Redefining Priorities
By Naveed Khan
Pleasanton, CA
Pakistan is coming apart at the seams; the religious, ethnic, sectarian, linguistic divide has increased and tolerance has steadily declined. As a result, violence has increased against society, against people, and amongst people. There is blame to go all round as there are reasons to justify the violence and mayhem. There are overwhelming faith-based arguments to justify intolerance. None has any credence or merit, however, they are there.
It seems people have stopped thinking as human beings, and as Pakistanis, with a common stake in the future of that land. They think in terms of their narrow parochial belief and affiliation. Who is thinking and acting as human beings and as Pakistanis? It seems people have time for finger pointing and endless arguments to justify their hatred and intolerance. Does anyone have a solution to stop this downward spiral?
In my opinion the solution lies in imparting education on a massive scale. The government should take bold initiatives for educating every person up to the college level in the next 20 years. It should embark on a massive plan of building schools, improving schools, building colleges, building universities at every level. Madrassa education should be modernized; every Madrassa graduate should be literate in computer science and, of course, in humanity and their faith. The government needs to take this initiative, express its resolve unequivocally through an announcement to build 100,000 schools, 10,000 colleges, 1000 universities, and modernize 5000 madrassas every year. A massive rethink, a massive reorientation is needed. Through a constitutional amendment the government should proclaim that acquiring college education is the right of every child. It is no longer a privilege to go to a college, it is the fundamental right of every child. I am convinced such an initiative has the promise to transform societal thinking and reshape societal priorities; it is sure to attract funds and wholehearted support from global institutions, expatriate Pakistanis, and philanthropists.
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