If you come to Peshawar from the GT Road or the Motorway..........you WILL not fail to notice that the main road which is the continuation of the GT Road is been made quite clean since PTI took over.
But let us say you go instead on the Ring Road , .....................well the normal state of affairs in Pakistan come to stare you in the face...............namely garbage everywhere , plugged drains and sewers with out flow of the liquids. This is rampant in the streets where business of all kinds is conducted.
I walked yesterday in Peshawar City streets , a sort of what can pass for a shop with a cement platform in front where a few goats and sheep were tied and eating grass. To the right of them a whole bunch of stomachs and intestines were lying. Then it dawned on me.......this fellow was selling FRESH meat available on the hoof.....and of course it was not his job to clean up after his work....it was the job of the new govt: .....at least that is what he said................and he added that now that PTI govt was in place he expected that “ THINGS” will get better. I asked him if the rubbish that he was creating would be removed by him or by the govt: He said and I quote “ I am paying income tax and sales tax so they should be the ones doing it “
In front of all the shops were piles of rubbish and the shop keepers were not bothered about that. I was concerned about the garbage in front of the food shops.........but neither the seller nor the buyers were too bothered about it.
Garbage seems to irritate me since it reminds me of PIGS.....which are dirty and UNCLEAN animals..........so are the people of Pakistan turning into a very large group of Pigs and the country-( including KPK)- has become a Pigs stye. If images are any indication.............that is an accurate description. I saw a bill board put up by the JI or some such outfit on the road….saying the Cleanliness was 50 % of the Faith of Islam………………..I looked hard around but did not find anything I could describe as being clean. I saw a lot BEARDS , a lot of people going to the Mosques……..but I did not see anyone cleaning the front of their shops. I did the only reckless thing on this trip of mine…………..I actually went to a religious looking man , pointed to the bill board and asked him why he did not clean . He said and I quote……………that is the job of the sweepers( the untouchables )- and I am not going to do that " end of quote
And THAT is only the OUTSIDE in the streets………..if ONE was to look into the MINDS of these people…………..well……...I would not want to do THAT.
To clean the environment, it does not take a great deal of effort, machinery or imagination and the results would be obvious.
But then that is probably not at the top of the agenda of the Chief Minister of PTI , Mr. Pervez Khattak whose home town of NOWSHEHRA is itself fast becoming a garbage dump. What else can you expect from the someone who keeps changing his political affiliations again and again
The question has to be asked if they have not cleaned up the city in one year and 18 months...........can they tackle the 4 problems I have mentioned above................Overpopulation ,security, economy and corruption.................and that is just 4 items and I have on purpose not included education which is a big item by itself.
I doubt very much that they actually can FIX things even though their intentions might be noble.