The government and Honda alike, have come under fire on social media after a horrifying motorway crash resulted in a Civic being snapped in half on Wednesday.
Videos surfaced on social media in which a Civic that was on its way to Lahore, split into two and sprawled across the road and adjacent field. An unconfirmed voice note from the surviving driver also circulated the web. The driver claimed that he was cruising at 125km/h and tried to stall cruise control by braking but the car’s system jammed. The car flipped ten times and pulled apart into two.
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Central Secretary Information Ahmad Jawad reposted the video on Twitter and said that such was the quality of a Honda car. He added that the video should be shared widely so Honda was forced to apologize for looting customers.
Some members of the Twitterati were not convinced with Ahmad’s comments on Honda and turned the tide on the PTI-led government itself. A user was exasperated at the low quality of Honda vehicles and wondered why the prices were so high. The user added that it remained to be seen when Prime Minister Imran Khan would take note of such ‘mafia’.
https://twitter.com/tnvekaten/status/1435531150374711296
Journalist Tariq Naqash said that relevant ministries had not ensured that high grade vehicles were manufactured in Pakistan. Naqash also said that that a 2012 model of a car manufactured in Japan performed better than a latest model made in Pakistan.
Another user blamed the government in addition to Honda and said that both were responsible for the low-quality automobile. He wondered why the government allowed the car to be in production and what that meant for consumer rights.
A social worker, Maria Chaudhry said that PTI claimed earlier that inflation should be ignored but celebrated the number of cars sold. She lamented that the quality of the leading political party turned out to be lower than the cars being sold.
Auto industry regulations were also scrutinized as a user alleged that quality Honda cars in Pakistan were practically made from scrap. He said that that the crash had nothing to do with speed limit and that the car’s cruise control should have disengaged when the driver pressed the brake.
Several users commented on the dwindling quality of Honda Pakistan’s products specifically. A user said that adaptive cruise control was installed in cars world over, but mere cruise control was offered in Pakistan.
Discrepancy between Honda’s quality in the world and in Pakistan was noted by another user who called upon people to boycott the company. He said that he was loyal to Honda for two decades but ceased to be their customer when he observed the higher quality of similar models elsewhere.
Price was a reiterated concern as a user pointed out that a Civic cost a hefty Rs4.5 million. The poster wondered why people preferred luxury of design over quality of features.
Another user critiqued Honda’s quality rather sarcastically. He retorted that people should thank the ‘Honda crumble zone system’ that split the car in half and landed the passenger in a safe field.
Criticism for Honda and the government was aplenty, but a user was thankful to PTI for allowing imported alternates in Pakistan. Omar Wahab, a doctor, said that it was a miracle that the person survived. He thanked the PM for bringing in safer and more luxurious cars.
So far, no statement from Honda has emerged in the wake of the Twitter storm against the renowned company.
