevere with his distinctive individuality.

Z A Bhutto was not known to take criticism lightly. While Sultan Ahmed supported, in principle, the modernist, forward-looking dimension of the PPP's written manifesto, he was also always forthright in identifying deviations, lapses, excesses committed by the PPP government between 1972 and 1977. Yet Z A Bhutto extended enormous respect and personal affection to Sultan Ahmed because of the latter's sincerity, integrity and courage.

One of the many ironies that mark the age in which media multiply is the continuing decline in the number of persons such as Sultan Ahmed, a real gentleman of the press, a brave campaigner against corruption and mis-governance, a consistent advocate for social and economic justice, a tireless, merciless hunter of humbug and hypocrisy. —

We will always miss you, Sultan Ahmed; rest in peace. And keep writing in heaven the readership is infinite and infinitely respectful.

— The writer is a former minister and senator