THIS refers to children’s education. The world recently observed Malala Day and some 87,000 people across the world have endorsed by signing a global petition to award the Nobel Peace Prize to Malala on her stand on girls’ education.

But what about the future of some 400 poor children of a small village in Karachi, who have been deprived of their school building for the last four years.

The school is situated at Sahibdad Goth, Malir, Karachi.

This indicates that people just believe in adventurism and advertisement through media publicity and keep their eyes closed on the rest of the bitter facts.

I raised this issue at various forums and sought help of the media to highlight it. The school building was supposed to be rebuilt after its demolition some four years ago, but all in vain.

Instead, the school plot has now been illegally occupied by land grabbers for their ulterior motives, compelling students and the staff to carry out academic activities on nearby streets under the open sky.

I also wrote to the president of Pakistan, the chief justice of the Supreme Court, the bureaucracy and called the attention of the media but failed to get any response.

I observed that either the authorities concerned have no interest in this issue or they are helpless in front of influential land mafia.

This is what should have been stressed on the Malala Day.

We must realise and contribute to children’s education to save their future rather than become a part of the media show.

MASOOD BALOCH
Karachi