Never underestimate power of a righteous person, says Imran

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan Tuesday said that when morality was destroyed in a country, the economy also started collapsing because corruption is the result of moral decay.

He was addressing the passing out ceremony of the 44th Special Training Programme of Pakistan Administrative Service (PAS) here. He urged the newly passed out officers to study Muslim rule that teaches about the power of moral values. “We should never underestimate the power of a morally good person as one moral man is an army,” he added. An honest SP can put the whole district in order.

He said that corruption is a sign of moral catastrophe. With a good civil service, he noted Pakistan was moving on the path of becoming a great nation till 1960 but then gradually, it moved towards decline in morality leading to economic decline.

The premier regretted that in Pakistan, corruption and theft were not considered a sin. It destroys morality of a nation as well. “In all the poor countries, corruption is a common factor which reflects decline in their moral values. While in rich countries, they have the strength to provide justice. A society that does not have morality can’t provide justice. That society gives NROs and strikes deals with the corrupt,” he emphasised.

He noted that when the elite indulge in corruption, the society decays. “You will also be among the elite of bureaucracy. When the morality of the elite suffers it drags the country down. When a Prime Minister and his ministers indulge in corruption, it goes down to every level,” he remarked

This country was destined to achieve greatness, but it went to the path of destruction,” he noted. He said it was due to corruption and embezzlement [of public money] that the countries like Bangladesh were ahead of Pakistan

The prime minister said that when a society has strong moral values, then even an atom bomb could not destroy it. Addressing the participants, he said, “This is just the beginning for you, the real test will come now. The test will prove how strong your faith is. Your trial has just begun. Your future awaits you where you go and how many of you become great people and what you want to achieve.”

He said that an eminent person always had dreams and ideals. He referred to the verses of the Holy Quran that Allah Almighty will test the human beings time and again. Imran said that a man always has two choices in the way of life and one has to make decisions on daily basis.“One is the way of glory and the other is of decline,” he remarked. He said, “You have to opt for one path that takes you to greatness, while the other looks attractive but leads to destruction of human beings.” “Right path is always difficult, but it is the path of respect,” he remarked.

The prime minister said that there is a Hadith of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) that “great nations were destroyed where there was one law for the strong and another for the weak, it means that there cannot be justice if you discriminate in favour of the powerful."

Meanwhile, referring to the World Food Programme (WFP) alert regarding the humanitarian situation in Afghanistan, Prime Minister Imran Khan urged the international community to help avert the crisis. “Pakistan will continue to provide all possible relief but the international community must act now,” he wrote on twitter.

The international community has moral obligation to avert this humanitarian disaster confronting the Afghan people, he added. “I have been warning of this humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan. Now WFP chief issues alert,” Imran Khan remarked.

The prime minister, in his twitter post, also attached the link of a BBC News report as well as an image, which showed Afghans standing in a queue to get food provided by the world organisations like WFP. According to the BBC News report, the WFP was faced with challenge to raise its supplies to Afghanistan to help more than 22 million people. “If the weather is as bad as experts are predicting this winter, the expectation is that large numbers will be threatened with acute hunger and widespread famine,” it added.

The weather is turning from early autumn warmth to a sharp chill. Several areas are reporting drought, which adds to the sense of growing catastrophe.

At Maidan Wardak, 50 miles west of Kabul, a crowd of several hundred men had gathered in the hope of getting flour from an official distribution point. The flour was provided by the World Food Programme, the report mentioned.

The BBC report also executive director of the WFP, David Beasley, as saying about the situation, "It is as bad as you possibly can imagine," "In fact, we're now looking at the worst humanitarian crisis on Earth. Ninety-five percent of the people don't have enough food, and now we're looking at 23 million people marching towards starvation," he added. "The next six months are going to be catastrophic. It is going to be hell on Earth."