THE floods this year have been unprecedented both in terms of their ferocity and spread. The 2005 earthquake was a massive disaster, but it was restricted to a much smaller area. The floods have caused utter destruction in Gilgit-Baltistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Sindh, southern Punjab and Balochistan. The response has been slow, but is beginning to gain some momentum.

The federal government and the provincial government in Sindh have announced significant contributions to the relief activity. In Sindh, a month’s net salary of chief minister and all ministers, five days’ salary of government officers of grade 17 and above, and two days’ salary of those in grade 16 and below has been donated to the relief fund.

Hopefully, other governments would put politics aside and contribute equally, if not more. The private sector must also come forward in a big way.

It is important for the governments to set a good example and set up an independent oversight mechanism to make sure proper and effective utilisation of these funds.

We may even have independent boards comprising citizens of exemplary integrity to oversee the utilisation of these funds.

Dr Athar Osama
Islamabad

Published in Dawn, September 11th, 2022