A city nobody owns

It is Karachi’s misfortune that while it offers livelihood, shelter, fame and fortune to millions in reality other than claims of ownership nobody really owns it. How else can all those who deliver fiery speeches and have been in power for over two decades explain that although water is available through hydrants, strangely it cannot be supplied through. Over 1,100 poor people have died due to dehydration while politicians and paid public office-holders have delivered emotional speeches, blaming each other, just like they did in 2012 when 289 poor labourers were burned alive – only to be forgotten.
The water tanker mafia of Karachi has now spread to all parts of the city, having assumed the status of a tax-free Rs10 billion illegal business. The sad reality is that Karachi has become an economic transit stopover to make quick money and other than mere rhetoric nothing concrete has been done to address basic issues by those who hold or have held political power because most of them have abandoned not only this city but the country as well.
Malik T Ali
Lahore