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Abdul Sattar Edhi: Making of a Transformational Leader
Nasir Afghan1
Gerhard Apfelthaler2
Once again, it is a very early morning for Abdul Sattar Edhi. He is sitting behind the window of his
personal office in Karachi, staring at the skyline of the bustling capital of Pakistan. Setting up his
organization, many years ago was anything but an ordinary journey. Abdul Sattar Edhi started his
humanitarian work in 1951 from a very small dispensary in Mithadar (it is Urdu language word for sweet
water land), Karachi, Pakistan. After more than 50 years, his humble beginnings had grown into a large
organization, the Edhi Foundation. In 2008 it employs more than 7,000 workers, including medical
doctors, nurses, health care workers, ambulance drivers and volunteers. It operates more than 1400
ambulances all over Pakistan from more than 250 Edhi centres. There are more than a dozen Edhi
homes (see details in Exhibit 2) for approximately 6,000 people without homes - seniors, special
children, teenagers, children, infants and babies, complemented by an animal shelter. 3 In 2008, the Edhi
Foundation’s annual expenditures were at about 800 million Rupees with revenues around 750 million
Rupees, and the rest being covered through the interest of 3 billion Rupees in cash deposits.
More than 50 years have passed since he started his work, and in 2008 Edhi himself is approaching
eighty years of age. The environment was changed and he would not be there forever. The organization
which he has built on dedication and compassion was much in need of systems and standard operating
procedures, and financial sustainability. Edhi had already transferred most of the day to day operational
decisions to his son Faisal Edhi, his daughter Kubra Edhi and his wife Bilquise Edhi. While reflecting on
his last 50 years life Edhi was thinking what values and principles could be valuable for the next
generation of leaders to manage Edhi foundation in the future without putting the spirit of the past
decades at risk, he stopped reflecting, when he heard the call for morning prayer from the distant
mosque.
1 Lahore University of Management Sciences, Lahore, Pakistan, [email protected] California Lutheran University, Thousand Oaks, USA, [email protected] For some details on the Edhi centers, see exhibits 1 and 2
supported by his strong physique. He was athletic and good looking. His friends were usually reluctant
to compete with him in competitions because they knew that he would always win. Edhi’s self
confidence and his desire to make a difference contributed greatly towards the further development of
his personality. As his father worked away from home and his mother was very gentle, he had great
freedom in choosing what he wanted to do with his life, even when he was in school. When his father
once decided to send him to a boarding school in Rajkot, his mother did not allow it. He was his
mother’s favourite child, and she did not want him to grow up away from home. Therefore, Edhi
remained in Bantva until his family migrated to Pakistan in September 1947.
In Bantva, Sattar Edhi was known among his friends as Roti5. Edhi explained: “Every time my father came
back home from one of his trips he shaved my head. Once, when I asked him why he does it he
explained that it is simply the most effective way to curb pride and prevent arrogance. It makes you
work better because appearance is a distraction. When you don’t think about the ways you look, you
develop humility and truth.” “I think it was the best lesson I was ever taught”, Edhi says.
According to Edhi his father lead a simple life and based on his many travels and his open personality, he
had an abundance of experiences and wisdom. Edhi remembers him; “My father used to talk very little,
but he always made a great impression on me. He was very religious, prayed five times a day, never
smoked or like many others had an addiction to Pan6. In fact, he didn’t even drink tea. He had very high
moral standards for himself. To him, simplicity was the only tolerable way of life. When we migrated to
Pakistan, we got into serious financial trouble. He never complained that he had to work as a simple
shopkeeper in the cloth market or sell newspapers in order to make a living. Throughout these times, he
never was dishonest in his business. Despite the fact that life in Pakistan was very difficult at that time,
my father was a truly optimistic person and always had a positive attitudeAt the age of Thirteen, Edhi
took his first job at a cloth market with a Seth7, Haji Abdullah. In those days Memon women did not go
to the market to shop, but shopkeepers hired young boys to go from house to house to sell clothes and
other items. Edhi earned five Rupees a month, and soon became Amin8 of the group of sales boys with
additional responsibilities. He usually saved one rupee and gave the rest to his mother. From his savings
he would later buy shares from the stock exchange. According to Edhi himself, he has a “great passion
for saving and a reluctance to spend”.
5 Roti is a flat, circular-shaped bread, people bake in clay ovens.6 Pan is a traditional, herbal stimulant used in Pakistan - a greenleaf with red colour ingredients.7 The Urdu word Seth is used for wealthy businessmen or merchants.8 A person of trust who, among other things, serves as the keeper of valuables.
After have left the job with the cloth merchant, Edhi started his own business. During mornings, he sold
pencils, pens, matchboxes and other small items in the Bazaar12 of Bantva, and in the afternoon he read
newspapers, books and magazines in order to educate himself. “During that time I read publications
such as the Muslim Gujarat Gazette, the Bombay Samachar, or the Sandes magazine. These readings
introduced me to the ideas of Marx and Lenin. I learned about the struggle of the oppressed in Russia
against the capitalists. I got Marx’s “Das Kapital”, the Poverty of Philosophy and his other writings and I
was fascinated by them. I was also touched deeply by ‘Mother’ by Gorky”. Edhi further adds “everything
became much clearer to him when he read the epic story of Hazrat Imam Hussain”. Edhi explains: “From
this epic story I have learned about the struggle between good and evil, between Mazloom13 (Imam
Hussain) and Zalim14 (Yazid). I also learned that Sarmayadar are Zalim and poor people are Mazloom.
Zalim divide people into different classes, races, casts, religions, etc. hence depriving them of their most
basic rights. The “Sarmayadar” retain major profits and share only very little with the labourers by
paying them very low wages; therefore labourers are always left in poverty”. In today’s Pakistan, Edhi
continues, there is not much difference - the Seth pay little to the labourers, they evade taxes, they
never pay Zakaat15, and live like kings, therefore they are Zalim, the oppressors”. According to his son
“Mr. Edhi did not only saw similarities between the past and the present, he also found himself in the
story of Zalim and Mazloom”.
One of old associate of Mr Edhi said that “having read Marx and being a strong believer, both intellect
and spirituality provided him with a good reason to believe in the higher cause he wanted to pursue.
Edhi realized that there will always be injustice in society and that therefore every society needs people
who show compassion and care for others”. Based on his readings, Edhi said that he became very
passionate about the revolution and was excited about the struggle for Pakistan. He started to follow
newspapers and books on Mahatma Gandhi and M Ali Jinnah. Another personality that fascinated Edhi
was Abuzar Ghafafri, a companion of Prophet Muhammad. Edhi explains why: “Abuzar Ghaffari had very
strong faith. He never hesitated to criticize wealthy Muslims if they showed off their wealth instead of
helping others. Abuzar Ghafafri was an extremely modest and humble person. Abuzar Ghaffari was the
person who demanded social reform during the third Muslim Khalifa”. Edhi had also read about Ghaffar
12 Market (transl.)13 Mazloom refres to under-privileged and deprived people.14 Zalim are individuals or groups of people suppressing others and denying them their basic rights and privileges which have been granted by society or religion.15 Zakaat is an Islamic concept of annual donations. At the end of each year every Muslim is expected to donate 2.5 % from his total annual income.
developed after a devastating World War II, Edhi reflected a lot about Pakistan, it’s future and his own
organization’s future.
When Edhi returned to Mithadar, Karachi, new allegations were waiting for him that he had stolen
money from the donation box of the dispensary and the maternity home for his personal travels. He
reacted immediately by changing the name of the dispensary to Madina Volunteer Corporation, so that
it would not be connected with the Memons anymore. Then, he made it a policy and informed everyone
at the dispensary that anyone who is not satisfied with his organization’s work would be returned their
donation money. Not a single person ever claimed even one Rupee.
Unfortunately, soon after Edhi’s return to Pakistan his mother developed a serious illness. He decided to
completely stop working as a commission agent and continued to work only at the dispensary. He
needed very little money for his own living and had enough from his savings. In addition, he still had
money from when his father had retired and had decided to distribute his wealth and property among
his sons. According to Edhi “he took his mother for treatments, he cleaned her room, he washed her
cloths along with his own, and he cooked food for her and for his brother. When she would rest he went
to the dispensary to continue his work there”. Several times he took her to a hospital in a Rickshaw as
no ambulance service was available for common people in Karachi. One day while he was at the
dispensary, his mother fell at home where he found her on the floor much later, paralysed. After this
and for the next 18 months Edhi took even better care of her. “I used to joke with my mother that now
she had turned into my child just like I was her child once”, Edhi recalls. “She felt sad, helpless and guilty
as she thought of her as a burden to the family. But I always told her that she is my responsibility and I
love her and will look after her and will never let anyone else do this job for me”.
According to Edhi's wife, Bilquise Edhi; “Edhi Saab17 used an eye bandage to cover his eyes while taking
her to the washroom and while cleaning her up”.
When Edhi’s mother died, Edhi said that “She gave birth to me and she was my most precious teacher.
She taught me humanitarian values and how to appreciate other human beings. And she shared her
illness with me by letting see her misery, her feelings of helplessness and lost dignity”.
Edhi said that “his mother's life was a perfect example of personal sacrifices and of modesty. Her whole
life was a struggle, and yet she remained positive and kind to others throughout her life. Even when she
17 In Urdu, Saab is a polite and respectful way of addressing men, usually the heads of families or business owners; the female equivalent in Urdu is Begum Saab.
when his life is threatened. It is through the example which he sets that everyone in the organization. He
never wastes time or energy in responding to allegations. He simply stays focused, and he advises his
friends and employees to do the same. He says, just keep on doing your work and Allah will reward you,
because you are doing this work for Allah not for the people who are against us.”
According to Edhi himself his mission is “to serve humanity regardless of religion, race, and
background”. And, he adds, “I want to simply provide health services, food and shelter to poor people
when they need it. Why should ill persons not have medicines or an ambulance or a doctor available
when they need it just because they are poor? Poor and Mazloom people have a right to these things
like any other person of wealth or status”. Explaining his mission Edhi continues, “I have observed that
religion brings people together but Zalim (Seth) divide people for one reason only: so that they can
continue to have cheap labour. Religion teaches us to be fair and treat people with equality, but Zalim is
never fair and never does justice to people. All religions teach of service to mankind, especially Islam
teaches its followers that Huquq-ul-Ibaad is your first responsibility but Zalim never fulfilled it. To me
this was not acceptable and I decided that I will fight for the Mazloom through my social and
humanitarian work. Serving the Mazloom is just like praying”. Edhi’s wife confirms the spiritual nature
of his work: “Edhi Saab works very hard, with complete honesty and with his full capacity. He strongly
believes that results come from Allah, therefore there is good in failure and there is good in success.
Edhi Saab just would never stop trying”.
Gradually, Edhi trust in his own work was growing day by day. He needed more funds but the
contributions he was getting from the Charity Box in the dispensary were not enough. So he devised a
new strategy for increasing his funding base. He started to collect skins of animals sacrificed on Eid 19
and sell them commercially. Next, Edhi started buying cheap skins from shops which he would re-sell at
higher prices to tanneries and manufacturers of leather goods. It was his business acumen that helped
him to develop new strategies to provide his social mission with a constant flow of the necessary
financial recourses. Very soon, they also started to receive all types of donations: Zakaat, Sadikat20,
Khairat21, and donations in kind -people would drop anything they could afford. Edhi even collected
money by begging on the streets. Just like a regular beggar as Edhi said “he wanted to educate the
people of his nation to learn to give charity and to contribute to the social mission”. Interestingly, he
19 The traditional New Year’s celebration at spring equinox.20 Sadikat is an Islamic concept of donations by wealthy people in order to help less fortunate family members and friends.21 Khairat is an Islamic concept of charity in order to help less fortunate people in society.
1. Abbas. Rifat, (1996), Abdul Sattar Edhi, Jung Publisher, Karachi, Pakistan. 2. Abdul Sattar Edhi Trust (Eds.) (1976), Abdul Sattar Edhi’s 25 years Services, Karachi, Pakistan. 3. Durrani. T, (2006), Abdul Sattar Edhi – A Mirror – to the Blind An Autobiography, A. Sattar Edhi
Foundation, Karachi, Pakistan. 4. Edhi Foundation Website www.edhifoundation.com
EDHI HEAD OFFICE ZONAL OFFICE KARACHI ZONAL OFICE QUETTA ZONAL OFFICE MULTAN ZONAL OFFICE FAISALABAD ZONAL OFFICE LAHORE ZONAL OFFICE ISLAMABAD 4 Edhi Centers Islamabad 12 Edhi Centers in the province of NWFP 68 Edhi Centers in the province of Punjab 62 Edhi Centers in the province of Sindh 5 Edhi Centers in the province of Balochistan 2 Edhi Centers in the province of Azad Jammu and Kashmir 2 Edhi Centers in the province of Fata
International Offices
London, U.K Toronto, Canada
23 Source: The date was provided by Mr. Faisal Edhi during interview session
01 Edhi Home For Children (Mithadar) 4+4 N19+Disp4 24 10 34 30002 Edhi Home Female Child(New Clifton) 1 Nurses 2 4 2 22 30003 Edhi Home (Qasba) On Call 2 20004 Edhi Home For Women (N. Karachi) 2 Nurses7 12 1 2 200005 Edhi Home For Children (Korangi) On Call 4 35 8 10006 Edhi Home For Children (Village) 2 Disp. 1 7 12 30007 Edhi Home For Elders (Village) 2+1 Disp. 3 21 5 32 150008 Edhi Home For Children (Sohrab Goth) 3 Disp. 2 28 47 27 4009 Edhi Home For Elders (Sohrab Goth) 4 10 50010 Edhi Home (Peshawar) 4 2011 Edhi Home (Quetta) On Call 3 4 1 2012 Edhi Home (Islamabad) On Call Disp. 1 2 20 15013 Edhi Home (Gilgit) 1 114 Edhi Home (Lahore) On Call 1 6 5015 Edhi Home (Gulberg, Lahore) 1 Disp. 2 5 30 4 6016 Edhi Home (Kala Shah Kaku Lahore) 6 52 317 Edhi Home For Male (Multan) 1 Disp. 1 9 1 3 20018 Edhi Home For Female (Multan) 1 Disp. 1 9 1 3 5019 Bilquis Edhi Cancer Hospital 5 3 3 12 9 15
1989: Nishan-e-Imtiaz from Government of Pakistan 1989: Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, Government of Pakistan, Recognition of meritorious
services to oppressed humanity during the eighties, 45 Years Of Selfless Service. 1989: Government of Sind, The Social Worker of Sub-Continent 1992: Pakistan Civic Society, Pakistan Civic Award 1995: Human Rights Award by Pakistan Human Rights Society. 1998: Khidmat Award by Pakistan Academy of Medical Sciences. 1999: Shield of Honour by Pakistan Army (E & C) 1999: Silver Jubilee Shield by College of Physicians and Surgeons, Pakistan
International awards
1986: Ramon Magsaysay Award for Public Service 1988: Lenin Peace Prize 1992: Paul Harris Fellow Rotary International Foundation 2000: International Balzan Prize for Humanity, Peace and Brotherhood. 2000: Largest Voluntary Ambulance Organization of the World - Guinness Book of World Records
2000: Hamdan Award for volunteers in Humanitarian Medical Services 2000 UAE
2000: International Balzan Prize 2000 for Humanity, Peace and Brotherhood, Italy
2005: Life Time Achievement Award by the World Memon Organisation (WMO). 2006: Honorary Doctorate by the Institute of Business Administration Karachi (IBA)
25 Source: The date was provided by Mr. Faisal Edhi during interview session
Aid to Afghan refugees Since 1978. Relief to the needy in the civil war in Lebanon during 1983. Rupees 0.5 million for flood relief in Bangladesh during 1986. In addition an ambulance was also
Provided. Rupees one million in aid to the drought and famine-stricken areas in Ethiopia during 1985. Aid to earthquake victims of Armenia, USSR during year 1989. Aid for the affected people and refugees of Persian Gulf War during 1991 in the form of blood,
plasma, medicines and surgical instruments, etc., worth approximately Rs.4.5 million. Aid to earthquake victims of North-Western Iran during 1990. Continuous relief goods including tents, clothing, blankets and rations for refugees in Azad
Kashmir. Relief aid to Kurd refugees. Financial and travel assistance to the stranded Pakistanis in Kuwait during the Persian Gulf War
in 1992. Aid during the earthquake in Cairo 1992. Efforts for the release of prisoners and detainees involved in minor immigration irregularities in
Iraq and Romania during 1993-94. Supply of rice and edibles to Mogadishu in Somalia during 1993 in collaboration with the
Pakistan Army. Relief supplies for Bosnian refugees in Pakistan and supply of relief goods and assistance in
Croatian Camps during 1993-94. Relief goods, edibles supplied to Afghan refugees in Jalalabad, Afghanistan, during 1994. Continuous relief operations including provision of transportation facilities to Bosnian refugees
during 1993-94. Relief activities conducted in Croatian camps for Bosnian people durin 1993-94. Evacuation and relief for plague victims in Saurat (India) during 1994. Provision of blood bags for Japanese earthquake victims during 1994.
26 Source: The date was provided by Mr. Faisal Edhi during interview session