Hiren Pandit
Nowadays we are all self-centered, working for our own benefit and personal interests. Everyone is busy with themselves. What are we thinking about the country and society? After how much social and moral turpitude, will we turn around? And how long will it take to develop as an ideal human being? To whom should we put these questions — society, the state, the residents of the society, the government? Everyone is busy with themselves, just thinking about themselves.
The government professes to be busy with the continuity of development for the betterment of the country, and the opposition parties profess to be busy restoring democracy. But what will happen to those of us ordinary people? Is anyone busy or thinking about us, or is there time to think? It is not visible at all. How do we know we are in a trench? Are we as a nation able to move forward? We don’t seem to be moving very far, though we have some good achievements. These are also ruined by mudslinging, social and moral turpitude. We can’t hold on to our achievements.
Every day we get upset by so much terrible negative news on social media, television and in the national dailies. The media outlets are full of reports on murders, abductions, rapes, physical abuse and injuries. Crimes are not limited to one city or to the rural area. These heinous crimes are being committed in almost all the cities, ports, villages, upscale areas and remote locales of the country. The perpetrators include notorious terrorists, bullies and family members leading deceptively ordinary lives.
The brutal and unbelievable types of crime, especially at the family level, seem to indicate that the perpetrators are mentally ill. No one can commit such heinous crimes except a person suffering from mental illness. Atrocities are still seen as a matter of law and order. The presence of sociologists, psychologists, psychiatrists, and neurologists at our meetings, seminars, workshops and roundtable discussions is not taken seriously. We organise these events with essayists, columnists, politicians, political scientists, sociologists, and law enforcement officials. But the time has come to go deeper into the problem. The perpetrator must be punished as well as treated as a mental patient. We need to see if there are any germs or chemicals in our body or mind that cause this mental illness. Healthy people should take precautionary measures so that they do not get infected with this disease at the individual level as well as through social and state institutions.
The constant practice of our intellect and thinking becomes unnecessary. Who wants to leave the traditional formality and take the difficult alternative path? Many people think that it is necessary or what it is, and we do not show much interest in getting out of the situation as it was before. So, the number of real meritorious people is decreasing in our society. The scale of social degradation is getting heavier.
Although the number of meritorious people in our society is less due to various reasons, the number of ideologically and honest, and ethical meritorious protesting people is decreasing. The number of exceptional public interest thinkers is decreasing. Naturally declining or powerless are cultural institutions with similar characteristics, which can be identified as public interest. These are one of the reasons for the cultural emptiness. And real cultural practices and cultural activities can show us the way out of this situation – which can lead the nation to a new age by overcoming our moral and social degradation.
We have a new generation, especially the younger generation. Do we think about them? They will take the helm of the future. Does every parent keep track of their child? How do you develop a child as an ideal person? The child’s parents are busy raising the standard of living, and no one has time to worry about whether the money they have earned by working day and night is of any use. We are not in a position to take care of what the child is learning, what he is doing, where he is going, who he is mixing with. The government and civil society also need to think about why this has happened. It is not possible to get out of these without concerted efforts.
There was a time when money is lost, nothing is lost, health is lost, something is lost, when the character is lost is everything is lost, but it has changed so now character is lost nothing is lost, health is lost something is lost and Money is lost everything is Lost. Now money is everything, everything can be done for money. We are just running after money. We are ready to give up values, respect and self-respect for money!
In building the society, it is time to consider whether we are fulfilling some of the responsibilities we have in the state, society, and family as an ideal citizen of the state, or whether we are unknowingly forgetting. Our adulteration is scattered in everything. Adulteration in medicine, adulteration in food, adulteration in tests, adulteration in everything. In such a situation it cannot continue and cannot be allowed to continue. If this situation continues, it will not take long for all our achievements to be destroyed.
If the owner of a pharmaceutical company thinks that he should not adulterate his medicine, then surely others will not come to adulterate his medicine. If a food shop owner thinks that he can run on low profit, then he should not add adulterated food. We have to make a profit in business, that is the rule, but not by sacrificing our humanity, the welfare of the people, but we do that for our profit a lot of the time. As conscious citizens, we must aim to ensure that we do not destroy a nation just to make a profit. Everyone, including the owner of a pharmaceutical company and the owner of a food manufacturing company, should keep in mind that adulteration can lead to thousands of illnesses and even death. Adulterated food and adulterated medicine can destroy a nation. We have to work keeping these aspects in mind. But are we doing that? We see that if we can achieve our interests, then we don’t have time to worry about what happens to others, what happens to the country.
If a man does not have morality then what can a nation or country expect from him? If we give up our morality, then there is nothing more to say. We all have to stand in line with our slogan ‘Love Bangladesh’, for which civil society has to play a leading role. Because first, we as a nation have to overcome all the social and moral degradation. With our backs to the wall in terms of moral turpitude, let us turn around again, be educated in ethics use our scholarships properly, take Bangladesh further forward. Let us make Bangladesh a beautiful Bangladesh, which has been achieved through the sacrifices of 3 million martyrs and the respect of innumerable mothers and sisters.
- Hiren Pandit is a Research Fellow, BNNRC