The governments of the federation and Punjab announced the distribution of 10 kg of flour per family during the holy month of Ramadan to cover up their shortcomings and shed tears for the poor. Those rulers who are unaware of the poverty of the people can estimate poverty in their beloved country by seeing long lines for the distribution of flour. Obtaining flour for two meals a day by standing in the sun for hours is a difficult task, in which many people have already lost their lives. Betting lives to alleviate hunger is only possible for the residents of our beloved country. In any civilized country, if such incidents occur, the rulers lose their sleep, but here no one cares.
The question arises whether distributing free flour will eradicate poverty from the country. Surely, the answer is in the negative. Since the PTI government came to power, it has even taken away the bread from the poor’s mouths. Those who claim to end inflation have pushed inflation to the highest level in the country’s history. Along with this, the Imran Khan government has put an end to the Ehsaas Program and the Health Program.
The health facilities provided by Imran Khan to the poor were unprecedented in the country’s history, but the people were not appreciating it. Expensive treatment had become accessible to the poor and the health sector was experiencing unprecedented growth. While the number of people living above the poverty line was increasing, the people did not recognize their benevolent rulers. As a result, the health facilities were taken away from the poor.
With the increase in petrol prices, inflation hits the people every fifteen days. The government has no control over the prices. In the blessed month of Ramadan, an immense increase can be seen in the prices of food and drink. The profiteering mafia is collecting its own prices from the people. The markets are under the control of profiteers, free from any law. The poor people are still struggling to survive. The streets are occupied by beggars. All of this is testing the people’s patience.
When the poor do not receive two meals a day, the situation of peace and security becomes uncontrollable, and incidents of robbery and theft increase. People start to try to steal food. The helpless people cannot bear this situation. After the arrest of dacoits involved in the import of stolen goods, people take matters into their own hands and kill them. This is not just public anger. In an incident last week, people in Multan and Karachi caught dacoits and beat them up to stop their criminal activities.
Crop production has been affected up to 7% due to untimely rains and hailstorms, causing a concern of a loss of 23 billion rupees. Opportunities to earn more income by exchanging crops like cotton and rice for wheat have decreased. Despite being an agricultural country, Pakistan will have to import wheat, cotton, and other food items, which will result in heavy expenditure on crop exchange, leading to an increase in prices. The prices of sugar are also rising, and its rate in the market is increasing rapidly due to the government’s flawed policies and severe neglect, with no control over the market. Friendly nations at the international level do not seem to be supporting Pakistan’s weak government, and the IMF program is being delayed due to the failure to meet its conditions. The current Finance Minister, Mohammad Asad Umar, who frequently appears on media like Punjabi movies, has failed miserably to implement and carry out any policy, with his only job being to announce the rising petrol prices for 15 days. His economic dengue has failed to bring any improvement to the country’s economy. The only solution to all these economic problems is to hold immediate and fair, transparent, and unbiased elections. Until transparent elections are held, the economic situation will continue to deteriorate.
