Former president and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari on Wednesday called on Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in Islamabad.
Federal ministers Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, Khawaja Muhammad Asif and Khawaja Saad Rafiq were also present on the occasion. Overall political situation in the country was discussed during the meeting.
The prime minister said that the country’s development was linked with the supremacy of the Constitution and the democratic process.
They agreed to work in unison with all political parties for democratic stability as well as the public welfare.
The prime minister congratulated Bilawal on taking oath as a federal minister and reiterated resolve to overcome the prevailing challenges through mutual cooperation.
Earlier in the day, President Dr Arif Alvi administered the oath of Bilawal as the federal minister for foreign affairs. The PPP chief took oath following the approval of the party’s top decision-making body a day earlier.
PM Shehbaz witnessed the oath-taking ceremony at the Aiwan-e-Sadr which was attended by former president Asif Ali Zardari, ex-prime ministers Yousuf Raza Gilani and Raja Pervaiz Ashraf, and a large number of parliamentarians, party workers, and government officials.
The premier also held a meeting with Federal Minister for Poverty Alleviation Shazia Atta Marri. PM Shehbaz directed her to reinstate eligible persons into Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP), who were struck out of the beneficiary list by the previous government without any reason.
The prime minister welcomed devising a procedure about making an appeal for re-inclusion of the persons expelled from BISP.
PM Shehbaz was briefed on the proposed procedure of the appeal for such 820,000 people who were evicted from the BISP by the previous government without any investigation.
Marri also updated the prime minister regarding the working of her ministry. She paid tribute to PM Shehbaz for announcing assistance for the deserving people of Balochistan under BISP and offering scholarships to students besides extending financial support to the parents of female students.
