What revolution means to the poor

Hit by food and fuel price hikes, many citizens owning small houses three years back began backyard farming to live without borrowing money from others. Husbands were helped by wives in growing vegetables. But many of them felt kitchen problem had not yet been solved satisfactorily because cooking oil remained sky-high like sugar and milk.

“How to be self-reliant and self-sufficient is still our problem,” say Iftikhar Hussain of Kohati Bazar, retired teacher Akhlaq Abbasi of Rawal Town of Islamabad and a government officer.

On the basis of interaction with citizens of different shades one can say most of them seem allergic to the way in which the word ‘revolution’ is often used by so-called leaders to gain ordinary citizens’ favour in their own interest. Undoubtedly, there are people in the twin cities predicting a ‘bloody revolution,’ which in their sight is the only elixir of social-economic miseries reportedly afflicting masses for a long time.

But there are also senior citizens who argue: “We need a change — a change in our attitude, in our Westernized style of living, and the way we choose our representatives forgetting the lessons of Islam; we abuse them when prices soar and there’s no check on profiteers; why don’t we first subject ourselves to accountability and then raise voice for a change in any exploitative system”.

City elders say there’s need to study the life of the Messenger of God to learn how he conducted the civil and military affairs of the state to the benefit of all the citizens. “And why not think and learn again why the Quaid-i-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah struggled for a people’s government and welfare state?”

Many senior citizens in their 70’s and early 80’s assert the centuries-old class system is a bottleneck in our basic social and economic development. They’re right.

Earlier, our society was divided into three segments: upper, middle and lower. The upper one dominated the others in most fields of life. As a result of political up and down, we’re now split into five groups: upper, middle and lower middle, poor and below the poverty line. The main problems we’re facing are disunity, illiteracy, unemployment and poverty in the wake of overpopulation.

Another notable thing: common people seem more conscious of their social and economic rights. They’re blaming their mental discomfort on the soaring food and energy prices, unabated load-shedding and lack of security of life.

Eventually, the common man is reportedly losing trust in what he calls administration. He says: “Where are human values and spirit of brotherhood? We’re moving toward hunger and poverty; we’re, in fact, inviting revolution, but how it will come, only God knows.”

Interestingly, many of the poor at Banni Chowk,  Zero Point and Aabpara market argue: “If we remain silent and do not think of countering wrongdoings at any level ourselves, God will punish us; it’s time to wake up to reality on the ground and realize that everybody has to work willingly and collectively to rise again as a united people and achieve economic power urgently needed for the common man’s welfare; that’s the only way to bring about a soft revolution, in our mind.”

A distressed parent one came across the other day has a worth-pondering argument: “For a long time I and my children have not seen ‘roti’ with butter spread on it; if any time we’ve it, I’ll call it a big change in my life; let others say it’s revolution if it also saves the life of an ailing child and a hungry mother.” —zasarwar@hotmail.com