Prime Minister Imran Khan expressed sentiments which do him credit, while inaugurating the ‘Meals on Wheels’ scheme, which would not only convey food to anyone who needed to eat, but would also ensure that no one had to go to bed hungry, in Islamabad on Wednesday. Another view of the event would be that it merely provided Mr Khan a phot-op, as well as being an opportunity for him to express sympathy with the poor. It certainly allowed him to make a ringing commitment that no one would be allowed to go to bed hungry, something which he said was all too common in the country. He also said that the scheme would be extended to other cities, after its inauguration in Islamabad. That would be a welcome commitment, had previous such poverty alleviation programmes, both by this as well as previous governments, not been unsuccessful.
The present governments’ Panagah scheme, of providing shelter to the shelterless, has run into difficulties, mainly arising out of the embezzlement it has allowed, while the previous government’s Sasti Roti scheme has collapsed because no one wants to follow it up. Mr Khan’s failure to announce a timeline for the extension of the scheme to other cities raises worries about its future, a worry further fuelled by a reticence about its funding. This government has been vocal about the need to sacrifice because of the shenanigans of its predecessors, but it has not spoken about the sources of funding for its welfare schemes, especially since there are massive demands on government resources, with the government not having made any resources available for such schemes. Mr Khan did point out that private donors had come forward, but no private person, even if richer than anyone in Pakistan, could sustain such a welfare scheme. It should be noted too that Mr Khan has not developed trust in government, and donors are still unwilling to donate to the government.
The government should stop trying to disguise its failures with such evanescent schemes. It should remember that a well-run economy, which creates jobs, is far more effective at alleviating poverty than harebrained schemes like ‘Meals on Wheels’ which shows every sign of not being thought through.
