The Real Dilemma

It is not rare to hear the phrase; “Pakistan’s future is very bright, because we have a seven crore youth population.” Most don’t even know whether the exact number is six, seven or eight! Yet, this has become part of the most widely used rhetoric about our country’s future and this rhetoric is even more prevalent on our national days. But, the problem with this assertion is quite simple, an army can have the best weapons in the world, but if it doesn’t use them properly and effectively it still loses the war.

                     

The same is true for our youth; I would be stupid to deny the fact that our youth in a large percentage of our population (66% in fact) and that it is full of talented people who have great potential.

The importance that is given to the youth of Pakistan as a possible and likely solution to the consistently deteriorating condition of our country is well known. The problem is that this importance fails to overstep the boundaries of words preached by politicians and thought of by the impractical sect of our population.

The need for arming our youth with the weapons and tools required to pull our country out of the abyss that it is falling into, is inevitable. The proper channeling of the potential that the youth holds, is facing a few challenges

• The education emergency prevailing in our country. Only 5% of the population makes it to university level education. An uneducated youth cannot do what is expected of them
• The high rate of unemployment ( currently at 20%) is another problem that reserves the minds of young people to worrying about getting jobs rather than being productive for the country
• The blatant disregard for opinions held by any other person than ourselves is the third problem. There seems to be no consensus at all even on the minutest of issues.

These are some among many hurdles that the youth of Pakistan is having to face, rendering them unable to do what the country is in dire need of.

Making a note of these problems, what we need to understand I that nothing is ever handed to anyone on a silver platter. We, the youth, will have to work hard to overcome the situation that we are in. Change cannot be brought about overnight. It takes time but it is worthwhile to work hard for.

Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah in a message to the All Pakistan Educational Conference in Karachi on November 27, 1947, said: “What we have to do is to mobilise our people and build up the character of our future generation. In short, this means the highest sense of honour, integrity, selfless service to the nation and sense of responsibility, and we have to see that our people are fully qualified and equipped to play their part in the various branches of economic life in a manner which will do honour to Pakistan.”

This message is a simple and concise guideline as to what we need to do in order to make Pakistan the Pakistan that our true leaders dreamed of and our ancestors worked for. I call upon you all to remember the three basic values that Quaid e Azam wanted us to have:
“Unity, Faith, Discipline.”

Mahnoor Qudoos