Fixing Dirty Water with Clean Leadership: A Case from Mansehra

I have always had a zeal for making an impact in public circles. Whether it’s an elite one or a destitute one, I enjoy the opportunity to do so. During my time as a student at The Ohio State University, I was captain and led a team to victory in soccer at the intramural level. When asked to try out for the college team, I was told I would mostly be playing soccer and that my studies would have to take a back seat. Since I was working hard just to stay in school, I decided not to join the team.

However, I managed to inspire several players on the team to try different techniques I had learned out of pure passion, having played since the age of five in Lahore, Pakistan. That same spirit of leadership followed me into my professional career.

I joined a nonprofit organization known as PEPS in the beautiful mountainous region of Abbottabad. I spent summers there working on projects with an NGO affiliated with the largest medical college dedicated to women’s education and a 200-bed hospital. Around a thousand students were studying there to become medical doctors. Teams from various countries—Cuba, Germany, Japan—would participate in rotating short-term projects.

I had been volunteering every year for nearly a decade until I was asked—fortunately and unexpectedly—to take on the role of Chief Administrator in 2018. At the time, I had just completed training at Bank of America, but I decided to return to Pakistan to accept the position.

The CEO of the NGO is a well-known philanthropist, entrepreneur, and former Member of the National Assembly of Pakistan. He also serves as Director of Jinnah International Hospital ( https://jinnahhosp.com/) in Abbottabad and ex-President of the Pakistan Medical Association.

My first assignment as Chief Administrator was to investigate why so many patients were being diagnosed with Hepatitis A. As project manager, I requested and reviewed patient data and discovered that over 90% of the cases originated from a nearby village called Mansehra, where many Christians also resided. I requested transportation from our CEO and assembled a small team—one doctor and three assistants—for an on-site investigation.

Upon arriving in Mansehra, we visited the homes of seven patients. They expressed frustration that local authorities had ignored them. They also pointed to a serious issue with the sewage system, which they believed was contaminating the drinking water. Over the next three days, we traced the pipelines and confirmed that untreated sewage was mixing with the water supply.

I informed our CEO and requested that he reach out to his contacts in government to urge immediate repairs to the pipelines and the open sewage drains, which were also causing a severe stench.

Weeks passed without action. Around that time, our CEO—an active member of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf—was scheduled for a meeting with then-Prime Minister Imran Khan to discuss party matters. I accompanied him on the visit. It was a humbling experience to meet someone so widely respected for his service to the country, both as a sports legend and a statesman. During the meeting, we shared the situation in Mansehra. Mr. Khan listened attentively and kindly referred us to someone in his team who could ensure timely coordination and follow-through.

Thanks to that support and our own initiative, we were able to begin the project using our personal and NGO funds. We installed eight water filtration plants across the affected areas at remarkably low cost, helped by our government networks. The project was completed within three months. Local donors, including several public representatives supportive of our work, contributed approximately USD 250,000 to help us finish the initiative.

This experience reinforced my belief in the power of collaborative leadership and sharpened my negotiation skills. I later opened an office in Lahore, where I now lead PEPS projects across Punjab—while also running a successful IT firm. I’m grateful to be in a position where I can continue serving the public, with the flexibility and responsibility that comes with being my own boss.