BY MASOOD KHAN
The day Pakistan test fired the Shaheen-III ballistic missile, capable to carry nuclear and conventional warheads to a range of 2750 KM, another news item caught my sight. 41 million people in Pakistan have no access to toilets and have to defecate in open spaces. Statistics from across the border are not much different: in India more than 630 million people face the same agony – no closed toilets. As both countries take pride in showing off their nuclear arsenal; I wonder what our political leadership’s real priorities are. As per infographic created by the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists; Pakistan has 120 nuclear weapons while its arch rival, India, is not far behind with 110 such weapons.
Why is it so that the people who vote and install their rulers in Islamabad and Delhi, are the one to be always at the receiving end without any hope of improvement in their lives? It doesn’t matter if it’s BJP, Congress, Peoples Party, Muslim League, or army (in Pakistan’s perspective) are at the helm of affairs in these countries, the end result remains the same – both the general public and its rulers live in separate worlds. What sort of harms and diseases are associated with public defecating need not much elaboration. Many rapes and sexual harassment related incidents were reported in India due to vulnerability of women folk while going out, especially in the rural areas. Democracy shall mean a governing system by the people, for the people but perhaps ruling class doesn’t fall under ‘people’ category.
What should our priorities be: increasing the stockpiles of already overflowing nuclear and conventional weapons and keep spending billions on motorways, or should we be providing health care, education, clean water, sanitation, food security, law and order? As in personal life rulers don’t have to worry about these ‘poor-public’ type issues, therefore, they enjoy doing big things which can make headlines.
Who says democracy is by the people, for the people?
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