Imran's blind faith in COVID-19

By Francesca Marino
Rome [Italy], April 5 (ANI): In line with Imran Khan's way of thinking, "coronavirus is just a bit more than a flu and kills only old people", Pakistan is taking proper and adequate measures to fight the modern version of the plague.
The Kaptaan, in fact, besides starting the umpteenth fundraising to help the government in the fight against the virus, has a secret weapon: the Corona Relief Tiger Force. Armed with cute t-shirts, the best youth of the country, what we in Italy would call 'la meglio gioventu' will go in the streets running not-yet-disclosed errands without anybody protection, armed only with the strength of their faith in the national leader. Who, being close enough to his seventieth birthday and hence one of the 'old people' very likely to die of COVID19, will give direction from home.
Meanwhile, the country has been well equipped for the fight. The coronavirus patients, mostly the ones belonging to the lower classes for whom Imran's heart is bleeding day and night so much he does not want to impose lockdown to protect them, have been promptly quarantined.
Into concentration camps, sorry, 'quarantine' camps, set in Kashmir, in Gilgit-Baltistan, and in Balochistan. Taftan camp, from the images we get, is a model facility for any other country: people are piled up into the camp's tents like beasts, there are no medical facilities, not even simple soap leave alone masks and gloves, and most of the times no food.
Balochs maintain that Pakistan is using the Chinese virus as a biological weapon against them. Practically, Taftan will finish faster and better the job relentlessly carried on by the Frontier Corps and by Shafiq Mengal and his likes: the genocide of Baloch.
The rest of the country is not in better shape. Imran, the Heart of Gold, is launching appeals to the international community to fill the empty bank accounts of the State. They need medical supplies, they need ventilators, they need medicines.
In February, the chloroquine produced in the country had been sent to China through the local Bayer branch and pharmacies in Lahore and Karachi had no more tablets. But the Kaptaan is not only Handsome but also a 'Heart of Gold' too: so, even if they're asking for help, they are donating with great fanfare medicines to Italy. And money too, collected by the Pakistani community in the small textile hub of Carpi. They did not send the money home to help their people in need, but they went on Twitter saying they were helping Italians. They might never be heard that charity starts at home, I guess. Or, maybe, they are just thanking Italy for being one of the main suppliers of weapons and for not shutting down completely the network of illegal funds to terrorism in the north of the country.
After all, according to a clip circulated on Twitter, Italians are chanting the Pakistani anthem and thanking Imran and Bajwa for their help. Sounds familiar? Yes, it was more or less the same clip circulating with the Chinese anthem in the background. Bells sounding? Yes. More than bells, a whole orchestra. And the orchestra is playing a Chinese tune, that matches with the Chinese virus. Because, far from blaming China for spreading the virus everywhere, starting from Pakistan where Chinese practically own the country, Islamabad proves once more his friendship 'sweet as honey' for Beijing and his totalitarian regime.
Samri, South Asia Media Research Institute tweeted a clip from a Pakistani Tv channel, Public TV, with the text: "Pakistani scientist Dr. Atta ur-Rehman: It is quite probable, though not proven, that #Coronavirus was made in UK or US as a bioweapon. Ex-ambassador Abdullah Hussain Haroon also explained that #COVID2019 outbreak is a Western conspiracy to undermine China".
Again, sounds familiar? Coming straight from the Chinese propaganda spread all over the world by Global Times and other publications and social media run by Beijing?
Well, it is.
And although Pakistan has little or no credibility at an international level, it is enough to keep the domestic audience, at least the mass, asleep. So they can go on blindly following the State and Army narrative, believing there's a global conspiracy against Pakistan, buying Imran's and Xi Jinping theories aimed to discharge China from the accusations of having unleashed the virus on the world with their criminal silence.
At the end of the day, for totalitarian regimes, people's lives don't really matter. The Corona Tigers, and the Dragons, will save the world.
(Disclaimer: The views expressed in this column are strictly those of the author) (ANI)