It is an unfair marking when President Arif Alvi gives full marks to the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI)-led coalition government in economy, foreign policy, health and education. The only sector where he could have given full marks to his party’s government is the handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. The yearly address of the president to the joint sitting of the parliament is a constitutional need where the head of the state is to evaluate the working of the government of the day. Over the decades, we, however, have seen that the address is mostly a public relation exercise. The addresses offer no critical analysis or advice. This was the second address of the president to the parliament, which the opposition boycotted after a fierce protest in the house. In front of a silent and attentive gathering of the ruling coalition partners, the president got a full opportunity to speak his mind from the written speech and extempore at times getting desk-thumping by the treasury members as a sign of approval. Though Chief of Army Staff Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa skipped the occasion, President Alvi said all state institutions were “on the same page”. By state institutions, he meant the army, judiciary and executive besides the media. In a way, he is right that the state institutions are in unison in fighting against militancy and extremism. The president says that even though the COVID-19 pandemic squeezed the economy, the government has been able to reduce the current account deficit from $ 13 billion to $ 3 billion. Side by side, international financial institutions, such as Standards and Poor’s, Moody’s and Fitch have improved Pakistan’s rating, which the president saw a sign of good working of government’s policies. The president, however, overlooked the persistent high inflation rate, growing indirect taxing, lack of innovative policies on revenue collection and job creation, and so on. Similarly, speaking on the foreign policies, President Alvi said the country’s foreign policy on international and regional levels was in the right direction. The fact, however, is Pakistan’s efforts on the internationalization of Kashmir has failed to bear any fruit. Pakistan’s policies on CPEC, Afghanistan and the US have been successful. One must admit the fact that Prime Minister Imran Khan himself has been proactive on forging relations with states. Prime Minister Khan’s statement on the issue of Israel is praiseworthy. The president must guide the government on its promises on reforms in government working, job creation and economic turnaround besides introduction of unique ideas in education and health sectors. *