‘Youngsters need to be taught critical thinking to use social media wisely’

By News Desk
June 18, 2019

Speakers at a meeting of the Hamdard Shura’s Karachi chapter have urged the government, social scientists and educationists to create critical and creative thinking among the youth and grant them the right to asks questions in order to make them confident, responsible and able to draw a line between positive and negative matters on social media.

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The meeting was held on the theme of “Social media – risks and apprehensions”, and it was chaired by Justice (retd) Haziqul Khairi at the Hamdard corporate office, Karachi, according to a press release issued on Monday.

Sadia Rashid, president, Hamdard Foundation Pakistan, was also present at the meeting.

Speaking on the occasion, Prof Dr Akhlaque Ahmed, former pro-vice chancellor, University of Karachi, said that social media had both positive and negative effects, depending on its use. If used constantly, it would change the temperament of the user and render him/her secluded; however, it was useful for senior people as it provided them facility to talk with their offspring’s living in foreign countries, he added.

“Scholars across the world are taking advantages out of social media’s positive use. It has ushered in a revolution in the field of treatment as people can choose and obtain medicines through social media,” he maintained.

Justice (retd) Khairi said that social media had been becoming a pillar of state, and if used properly it could play a revolutionary role in the reconstruction of our society, because it gave freedom of speech, the basic right of human beings, he observed.

Col (retd) Mukhtar Ahmed Butt was of the view that social media had become a deadly weapon, 4.5 billion people had become habitual of this menace around the world and 10 persons at every second were joining it. Destroying the morals of our society and poisoning the minds of our new generation, it had brought the country to the juncture from where it seemed difficult to come back, so its monitoring was very essential, he contended.

Ibn al-Hasan Rizvi was of the option that social media was a good thing provided it was used carefully and wisely; but, we had depraved it by filing fake news and concocted stories on it. He suggested a tax on using the social media in order to minimise its use.

Engineer Anwarul Haq Siddiqui, while giving much importance to social media, said that it was the latest invention of modern age and we couldn’t stop it from entering our society; only there was a need for the will to monitor it and to make its use beneficial to the country.

“We can do it as we are not lesser in Information Technology than the big neighbouring country, which is using it against us. Perhaps like never before, Hamdard’s Awaz-e-Akhlaque is needed today in order to strengthen the fabrics and moral values of our society,” he asserted.

Engineer Syed Pervez Sadiq suggested that critical thinking courses should be started in schools and colleges forthwith and it must be inculcated in the young minds. “Time is money; don’t waste it.”

“It is the duty of media to bring true stories, news items and picture of the country before the people and public should not lend an ear to fake news,” he suggested.

“Every technology has two aspects – merits and demerits. We ought to concentrate on merits, leaving aside demerits. President of Turkey Tayyip Ardogan saved his government using social media.”

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