Bill for elderly yet to see light of day

Sindh Senior Citizens Welfare Act, tabled in 2014 and passed in 2016, still hasn't been implemented

KARACHI: It has been over three years since the 'Sindh Senior Citizens Welfare Act' was passed, and yet little has been done to implement it thus far. Suffering the government's ignorance and neglect, the bill awaits implementation since 2016 as the elderly continue to look to the government with diminishing hope about getting some relief.

The bill was tabled in the provincial assembly in 2014 and passed in April, 2016, with the aim to provide relief to one of the most vulnerable segments of society. However, the bill that promised to safeguard the fundamental rights of senior citizens has been paid little attention over the years. However, the government's neglect towards the bill is not surprising and in fact, atypical of the Pakistan Peoples Partly-led provincial government.  The Sindh government might be ahead of the rest of the country when it comes to introducing landmark laws in the province, but when it comes to their implementation, the situation has been dismal, to say the least.

According to the Bill, the provincial government has to establish a 'Senior Citizens Council'. The social welfare minister will be its chairman while the speaker of the Sindh Assembly will nominate two MPAs and the secretaries of various departments to be appointed as its members. Two elderly members from civil society and a government official are also to be included in the council. However, no steps have been taken in this regard yet.

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Elderly's grievances

Speaking with regards to the authorities' apparent disinterest in implementing the bill, an elderly citizen, Muhammad Saleh said, "There is nothing [that the government has to offer] to a person who serves the country, his family and the society. We also need a bit of attention."

At the age of 67 years, Saleh, after serving in the public for over 25 years, complains that the society hasn't paid him back what he deserves. "An aged person is like trash and a used item," Saleh smiled while looking at the sky. "Neither is he needed at home nor outside it. It's time to go."

Another aggrieved citizen, Dilshad Baloch, 65, commented, "Couple of years ago I was told that we'll get some special privileges. I don't think we'll get these benefits [now]." Baloch complained that he was not facilitated when he visited government offices, hospitals and even banks. Irked at the society's behaviour towards the elderly, he said, "If you don't respect your elders, your kids won't respect you - write my words."

Need for the bill

"Senior citizens need more attention and the bill Sindh government has passed is an assurance that they will be given their due rights," said Maria Soomro, an official of the Sindh Rural Support Organisation. "It is one of the most important bills passed by the Sindh Assembly but unfortunately the provincial government has not completed its rules of business in the last four years," she added.

Explaining its benefits, Soomro said that the elderly [above 60 years of age] would be provided Azadi Cards that they could use to get some discounts for various products and services, including transport and medicine. "They will also have separate queues at offices like NADRA and places such as hospitals" she added.

Explaining the reasons behind the delay in the implementation of the bill, Soomro said that frequent transfers and postings made it difficult for the department to smoothly complete the task of deciding the rules of business. And without deciding on the rules of business, implementation of the project remains a distant dream, she added.

Growing population of the elderly

According to Help Age International Programme Manager Waqas Ashfaq Qureshi, there are only 15 countries in the world that have an over-aged population of over 10 million. "Pakistan is one of them. Pakistan has over 15 million elderly persons and by 2050, the number will increase to 45 million," he added. He said that the number of elderly persons in Pakistan was going up.

Qureshi said that about 47% of the aged population lived with a disability. "It means one person among two [elderly] persons lives with a disability," he added. He said that 90% of such people didn't get any pension.

While it will be difficult to determine the exact number of elderly persons in the country, with the Social Welfare Department and organisations working for the welfare of the aged persons not having any data, it is estimated that the number of elderly persons in Sindh is five million.

Speaking in this regard, Soomro said that her organization, with the help of the Sindh government, was trying to get the exact number from NADRA records.

No one to take care of senior citizens

Government negligence

Repeated attempts were made to contact Adviser to Sindh Chief Minister on Social Welfare Aijaz Ali Shah Sheerazi, however, he remained unavailable for comment. On the other hand, Social Welfare Department officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said while talking to The Express Tribune that "the [entire] department is in deep slumber."

A ray of hope

Meanwhile, Adviser to Sindh Chief Minister on Environment, Coastal Development and Climate Change Barrister Murtaza Wahab, said while speaking to The Express Tribune that he would personally look into the matter and make efforts for the bill's implementation.

"This is a very important law," he remarked. "Unfortunately, it's not implemented but I assure you it will soon be implemented," he assured, saying his party really cares for the elderly persons. 

Published in The Express Tribune, January 5^th, 2020.