With reference to the proposed facelift of bus stops, a passenger recently suggested through these letters that a representative of the Red Bus company spend five minutes inside the bus stop at the Central Market between 8.30am and 11.30am to better understand the conditions faced by commuters.
The renowned Arab scholar Ibn Khaldun, known for his remarkable insight, authored extensive historical works as well as the celebrated Muqaddimah, which has been translated into many major languages and remains an important text in the study of political science.
In this work, written some six centuries ago, he is believed to have made observations about an undiscovered region that would one day rise to global prominence, as well as the discovery of oil in the Arab world and its transformative impact on Arab societies. He also wrote about how different regions possess distinct climates, populations, customs and agricultural produce, creating a degree of interdependence among nations. The migration of large numbers of Asian workers to the Arab world is often cited as an example of such interconnectedness.
In the 1970s, a senior Pakistani expatriate officer developed a persistent skin condition. Despite seeking treatment in Bahrain, Pakistan and the UK, he found only temporary relief. Eventually, he consulted a homeopath in Rawalpindi.
During the consultation, the homeopath enquired in detail about the officer’s diet in Bahrain. The officer explained that he consumed a variety of foods, including fruits and vegetables imported weekly from Pakistan and mutton imported from India. He also noted that, having grown up with Pakistani cuisine, he struggled to adapt to locally available produce.
The homeopath suggested that foods grown in different regions are shaped by local climates and conditions and may be better suited to the people of those regions. He advised the officer to rely as much as possible on locally available food, except where alternatives were unavailable, such as rice. According to the account, the officer’s condition improved, and he continued to follow this advice thereafter.
In the same spirit, I would invite the bus company representative to spend five minutes between 12.30pm and 4pm at the bus stop near the Mina Salman traffic signal behind the old Customs building. Thereafter, I would ask him to spend 30 minutes at the old bus shelter built in 1960s in front of power house, close to the Umm Al Hassam traffic signal.
Such an exercise may help illustrate the contrast between imported solutions and insights drawn from local experience and conditions.
Shahnaz
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