THIS refers to a recent tweet of the British High Commissioner to Pakistan, Christian Turner, about him collecting litter scattered by the people somewhere in Islamabad.

While the tweet of the high commissioner regarding collecting two bags of litter on a morning walk is being viewed as an eye-opener for the Pakistanis, and a selfless effort by the diplomat for a noble cause, there are some other noticeable aspects of the aforementioned tweet.

First, it does not suit a diplomat to comment on such issues. There are, certainly, some codes of conduct concerning diplomacy. Second, the status of litter outside pubs in the United Kingdom is much worse.

However, never has the diplomat paid attention to having a morning walk there. Had this initiative been for the social welfare, one’s country of origin deserves more attention.

Third, writing that ‘safaai nisf imaan hai’ and simultaneously posing with two bags of litter can be viewed as a taunt to a basic tenet of the religion. Even if some of us show neglect towards it, a religious principle deserves respect and must not be criticised.

Summing up, we Pakistanis should by elevating our character leave no room for anyone to even dare insult us.

The comments of foreigners must not send us into an inferiority complex. We must discern between an advice and a taunt.

Muhammad Majid Shafi

Islamabad

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THIS refers to a recent tweet by the British High Commissioner to Pakistan, Christian Turner, who went for a morning walk at the Margalla Hills in Islamabad and came back with two bags of trash that he had apparently collected from the site, posting: “Another Friday morning walk, another two bags of litter. ‘Safaai nisf imaan hai’”, along with two pictures of himself holding the bags.

However, the deputy commissioner concerned got criticised by social media activists who considered the episode ‘embarrassing’ after he praised the diplomat, responding to him by saying “great”.

People criticise bureaucrats for dereliction of duty. The fact is some of them may be negligent, but one should not demotivate the qualified and hard-working officers who achieved their goals after a lot of struggle. We want the government to perform, but we do not have due civic sense and ignore our duties as citizens, which also include keeping our cities and areas clean.

Naqeeb Ullah Zarkoon

Duki, Balochistan

Published in Dawn, June 3rd, 2021