Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) Chairperson Imran Khan urged the youth on Friday to be fearless and selfless to be able to save their country from decline.
He said, “A leader can only emerge and serve his countrymen after he overcomes selfishness.”
Khan was addressing an Iqbal Day event at Awan-i-Iqbal organised by the Markazia Majalis-i-Iqbal.
He said, “I better understood Iqbal when Allah granted me strength of faith … I better understood the Holy Quran after reading Iqbal in depth.”
For the reason, he said, the PTI government will introduce a uniform educational system for all segments of society and introduce Iqbal’s teachings as a compulsory subject.
He said Iqbal’s poetry aimed to liberate both the individual and the society as he taught a lesson of independence to the youth.
Khan criticised the government leaders calling them “slaves to America” and not true servants of their own countrymen. He said most government leaders feared for their lives and that was the reasons they travelled with heavy security.
“Had they severed their countrymen, there would be no need of such heavy security and high walls around their offices and residences,” he said. In a society that provided justice without any discrimination, he said, the leaders did not need such a security apparatus. Khan also shared some events from the life of Muhammad bin Qasim and Tariq bin Ziyad.
Commenting on the lack of access to education in Pakistan, Khan said the education system served only the rich. He said additional taxes were now being imposed on the people so that the corrupt rulers could be provided with more luxuries.
“Due to the unfair economy, the rich are becoming richer and the poor getting poorer.”
He said a US president had to resign over a lie. Pakistan, he said, was full of liars in places.
Khan lashed out on the Sharif brothers for allegedly receiving money to rig the 1990 general elections. He said those who alleged that the PTI was financed by the Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) had been named in the Asghar Khan case as recipients of ISI money.
Khan challenged that if any one proved that the PTI had taken money from the ISI, he would quit politics forever.
Earlier, in his address, Iqbal’s grandson Waleed Iqbal said that Imran Khan had strengthened the concepts of love and peace.
“Imran is the real reflection of Iqbal’s theme,” he said.
Columnist Yasir Pirzada and Journalists Sajjad Mir and Arif Nizami were also present.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 10th, 2012.
COMMENTS (20)
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@zia: Sir we are proud I agree, But you mentioned the word brutal, And that i dont agree..
@James,
You are right to a large extent but we are with Imran. Cant guarantee he will win next election though. Winning election in Pakistan requires all parameters to be set properly already.
Dearest Allah, bring the day nearer when a great man and a true Muslim like Imran Khan shall be leading this corrupt and bankrupt nation to heights of Islamic glory. Ameen. Return this nation of Iqbal to Iqbal and to the Quran alone.
@Sab Sach Heh: Sir... Battle of yarmouk is a golden part of Islamic history and we, as muslims, should feel proud on that historic victory.!!
Making Iqbaliat a compulsory subject will be a great initiative.
Being a british citizen I wish we had great hero and a leader like Imran Khan in U.K. The reason you guyz are behind because you cant diffrentiate between good and bad. You guyz slag ur assets and heros and worship the corupt. You pakistanis should be ashamed of yourself. You gayz deserve what you getting. Hahaha
@Sab Sach Heh
I agree, but only partially. It is quite common among historians to have biases for this or that. But, compared to our historians (with a few notable exceptions) the western historians have displayed more intellectual honesty and commitment to their subject (i.e.history).
The way an American, or British can discuss, write about the dark side of their past or about the underbelly of their society; we can't even think of it. But with wider exposure and more interaction with the world outside, the younger generation is expected to have a more realistic view and appreciation of history than we currently hold.
All we need now is a mullahdom with the Kaptaan as its Sadr and Lal Topi as its defense (or offense?) minister. Pakistan will send man to Pluto within 5 years and Americans will be queuing up for Pakistani green card!
Tariq Bin Ziyad and Mohmmad Bin Qasim were sent to capture territories by Hajjaj Bin Yusaf, the governor of Iraq. Hajjaj commanded Umayyad army that attacked Mecca and demolished Kabba. Hajjaj killed over 120,000 Muslims in his reign and his death was widely celebrated in Iraq. Qasim, who was Hajjaj’s nephew and son in law, was executed. Hajjaj’s general Musa Bin Nysayr (who sent Tariq Bin Ziyad to Spain) was dismissed.
Imran is stuck in Nasim Hijazi novels.
Said the wanna be politician behind his heavy security on his way home to his secure gated private villa. If this guy gets into office anyone really think he's going to reduce his security?
we are with u Khan sab .
@zia: Sir you are mistaken when you say Muslims brutally crushed the romans, that reference will be from a western source and biased,, The british destroyed Indian Islamic centres across india mainly in Delhi they terrorised the poor farmers they manipulated and controlled the noble's they ROBBED India,,They where no better than the Monguls but will you find any of that in the history books no never because thats thiere personal and biased oppinion not the truth and in the end they decided and tried to split indai and look at the result today,,East and West Pakistan was a made the British watched as milions of poor Indians kileed them selves,, These people know how to manipulate uneducated people and have done so again and again in Iraq/Libya/Tunisia and now in Syria...
@zia...I read about battle of Yarmouk in Islamiat when I was in 4th or 5th class. This shows the problem about our education system. I still cannot understand how people are criticizing the Islamiat and Pak Studies syllabus that it is making us extremist. But they never criticised the English medium schools which are not teaching anything about Islam.
I also read the same syllabus and 100's of my friends also read the same syllabus. Lot of us are living outside Pakistan where we interact with people of other religions and we respect their beliefs and ideologies.
@Dajjal...but for that first they have to admit they are lying
"He said a US president had to resign over a lie"
If every US President and Vice President had to resign over the lies they told... America would stop having Presidents and Vice Presidents..
@Shahzad: Spot on sir!... I mean I got to know about the battle of Yarmouk just recently when I was searching about Islamic conquests on Computer. Our school in Lahore just taught us about how great the roman empire was, but it did not tell us that how brutally it was crushed by the Muslim empire. :D
The issue is the syllabus , for people who claim to have so much knowledge about religion ask them Pakistan's own history which is merely sixty plus years and they will struggle to name the prime ministers of the country after Liaqat Ali Khan and the circumstsnces for their removal, I am talking of highly trained doctors , engineers , lawyers , accountants.
It concerns me that in the circumstances, our Prophet pbuh , passed away 632 AD, how can they have a grip on Islamic history and Islam and with definite views as to who is a good Muslim and who is a bad Muslim, how to deal with non Muslims , who incidentally make up four fifth of the world when they struggle to deal with Muslim and are quick to identify a deviant from their view of Islam.
There are serious problems with our syllabus on Pak Studies and history and somebody needs to address this. The Taliban do not only reside in NWA, people with limited knowledge of our history and Islam are everywhere, and by default are easy prey to any silly ideology.