Life amid Covid-19: Haunted by the ghost of financial instability

As the city slips into restrictions again amid the second wave, many have little to hold onto but hope

KARACHI:

Where the global coronavirus pandemic has been disastrous for most world economies, it is its micro-impact on developing countries like Pakistan that has left the common man in dire straits.

Owing to closed businesses and lack of government support, hundreds and thousands of people, who could once make enough to get by, have now been pushed to the breadlines in mere days following one lockdown after another.

In such circumstances, the metropolis of Karachi has been home to many stories of loss, struggle and suspended hope in times of economic uncertainty.

When speculations first grew of Covid-19’s penetration in the country’s financial capital in February, Musawir Ali, unaware of his fate, was working as an academic in-charge at a private school in Karachi. In less than a month, the virus escalated beyond anticipation, leaving the city in state of panic. It was then decided that schools would be among the first places to shutdown before the city went into a complete lockdown.

With the campus shut and education moved online, Musawir’s workplace no longer felt the need to pay for the services of an academic in-charge. Like thousands of others employed at hundreds of Karachi’s private educational intuitions, he too was let go.

With no other option, a family to fend for and bills to pay, the ex-school worker took a job at a newly-opened meat store in the city’s uptown Clifton area. It may have not paid as much as his previous white-collar job at the school, but in that moment of utter despair, anything that put food on his table worked.

In the absence of much else to bank on, Musawir convinced himself that things will slowly and gradually get better for him and his family if he worked hard enough. However, as fate would have it, by the middle of the next month, the entire country felt the impact of an escalating pandemic and increased restrictions.

“Soon an order came from the government to also shut down all restaurants and business centres nationwide. This meant the meat shop I worked at [also shutdown] and I was once again back to square one,” said Musawir,talking about his fears coming to life.

The country had never seen such a large-scale lockdown. Most business owners had no idea what to anticipate or how long the lockdown would actually last. However, luckily, despite losses, shop owners continued to pay rent half-hoping that work would soon resume and it did.

At some point in May, the government decided to ease certain restrictions after much back and forth. This meant that stores, including Musawir’s, could now operate for certain hours every day.

“Where some businesses were able to resume, this was not the case for the newly-launched meat store I worked at. It, like any other startup, needed to penetrate the market and develop a stable customer base, which required time and resources. We tried our best for a while but expenses were still high and revenues were low. Then came the second wave, weighing the heaviest on the local food and beverage industry. At this point, the store owner saw no chances of betterment and the store was shut down permanently in November,” Musawir told The Express Tribune.

Having anticipated the store’s closure at some point, the distressed worker had also written to the management at his previous employment. In response to his request for rejoining, Musawir was told by the school administration to wait until the reopening of educational institutions.

However, there is no telling when schools will reopen, or if they ever will in full strength.

In the meantime, all Musawir has left to hold on to is pious hope for a miracle, or the return of normalcy and economic stability.

 

 

Published in The Express Tribune, December 14^th, 2020.