Let them eat cake!

The way things are moving in the Land of the Pure, what does the common man have to look forward to? To the mad dash for roti, kapra and makaan is being added the ever-elusive quest for electricity, water and fuel. One had been led to believe that the middle class is, or should be, the backbone of the society! And yet every step we deign to take appears to be aimed at squeezing the middle class out of existence.

The wretched man in the street has yet to digest the heady diet of statistics that he had been force-fed over the past several years. (Remember the tidings that the Land of the Pure would be among the top five countries in Asia in terms of economic growth?). And now we find our financial experts looking for newer and newer ways to stifle the middle class.

Propaganda machinery notwithstanding, the fact remains that our economic priorities are horribly awry and have been so for quite some time. Not all that long ago, the economic czars of the country were working in a frenzy to dispose of the family silver (by the way, into what kitty do the proceeds go?). And yet our planners — such as they are — projected a clear and focused picture of a country well on its way. But in which direction and to what end?

Why is it that the common man continues to have this queasy feeling that his lot is sinking rather than rising? Why is it that poverty keeps on increasing, just as the rich keep on getting richer? Of course, the statisticians, the economists (and, let us not forget, the bankers) will all have plausible justifications for the whole phenomenon; but the moot question remains: where does it all take the common man?

The cost of living is skyrocketing by the day, while the purchasing power of the common man is continually going down. A certain empress in European history once used the phrase “Let them eat cake!” and paid a high price for it. Empress Marie Antoinette, brought up in a restricted and restrictive regime, could hardly be faulted for coming up with a simplistic solution to a seemingly simple issue. Can we not say the same about our finance and economy wizards?

An outstanding instance of the ‘let-them-eat-cake’ syndrome is now developing in the privileged sections of our own society. Babies in such sterilised environments are now being weaned on ‘designer water’. One wouldn’t be surprised if children in these protected pockets eventually grow up to believe that nature provides water in airtight, sterilised containers — with or without designer labels! And yet, time and again, one hears the alarming news from vast segments of the country of people getting ill and even dying due to drinking contaminated water. Shouldn’t provision of clean and safe drinking water then be one of our top priorities?

Let us face it, people can neither survive nor prosper on a diet of statistics alone. Mere percentages thrust down the throats of common folks will just not do. If figures have to be quoted then should they not be in tangible, easy to understand and assimilate form? When targeting the common man, should we not eschew the habit of talking of micro-or macro-economics, or even of growth rates? If we have to, then why not measure our annual progress in terms of such simple yardsticks as:

— Number of additional persons provided clean and safe drinking water.

— Number of additional clinics and hospital facilities provided.

— Number of new and well-equipped schools opened in the public sector.

— Additional midwives and paramedical staff provided in rural and far-flung areas.

Once these little issues are sorted out, the nation may well be astonished to discover that such weighty matters as the growth rates and GDP will take care of themselves.

 

Published in The Express Tribune, January 7^th, 2019.

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