Where have all the doctors gone?

My friend Hilath calls the Maldives a ‘failed state’ and describes it as ‘terminally ill’. I’m not being cynical but I cannot think of too many reasons to disagree with him.

In spite of the level of unprecedented growth we have had over the last three decades, a large number of our people, especially the folks from the islands, live in a state that cannot be described as something very far from abject poverty. The efficacy of our government machinery (despite its disproportionately large size) to improve on its performance that many would describe as nothing short of dismal, even in the most essential areas of our lives such as basic housing, education, health facilities etc remain seriously questionable. The statement Dr. Ahmed Shaheed made about the failure of our Majlis just before he resigned from Government is probably the most glaring truth he ever spoke in his entire lifetime. Malé, heaving with over 120,000 people, is more of a spawning ground for all sorts of social ills than a capital city. The few institutions (including the very basic institution of family) that this country have are all on the verge of collapse. Civil society is virtually non-existent in this country. The only viable industry we have is run by a small cartel of thugs who have now artfully wheedled their way into our Majlis to make ‘Rayyithunnah faidhaahuri’ decisions for us based on ‘democratic principles’.

The truth is whether you and I like it or not this country really is ‘terminally ill’. But the irony is that in our small country we have so many people who call themselves ‘doctors’ – the PhDs. They are everywhere. You can find a half a dozen of them in every government ministry. But none of our ‘doctors’ seem to be doing anything about this ‘terminally ill’ patient.