The word ‘insecurity’ is not new or unfamiliar for the nation i belong as it has been ever since the day this country established. Sometimes we became the victim of the outside threads or sometimes we got insecure by our own keeper. Concisely, we have been living under this phenomenon for many ages. The question is very simple, why?
The history is not much different from the present whenever it comes to health. There has been lot of certainty in the observance of people that the government is the real culprit to paralyzed their public either physically or mentally through wrong medication or vaccination. The reason behind this belief is that the system has failed to provide health security to their public. The outcome is even worst that according to the survey by Bloomberg ranking, Pakistan ranked 100th out of 145 in the list of healthiest countries. This clearly shows that how much health and wellbeing matters to the state. Besides the credibility of our country, the literacy rate is more than below the mark which makes the process of awareness much harder across the country. If we talk about this age or decade, polio vaccination is one of the examples that even after so many awareness campaign, we still have had cases of polio in Pakistan. The tenacity started due to some words that the polio vaccine is made up of pig fat which is not acceptable in our religion. The belief proceeded rapidly in the rural areas as they are so naïve to accept what they hear. In urban areas some other dogmas began to circulate that the polio vaccine is one of the reasons of infertility in both men and women, even though there is no such proof regarding all these beliefs. Consequently, people became too insecure that they began to attack polio workers with a thinking that they are going to paralyze their child. It all began with hearsays and government had been and still trying to cope up with the situation.
Apart from polio vaccination, if we talk about the most recent ongoing health issue is the coronavirus pandemic, which killed almost forty-five lacs lives worldwide. The countries all over the world strived to make the antidote of this ruthless disease and did so many efforts to get the vaccine for the sake of their public. Then again, if we talk about Pakistan, public showed their insecurity towards the vaccination even before its first shipment in Pakistan. The rumor spread not from any other foe-agents but from our own public that the vaccine is causing sudden death of humans. Furthermore, social media played considerably negative role in the expansion of rumors from one spot to another. Public itself spreading and circulating false videos on the effect of vaccination via social media. Beside the misconception of sudden death by vaccine, there is also a very unacceptable delusion that the foreign countries are launching chips by injecting vaccination into human beings. Some believes that it only takes 2 years to be death after being vaccinated. Unluckily, after plenty of requests and then plenty of sternness implemented by the government, the public is still finding the illicit way to get their vaccination card without even being vaccinated.
In the state, where certain communities are at the edge of being faithless towards their own homeland and claiming false info; it is quite obvious to have insecurity. However, it is the duty of every citizen to ensure the truth before involving into the wrongful campaign. Because at the end of the day, we all have to face the consequences.
“People deserve the benefit of the doubt, but information? Always hold it up to a cold white light. Misinformation is a tool of the Devil.”
A.D. Aliwat