Yesterday, a local media house reported that the Senate has passed a resolution to declare Chinese as the official language of Pakistan on Monday. Soon after, the news was shared by groups and pages without rechecking the source of the news.
Here’s the tweet posted by the channel which got people talking:
Senate Approves Motion to Declare Chinese as Official Languagehttps://t.co/GpMvhR0anu pic.twitter.com/lbbinXweXb
— AbbTakk (@AbbTakk) February 19, 2018
The news, despite being a huge mistake by the news agency, caught the attention of millions who started lambasting the Senate and the Senators for taking such a step.
News travels fast and so it did; not just in Pakistan but across the border as well. In fact, there was more fuss about this in Indian circles than in Pakistan. The news, however, was later brushed aside as fake once the actual motion presented by Pakistan People’s Party Parliamentarian’s Senator Khalida Parveen became public.
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The motion had persuaded the Senate to offer Chinese Language courses for Pakistani students in a bid reduce communication gaps and to secure jobs under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project.
The motion stated,
This House recommends that in view of the growing collaboration between Pakistan and China under the CPEC, courses of the Official Chinese Language should be launched for all current and prospective Pakistani CPEC human resource in order to overcome any costly communication barriers.
Let’s hear what the social media pundits had to say about the issue.
https://twitter.com/nailainayat/status/965606898451013632
Pakistan Senate approves Chinese as official language of Pakistan. Looks like Chinese take over of Pakistan is imminent.
— Anup Sayare (@sayareakd) February 19, 2018
https://twitter.com/Anshuman4India/status/965637292600696832
Pak Senate approves motion to declare Chinese/Mandarin as official language.
Mubarak ho, Pakistan is ready to become a Chinese colony. .— Lord Leopard (Lutyens' Wale) (@Leopard212) February 19, 2018
It was just a matter of time that the actual motion came out.
Fake news alert on this Senate motion to declare Chinese as "official language". I don't think that is what the motion says.
— Khurram Husain (@KhurramHusain) February 19, 2018
@AbbTakk misreported this recommendation in Senate to teach Official Chinese language courses so that Pakistanis get CPEC jobs.
Chinese has not been made the 3rd official language !This was the Abb Takk tweet https://t.co/Pc42UjHum4 pic.twitter.com/NezpH08Y5b
— Sabena Siddiqi (@sabena_siddiqi) February 19, 2018
Looks like Indians are more concerned about China-Pakistan relations than Pakistanis.
What do you think? Have your say in the comments!
اس سے اندازہ لگایا جا سکتا ہے کہ ہماری ریاست کتنی کمزور ہو چکی ہے کہ جو ہمیں جو کہتا ہے ہمیں تھوڑے سے فائدے کے لئے کرنا پڑتا ہے
جس ملک میں سات سال سے دنیا کا کوئی بھی ملک پیسے لے کر اپنے گیارہ کھلاڑی بھیجنے کو تیار نہ ہو اس میں یہ سب ہونا یقینی ہے
If only the Chinese are STUPID enough to take us over, we will be lucky and they will be ruined.
Fake news even confirmed by Indian media.
Here where we already have more than one official / national languages, what’s the fuss in declaring Mandarin as another Official.
Jack of all master of none?
I vote for Arabic, English & Mandarin and elimination of most of the local languages to reduce communication gap. Arabic for our worldly and after life. English and Mandarin to natively speak with +2,000,000,000 people.
If implemented then its a very nice step, we need more languages.
Pakistanis got to learn Chinese to secure jobs in Pakistan? This is a joke, right? Will that mean that the Pakistanis will be working under his China man master?
Is that the game changer that politicians have been talking about?
Its sounds as ridiculous as saying that Indians need to learn Japanese to do trade with Japan.
Why cant the Chinese learn Urdu?