WHILE the terrible tragedy in Swat has got every high-ranking government functionary shedding crocodile tears, none among them sees the utter disaster that life has become for most people in Pakistan. Each day, millions drink contaminated water and breathe the filthiest air possible. People keep losing their lives under the wheels of trailers and trucks.

While all this — and, indeed, much more — keeps happening right across the country, what does the leadership do? Other than jumping up and down like the proverbial monkey king in the forest, the leaders of this benighted nation only do what they do best: issue useless and heartless statements carried disgustingly by the complicit media. To add insult to injury, the prime minister or chief ministers suspend a few non-entities, and even that is done on a temporary basis. Will someone just pick one of the dozens of catastrophic areas of our lives and enforce some law?

Prof Wasif M Khan
Lahore

Published in Dawn, July 16th, 2025