Power to the people proves a costly wager

Senior officials from Enron arrived in Islamabad earlier this year expecting to see the avenues covered with red carpets. The US energy company clicked its corporate finger at everyone, including prime minister Benazir Bhutto, to ensure that all necessary doors would be opened ­ and fast. “The kind of support they were demanding was ludicrous,” says a Pakistani power company executive. “They expected the prime minister to run around with them shouting ‘do this, do that’.