Careem Pakistan, a popular ride-booking app, has sparked controversy and drawn ire from the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PMLN) party due to a post on the social media platform X.
On Wednesday, Careem posted a message, later deleted, that read, “program warr gaya,” which some deemed offensive and linked to Sher Afzal Khan Marwat, a leader of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, who now serves as Vice-President.
Though the original post has been removed, screenshots continue to circulate on social media. PMLN swiftly responded on Twitter, criticizing Careem’s message and accusing the company of prioritizing politics over service quality. They initiated a hashtag, #BoycottCareem, urging users to cease utilizing the app.
This isn’t the first time they have done this. @CareemPAK showing its true colors again. More interested in pushing political agendas. Shameful. #BoycottCareem
— PMLN (@pmln_org) February 14, 2024
Subsequently, Careem released a promotional video for their service with a new message, “ab har program ko paka karao, ride ko advance main book karao!” However, many Twitter users expressed disapproval of Careem’s political involvement, urging the company to refrain from such actions and exercise caution in their communications to avoid national discord.
Meanwhile, the prospective ruling coalition spent a busy Wednesday poring over the modalities of their power-sharing agreement, as a number of names emerged for key constitutional positions that would be doled out to the alliance’s component parties, chiefly the PPP and PML-N.
Stalwarts from the two parties put their heads together to discuss the finer points of the power-sharing agreement, while PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari chaired a meeting of his party’s contact and coordination committee ahead of its rendezvous with their counterparts in the PML-N.
