f we eradicate corruption at the lowest levels, it will automatically be wiped out at the top
KARACHI: Today, corruption is a word so heavily ingrained in the culture of every Pakistani that no one bats an eyelid at it. It is understood by everyone that corruption is the quickest and easiest route to success and people have no qualms about using unjust means to achieve their ends. For every honest man, this nation seems to be producing 20 who are quite the opposite. We see corruption every day, we complain about it every day and yet we engage in it every day. Every well off citizen spends hours criticising politicians for stealing money from the nation, or blasting feudal lords for their monopoly on sugar mills yet when they are caught for breaking a red light or need to get something done in a hurry, they have no qualms in bribing the official on duty. The same people, who complain about the horrible state of the nation, refuse to pay taxes and provide the government with the funds they need to make it better. This is the problem with our people. We recognise what is wrong, yet we keep on doing it. We criticise others for doing wrong, yet we keep doing it, and in the end, we justify ourselves by saying ours is the lesser evil.
Every industry in Pakistan is rife with corruption. It’s appalling to see that even in sectors like healthcare and education, corruption prevails. It has been reported by Transparency International that 23 per cent of people get admissions into schools through alternative procedures. These mostly involve the bribing of officials. First of all, a meagre four per cent of the GDP was assigned to education in the federal budget and still government officials continue to pocket as much money as they can from this budget, leaving as little as possible left over for the future of this nation.
As a 17-year-old student in one of Pakistan’s most prestigious institutions, it pains me to see all this around me. As a member of the elite class of this nation, I am embarrassed to see that instead of fulfilling our duty by helping the poor, we are doing the opposite. I eagerly look forward to the day when I can start contributing to the betterment of this nation myself. I love my home and I cannot stand to see it going to waste like it is today. I honestly believe that corruption can be prevented, but only when the elite realises that it must. As long as we stick to our corrupt ways and justify them by stating that it is the way things work, we will never get out of this rut. The only way to stop things from working this way is to stop doing them. If we eradicate corruption at the lowest levels, it will automatically be wiped out at the top. All we have to do is refuse to bribe the policeman and instead pay whatever fine we deserve, or stand in line at any government office. It can be easily done if we try. If we put aside our personal desires, sacrifice just a little bit, we can bring corruption to an end. And if we do, we will be rewarded with a just, fair, prosperous nation and a name we can be proud of.
Zarak Quraishi
Published in The Express Tribune, March 2nd, 2015.
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