The next wave of casualties stemming for the recent flood in Pakistan will sweep along the public health disaster waiting just beyond this hour, today. The 20 million affected by the massive, surging, nearly country-wide flood are now optioning across a ready-made menu of likely epidemics. At least one individual has been diagnosed a victim of cholera. How many thousands more will be victims of the flood, refugees are corralled into temporaryspaces, refugees of a disaster averted with pains, victims of a coming decimation?
Already the U.S. has committed the largest amount of money ever promised one single country’s humanitarian, outreach effort. Though the huge influx of money, food and military infrastructure including ready made bridges has been promised (and increasingly, delivered) to Pakistan to help burnish the lagging popularity of the U.S, that move can only succeed if the U.S. promises translate into delivered commendable outcomes. There is just too much to lose and mourn in Pakistan now, though far too much has already been lost.
Meanwhile U.N. Secretary General has come to visit Pakistan to see the devastation himself. I He has been urging international donors to commit more money for rapid response in Pakistan. Interestingly enough he has come to visit and to move minds only a few days after the leader of the PPP, the party in power, President Asif Ali Zardari came by to silently voice his concern for his people. His popularity has rightly eroded amongst Pakistani’s though Prime Minister Yousuf Rani Gilani has made valiant attempts to couch the President’s absence as just the duties of the king on his head rests a heavy crown.
It’s more than likely that Gilani’s defense maneuver will not work.
