IN Ramazan, people give charity as much as they can. People from other religions also give considerable amount in charity on their respective religious occasions. A study conducted by the Pakistan Centre for Philanthropy (PCP) shows that Pakistanis donate about Rs240 billion (more than $2 billion) annually in charity which is more than one per cent of the country’s GDP. Funds are also allocated to non-governmental organisations (NGOs) for various causes, but the question is: are the funds and charity utilised appropriately? The answer is: no.

Although there are innumerable charitable organisations in the country, there are people in need of basic commodities and necessities of life and their number is rising all the time. The misuse of charity and funds is not the only enigma. Professional beggars also serve as an obstacle to the proper use of these funds. We also notice fund-raising campaigns for cancer hospitals, thalassaemia patients and many other welfare organisations. One can see a large number of people seeking aid outside the mosques and other places of worship, especially in the last 10 days of Ramazan.

Cancer hospitals, thalassaemia recovery centres and many welfare institutions utilise these donations for noble causes. But do people standing outside places of worship carrying their medical reports or medical records of their beloved ones as proof of their being needy and asking for donations actually deserve charity?

A majority of these people are undeserving and violate the rights of those who are really needy. Today, begging has become a profession. Due to increasing poverty, many people have been forced to collect alms to survive. Although many social welfare organisations are working to counter this, they may remain unsuccessful. Having no adequate strategy to tackle this issue, the government remains in a fix.

The media must play its role through public awareness campaigns to this effect. We must ensure before donating money to help the needy that the person who is receiving the charity really deserves it. The government should also take necessary measures to protect valuable donations from being misused and wasted, as a bulk of genuinely deserving people are present in the country and are waiting for help.

Ibtasam Ali Ansar
Mandi Bahauddin

Published in Dawn, May 16th, 2022