The Spark Should Stay Alive

I have never lived through such youth mobilization before. The energy, zeal, passion, patriotism, and most importantly, the hope had gripped us all like never before. With every jalsa of Imran Khan, a new wave of adrenaline would sweep through the body. For the first time in the last 10 years or so, we were all looking forward to the 2013 elections. We vowed to make a change and promised to oneself to play his/her part. Thus, the dream of a newer, better Pakistan wrapped us and a renewed hope, positivity, and patriotism took hold of us.

However, such startling results were not just heartbreaking but devastating as well. The spirit and energy of youth has drooled down, it is improbable, let alone believable that Imran Khan lost. People who had not voted for years, who would confine themselves to the comfort of their homes, and never bothered about who gets to top were all out voting in the scorching heat with an average wait of 2 hours in the line. Seeing mothers holding month old babies, toddlers crying on and eventually dozing off, was not a rare sight on the 11^th of May.

Many could not sleep through the night thinking about what would now become of Pakistan. This defeat left us demoralized just like Imran Khan’s magnetism had overwhelmed us. 12^th of May, when the media was showing the nation celebrating, travelling from one part of Lahore to another, I saw sorrowful faces of highly sad, demotivated citizens. To be honest, the city carried a gloomy and somber touch, showing no signs of festivity. Even the thought of living yet another 5 years in the same old circumstances, same promises made and never kept, same old rhetoric has magnified the intensity of our bleakness.

Imran Khan, we are with you and would remain too, but in this distressful spell our youth needs their leader the most. This is a true leadership test for you as well. Handling success is difficult but handling defeat is far more difficult, especially when it comes like this. PTI should take every possible measure to ensure that the enlightenment they brought does not perish with the election.

They should set up youth booths to keep our youngsters involved in the party activities. Every educational institute should have a platform where students can voice their ideas and suggestions regarding what sort of change they want and how do they think PTI should go about that. They should set up a youth force and make sure every young boy/girl is an active contributor towards community work. The youth force can have their blood banks, volunteers, and so on.

In case of any upheaval or natural disaster, the PTI youth force should be the foremost to stick out together as a disciplined, cultured, and an exemplary power of the party, and a robust muscle of the nation.

The manifesto of PTI should not be mere paperwork but a complete model for others. Insafians should be differentiated everywhere they go, in their manners, in their speech, in their civility, and should leave an aura of appreciation in their ambiance. A simple example would be that our road behavior should be courteous enough to leave a strong positive impact on passerby’s that this must be a PTI supporter. Likewise, supporters should always be on the lookout for people in trouble, in pain, leading to a reflex action of helping them out naturally.

PTI should hold small political competitions across universities and colleges in Pakistan. The best should be given an opportunity to join them in their party. PTI could also chalk out intellectual orators, brainy presenters, smart spokesperson, and storm them throughout the nation to keep up the convincing everywhere.

They can go a step further as well and fund scholarships for the best and deserving.  They should come up as a force that everybody looks up to, is captivated by, and wants to be part of, so that by the next elections, Insafians take the country out like a storm and prove themselves in every sphere.

Most importantly, this wave of change should not just be restricted to the urban centers; it is the rural areas that are in dire need of a change. So, let us hope PTI puts itself to a test, and yes, while doing this, they test the youth of Pakistan as well. A test in which there can be only one winner and that is PAKISTAN.