Time goes by, calamities destruct and destroy, and nations, despite all hurdles, go through the hard times with patience and struggle. But the question is; has anyone wondered what the greatest tragedy of our time is?
Some would say that the current flood is the biggest tragedy of our time, some might point to the never-ending poverty, some would term 2005’s earthquake the biggest disaster in our history, and others may talk about the 2010’s flood or the 2014’s APS terrorist attack.
If you think about it, floods, earthquakes or terrorist attacks that have been occurring for the past several years, aren’t really tragedies, but mere disasters and calamities that we as a nation had gone through. And no matter how big a disaster is, vibrant nations never hesitate to face and overcome it, and then move on.
The biggest tragedy in the past 75 years of our nation’s history is the deprivation of education. Schools and colleges in this country have been turned into private properties of the landlords, or it became illegally occupied places for powerful mafias. So, on rare occasions when the education somehow reaches the poor kids of this poverty-stricken nation, it is inadequate.
Can this be called education when you spend 16 or 20 years getting a degree but it can’t get you a decent job? So what was the point of wasting your precious years of life?
Undoubtedly, the purpose of education is not just to land a job, but if the education cannot even give you a half-decent job, how can it play a role in development one’s character. It won’t be far-fetched to say ignorance has a major role in our multiplying problems.
Today, you look at the literacy level in Pakistan, the quality of education in universities and colleges, or capacity of our academics, in every field, not only are we far behind the world, but also we are lagging behind our neighbors.
This is because the politicians we elect are the ones who have been stopping the education system from development in the past 75 years. They never declared education as a priority, and by doing so, they hindered our progress.
It is high time every educated person in his locality start teaching those who don’t know how to read and write, and do everything in his power to make at least one person literate around him.
Maybe this is the only way we can use to help our future generation.
