How many hours he has to wait for the customers in the cold to make a decent meal cannot be measured. He sits outside the hotels where families from posh localities of Islamabad the beautiful come and satiate their desire for food.
The businesses are already nose down, these small and poor vendors are faced with acute paucity of funds to make their ends meet.
So far the schemes that are for the poor only exist in papers and like the schemes of the past where massive bungling of funds made headlines, the criteria to make it to the government list is like reaching for the stars.
The poor die before they can even see the stars which are all blurred due to smog and smoke from the elite policymakers’ vehicles which zoom past them every day.
Dr Sania Nishter, who made it in 100 most influential women list, made startling revelations when she gave the figures of people who have been listed in the poor schemes despite having the means and the resources. She did try to cut the corrupt from the list but there are still many left who suck the national exchequer without any remorse.
The stories of misuse of public funds are established norm and an open secret results in money. These projects with their allocation produce fudge figures and fictitious billings and money ends in corrupt officials’ pockets.
The man on the street is the bait used by the policymakers to grab funds on his pathetic state on the pretext of his near death and dying stage. These funds sadly never reach him and he dies anyway.
This man with the balloons is not begging. He is out on the street to sell these few balloons and go home with honest money, which sadly is also denied as his presence in front of the hotel is an eyesore.
These small vendors are harassed by the authorities on regular basis as they are considered as a security threat and road to Banni Gala where Prime Minister resides have people who have spent days to make their voice heard are removed on regular basis.
Prime Minister Complaint Cell has applications running in millions which is an evidence as how the government fares in ‘land of the pure’ where PM Complaint Cell is approached for redressal of grievances as all other options are closed.