It was bitterly cold and excruciatingly freezing in Davos, Switzerland on Monday 13th January 2014. Regardless, both the Dalai Lama and Pope Francis were dressed in similar apparel – the signature of the Dalai Lama, just a piece of cloth wrapped around the body and thrown over the shoulder, leaving the face, right arm and shoulder as well the head, neck and feet fully exposed. There they were seated on a bench in the open air waiting to receive the seventy “Senior Citizens” who were in Davos to protest against the over domination of the accountancy profession by the “Big Four” international accountancy firms.
It was not mere coincidence the protesters were all celebrating their celebrating their 70th birthday on that very day!!
While the protesters were wrapped from head to toe in thick military style topcoats (trench coats), heavy sweaters, three-piece suits, polo-neck, thermal underwear, long johns, Burberry gloves, Grieve Fox hats, double-layer Umbro socks, heavy shoes and snow goggles, the Pope and Dalai Lama cut a totally different and defiant posture. They seemed totally unaware of the frost which was so fierce and vicious that mere mortals were guaranteed to catch frostbite within five minutes followed by hypothermia within one hour.
This was true faith at its most devastatingly sublime and supremely awesome.
It bears repetition that there they were seated on a bench in the open air in the public park with neither intimidating security detail nor warm clothing.
We could not but notice that while the protesters had bought themselves the latest designer Swiss watches Patek Philippe; Rolex; Konga; Omega; Vintage as their 70th Birthday presents for themselves what adorned the wrists of both the Pope and the Dalai Lama were the cheapest watches – Swatch!!
On noticing our glittering diamond watches, both the Holy Father and the Sacred One ordered us:
“Go and give them away to the poor and needy what you need are peace of mind and good health”!!
The opening of the World Economic Forum with the theme: “Reshaping The World” was still a whole week away. The global elite would gather to forecast international trends. What had provoked both the Pope and Dalai Lama into exercising the “early bird” option, was the publication by Oxfam International, which is a confederation of 17 organizations that are working together to find lasting solutions to poverty and justice, of a damning report titled: “WORKING FOR THE FEW”.
CNN was promptly joined by CBS; Sky News ; BBC; Al Jazeera; Reuters; AFP; ABC; Voice of America; Fox TV etc in the conspiracy to deliver the lethal message:
“The richest 85 individuals in the world control as much wealth as about 3.5 billion poorest half of the world’s population. The yawning global wealth disparities are comprehensively, excruciatingly and painstakingly documented.
The wealth of one per cent richest people in the world amounts to US $110 trillion, that is 65 times the total wealth of the bottom half of the world’s population. Also, seven out of ten people live in countries where economic inequality has increased in the last 30 years. The richest one per cent increased their share of income in 24 out of 26 countries. Further concentration of wealth and power presents a significant threat to inclusive political and economic systems. The upshot could be heightening social tensions and increasing the risk of societal breakdown. Unless bold political solutions are instituted to curb the influence of wealth on politics, governments will work for the interests of the rich, while economic and political inequalities continue to rise.”
Matters snowballed right there in the snow of Switzerland when Richard Eskow jumped the gun at the World Economic Forum confronted Richard Guest, the CNN anchorman and insisted that the main item on the agenda should be the GINI co-efficient which measures the maldistribution of wealth:
“It has soared in the last fifty years. Inequality in the United States of America is among the highest among developed nations. In fact, inequality is worse today that it was when the first Continental Congress convened – and that was back in 1774.”
To our greatest surprise, the President of the World Bank, Jim Yong Kim on learning that the Pope and the Dalai Lama had arrived in Davos ahead of the opening date for the World Economic Forum, decided to be hyper pro-active. He flew directly from an official trip to Rome and Athens to present a copy of the World Bank 2014 report to the two holy men who were seated on a park bench in snowing, chilly, Davos. The World Bank boss is a man of few words. He went straight to the point:
“WORLD BANK TO PUSH POVERTY TO 3% BY 2030”
“The World Bank has set a target of reducing extreme poverty globally to not more than three per cent by 2030.
The multinational institution also plans to promote shared prosperity and greater equity in the developing world.
The World Bank concerned that more than one million people still lived in destitution across the globe, adding that at the same time, inequality was rising in many developing nations.
The World Bank wants to galvanize international and national support around two goals: to virtually end extreme poverty in a generation and to push for greater equity. A new Shared Prosperity Indicator will be used to measure income growth of the bottom 40 per cent in each country.”
The World Bank noted that while poverty had declined rapidly over the past three decades, humanity continues to face urgent and complex challenges.
More than one billion people still live in deep poverty, a state of affairs that is morally unacceptable given the resources and technology we have available today. At the same time, rising inequality and social exclusion seems to accompany rising prosperity in many countries.
Under these circumstances, the World Bank’s overarching mission of a world free of poverty is as relevant today as it has ever been. This second goal reflects the fact that all countries aspire to a better living standard for all of their citizens, not only for the already-privileged.
To end extreme poverty, the Bank’s goal is to decrease the percentage of people living with less than $1.25 a day to no more than three per cent by 2030.
Ending extreme poverty within a generation and promoting shared prosperity must be achieved in such a way as to be sustainable over time and across generation. This, he said required promoting environmental, social and fiscal sustainability.
We need to secure the long-term future of our planet and its resources so future generations do not find themselves in a wasteland. We also must aim for sustained social inclusion and limit the size of economic debt inherited by future generations,” the World Bank chief added.
By: J.K Randle
