by B. R. GOWANI
weekly inflation rate in Pakistan, as of 2023 March end, was 45%
the highest since the country was created from India in 1947
it has only $4.2 billion in reserves — not enough for even 1 month’s imports
ADB: Pakistan could see 2nd lowest growth among Asian countries
(see World Atlas for map and subregions)
(the first with lowest growth will be Sri Lanka, another South Asian nation)
Punjab government has set up centers for free flour distribution
not out of any concern for the starving people or
for the poor who are committing suicide
it’s out of necessity — i.e., to avoid any revolt by the people
who have nothing to lose — because they have nothing left to lose
most of them never had anything in the first place;
thus there is no fear they will lose something …
the capitalist rulers all over the world
hate the Communist Manifesto by Marx & Engels
but they do remember the immortal words of Karl Marx & Friedrich Engels
“The Communists disdain to conceal their views and aims. They openly declare that their ends can be attained only by the forcible overthrow of all existing social conditions. Let the ruling classes tremble at a Communistic revolution. The proletarians have nothing to lose but their chains. They have a world to win.“
Karl Marx * Friedrich Engels, Communist Manifesto, trans. Samuel Moore, Marxists.org (https://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1848/communist-manifesto/)
so,
the Punjab government started giving out free flour to the people
mismanagement and a technical glitch in the app created tragedy
in some cities, many people died and several others were wounded
for a moment …
let us imagine
the people’s hopelessness that forces them to
degrade themselves and risk death and injury just for flour bags
the sociologist Tariq Suleman paints a clear picture:
“Thousands of people converge daily, stand in queues for hours at the cost of their dignity and social respect; face the prospect of violence, which can even cost them their lives; and still they take that chance on a daily basis. What does it tell us? It shows us that, right now, a bag of free flour overrides all other considerations for hundreds of thousands in each city of the province. This is alarming, both politically and socially. It must not go unnoticed.”
Pakistan Workers Party leader Farooq Tariq warns:
“We all knew that poverty exists and persists, but the sheer scale of misery which has surfaced with this flour distribution scheme is alarming.”
“Punjab says it has distributed close to three million bags so far, but the queues are getting longer by the day. Where are these people coming from? People like us have been warning about destitution, but the sheer scale is enormous and can set our entire society on fire if ignored.”
it’s the month of Ramadan, holy month for Muslims —
so its a month of alms & charity giving …
F.K. Dyeing, a company in Karachi took part in alms giving
it did it without making proper arrangements;
there was a stampede …
600 to 700 people were confined to a tiny compound of the company
9 women (ages between 40 & 80) & 3 children (ages between 10 & 15) died
Sindh government announced compensation for the victims & the injured
rupees 500,000 ($1,732) to each family of the victim
rupees 100,000 ($347) to each of the persons injured
rulers know when to loosen the purse strings for the wretched of the earth
Pakistan government didn’t want to say anything about the Karachi tragedy
Associated Press was told by a government official:
“That is a provincial subject.” “CM [, i. e., Chief Minister, Syed Murad Ali Shah of] Sindh [province] can respond.”
as if the people who died in a stampede were not Pakistanis
how cruel and callous could the people in power be
but then the central government is scheming to hold onto power
the personal economy of the people running the government is sound
they’re all making money and are growing richer and richer
it’s just that they don’t give a damn about the country’s economy
drought of government care and concern for the mass public, results in
desperation of people trying to obtain alms & free flour, which results in
death of many and hundreds of injured people
B. R. Gowani can be reached at brgowani@hotmail.com