Some responsibility, please!
Bilawal Butto’s show cause notice – to Qaim Ali Shah and Manzoor Wassan over the Tharparkar crisis – must have unnerved the CM and his team in more ways than one. Their usual response, that outrage over hundreds of death from starvation were exaggerated, will obviously not ‘cut it’ with the new chairman. He wouldn’t have issued the notice if he believed the CM’s repeated claim, that the provincial government was not guilty of any form of negligence. But similar inquiries have been ordered before, one by Bilawal’s father, yet the drought, diseases and deaths continue in Thar.
Other than the humanitarian aspect, Tharparkar must worry Bilawal for political reasons also. The party is still reeling from the ’13 election rout. While it has been reduced to Sindh, one would expect the party to ensure its main base remains intact – which would require, at the very least, providing basic necessities (like food) to the people. It is a matter of great shame not just for the Sindh government, but the country as a whole, that Thar’s drought and famine have claimed almost 500 lives in the past three years, more than 300 of which were under the age of seven. The condition of public health, despite the crisis making repeated headlines, is deplorable. According to news reports, the government claims there are 110 dispensaries in the area, yet an investigation has revealed that ‘none of them are operational’.
Therefore, not only does the PPP lose points for its inhuman position on the crisis so far, there is also a danger of the revulsion turning into further political losses. On the run in Punjab, the party simply cannot afford to lose ground in the home province. That Bilawal is focusing on Thar – which means he has such issues on his mind – is encouraging. But if he really understands how Pakistan, especially the youth, is evolving, he will have to take this to a fitting conclusion. Inhumanity and corruption of party big-wigs must be exposed. In this way he will not only put the party on the right track and win political points, but also set an example for others to follow.