COMMENT: ****, drama and damages —Hina Hafeezullah Ishaq
The not-so-stupid common man is already aware of ****, but since our elite rulers have no contact with him, this fact might have escaped their notice. The common man is not interested in seminars and pamphlets and help-lines; what he needs is free and prompt medical treatment
Well, finally the Punjab government claims to have woken up to the menace called ****; the proof is a ‘**** Helpline’. According to the huge, coloured advertisement, the one I came across, published in a national Urdu newspaper, I assume with our money, roughly translated read: “Khadim-e-Punjab Muhammad Shahbaz Sharif’s Important/Significant Step for Citizens’ Health” and goes on to outline the setting up of a 24-hour “free helpline” for patients suffering from **** fever and guidance from medical specialists; and of course this is proudly advertised by the Department of Health, Punjab, which, incidentally if we did not know is always ‘aspiring for the protection of citizens’ health’!!! And again, understandably so, this venture had to be formally inaugurated.
Both my aged parents-in-laws fell victim to **** last week. First, we tried to follow the basic procedure and treat it at home, but by 2 am that day my mother-in-law had to be rushed to the emergency of a federally governed hospital in Lahore. The response by the staff was prompt, as there were few patients in the ward and she was sent home three hours later. During the day her condition deteriorated and my father-in-law fell ill too, unable to move and severely disoriented. Both were again rushed to the hospital. This time both had to be admitted; they were lucky enough to get a bed, hundreds of others not so. The scene at the hospital was heart-wrenching to say the least. The prime minister’s son contracted **** a couple of weeks ago but never made it to the federally governed hospital let alone a provincial one; rather he was admitted in a private hospital run by the CEO of a provincial hospital! This speaks volumes about the standards of healthcare in our country and how our rulers who have contributed nothing except their ‘plaques’ to it, view it.
It was really heart-warming to see Punjab’s chief minister distributing pamphlets on Model Town roads, Punjab’s governor deciding to personally supervise the fumigation, the army ready to fight the mosquitoes, in solidarity with the people of Lahore. Had **** not been a provincial subject, I would have half-expected Rehman Malik to tell us that the ‘backbone of the **** mosquito had been broken’.
I personally think **** is a CIA Agent, akin to Raymond Davis, at the very least and American Navy Seals, who descended on Abbottabad and escaped without a scratch, at the very best. And as can be expected from the Americans, **** was coated with the special stealth technology materials, so that the enemy combatants would be able to infiltrate our airspace, our cities and our homes without being detected for months. Of course, we being a third world nation, poorly equipped with sophisticated radars and other advanced gadgets, were unable to detect this massive infiltration. But somehow, the ever present nuisance called the media and the common man was somehow able not only to detect this but make this knowledge public for weeks and months on end.
Our government is another story however, since they have never shared the same space with the common man, thus was unable to detect the stealth mosquito. After the 18th Amendment, the sector of health has fallen exclusively within the domain of the provincial governments. The object of this devolution was to ensure that better medical and health facilities would be available to the common man at the grassroots level. It is indeed a continuous and persistent fact that our governments have never believed in the word “prevention”; these people were never taught the basic “prevention is better than the cure” in school. Year after year, we know floods, fires, earthquakes, ****, malaria, wheat and sugar shortages are going to happen but no provisions are made; there are departments like disaster ‘management’ but never ‘prevention’. The long queues at the provincial hospitals, people lying in threes and fours on a single bed, sitting on the floors in the lobbies and corridors, waiting to be treated, in pain: both physical and financial; oh, by the way these images are broadcast on the national media simultaneously with the news that our worthy president has gone to London for his medical check-up.
A single blood test ‘CBC’ costs around Rs 500 and it needs to be repeated twice daily; doctors advice juices and a healthy diet to increase the platelets, so a poor man who cannot afford basic ‘roti’ twice a day can afford to spend Rs 500 daily on his diet? Top this with medicine costs; we found out that even Panadol was short in pharmacies. Another question is: how does a chemical spray, marked property of the Punjab government and not-for-sale, end up in the market and is being used to fumigate houses privately for around Rs 1,500?
Our constitution gives all citizens the protection of law and the fundamental right to life. This would include the health and medical provisions by the state. Whilst our rulers were bickering, the people were suffering, as usual. Now they wake up and spend our money on awareness campaigns, with advertisements in the press and visual media, for self-glorification. The politicians blame the bureaucracy and vice versa. But a pertinent question would be if they have just realised that the bureaucracy was incompetent, then why are they ruling us? And if they knew beforehand that the bureaucracy was incompetent, why did they not stand on the streets, conduct seminars, establish help-lines well in time? Ask the bureaucracy and they will lament the curtailment of their powers and funds and constant interference by the politicians, who use public funds for their own promotion in their constituencies. Top this with the news that reportedly every MPA is getting Rs 1 million each to use for **** control. Now, another question is: when these people spend billions of rupees in their election campaigns, in violation of all the rules, can they not spend a mere Rs 1 million from their own pockets for the poor, stupid citizens who voted for them? So again the question arises: should the Punjab government not be liable to its citizens for the loss caused to them because of its negligence? Loss of earnings, loss of health, physical and mental anguish, damages for needless financial expenditure and most of all for loss of life; why should the ordinary man not be compensated? Why should there not be a massive class action law suit against our rulers?
Now, I always admit my incompetence, and my lack of comprehension is a constant source of misery for me; I fail to understand how this ‘campaign’ is going to benefit the common man. The not-so-stupid common man is already aware of ****, but since our elite rulers have no contact with him, this fact might have escaped their notice. The common man is not interested in seminars and pamphlets and help-lines; what he needs is free and prompt medical treatment, fresh fruit and juices and high quality food delivered to his doorstep, financial assistance for all those days when he is not able to work, superior standard fumigation in his neighbourhood and a realisation that his life does matter. I think the citizens of our province, since it is a provincial issue and of epidemic proportions, will benefit more if the Punjab government provides them with balaclavas, gloves and socks, which would definitely be a cheaper alternative rather than spending millions of the taxpayers’ money on self-promotion campaigns. And, finally, it is my solemn belief that this stealthy **** mosquito can only be defeated if the Punjab government bans pillion riding; their true, tried and tested cure for all attacks and ills!
The writer is an advocate of the high court
dailytimes.com./pk
