Traffic Police – not to blame…..
The traffic police though appears ineffectual in itself, (because our dear citizens do not listen to them, even when the policemen risk their lives and come throw themselves in front of the cars) is trying to solve the citizens’ overwhelming traffic problems.
On more than one occasion I have seen major intersections manned by three to five policemen at a time and no that is not to cause confusion, but to give strength to their force. They have been working in unison to get the traffic flowing smoothly through (on occasion even opening up traffic on the side with the ambulance). Now if we could only get the people in those cars to listen to them.
One could argue that if the people do not follow the policemen’s instructions, then what good is this force? Well, the policemen’s intentions are quite clear and they do appear to be having some effect. It’s a game that must be played by both parties and the car drivers know that the policemen are hindered by their lack of resources (as very few are chased down by the police when they break the traffic rules) but overall I have learned to appreciate the traffic police of the city.
What the people are doing is something else entirely. Also the traffic policemen being able to co ordinate with walkie talkies to see the state of the next intersection is great as then there is some “thought” behind their decisions.
So all those who are quick to blame the “system” there is progress in the system, it comes back to how each of us needs to do our own part too.
The planners can still be blamed though because when you have to post policemen at the base of a fly over bridge, then clearly there is something amiss!!!
I am glad to have some non-Al Qaeda and non-Farhat Hashmi women contributors like u here, but plz pick some other topics.
There r so many dismal, frustrating and morbid things to talk about in the city of Karachi. Your personal blog is far better than your posts here, frankly speaking
Saba,
Very valid points.
Alam KMB team is doing great job. I wanna see some Eid shopping Hangama and Ronukh please.
BTW have you guys seen this – Policewomen on motorcycles – Wow! Lahore is so ahead in this, I wish I able to see such openess in Karachi and other cities.
Sorry to burst your bubble but alam I was told that saba also wears scarf. plz dont take toxic liquor now
There is no better way to control traffic in Karachi than placing traffic police or place a traffic light wherever needed, otherwise no one would ever get to any place keeping in mind that our fellow citizens would never give way to another! Unlike in some considerate, law abiding societies where a simple STOP sign does the job most efficiently……we as Pakistanis just have different ways of living!
Some cute notings, which you have skipped.
1. Traffic Police is not interested in managing traffic, their SOLE objective is extortion.
2. These days why traffic is not THAT BIG a MESS as we were expecting.
3. It is managed by the town nazims, volunteers who wear Bright colored tops.
4. They have Wooden sticks in hand, with which they start playing ‘drum’ on any vehicle which skip their hand signals., you try scuffle with them and there comes in the Traffic cop who is legal person you deal with. by default you are wrong beacuse you ignored the hand signal of a traffic volunteer.
Nice topic……but there should be something else…. aik hi topic baar baar for instance power problem, traffic prob police problem….i agree kah these are also a severe prob…khuch karachi kah educational institutes their performances kah baare main batao….. Which i think the most imp thing….
The state of our roads reflects on us as nation. A law is as good as the people who have to follow it. Saba, you have hit the nail that the reason for the failure of the traffic police is the complete public disregard of the law and civic responsibilities. Perhaps, Karachi need to have specially trained and dedicate traffic wardens/police like Lahore and Islamabad to bring about a change.
@MALA
*** Sorry to burst your bubble but alam I was told that saba also wears scarf.
Ahh…plz…Saba is either atheist or agnostic. Any person who appreciates “Letting go of God” by Ms. Sweeney, can’t be pardah-nasheen.
@SJ
MAY YOU GET STUCK IN TRAFFIC JAM FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE FOR WASTING OUR TIME HERE ON KMB.
Traffic could become much better if we could do the following
1 – Get rid of the Afghan mafia that runs Public Transport System here.
2 – Get rid of Rickshaws.
3 – Make a seperate lane for bikers (on the far left of the road).
4 – All dug up roads be fixed ASAP
5 – We as drivers make sure that we respect the rules and law and try not to change lanes like idiots.
whilst i would imagine the author’s private disposition at her scarfing habits would make strong influences on her opinion and power of observation, the ridiculous nature of the ongoing commentary makes the point MORE valid than ever – no authority, despite being given immeasurable amounts of power, can correct a group of people who would rather be a part of the BIG problem, than the miniature solution.
of course, the online community is one that provides ample opportunities for the puerile to vent and make boisterous claims to the wasteful time they spend in raising hell and throwing a tantrum just for the fun of it, one would think that some sense of maturity would sink into the numbing, non-whimsical ongoing commentary that is enough to melt glaciers and then ignore the reason why the topic was initiated to begin with.
not a day goes by when each of us are faced with an everyday occurance of a thanedar that suffers from the idiot savant disorder where regardless of how epiletically-inspired his limbs may move, the moving cars continue to move and everyone else standing at the traffic signal has stopped just to laugh at their helplessness.
we laugh in the face of authority because the truth of the matter is, we couldn’t care less about things getting better – our cribs have become part of our core being (almost like the gel that slicks our hairdo when it isn’t ramadan) and we love the misery we create for ourselves. of course! would there be life after complaints died out? (would the ptcl exist after it fixed everything or is that just stupid rhetoric?!)
we’d rather point a finger at two policemen on motorbikes and yell “you think you’re chips?!” rather than ever give them the right of way – we’d rather applaud women-police on bikes because, judging by the remarks on this blog, it doesn’t take much to make our feeble minds go into happy mode.
so yes. while it certainly would be of grave interest as to whether the writer of this blog is black, white, pink or blue and whether she scarfs or doesn’t, is that really a logical comment to the blog?!
moral of the story: cut down on the hotair – we’re already suffering from most-much globalwarming.
baji ko ghussa aa gia
Sorry !
Will the real Saba please stand up? Folks please
1. stop with the assumptions and flattering as they all may be, there really is no need for any such speculation.
2. Read the blog and move on.
3. Have a valid comment? Make it and move on, but stick with the program. Commenting on the author’s person seems so irrelevant.
listen Saba JamalUddin bibi:
If you have your website open to the whole world with your personal day to day activities, and you advertise your web log here on KMB, then people are going to talk about it.
Give me a fucking break, will ya?
Trust an idiot to go off topic and show off his fervor and might shrouded in the comfort of annonymity. For the cowardly spectator such as Xoxohgt234gf who tries to play with big words he neither can pronounce nor understand, mouthing trash on a public website is not a very wise thing to do… but then, you probably are not a very wise being.
In fact, I’d place you as a rather frustrated, irritable individual that has no friends and the poor social skills. Probably a middle child, if not an only sad jewel in the family, one can picture you sitting in the corner of your room, staring at a closed window, making up comments and stories in your head just so you can regurgitate them out the moment the electricity comes back.
For someone who sits and browses the Karachi MetBlogs website, waiting to comment further rubbish on any post that may find itself on the front page, not much can be said for your sense of anything. You should spend more time popping that massive zit that’s been bothering you on the bridge of your nose. It’s a whole lot of self-imposed frustration you have in the bile there. But then, God forbid, if we had more people like you, we’d really make a dent in the suicide figures out of Pakistan. You enjoy making fun at the expense of others and think it is your right to sort out the sick world in your head. Thankfully, the sickness ends within the confines of your minute brain.
It’s people like you that are talked about when we say “let’s clean up the trash – we’ll be better off without it”. It’s also people like you who sit and make stupid crank calls and think you are oh-so-mighty, yet your lanky stance and thin, meager structure obviously can’t ever take on a real, actual face-to-face outburst of any kind. tsk.
So while you state the obvious on this blog and so many others, here’s one VERY obvious and blatant fact quite apparent to me: You are just one sad, pathetic thing, much like the stupid piece of chewing gum stuck to the sole of one’s shoe. You serve no other purpose in life than to cause further disgust.