Slapped

Political positions are now often regarded as positions of privilege and financial gain, instead of responsibility.

The shock value in the latest case of civilian abuse by government officials is removed because of its longstanding prevalence in Pakistan. In the most recent case, a member of the provincial assembly (MPA) of Punjab is alleged to have physically assaulted a doctor in Sumundari, Faisalabad. Allegedly, the MPA became angry at the prospect of having to wait for the doctor to finish with his current patients. While the MPA maintains otherwise, security cameras will hopefully clarify the situation to everyone’s satisfaction. Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif has summoned a report from the health secretary but it must be pointed out that each adult should be held accountable for his or her actions and the wrong doer made an example out of. Whether it is the MPA who misuses his authority or the doctor who misbehaves, ill-manners have gone unaccounted for far too long.

There is a plague that has paralysed the minds of those in positions of authority in Pakistan. The mindset has become that physical and verbal abuse towards those in non-authoritative positions is acceptable. The examples of abuse towards civilians by government officials are many, whether it is at a bakery, a hospital or on the road in violation of traffic laws. Some officials particularly become aggressive when they feel they have been insulted, and the concept of leadership and serving the country is lost upon them. Rather than embodying core values of our Constitution, they result to passive-aggressive behaviour, sometimes taking even the slightest miscommunication upon their egos. This has come to be part of our government culture; political positions are now often positions of privilege and financial gain, instead of responsibility.

The role of a politician is to serve the community that he or she leads to make it a safe, healthy and progressive environment for all citizens. Unfortunately, this has not been the case in Pakistan’s political history and we must document these incidents to change the situation for the future.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 28^th, 2014.

Like Opinion & Editorial on Facebook, follow @ETOpEd on Twitter to receive all updates on all our daily pieces.