Former Pakistan cricket captain Shahid Afridi is under intense criticism from social media after describing mobile phones as a “disease”, saying he only gave his daughters phones after their marriage.
He made these remarks during a conference on parenting and technology use.
Afridi said parents should keep children away from mobile phones and social media, warning that excessive use of technology is harmful.
He added that he gave mobile phones to his two elder daughters only after their “nikah” (marriage), drawing widespread attention online.
He further urged parents not to hand over phones to children simply to quiet them, and encouraged families to spend more time with their children instead of relying on digital devices.
Former Pakistani cricketer Shahid Afridi said that children and girls should not be given mobile phones. According to him, girls should get mobile phones only after marriage.
Shahid Afridi even said that he gave mobile phones to his own daughters only after their marriage. He… pic.twitter.com/k60RgpOPSA
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Afridi also questioned the practice of sending children to school at a very young age, such as two-and-a-half to three years.
The comments quickly went viral, triggering mixed reactions on social media. While some users supported his conservative stance on parenting and screen time, many others criticized the remarks as outdated and overly restrictive, with some also calling them gender-biased.
Here’s how netizens reacted;
