Not as simple as it seems
Let’s try to make sense of what is happening here in the food policy arena among the three actors — food authority, service providers and the community.
The Authority appears to have risen after a new soul searching. It existed for quite some time. But its officials look like having new securities and guarantees from the top leadership on account of uninterrupted monitoring and politically watched ‘diversions’, ‘exemptions’ and ‘exceptions’. The strategy is also understandable. Starting from the expensive eateries. Creating ripples right in the middle assuming they will go to the shorelines. The choice for the operations’ director is not a coincidence either. Ms Ayesha Mumtaz got noticed first as a tough urban manager a couple of years ago as district officer of transport in Lahore. And there is no looking back. She is advising the Federal Government on food governance. She has been named to be the next Health Secretary at this stage of her career. And above all, she is probably more famous than the most famous civil servant in the country’s ‘Urdu bubble’ – Qudratullah Shahab. But there are more important things to see.
The government has to make sure that the ongoing drive is not just another exercise like encroachment operations by TMAs, checking of gas/electricity theft by provincial governments and the well-known ‘accountability fever’ at the national level. All proves to be seasonal at the end. All fizzles out shortly. It has to consider that the issue involves institutional overhauls and deficiency of amenities. Take meat, for example, an item that we consume daily. In most of the cities in the province, there are no purpose built slaughter houses where the officials could monitor and certify hygienic supply. It also requires coordination among agencies assigned the task to guarantee that healthy eatables are delivered. The Food Authority has to see that the paradigm of food safety is way beyond raids and sealing of restaurants. It is to address the massive informality of food economy. If we want to plot (the well-known) territory of this giant shadow trade, one part can be found along the ‘desakotas’ beyond the city limits. Throughout the country, the never ending strip of small commercial entities are providing spurious eatables. In the same rural-urban settlements, factories are producing these products and providing for the consumers in the cities.
The second actor of the policy paradigm – the producers. Some of them are on the roads (e.g., Gawala Association) to agitate against the ‘tyranny’ of the state officials. Others are resorting to whataboutery. They are clearly unhappy like the tax evaders because of the obvious reasons. Even if the checks have been actively put in place, this organised business of adulterated items still goes on even without the knowledge of retailers. For example, in certain cases of beverage supplies, the truck drivers of original companies are found to be supplying fake material in real bottles on the original company carriers with confidence of real employees of registered entities. The level of audacity in the shameless manufacturers is such that they are ready to pick a fight with the inspecting officer(s). This will continue to be like this. The profiteers with corrupted values will never mend their ways until and unless the third actor doesn’t play its role.
I am talking of the most important pillar of any policy issue – the community. Remember, the government can never do things alone even if it really wants to. In food policy or for that matter any other urban affair, the people have to help the government to formulate viable policy outcomes through participation in many ways.
It is heartening to read news reports that sales of most of the high end restaurants have gone down in Lahore. But owners of eateries for instance in Anarkali, Lakshmi or Temple Road etc are still having the time of their life, the business as usual. The only difference being their servicemen are wearing caps for the ‘fear of Ayesha Baji’ (real words in Urdu). And what about other cities? It is imperative that the community raises voice against this malpractice when we look at the scale of this business. Donkeys, pigs, dogs and other sick or dead animals are not supplied to Lahore only. The citizens can make alliances not only to help the government to provide amenities and better checks on food chains but also the trade unions to build internal resolve, values and barriers against such an abuse. It can be done through effective persuasion.
Food safety should be an important part of our urban awakening. Living in the cities, it is very hard for us to debate if we want clean drinking water first, a metro or healthcare system or pure food etc. The arrangement of choices is not vertical. It is a whole package of priorities placed before us horizontally. We want all of them simultaneously. And we will have to work with the government to have them as we want.
