Where is the aid to flood victims?
THE entire nation is reportedly mourning the flood disaster in the country but this time is a matter of moment for the whole nation that year after year, the performance of inept rulers has been so inadequate that they cannot even provide their people with a tent or two meals of bread to hide their heads in hard times.
They seem unable to construct small dams to protect their people from flooding, nor can they open the doors of their palaces to hide their heads.
If they cannot open the doors for the people, then how can these hard-hearted rulers feel the pain of the poor people?
More than half of the country has submerged in flood water, crops have been destroyed, and people’s livestock have been subjected to flood, epidemics are emerging, flood victims are forced to live with their children under the open sky.
The people of this country are being pitied by those living abroad while the political leadership is engaged in shining its politics even in the hour of trouble.
The indifference of our rulers is that the world is sending relief goods to the flood victims, the government seems to be unable to deliver the aid to the victims.
If we look at the internal and external aid, the victims should get all the facilities by now, even though today the flood victims are still helpless.
Seeing the helplessness of the flood victims, the Chief of Pakistan Army, General Qamar Javed Bajwa, rushed to help the flood victims and visited China to receive emergency aid of 500 million Yuan.
Imran Khan who is doing politics also claiming to have collected more than ten billion rupee whereas NGOs continue to bring all their performance to the public every week.
Indeed, the coalition government has not made any mechanism for the flood victims, nor has it set any priorities.
It seems like there is a dispute between the provincial and federal governments over the flood fund instead of the restoration of the flood defences.
At this time, there is a need for Pakistan to restore its lost credibility and for this the government should create a system that the world can trust.
In this regard, the special donation campaign of Lahore College for Women University (LCWU) with Akhuwat Foundation has been exemplary.
Institute’s own flood relief committee, chaired by Dr Arifa Tahir, aimed at helping flood-affected people across the country.
LCWU Vice-Chancellor Prof Dr Bushra Mirza handed over the relief commodities and a check of Rs. 4 million to Dr Amjad Saqib.
Furthermore, students, faculty members and administrative staff have actively participated in the flood relief donation drive as individually yet have also taken special care of the transparency by collecting a large number of relief goods and funds.
If private voluntary organizations and educational institutions from across the country can prove themselves credible by helping the victims then the government should also restore its credibility before asking for help from others.
On the one hand, set up a website or a database that can be shared with the world to describe how many of the 30 million flood affected people have been rehabilitated and how many are left?
On the other hand, large relief camps should be established in these areas and efficient officers should be deputed, so that assistance can be provided in the right way with the registration of the real victims otherwise the flood survivors will not be able to be helped or Pakistan will be saved from infamy.
—The writer is a regular columnist, based in Lahore.
