Light a candle in the dark...

We enjoy freedom of expression in Oman in both traditional and social media. But it should not be misused for painting the society with black and inciting public opinion in an inappropriate manner which is inconsistent with our values, norms, and ethics.

As part of our upbringing, we are also taught how to express our opinions and listen to others. But if we have an objective look at what is being transpired today, we get the impression that there is nothing bright in the country.

We are ignoring the teachings of Islam as in Chapter Ibrahim of the Holy Quran which says without ambiguity: “And when your Lord declared, If you express gratitude, I shall certainly give you more, and if you are ungrateful, then My punishment is severe.” In Chapter Al Dhuha, Allah says: “But proclaim the blessings of your Lord.”

We must do some introspection and see if we are abiding by these commandments of Almighty Allah. There are many such verses in Holy Quran and the sayings of the Prophet (PBUH), which urge humankind to be thankful of the blessings and bounties it has got to be able to expect more from Him.

But isn’t it true that we have become ignorant of all these bounties of Allah we have got on this beloved land? We are ignoring all the virtues we have in this country and harming and hurting it by ignoring our rights and duties.

Instead, we should look at our own role in the society and the country, and hope for a brighter future. We should light a candle of hope at the end of a dark tunnel, instead of blaming the darkness. It is unfortunate that our thinking has become that of failed farmers, blaming bad weather and ignoring our own role in the society and efforts to reach the goal.

The worst thing is that by this attitude we are making the younger generation depressed and pessimist. The current wave of bullying and criticism will lead us nowhere. Ignorance of massive achievements which we have made in the past and not being thankful for it will make us focus on petty things.

The environment of frustration which some of us are creating in the virtual world will start reflecting in the society and make us fail. To be successful, the only formula is to look at the brighter side, be confident and make efforts for a more prosperous future.

We all know that it is the government which has made all the plans, implemented them to make our lives easy and comfortable and get a respectable position in the world. But what it did not do is to publicise its efforts and services made available to the people of the country. It ignored public relations and communication strategy and quietly focussed on its work.

But we have already said that the information and public relations are also important to give people a clear picture of what is happening. The government organisations have always paid less interest on information and public relations as part of their job. They did not know how to present and portray their works to the people. I always said that being focussed on the work is always good and being completely quiet about it is never advisable. It creates ambiguity, ignorance and confusion in the minds of the people.

This is the space which is exploited by the elements which have bad intentions and are not loyal to the country. There are all sorts of earnest efforts made in the country to serve the people. But it is also important to tell them sincerely what is being done so that there is no space left for bad elements. It is our duty to make everyone realise that no positive change comes by painting the country in black.