My love for my motherland is
infinite but there is always room for improvement and in our case, we seem to
have much more room than needed, already. If we, citizens of Pakistan, could
come together and work as one, we could bring Pakistan to the heights of
success, prosperity and peace and make it an ideal nation. Now, the question
that arises is, what qualities would our 'Ideal Pakistan' have?
Firstly, my Ideal Pakistan needs to have a better panel of politicians. No
corrupt politician should remain in the parliament as one bad fish can spoil the
whole pond. This is not just limited to politicians but to everyone in the
country. Secondly, it should have strict laws for everyone, ranging from the
Prime Minister to an ordinary man. No one should get away with even the
slightest of corruption, murderers and rapists should be punished for their
sins, gambling should be prohibited and many more. Thirdly, it should be an
epitome of peace and harmony and no one should be afraid to go out on the
streets, no one should need to risk their lives in order to earn or to get
education. People should not be living under a constant fear that they might be
under attack anytime now. Also, it should be free of poverty. Poverty, at this
moment, is feeding on the roots of our country and values like termite, and if
no action is taken against it, this could solely be the reason of our country's
downfall, nothing else would be needed then. Moreover, its literacy rate should
be at least 80% or above because a nation without education is like a bird
without wings.
My ideal Pakistan would be free of terrorism and extremism and would run on the
true principles of Islam as described in the Holy Quran. It would not just be
for Muslims but be an amalgam of different religions, cultures and ethnic groups
and everyone would be free to practice their religion or celebrate their Holy
events. A place where no one would be afraid to tell their identity as a Hindu,
Sikh, Parsi or Christian. A place where cops cannot beat someone up just because
their own belief system is so weak, that they cannot see someone eating in front
of them while they are fasting. It would be a place where people would be
tolerant and forgiving towards each other and not giving each other death
threats over every minor road accident. It would be a place where women would be
respected and not whistled at on the streets or harassed by men who think women
are their property. Women would be given equal position as men in the society,
rather than being killed on the name of their family's so called 'honour'. It
would be a place where the elders are respected and loved, a place with empty or
no old age homes. It would be a place with no inflation and, at least, basic
necessities like food and shelter would be affordable to everyone as well as
where health wouldn't be considered as a luxury in lower and middle class
families just because of sky high rates of medicines.
My ideal Pakistan would come into being when people wouldn't need to think twice
before taking their shoes off outside Mosques or Temples, worrying it might get
stolen, when the jails would be empty and schools would be crowded, when there
would be proper facilities for special people, when girls wouldn't need to be
scared of going out alone on the streets, when teachers would be given respect
according to their noble status, when fake degrees are no more issued and every
professional in all fields would actually be professionals and not
butcher-turned-doctors, when no one would have to sleep with an empty stomach
and no one would steal out of hunger. Hazrat Ali RA once quoted: "If a person
starts stealing because of hunger, the person entitled to the punishment would
not be the one who stole but the Leader of that country."
A kick-start to many of the problems' solutions will be when the government
actually starts taking their responsibilities seriously.They should start by
making secondary education compulsory for all and free so that the masses could
benefit from it. They should provide free health facilities too. Making the laws
more strict and effective and implementing on them is also on the list of things
waiting to be improved. They should take steps towards reducing the sky high
inflation as it counts as one of the major problems in Pakistan. If not that,
the people will have to stand up for their own good. A change in the ideas and
perceptions of the people itself can bring about a huge change. Thoughts like,
taking a very basic example, throwing garbage on the streets. Every person
thinks 'There is not going to be any difference if I don't litter the street.
It's just one person, everyone else is doing it so I will do it too'. No. That
is a wrong perception. Change starts from you. First, you will have to be the
change you that you want in your country. After all, it is the little drops of
water that make the mighty ocean. One should neither try to bribe someone nor be
bribed themselves for a wrong thing in wrong thing, no matter what. People
should understand that the cities' are like the walls of their own home and stop
painting inappropriate things on them. There are a number of NGOs in Pakistan
that are working for issues like education, health, child labour, women rights.
We could help them by donating as much as we can or doing the legwork with them
and using your skills to help them in their mission. Either the people take
stance for themselves or Pakistan needs more people like Edhi, Cheepa, Sarim
Burney.
May Allah keep Pakistan under the shadow of his blessings. Ameen.