LAST Thursday I saw a large number of young men and women gathered in front of a shop in Madinah. They were waiting eagerly for a special individual to come. Finally I saw a young man arriving at the spot and people welcomed him with a big hue and cry. He entered the shop with difficulty to open it because of the huge crowd. Many teenagers came forward to meet and greet the young celebrity and take commemorative photos with him. The young man looked extremely happy as if he had done great things. Following the chaos and confusion in front of that shop, the young man left the place and the teenagers were watching him with amazement until he disappeared from their sight. I wanted to know who that individual was. Later I learned from Google search that he was one of the celebrities of Snapchat and has launched several songs through the social media. This gave me a big shock. With all respect to that young celebrity, we know that his achievements are meager and do not deserve that gathering and admiration. What are his services to the nation and its people in order for our young men and women to gather around him? These kinds of developments show that there is an intentional move to undervalue great people in our country including Islamic scholars, educationists, intellectuals and young achievers by discarding them from public platforms and giving prominence to cinema stars, actresses, singers and other celebrities including social media activists. These celebrities are presented as role models for teenagers to follow and people gather around such individuals who are invited to open functions, ceremonies, festivals and promotional campaigns. My advice to our young men and women is that they should not waste their precious time by running after such celebrities and use their time and energy for constructive activities. You have an important role to play to achieve their country's sustainable development, using their knowledge and power. This is a sincere call to the young men and women of Madinah, the first capital of the Islamic state and the city of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), and grandsons and daughters of the Prophet's great companions who set history through their epic battles and sacrifices and worked for the glory of the Ummah. You are stars in the eyes of Muslims all over the world and they look at you with great expectation. You should not make Madinah a center that produces triviality and silliness. I understand that those young men and women might have gathered in front of the Madinah shop out of curiosity. At the same time, I believe that the young men's fathers and mothers should have prevented them from participating in such silly functions. The parents should have given their children necessary advice and guidance to save them from falling into such trivialities.
