ISLAMABAD (Voice of Russia): Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has said that if governor’s rule had not been imposed in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in time, the province could have suffered further damage.
Addressing the parliamentary party and office-bearers of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the prime minister said that he was addressing them as the Prime Minister of Pakistan and as a worker of Quaid Muhammad Nawaz Sharif. He said that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is a beautiful province of the beloved homeland and its people are proud, brave and dignified. He said that the PML-N has played an important role in promoting democratic traditions in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
The prime minister said that after the 2013 elections, Quaid Nawaz Sharif gave the majority party in the province the opportunity to form a government, and thanks to Nawaz Sharif’s democratic thinking and generosity, democracy advanced in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. He said that the party that remained in power in the province for 13 years made tall claims, but how many universities and hospitals were built in the province over the past 13 years?
Shehbaz Sharif said that instead of public service, attention was given to political slogans and division upon division, and public issues from Peshawar to Kohistan, Hazara and the southern districts suffered from neglect. He said that the people of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa made great sacrifices in eliminating terrorism from the country, and the people, police, army and political leaders made unparalleled sacrifices against terrorism.
The prime minister said that Pakistan suffered heavy human and economic losses in the war against terrorism, while during Nawaz Sharif’s tenure, the entire nation and institutions together eliminated terrorism. He said that the extremely painful and heartbreaking incident of APS Peshawar is still fresh in minds, and the tragedy of the martyrdom of young children will remain in history as a tragic example.
The prime minister said that the sacrifices of the people of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in the war against terrorism cannot be forgotten. He said that over the past two and a half years, the politics of long marches and sit-ins was pursued in the country, the Chinese president’s visit to Pakistan was postponed because of the 2014 sit-in, while important agreements were signed during President Xi Jinping’s visit to Pakistan in 2015.
In his address, the prime minister said that the end of 20-hour load-shedding in the country was the result of Nawaz Sharif’s day-and-night hard work. He said that in 2019 and 2020, terrorists were brought back from Afghanistan and resettled, and the resurgence of terrorism caused great damage to the country. He said that an invitation was extended to jointly confront terrorism as in the past, but their words were not heeded.
The prime minister said that in the 2010 NFC Award, it was agreed to allocate one percent additional resources for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and under the NFC Award, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has so far received 800 billion rupees. He asked how many safe city projects were established in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa with 800 billion rupees, how much the Counter-Terrorism Department was strengthened, and why recruitment was not made to 5,000 vacant police posts in the province.
Shehbaz Sharif said that the resources available in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa should have been spent on providing modern weapons and training to the police. He said that the military and political leadership worked day and night together to stabilize the country’s economy, and due to global conditions and the Gulf war, energy prices increased extraordinarily. He said that despite the difficulties, the government launched a fuel subsidy scheme for public relief, from which 13 million people have already benefited.
The prime minister said that the government has allocated 75 billion rupees to provide relief to the people, providing relief to the poor is an important priority of the government, and all possible measures are being taken to save the country’s economy from instability.
Speaking about the province, the prime minister said that in view of unavoidable circumstances, governor’s rule and emergency were imposed in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and efforts were made to resolve matters through negotiations. He said that a committee of the Pakistan Peoples Party and the PML-N held negotiations for 48 hours, and after the negotiations, approval of the agreed draft was awaited, but approval could not be obtained.
The prime minister said that it was necessary to take a decision to save the people, the country, the economy and society, and if a timely decision had not been taken, the province could have suffered further damage. He said that the PML-N will continue its efforts for the development, prosperity and public service of the province.
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