THIS refers to the letter ‘Advance fee’ (May 3). The well-known economic dictum says money is a matter of four functions — a medium, a measure, a standard, and a store. Though it remains true, it seems to have taken on a different meaning in modern times. It should now read: money is a matter of four functions — grab more, more, more and even more.

I recall an incident from the 1950s. I was studying at a well-known secondary school. The monthly fee was Rs4 and eight annas (Rs4.5). However, the teacher would ask students to bring Rs5, while the receipt issued was only for Rs4.5.

On one occasion, a student’s father came to the class and questioned the teacher about this discrepancy. The teacher explained that the additional eight annas were for a poor boys’ fund. This meant that extra money was being collected without proper documentation.

I observed a similar practice during my stay in an Arab country in the 1970s. At the embassy, charges for consular services were collected using two receipts. One was an official receipt bearing the embassy’s emblem, while an additional 10 per cent amount was charged under the heading of a ‘community welfare fund’. For this portion, only a bank pay-in slip was issued, as the payment was collected by a bank cashier stationed there. Such examples show how unofficial payments are collected under the unwritten rule of ‘grab more’.

Qasim Abbas
Mississauga, Canada

Published in Dawn, June 17th, 2026