Sooper Hai Pakistan but where the country is headed?

BY ALI NAQVI –

Sooper Hai Pakistan is an expression of patriotic hopefulness. Certainly each and every Pakistani wants to see the country happy, healthy and prosperous. It is always hard to bridge the gap between what we wish and how we attempt and toil to make our dreams come true. One cannot doubt the intention of an individual towards his/her country but one can surely see the outcome of the combined efforts of a generation. We dreamed too much and did very little.

Sooper Hai Pakistan is a public service awareness campaign that says it all in less than 90 seconds. It’s so direct and to the point that leaves little to the imagination. A message that is a thousand times more comprehensive and understandable than dozens of confused and clueless speeches by the Prime Minister.

The current situation of Coronavirus in the country has exposed a lot of weak spots of our nation as well as its leadership, if we may call it so. A problem purely medical in nature with a lot of examples around the world could not teach us the lesson. A contagious disease could be stifled through social distancing and staying at home. But Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan has different ideas. He always looks at the wrong side of things. Instead of learning from China he is benchmarking USA, a country that has done everything wrong.

It is always frustrating to listen to a speech that PM Khan delivers. His speeches and addresses to the nation are mostly the rhetoric produced by his preconceived notions. Now finally his wish has come true, there is no lockdown in the country, practically. Apart from a few government and semi government offices everything else has been given the go ahead to go back to normal.

As compared to other countries we should consider ourselves lucky to experience little damage despite our non-serious attitude towards lockdown. But we may not be that lucky. We are not conducting enough tests to determine the actual magnitude of the situation.

We need campaigns like Sooper Hai Pakistan that could jolt us to the bone. Featuring celebrities from sports, film and music namely Humayun Saeed, Wasim Akram, Strings, Mahira Khan, Adnan Siddique, Hareem Farooq and Mehwish Hayat, the TVC does well to equate the value of our responsibilities with the extent of our patriotism. It also highlights the fact that in the war against this global pandemic the most important foxhole is your own home while the most effective weapon is precaution.

Sooper Hai Pakistan is not the first campaign by Peek Freans that is fueled by patriotic emotions. The brand has always created heart touchingly thought provoking campaigns and anthems in the past. Sooper Hai Junoon is one such example.

The government is taking suicidal decisions. Easing lockdowns and allowing people to shop and roam around freely could have disastrous results. Do we want to be listed among the top 3 countries worst affected by COVID-19? The government especially the PM should watch and learn from campaigns like Sooper Hai Pakistan. We want a healthy Pakistan, but letting the weak and poor die of Corona is certainly not the way.