"NAYA PAKISTAN " ( HOPE WITH IMRAN KHAN).

As a first generation immigrant from Pakistan, I have always been gratified to associate myself with my birth place although find it very heart wrenching when people around me ask, where are you from , socket out my heavy Paki, British accent  and obviously my so identified popularity of being a Muslim. It’s even more astonishing when after told that I am originally from Pakistan, the queries begin, where is that? Or what country is that?  Apparently it was my bias mind set of people’s general knowledge and for the longest of time I laughed at their so- created bubble in which they resided.

 Until of course the Bin Laden façade and his hidden place, a region in Pakistan. Until  Of course the so known popular religion which has suddenly become the talk of the town thanks to some psychopaths who feel the necessity of associating themselves  with this beautiful  religion. The religion whose greeting in translation means, “May Peace be with you”.

All of a sudden I find myself, being looked with a very questioning, inquisitive and mocking eye, Oh so you are from Pakistan, is it where the women are bound to cover their faces? and isn’t it  “The Muslim” country.

My answer to such negligence has always been with a polite smile no, women are not restricted and yes, it is Islamic Republic of Pakistan. With History legends from Founders such as Quaid-e-Azam, Poets like, Allama Iqbal and Faiz, social workers like Abdul Sattar Edhi, Oscar winner and Film maker, Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy, Yes, she is a Pakistani woman. There is always two sides of a coin. With great sportsmen from Jahanghir Khan ranking the top Squash players of his time to all- rounder world cricketer, Chancellor of the University of Bradford and founder of the  Shaukat Khanum Cancer Hospital and Research Center, Imran Khan.

Yes, these are the true faces of Pakistan.

 I deeply wondered how come the popularity of the country is not centered on them. A haunting question for all Pakistanis. Especially for the ones living abroad. What have we given the world to think about Pakistan?

 

With the up- coming elections and facebook, twitter pouring over with the “ Naya Pakistan” ( New and Refined Pakistan) ideology, the hope has not, yet been lost in the darkness. In an argument with a very close friend of mine who is also an immigrant, I came to the conclusion that even when one has nothing, hope is still there. It still resides with triumph and has the innate ability to conquer fear. 

I was never into politics or for that matter enthralled by any Politian’s ideas. To me it’s a game of thorns. A sour candy with sugar coating until one bites it, he wouldn’t really know what the actual flavor is. With everyone raving about how great a Politian the King Khan is, I  listened, heard, read all of the slogans supporting him and thought to myself, an all-rounder in cricket, what does he know how to move about in the game board with players who have been champions in fooling the nation over and over again. You see, to me it was all a pun. For all I knew Imran Khan is just a great Legendary player in the world of Cricket until my friend pointed out his driven, persistent work which he has been doing since he became the chairman of the Political Party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf ( Movement for Justice) in 1996.

I was already conscious of the Khan’s enigmatic personality and still proudly have recollection of my first meeting with him as a seventh or eighth grader in a fund raising event for the Cancer Hospital. I knew he has the power to mesmerize, a certain rare caliber which he has been gifted with. The tireless personality and believe in the righteous act, is what Imran is all about.

I argued with a friend of mine what good can one do if one is surrounded by vultures all around. Isn’t it better to be mad with the rest of the world than to be wise alone? And for that matter how long one can hold on to sanity? For me it’s all in the actions. Words are just a bunch of letters framed with great mastery, used as perfect veils to mask the true intentions.

 Imran proved me wrong.

 He is the first Pakistani Politian who conducted intra-party elections and 35 % of the tickets went to the individuals under the age of forty. His action spoke loudly, very evidently and strikingly impressive ….more than his words.

Naya Pakistan (New and Refined Pakistan) doesn’t look like a bemused dream when I look at Imran. To me it seems very possible, very real, very to the core. A cricketer who has the ability to move the entire nation over a game of bat and ball, an individual who has the stature for founding the Shaukat Khanum Cancer Hospital and Research Center, undeniably has more  than that as a Pakistani who is willingly, sanguinely taking the charge of a country with so many handicapped records.  For me as a Paki immigrant in a foreign country, he is not only the hope for a “Naya Pakistan “but also a Pakistani who can give our future generations, a country to brag about by all positive means.

On May 11, 2013…Let’s not just give him a chance, let’s give him the charge.

By: Ifra N. Khoso