According to a report in Dawn, Pakistan government has lost billions in revenue because of the chaos that was caused by rain in Karachi.
This is not good news.
There is no question that this rain in Karachi broke all records, at least for the last 30 years, but the response from those who were supposed to manage the city is unacceptable. City’s mayor has been bragging about his work ethics, his commitment to providing services to the citizens of Karachi, his ‘record of service’ and every other claim of progress was washed away as soon as it started to rain.
I know it is brutal to criticize those who worked day and night to restore services, but I can’t be dishonest about assessing those who were actually responsible for maintaining normalcy and order during unusual circumstances. In fact, if the city had to suffer and it was going to take as much time as it took to get back to normal, then why should Karachi pay millions of rupees in salaries to the current leadership responsible for managing the city?
In my opinion, there should be some accountability and heads should roll not because the government lost valuable tax revenue, but all the citizens of Karachi went through hell. Imagine living without electricity, clean running water, and roads that are clear for driving or walking. It was just too much, too much.
It is time that Pakistanis start demanding answers and get rid of incompetent leaders. Karachi is an excellent place to start the cleaning process.
Bilal Qureshi
Washington, DC