Daily Times

Corruption in Pakistan is a well known phenomenon. One of the reasons for Pakistani society’s moral collapse is corrupt practices amongst those in power, be it the government or the military. Thus it was not surprising to see that during fiscal year 2008-09, embezzlement worth Rs 57.4 million took place in funds allocated for the Drought Recovery Assistance Programme Project (DRAPP) in Balochistan. While this discovery is not surprising, surely it is despicable. Balochistan is not just a drought-prone province but also one of the most neglected provinces when it comes to development. An OXFAM team found “conditions in the drought-stricken districts of Khuzdar, Chaghai and Kharan were fast approaching the proportions of the situation in Ethiopia, which is currently in the throes of a terrible famine”. This should have sent shivers down our ruling elite’s spines but instead, as is usual when it comes to Balochistan, the authorities ignored this dire warning. According to the Gender and Disaster Network, “Droughts have always been part of life in some parts but have increased in the recent years (especially in arid and hyper arid zones)”. Pakistan is rated 12th in the vulnerability index.

When an earthquake struck Pakistan in 2005, the local as well as international community sent a lot of aid to help the earthquake victims. Unfortunately, there were many irregularities in the distribution of aid and there were allegations of corruption. Pakistan’s credibility in dispersing aid took a nose dive following these allegations. In light of this, when floods hit the country last year, many donors showed their scepticism about giving money directly to the government. Local as well as international NGOs were tasked with helping the flood victims but even now the victims are living in miserable conditions. Now that some other parts of the country have been hit by floods this year, things look even bleaker for them.

It is highly tragic that our ruling elite have failed to do their job when it comes to serving the people of Pakistan. The military as well as the government are busy protecting their own vested interests rather than looking after the poverty-stricken nation. This disconnect between the populace and the ruling elite has led to the breakdown of Pakistani society. If our so-called representatives keep living in their own cocoon, there is no ruling out more chaos and anarchy. *