Haves and have-nots

Pakistan is facing the grave problem of the widening disparity between the rich and the poor. Our leaders live royal lives, move around in luxury cars and live in palatial houses. They have adopted a superficial lifestyle that mocks the poor. Prices are defined by the principles of demand and supply, and the greed of the rich often unnecessarily drives the prices up. Politics has become a business where our leaders use their wealth to make the people vote for them. Even though our leaders claim that they are working for Pakistan and following the Quaid’s mission, they do exactly the opposite. The top leadership of all parties are billionaires who live like royals. They claim to work for the poor, but they can’t even understand the issues faced by the poor.

The two main parties fooled the nation with slogans like ‘roti, kapra aur makaan’ (the PPP) and projects like the Metro and Orange Train (the PML-N) in selected urban cities. Unfortunately, the third party that came to power has made promises that it can’t fulfil in the next 20 years. The leaders of the PDM and the government do not seem to have early solutions to the crises our country is facing. Instead, they are asking their followers to raise slogans in their favour. They have left the poor at the mercy of high inflation and a raging pandemic. All leaders talk about humanity and fundamental rights but lack empathy and concern for the people’s lives. Why else would they be holding public rallies at the peak of a deadly pandemic? Our leaders need to work together to solve the problems faced by the people.

Raja Shafaatullah

Islamabad