"Cruel Floods"

Sajjad Mubarak, Govt Higher Secondary School, Sherpao, Charsada

The recent floods and heavy rains have been the most devastating in the history of Pakistan. More than 2,000 people have died, millions have been made homeless and billions of dollars worth of property has been washed away. The Charsada district of Khyber Pakhtoonkhwa province, where I live, was among the first to be exposed to the floods as it is situated closer to the Kabul river.

Many areas of our homeland have been at the mercy of the cruel flood’s waves in the past few days, when rather than coming as a blessing, the monsoon rains created great trouble for the people of our country. The flood waves claimed lives and injured thousands; millions are living under the open sky. Mothers have lost their little kids; brothers are searching for sisters and many others look for their loved ones in the flood waters flowing through their villages.

Charsada and many of its villages fell prey to flood waters. Villages including Tangi, Manda, Habib Garhi and Dildar Gharhi are among the worst affected, as well as Mian Sahab Gharhi, Kote, Umarzai, Charsada City, Utmanzai and Turangzai. Devastation in these areas is severe as homes have been completely washed away. Many people are living in relief camps, where the affected families have no option other than to live under the open sky in very miserable conditions. The death toll of children is the highest of all because of their vulnerability; most of those who died did so due to the unavailability of food and water.

The floods are almost over now, but have left behind a sad history, written with tears. It is not only property but humanity itself which has experienced terrible times during the calamity. Many girls in the affected areas have reportedly committed suicide to save themselves from attack by beast-like human beings. Since people were unable to look after their properties, criminals took the opportunity to steal as many valuables as they could.

In such a miserable situation, the federal and provincial governments are making promises, but doing very little practically. People feel hopeless and say that this has been a golden opportunity for our politicians to increase their own wealth as much as they can in the name of the relief and rehabilitation of affected citizens. People firmly believe that only two per cent of the aid will reach the deserving and the rest will go into the pockets of politicians and the administration.

The furious victims of the flood say that our president Asif Ali Zardari showed his true commitment and dedication towards the country by flying to London in the middle of the crisis. There, as well as political meetings, he was reunited with his sons Bilawal and Bakhtawar – but, ask the victims, what about the hundreds of thousands of Bilawals and Bakhtawars he left behind here, helpless and in trouble?

The people hit by the floods are also not satisfied with the role of the media in covering this huge disaster. The main focus of the media during the early days was an air crash in Islamabad that claimed 152 lives, but they turned a blind eye towards the millions of people crying for help in flood-affected areas.

The flood is over now, but it has left a history for us to learn from.