Pakistan’s Defense Minister Khawaja Asif has found himself at the center of fresh controversy after opening what appeared to be a Pizza Hut outlet, but the company called it a hoax.
In videos on social media, Asif was seen inaugurating a Pizza Hut brand outlet in Sialkot Cantonment with floral decorations and a red carpet for the Defense Minister.
However, the sheen of the high-profile inauguration quickly faded as Pizza Hut took to social media to denounce the outlet as “unauthorised”.
“Pizza Hut Pakistan informs our valued customers that an unauthorized outlet falsely using the Pizza Hut name and brand has recently been opened in Sialkot Cantonment,” the Wichita-based fast food chain said in a statement.
Read also | Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif invited Trump to the Gaza Peace Council
The company said the outlet opened by Asif in Sialkot Cantonment did not follow Pizza Hut’s recipes, quality standards and food safety protocols, saying, “We have formally lodged a complaint with the relevant authorities to stop the misuse of our trademark and ensure immediate action.”
“Pizza Hut Pakistan currently operates a total of 16 stores across the country; 14 in Lahore and 2 in Islamabad,” the company further said, asking prospective customers to check the locations on the official website of Pizza Hut Pakistan.
Asif mocked, trolled online
Understandably, Asif’s rather public faux pas drew not only condemnation, but also ridicule from users.
“This is nothing less than a proper ‘diplomatic rebuke’ of Pakistan! PIZZA HUT! Pakistan’s Defense Minister inaugurates a fake Pizza Hut and Pizza Hut responds with a public announcement – ‘this is not ours’. You couldn’t write a better metaphor for this neighboring country of ours,” said renowned lawyer and Senior Advocate Mahesh Jethmalani.
“Only in Pakistan can a defense minister proudly inaugurate a fake pizzeria. Khawaja Asif cut the ribbon, smiled for the cameras and left – only for the brand to later claim the outlet was unauthorized. No one can parody this level of incompetence (sic),” the social media user wrote.
Read also | India classifies diplomatic post in Bangladesh as ‘non-family’
“We have a fake pizzeria before GTA 6,” joked another Pizza Hut Pakistan statement on Instagram, referring to the delay in the much-anticipated video game from Rockstar Games.
“Just imagine the quality of information that @KhawajaMAsif has as Defense Minister of Pakistan 😂.
Full marks to Sialkot for bringing this amazing beizzatti to the biggest boot licker made in Sialkot (sic),” another user wrote on the viral post on X.
Another, meanwhile, alluded to the sorry state of affairs in Pakistan and wrote: “Wah Khawaja sab, When defense, economy and diplomacy are all under control, next priority is naturally to open a fake Pizza Hut. It really says a lot about Khawaja Asif’s judgment and the standards we have set for leadership.” 🍕 (sic)”
Some users. meanwhile, he pointed out that counterfeit brands have become widespread in Pakistan thanks to Chinese influence – “Pakistan is in a situation where it is difficult to distinguish between genuine and duplicate products due to the widespread use of counterfeit goods from China (sic),” wrote one user.
