BHAWALPUR, Pakistan: Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif Tuesday said continuity of policies was vital for progress and the country saw unprecedented development during all his tenures.
Addressing a gathering of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) workers soon after his arrival here, the Prime Minister regretted that the previous governments failed in their duty of serving the masses.
He said it was nothing less than “criminal negligence” of the previous governments who failed to address the issue of load shedding or increase power generation capacity in the country. He said governance was not a “bed of roses”, but was a difficult task, but he was committed to serve the people of his country.
He said when his government came into power the country was facing 10-18 hours of loadshedding that was negatively impacting country’s industry and agriculture sector. He said all previous government failed to install adequate power generation capacity.
He said his government has always strived to serve the people and recalled his previous two tenures in which a number of mega projects were initiated.
He said had his government continued its second tenure, the overall situation of Pakistan would have been starkly different. He regretted that Pakistan has been left far behind in the pace of development and progress. He also mentioned the historic deal with Qatar for the purchase of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG).
He regretted that he was forced to stop serving the people of his country for 14 long years and asked the people to see the difference and learn from the history.
Referring to the success of the party in the local bodies polls, the Prime Minister said he was pleased to note that the PML-N government has maintained its strong base and support of the masses in the middle of its term. He said it was nothing less than a blessing of the Almighty Allah and said his government was committed to continue to serve the masses selflessly.
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif also lauded the support extended by China in a number of development projects across the country. He said the completion of the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) would be a game changer.
He said he was desirous to link Pakistan with the Central Asian Republics and said the network of motorways would connect all remote areas of the country. He said despite the attempts of some miscreants the government completed the motorway in Balochistan.
He said the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) needs to take up cases only after thorough initial investigation and said no one should be harassed, without verification and solid proofs.
He said he would also take up the issue with the Chairman NAB and said if any person was unduly persecuted, the government would take action.
The Prime Minister also mentioned the three major power projects in which the government saved billions, by lowering the cost. He said these projects would produce 3600 MW of electricity and would go operational by next year. He said the Transparency International had also acknowledged that all these projects were being undertaken in the most transparent manner.
He said the Chinese companies were undertaking power projects in Pakistan at special concessionary rates, just because of their deep friendship with Pakistan.
The Prime Minister said it was his government that initiated the landmark deal with China for the production of the JF-17 fighter aircraft.
The Prime Minister also paid rich tributes to late Mumtaz Jajja. He also appreciated the newly elected local bodies members and said the people have high hopes from them. He asked them to go out of their way to serve the people.
He said the success of local bodies members was the success of all and assured that the government would do its best to help them serve the people in a better way.
The Prime Minister said he has a special affection with the people of Bhawalpur and announced Rs six hundred million for a lake that would supply fresh water for the city.
Source: APP
