Mohammad Ali Sattar
The time of ecstasy and joy is back once more. We are in the midst of yet another great day to celebrate. Long before the Eid comes people are somehow lost in the other planet. They are out of touch of this mundane living style.
The sense of spirituality and piety stealthily creeps into a soul. The event of Eid ul Azha is not only a great religious occasion, it is also a great time to do a thorough soul searching and rediscover oneself. It is time to associate oneself to the great call of sacrifice and surrender.
But most pathetically we are a long way from the spirit of sacrifice. To us sacrifice has many connotations. During this time of the year spirituality and sacrifice comes up for deliberations with renewed force. This Eid is more of animal slaughtering, more of material involvement than the underlying meaning of it.
Seldom have we gone back to the history of this great sacrifice by our prophets. Today it is only showcasing your ability to search out the expensive cattle from the market. The sellers at the cattle market make a mockery of entire society.
They raise (artificially groom the cow, buffalo or goat) their produce in the most inhuman way to make them look fresh and healthy only to wriggle maximum profit from those who are ready to exhibit their wealth in the public. Her we see the practice of bad culture of consumerism.
The parties, sellers and wealthy buyers are the main players of this inhuman and extremely immoral practice. The greed on part of the sellers and the perverse pleasure of the rich buyers are making a big mockery of the society. The lower middle class, who makes the majority of the populace, is the ultimate sufferer. They cannot meet all their ends.
The fish trader, the vegetable vendor, meat seller and the grocery owner – all come out with sole intention of squeezing the consumers without a grain of mercy. The margin of profit that they enjoy is incredible. Nowhere in the world do we find this type of uncontrolled market situation.
Our consumer market is devoid of any ethics. Under any economic framework this seems too heavily against the consumers. Ours is always a seller’s market. Moreover, despite a market economy, which ideally should haven open and competitive,we don’t have effective monitoring and controlling body to save the hapless consumers.
The products (of all types) are being sold at such exorbitant price that it makes one feel powerless. Since there is no accountability we are witnessing this culture of exploitation in place, this practice is being tiled every day. By now it has already taken an alarming shape. And if this unhealthy and negative competition continues any further our economy is bound to flounder sooner than later.
Our economic defies any healthy definition. Our market operation defies any logic. Interestingly our own people (produces and sellers) are exploiting us like the distant capitalist bosses.
Our market is driven by greed culture which is not theoretically present in any economic or financial catalogue. |The greed of making fast bucks leads to creation of exploiting class. That is what is happening here in Bangladesh.
Let’s look at the culture that is now in practice. A tea vendor in the street will charge you taka 6 to 10 per cup. You can’t challenge them for this variation in price. The restaurants will ‘demolish’ your funds by charging you around thousand for a fish and rice lunch.
Expensive restaurant are more dangerously poised to kill your appetite when they produce the menu at your table. The food stuff that they sell is ridiculously pricey. Still none can question them. Cosmetics, toiletry clothing – you name anything that we need –are insensibly tagged with mindless price that one wonders where are we actually heading towards.
The transport sector has become a bane for us. From local services to inter district transport, be it bus or truck, they charge you out of the world fare for their services. As a bonus you are gifted with ‘rude ‘manners from the transport workers. Rickshaw and, scooters, and tempos – are also major extortionists. They are even more ruthless in charging you ‘whatever’ they like for whatever distances you hire them for.
The whole society is perversely involved in mad race for money. All kinds of wrong they indulge in has been conveniently made as regular and acclaimed norm. No one feels the pinch of this wrong doings. We have taken these practices in our stride and with smile we let ourselves being peeled. The government should come up with absolute pro- people programs and save the consumers from absolute destruction. This is a bad economic practice, and a bad economic culture will be a deterrent to any sustainable development project.
Along with this, good moral practice keeping in tune with sense of sacrifice ought to be instilled in the people. Still there are millions who are content and live happily. They don’t forget to dole out whatever they can afford .They don’t forget to wish you a happy Eid.
Eid Mubarak dear reader.
Email: malisattar@outlook.com