Living it up may not be such a good idea anymore if you come with a closet which has more skeletons than clothes waiting to tumble out. From all powerful dictators to corporate czars — the rich, powerful and arrogant — are having their wings ripped apart by either an angry public or the authorities who are in no mood to overlook even a speck of something shady in the bright trail of success.
The Gaddafis, Muammar and his kids including heir apparent Saif would never have for a moment imagined that their subservient and terrified public would gun for their blood. Poor Saif, his pet cats (tigers) really do seem tame compared to the rebels who are out to finish him and his family! Gone are the New Year bashes in the Caribbean where Beyonce would perform. With their money, power and homes (the London home has been taken over by squatters) being taken away from them, the despots now are running scared for their very existence.
Playboy Prince Jefri of Brunei is another one who is on his way to becoming a has-been ever since his oil rich brother, the Sultan of Brunei, started taking objection to his decadent lifestyle. Everything from the famous Dorchester Hotel in London, a Boeing 747 just for the horses, his yacht named Tits with its two boats Nipple One and Nipple Two, to over-flowing cash reserves have all been confiscated. He is now living on $300,000 a month. This money which would probably have not even been enough to fund a holiday, now has to cover not just Jefri’s expenses, but that of his five wives and 18 children too!
Back home DB Realty’s Shahid Balwa who famously asked the officers, who came to Mumbai to take him to Delhi for questioning to fly private instead of using public transport now rots in jail and many powerful politicians and business czars, who had everyone dance to their tunes are now running scared thanks to their involvement in the 2G scam. Look at how A. Raja and his cronies are paying the price for being so corrupt. And the irony of the situation is that Raja is allegedly complaining in jail that he made the least amount of money and is being made the scapegoat. Businessmen involved in the 2G scam are praying Raja doesn’t spill the beans!
Suresh Kalmadi’s days of flying high are over too. He would have never dreamt the good run he had for over a decade would suddenly end.
Despots and rogues who steal from the public should be punished, but what suddenly happened to make 2011, barely three months old, the year of the revolution? From the suppressed Middle East to the laidback India, every country is in the mood to take rogues indulging in excesses to task.
Commenting on this sudden turning of the tide, social observer Santosh Desai says, “You can’t say the tide has completely turned because for every despot that gets thrown out, is there a proper government structure replacing him?” But Desai does agree that at least some scamsters and terrors are being taken to task as this is a result of pent up anger and suppression. It’s a step in the right direction but we still have a long way to go as, “Only the loudest, not most significant scams come to light.”
All of you out there indulging in all the excesses your ill-gotten wealth has gotten you, better watch out as you are being watched.
Filmmaker Saeed Mirza who has made films like Nukkad says, “A fresh freedom struggle is needed and we as a nation need to do a re-think of ourselves, for true change to come about.”
He feels elections and the toppling of one government in the favour of the other is not really going to bring about a change, but in a strange way the exposure of one scam after the other and this link between the government, businessmen and bureaucrats is making people question this process.
No longer does one want to believe that the rich and powerful always get away.