Pakistan’s current climate crisis is making headlines in the international media for the massive devastation it has caused – and continues to do so – primarily because of the global climate change. In these tough times we also see that Pakistanis across the globe remain at the forefront to donate and help make-up for the damages and losses.
In the same spirit, the other day we saw an international telethon fundraiser held by Pakistan’s former Prime Minister Imran Khan which was telecast live by few news channels as well. Call it surprising, or maybe amazing, that a mere three hours long telethon resulted in a fundraising of more than 500 crore rupees in which many celebrities, public figures, and overseas Pakistanis also contributed in considerable amounts. This comes at a time when almost all mainstream political forces of Pakistan have united against Khan and his party which did not only lead to his ouster as a PM, but also dragged him into petty court cases and media trials.
Pertinent to mention here is the fact that Khan has always been immensely targeted by his political opponents for not only his ‘inability to lead the country’ but also for corruption and dishonesty – the charges that are not only laughable but have also fallen flat after the recent telethon, because, as it showed, all those cheap tricks have not helped in bringing down Khan’s popularity at all. On the contrary, what we have seen is the nation’s absolute trust in Khan which is the only reason why the amount that has been fundraised was able to be collected in a matter of few hours. Very few personalities have such powerful capabilities to mobilise people and gain their confidence to such an extent that the people ultimately hand over their hard-earned money to them. It only happens when the donors know that the purpose of their contributions will be fulfilled by those they are giving away their money to.
Being labelled as corrupt, ‘laadla’ (establishment’s favorite), ‘jhoota’ (liar), terrorist, Taliban Khan, and ‘zakat chor’, by his opponents did not even minutely shake the nation’s trust in Khan, otherwise we would never have seen people donating in crores of amounts during the telethon. Those few hours of fundraising proved to the whole world that Khan is indeed a true leader and people’s choice who was ill-intently removed from his office under the farce of no-confidence motion. The massive contributions have proved the said motion to be entirely pointless and rather, it only implies that Pakistanis have put their trust in Khan for channelizing their money for the right purpose, in the right way.
Picture Credit: Twitter account of PTI
One noteworthy aspect with regard to the telethon was the overwhelming response received from the overseas Pakistanis who have always stood by their country through thick and thin. This time, it wasn’t any different. Even though the PDM (that forms the current federal government) made all efforts to keep the overseas Pakistanis from getting any voting rights in Pakistan – a right Khan gave them under his leadership – they did not shy away from helping their country in this difficult time. Why? Because it was Khan asking them to help the flood victims. With his name, comes the guarantee that their money will be in safe hands.
I myself being a newly turned overseas Pakistani can testify, after having talked to many Pakistanis here in Australia, that Pakistanis sitting abroad absolutely love Khan. ‘Khan sahab ke liye to kuchh bhi karenge’ (We will do anything for Khan) are the kind of comments I often hear which often leaves me amazed me as well. If we may ask why people look up to Khan more than any other leader Pakistan has seen in the recent history, perhaps the reason behind would be the same as why people also saw a political leader in Khan and chose to vote for him among all the available political options. The answer is simple and obvious as it has always been, having a clean background with no history of looting the country, and misusing his power and position to build private wealth and assets. These are the same reasons why many Pakistanis did not ever exercised their right to vote until they had Khan as a promising option after seeing years of corrupt politicians taking their turns to come to power only to use their positions to their benefits.
With the telethon, Khan not only secured some good finances for the flood victims, but also categorically showed the rest how things look like when you are the nation’s choice; and that the no-confidence motion was nothing more than a result of a political battle which was absolutely not backed by the sentiments of the people of Pakistan. Even today, the man, who is mockingly called ‘bhikari’ (beggar) by his haters for his otherwise immensely respectable trait of being a philanthropist, stands tall against all odds as he asks his people to donate for the sake of humanity.
Voicing Sentiments 