Importance of Voting in Pakistan

In his Gettysburg Address, Abraham Lincoln defined democracy as “the government of the people, by the people and for the people.” It means that we are not supposed to serve our government but it the government that is here to serve us and we as the citizens of our nation have the right to decide who will represent us and how we want to be represented. It means that we have one of the greatest rights any free people can have i.e. the right to vote. 

In the history of Pakistan many people have fought for and have sacrificed everything for the achievement of the right of voting. We owe the privilege to live in a democratic society-a society in which we can elect our leaders of our choice to Quaid e Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah and many other great leaders of past.  But today in Pakistan we have forgotten that how much value this right of voting has and we don’t even care to vote because we have this misconception that probably our vote does not count and our single vote will not really count. This is wrong! If everyone starts thinking that their single vote does not matters then ultimately our democracy would end because democracy needs the participation of the people, without that there is no democracy. When one does not cast a vote it does not mean that that voter still does not influence the election as much as any other voter.

Today we are being governed by leaders that hold fake degrees and have no sense how to run a country. They have no interest in public affairs and problems, they are just here to fill their bank accounts and gather as much money as they can. The reason we have such leaders is only because we have neglected our duties and responsibilities as a citizen to such an extent that we don’t even bother to get out of our homes to vote.

Many people choose not to vote because they feel like what goes on in the government doesn’t affect them. The truth is, it does…in many ways. Elected officials make all sorts of decisions that can directly affect your life. The President and Congress we elect will affect us, our lifestyle and our entire community because these are the people who bring about or remove load shedding , lower or increase taxes, maintain the currency value, make and destroy the economies and so forth.

Thus if we really love our country, believe in free government, want to add our voice and if we actually want to save it and have those leaders who work for the betterment of the nation and not for their own personal benefits we need to step up and not only vote ourself but also motivate others to vote.

How I Spent My Eid Day

Eid-ul-Fitr is celebrated on 1^st of Shawwal. It is not just a holiday lasting for three days

infact it is an instant gift from Almighty Allah for all the Muslims who have spent the entire month of Ramadan fasting from dawn to dusk. It is a time to rejoice with friends and family and enjoy the food and blessings bestowed upon us.

In my house Eid’s celebrations started with the sighting of the moon. When the news channels declared that it was going to be Eid on the next day as moon has been sighted in many cities of Pakistan. Everyone at my house was overjoyed but at the same time our hearts felt heavy because of the thought that the month of blessings-Ramadan had come to an end. Everyone was filled with thrill and joy and we started Eid’s preparations. First of all we cleaned the house and decorated it colorful curtains and ribbon to welcome the Eid and then we prepared our dresses. My sisters, my cousins and I put henna on our “henna” on each other hands. After completing our all the preparations we went to sleep because we had to wake up early in the morning.

Finally the big day came. I woke up that morning with a new enthusiasm and excitement in me. I took shower, offered Eid prayer and thanked Almighty Allah for granting us with strength to fast during the month of Ramadan and then blessing us with the wonderful gift of Eid. After that we greeted each other warmly by hugging each other and shaking hands and passing blessings and prayers to each other. Then we all dressed up in traditional outfits and wore beautiful bangles which were complimented by the bright red “henna”.

The whole house was filled with the aroma of the sweets and “Sheer Khorma” that my mom had especially made for Eid. This watered my mouth and accelerated my appetite. My mother served us the delicious “Sheer Khorma” and after the this yummy breakfast my father gave us tokens of money as “Eidi” which is my favourite thing about Eid.

My mother had invited a lot of guests for a grand lunch at my place. Therefore my mother, my sisters and I, all of us started preparing the lunch. In the afternoon all my relatives and family friends gathered at our house. The giggles and chatter filled the house and the time just flew away.

In the evening we all cousins went to a fun land where we played a lot of games and did bowling till we got tired and got hungry. Thus we went to a restaurant for the dinner. The restaurant management had called a music band especially for celebrating Eid which was playing very nice songs. We had our dinner and after having an amazing time with my cousins I went back home with them. I was really tired when I returned so I just changed my clothes, wished everyone good night and went to sleep.

This is how I spent my Eid day celebrating and enjoying with my family and friends. It was so far my best Eid ever and I can never forget this day.