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| India-Pakistan |
| Terrible state of affairs |
| 2006-08-24 |
| But Pakistan chooses to spend billions on jihad against India and Afghanistan, nuclear weapons and conventional armaments By Masooda Bano Recently, a father left his four daughters at Data Darbar in Lahore because he did not have the economic means to provide for them. After being evicted from their rented accommodation, the father brought the girls to Data Darbar and never returned. These girls are unlucky, but they are still luckier than many who continue to be killed by their fathers due to their inability to cope with the economic hardship of providing for their daughters. The number of such incidences is on the rise. The fact is that these desperate scenarios are now becoming more rampant due to the dire state of economic affairs in the country. What is saddening is the government's completely apathy to this situation. The government might play with statistics to show a decrease in poverty ratio and inflation, but people experience the reality in their day to day living. Also, simple calculations reveal the desperate state of affairs. The doubling of sugar and lentil prices is not the only indication; a challi (corn) that used to cost five rupees in Rawalpindi till last year now costs double that. How many Pakistanis, especially those belonging to poor and the low-income families, have seen their incomes double during this period? Clearly, the outcome is that items that were once affordable are increasingly becoming unaffordable for a large number of families. And these are not things of luxury but rather very basic items. The issue is no longer about having to make choices but rather that one is not in a position anymore to make a choice at all. A woman from a lower-middle income family, whom I recently interviewed for a research study, summed it up well. "Before we could say that fine we cannot afford chicken, so let's have lentils. Now, when lentils have come close to the price that we formally paid for chicken, what should we eat?" she said. People now don't have even the basic minimum to survive. Even in one's own surroundings, the number of people requesting financial help is constantly rising. But, how many can anyone support on charitable giving? The state has to shoulder its responsibility, but we are being led by a government of clowns. What else should we call leaders who are so disassociated with the state of public distress and who constantly pat themselves on the back for having brought economic growth and reforms to the country despite the reality on the ground. The massive amount that the government spends on the federal cabinet, the prime minister and the president is offensive given that Pakistan is a poor country. Much money has been spent on governance reform but it has not brought any change. As a leader of a teachers' union recently told me: "We have to pay a bribe to get leave approved, to get a posting, to get anything approved." But, who is going to check this corruption at the lower tiers when those at the top of the hierarchy are not exactly very clean themselves? The current government has increased the quantum and number of taxes. Sales tax has not only increased the price of all goods and services, it has also dramatically increased the taxation burden on many businesses. But, what is worse is that there is no accountability of where all these taxes collected are being spent. Where are all the billions collected through taxes, the privatisation proceeds, the increased foreign aid, and the money recovered through National Bureau of Accountability spent? It can be safely said that much of it is not being spent to further the public good. The author is undertaking post-doctoral research at Oxford University. |
| Posted by:john |
| #1 Dr. Kahn recomends you eat plutonium. He likes his medium rare, a little pink inside. |
| Posted by: Shaing Chosh8834 2006-08-24 21:53 |