Govt to provide maximum relief to victims of heavy rains: PM Shehbaz


ISLAMABAD, July 27 (SABAH): Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif Wednesday announced maximum relief to the masses affected by rains in Balochistan and other parts of the country.

Addressing a National Assembly session in the federal capital, the prime minister talked about the country’s faltering economy, the troubles that the government faced in a bid to rectify the situation and the devastation caused by the monsoon rainfalls in the country, among other issues.

PM Shehbaz said that the coalition government was aware of the destruction caused by the rains and added that for this purpose, it has held meetings with all the provincial governments.

He said that the provincial governments are working day and night in areas where people lost their lives and suffered economically due to the rains.

“The federal government has decided to increase the relief package for those affected by the rains,” the premier said, adding that a meeting will take place tomorrow to discuss the provision of relief to the people.

The premier said that the federal government will work with the provincial governments to overcome the losses and help the farmers who suffered the most.

Prime Minister Shehbaz said that the Constitution of Pakistan was drafted under the leadership of Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto and presented Pakistan as a strong, dynamic country before the world.

The Constitution will continue to guide and strengthen Pakistan no matter how much someone tries to meddle with it, said the PM.

Talking about the 2018’s General Elections, PM Shehbaz said that those polls were the worst in the country’s history. “Those polls imposed a government through the process of rigging,” he added.

“The Results Transmission System (RTS) was closed at night and the counting of votes was stopped by the order of the former chief justice,” he added.

PM Shehbaz berated the PTI-led government and said it took loans of more than Rs20,000 billion in three-and-a-half years, adding that millions of people lost their jobs and became homeless during the PTI’s tenure.

The premier further said that the coalition government knew that Pakistan was on the verge of default, and for that, the government decided to save the state rather than focusing on political point-scoring.

“I was offered to become the prime minister by a president in 1992; Musharraf also offered me the PM’s post, and when Nawaz Sharif offered me the premiership, I chose to serve Punjab instead to complete the mega projects,” said the premier, adding that he had many opportunities to become the prime minister in the past.

The prime minister went on to say that the country cannot progress if there is no justice. “The times are tough but we will make Pakistan great by fighting this fascism,” he added.

PM Shehbaz said that he will keep trying as long as he has the confidence of the party, coalition leaders, and the House. “No matter what happens, I will be the same servant of Pakistan, the same Shehbaz Sharif,” he highlighted.

Talking about the country’s situation, he said: “I cannot sleep at night thinking why we’re behind other countries in terms of progress. Even 75 years later, we have still not decided our path.”

He went on to say that the court should make a decision while considering the truth and justice, adding that the PTI ruined Pakistan’s relations with other countries during its tenure.

“They sent a letter via WhatsApp stating that Russia will give us cheap oil, while the Russian government denied any such offer,” he said, adding that his government will buy wheat from Russia if they will provide it at low rates.

“Russia offered to sell wheat a day before after we already bought 800,000 tonnes,” he added.