ISLAMABAD: Amid the uncertainty surrounding the next general elections, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has said that the coalition government’s tenure will end on August 14 and the date for the next polls will be announced by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) either in “October or November”.
“Our government’s tenure will end on August 14 [...] the election commission will decide when the polls will take place — whether in October or November,” he said during a ceremony where he launched the Pakistan Education Endowment Fund of Rs14 billion and reforms in National Curriculum here on Wednesday.
“Whosoever forms the next government after the elections, their top priority should be education, so they can make this nation great,” the prime minister said. He said that Rs3 billion had been earmarked this fiscal year for the endowment fund to equip the youth with education and make them builders of the nation.
He hoped that the endowment fund would be raised to Rs140 billion in the next 10 years. At the same time, he said the promotion of education was not aimed at politics, rather he considered it a worship. He clarified that this budget will not go into the endowment fund this year but directly to the youth in the form of scholarships, adding that only through promotion of education, the country could be taken forward.
The prime minister recalled that the Punjab Education Endowment Fund was established back in 2008, which provided scholarships to 450,000 students.
Terming the promotion of education a sacred duty, he said special focus should be given to the areas which lag behind in development.
“We have to focus on education which is meaningful and has relevance to the modern day,” he said.
About the deal with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), he said: “This is not a matter of pride but an alarming situation as to why we continue to ask our friends and financial institutions to help save the country from default.” He said now we should face the situation and show determination to make efforts for development and prosperity of the country.
Shehbaz was appreciative of the financial assistance extended by China, Saudi Arabia and the UAE during the difficult times. He, however, said we have to do introspection to put the country in the right direction.
He said China was Pakistan’s best friend that gave $5 billion in the last three months while $2 billion dollars were also received from Saudi Arabia.
The prime minister also distributed cheques of scholarships under the newly launched project for deserving and talented students.
On the occasion, Minister for Education Rana Tanveer Hussain said that scholarships under the endowment fund will be given in various disciplines including nursing, engineering and social sciences.
The minister said that incorporation of the Constitution of Pakistan in the syllabus is an important milestone, saying this will promote understanding amongst the youth about their rights and responsibilities.
Separately, the prime minister pledged to the nation that the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PMLN), if given the mandate in the next general elections, would steer the country out of economic crisis.
“If the PMLN, under the leadership of its Quaid Nawaz Sharif, is given the mandate in the next general elections, it would utilise all available resources to bring the country out of economic crisis and take it to the zenith of development and prosperity,” he said while laying the foundation stone of a flyover at the Shaheen Chowk on the junction of Khyaban-e-Iqbal and 9th Avenue.
Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah Khan, Information Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb and former parliamentarians of the PMLN from Islamabad and Rawalpindi were also present on the occasion.
Shehbaz said soon Pakistan would not only put an end to debt burden but would also emerge as a powerful country.
He said that Imran Niazi was bent upon ruining the economy as evident from his willful deviation from the IMF agreement. “He wanted the country to default, but with the blessings of Almighty Allah and efforts of the coalition government, such an eventuality was averted,” he added.
Speaking about the May 09 incidents, the prime minister said what the PTI had done on that day was something the enemy could not do.
Referring to the stand-by agreement with the IMF, he said it was all because of the prayers of people, and now the country would resume its journey of development and prosperity. “It was not an easy task as the PMLN and its coalition partners put their politics at stake by taking tough economic decisions to save the country from default,” he said.
Shehbaz said that not a single corruption scandal had been reported during the current government’s tenure of over one year, rather billions of rupees were saved by reaching big deals such as import of wheat and agreement of a nuclear power project with China.
He said the cost of the nuclear power project remained the same besides a discount of Rs30 billion as agreed with the-then prime minister Nawaz Sharif in 2018. The prime minister said the coalition government had launched a series of development projects in the federal capital to provide relief to its residents.
The capital’s most important project, he said, was the Bhara Kahu flyover that had almost been completed and its inauguration was likely by the end of the current month.
He said the project was not only beneficial for the residents of the twin cities but it would also facilitate the people from all over the country in their travel to Kashmir and Northern Areas.
The prime minister also inaugurated the monsoon tree plantation campaign by planting a tree near the flyover project.
Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah said the prime minister always did the politics of serving the people and efficiently ran the government affairs during his over-a-year tenure as he kept balance among all the coalition partners. “The ‘politics of arrogance’ had had been buried forever,” he said.
Meanwhile, addressing a ceremony, the prime minister rejected Israel’s criticism of alleged human rights violations in Pakistan, accusing the “Zionists” of atrocities against Palestinians for decades, Anadolu Agency reports. “There is no comparison of Israel’s brutalities and human rights violations against Palestinians. They [Israeli forces] have left hundreds of thousands of Palestinian kids orphaned,” Shehbaz said.
He was responding to a rare statement made by Israel at the UN Human Rights Council on Tuesday, in which its Permanent Representative to the UN, Adi Farjon, talked about the human rights situation in Pakistan.
PM Shehbaz called the statement “highly condemnable” and said Israel should be “ashamed of what it has been doing against Palestinians for decades.”
“It [Tel Aviv] has no right to issue such a statement. I want to ask how it would react if a similar (May 9) incident had occurred in Israel,” he questioned, adding that if Israel was so much concerned, why it remained silent when perpetrators of Capitol Hill attack were punished.
Separately, addressing the Pharma Export Summit and Awards (PESA-2023), PM Shehbaz stressed the formulation of a balanced strategy that could lower the pricing formula of life-saving drugs and also ensure growth of the country’s pharmaceutical industry.
He said the government was committed to protecting the poor besides helping the pharmaceutical sector to thrive.
The event, organised by the Pakistan Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association (PPMA), was attended by corporate heads of national and multinational pharmaceutical companies and pharma experts.
The prime minister said the country’s pharmaceutical industry was playing an important role in meeting the demands of medicine.
He paid tributes to the companies for propelling the export of medicines.
Because of the steep rise in the cost of raw materials, he said, the prices of medicine witnessed an upsurge. He, however, stressed that the situation must not lead to conflict with the production of life-saving drugs.
The premier constituted a committee to resolve the issues and demands of the pharma industry within two weeks.
He hoped that before the completion of the constitutional term of incumbent government, matters pertaining to the pharma industry would be resolved amicably.
The prime minister expressed confidence that the board meeting of the International Monetary Fund this evening would help open more Letters of Credit (LCs) relating to pharma products.
“This is just the beginning of a long journey, for which the government, businessmen and all institutions need to work together,” he said.
He said the nation could make remarkable progress if all segments work with unity within their ambits.
Regarding Saudi Arabia’s $2 billion deposit with the State Bank of Pakistan, the prime minister gave the entire credit to Army Chief General Asim Munir, saying this happened “purely due to his untiring efforts”.
