— Calls for developing consensus over national economy
— PTI turns down offer, says no talks with ‘failed regime’
LAHORE: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Sunday stressed the need for initiation of a grand dialogue by all the stakeholders over vital sectors of the economy if they wanted to move ahead on the path of progress and prosperity.
Addressing an inauguration ceremony of Indus Hospital in Lahore, the prime minister said nations were not formed on the basis of the construction of magnificent buildings but hard work, integrity and sacrifices coupled with the use of the latest knowledge and technology evolved them.
He said that a consensus should be developed over the national economy in such a manner that it should not be disturbed by a change of government.
He opined there were certain sectors of the economy such as information technology and industrialisation through which the country could move ahead.
The prime minister underlined that they should think above themselves and their personal likes and dislikes and accord top priority to the progress and prosperity of the nation.
He maintained that a country could not survive on debts.
Sharif regretted that Pakistan should have been at the forefront of the Islamic world in terms of progress and development.
Comparing Pakistan’s export volume with neighbouring Bangladesh, he said its annual exports now touched the $40 billion mark while Pakistan had an export value of $27-28 billion.
The prime minister referring to the global economic meltdown said that they had increased the petroleum prices with a heavy heart.
He also termed the previous government’s decision of decreasing petroleum prices in the month of March as a ploy as they had not extended any kind of relief to the masses during their rule.
The prime minister further assured that they would try their best to provide relief to the poor and said that the government was looking to ease out impacts of price hikes by extending financial relief to over 70 million people.
He stressed that they had to stand on their feet with sheer qualities of hard work, sacrifices, unity and proper planning.
On load-shedding, the prime minister said he had chaired an emergency meeting wherein he sought a mechanism to decrease its duration.
He said the government of Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) could not make arrangements for the purchase of oil and gas as these two components were mainly used for producing power and now these had been priced very high in the global market.
He also hinted to announce further austerity measures shortly in the face of economic challenges.
The prime minister said he was ready to be held accountable for his two and half months of rule but what about the previous rulers who had governed the country in the last three and half years.
He expressed the optimism that with unity and hard work, the country would rise to the horizon and no one would be able to match its speed.
Sharif, while lauding the efforts of the hospital’s administration and founders, urged the philanthropists to come forward and donate generously for alleviation of the sufferings of the poor and deserving people in the field of health and education.
He said with such noble deeds, they could earn the blessings of this mundane world and the world hereafter.
The prime minister said that during his tenure as chief minister of Punjab, they had set up and upgraded various hospitals in the province.
He stressed the need for an enhanced network of health facilities across the country and referred to Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s 250-bed state-of-the-art hospital in Muzaffargarh which was set up during the 2010 floods by Turkey.
He also appreciated philanthropists for their donations which would be spent for serving humanity.
The prime minister said that during his tenure as chief minister, he had activated Punjab Endowment Fund with a deposit of Rs20 billion and supported a large number of orphaned children with the fund.
He also lauded the contribution of Dr. Amjad Saqib and said if good and generous people wanted to extend support to the government in the provision of relief to the masses in the health sector, they could be encouraged and should not be politically targeted.
He regretted that the previous government had closed the endowment fund and chief minister’s self-employment scheme in the province and assured Saqib that such like schemes would be revived soon.
The prime minister said they had also set up Pakistan Kidney & Liver Institute (PKLI) which became a world-renowned hospital, but the previous government of PTI politicised it and caused immense damage.
The PTI government had destroyed all departments and entities, he claimed.
Earlier, the prime minister took round of the different sections of the hospital and interacted with the staff and patients.
PTI rejects grand dialogue with a ‘failed regime’
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) however rejected Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s offer of holding a “grand dialogue”, saying that no dialogue could be held with a failed regime installed from backdoor.
PTI’s Central Information Secretary Farrukh Habib, in a video statement, said that the idea of a grand dialogue has been offered by the incumbent government to hide its failures as well as the inflation that has hit the country in the first 50 days of it coming into power.
“Those who served as a curse to the poor people have laid the foundation of political and economic chaos in the country,” said Habib, adding that the incumbent government was making “hilarious claims “ of fixing the economy by increasing oil, electricity, and gas prices by 40-45%.
“The main beneficiary of their grand dialogue will not be health, economy and education but Maqsood chaprasi,” alleged the PTI leader.
