If you’re following the current affairs of the world, and in particular of a country called Pakistan in the South Asian geographic region. You must be aware that the country is preparing itself for its General Elections that are to take place on the 25th of July 2018.
The time for elections is quickly approaching, and with this, we the citizens of the country are all charged up for what is to come in the following days. The election campaigns of the various parties are at full speed. Everywhere we see the youth and the elderly voicing out their opinions and support for various parties that are contesting in the elections.
The elections are certainly a hot topic these days, for it is difficult to predict who shall take the throne or to be more accurate become the next Prime Minister of Pakistan. Will we be seeing the nation not learn anything from the past and elect the parties that have been in power before such as the likes of Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), etc? Or are we to see the much popular party these days i.e. Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf come to rise for once?
Right now, it is indeed difficult to see what the forthcoming elections will bring other than the instability that the country is going through with the dollar on the rise and the rupee falling, water crisis that no one seems to care about, the overall situation in the country with attacks that are taking place to deter one from campaigning.
The participation of the youth in these elections is at high, everywhere one sees the youngsters are participating in campaigns, organizing rallies and some like me have resorted to their keyboards to encourage dialogue and raise awareness. However, mine is just an attempt to put my own thoughts into a box for my own clarification at best. It is certainly not meant to influence anybody.
What made me write this particular piece other than the hottest topic these days everywhere are the words of Faiz in his poem called Hum Bhi Dekhenge (We Shall See) where he calls out against the injustices and oppression done in the time of the Dictator Zia-ul-Haq. Recently, Coke Studio Season 11 launched their first introductory track that gives this magnificent poem life once again as Iqbal Bano did back in 1985. Some might say that this rendition is not as powerful as the one sung by one of the most iconic singers of the country but from my own point of view it does reflect the situation of today and how the common Pakistani and the youth, the people who previously not so concerned about politics as such and the millennial generation is actually hoping for *some* sort of change.
Therefore, it is safe and suffices to say that we are currently all just waiting for what 25th July is to bring to the history of Pakistan. According to a survey conducted by Dawn News, PTI seems to the likely party that is to come to power. The odds are certainly in favor of Imran Khan.
While this sort of excites me that we may actually get a fresh government rather than recycling the old ones. I do have major concerns about some of the moves that the leader of PTI has played that have made me wary of actually voting for PTI. The list is long but in short, I don’t agree with the stance on strengthening the blasphemy laws in the country, outright refusing the much-needed women’s protection bill in the parliament and welcoming some questionable and notorious people into their political party. Yet, I am also curious to see what this Naya (new) Pakistan is to bring to us.
However, if I am to speak in favor of one particular candidate that has certainly gotten my attention is Jibran Nasir, an independent contestant in the upcoming elections who is running from Karachi. Despite being a one-man army he has gathered a huge audience who support his stance. Being a humanitarian and a lawyer he has been continuously fighting for the rights of the minorities and the oppressed. Being a feminist, and someone who actually enjoys the essence of Faiz’s words, I stand in favor of this man. His manifesto clearly appeals to me for the different issues he has reflected upon that the country needs to face. He is coming under fire for not calling particular sect kaafirs (non-believers) or abusing them, as he believes the matters of God must be left to God only.
His manifesto and actions both have throughout the years shown congruency with each other. He stands for the oppressed and says no to religious intolerance. Furthermore, the Public Interest Law Association of Pakistan (PILAP) has given the highest score to the manifesto of the independent candidate Jibran Nasir.
According to Geo News, “Nasir’s manifesto received 70% score, followed by PML-N with 66%. On the other hand, PTI received 63% while PPP got the lowest ranking at 52%.”
Therefore, in conclusion for me, the right candidate is Jibran Nasir, for some, it is Imran Khan or even Nawaz Shariff. But 25th July 2018 is to tell us, who we as a nation have decided on.
Musings Of A Girl 