Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has said peace and security were of paramount importance for economic growth, as both were intertwined.
“Pakistan has suffered long at the hands of terrorism and we cannot afford inaction anymore. Curbing terrorism is my government’s top most priority,” the prime minister said.
Meeting Parliamentarians from the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) at the Prime Minister’s Office on Wednesday, Nawaz reiterated the resolve of his government to eliminate terrorism, saying they had no option except vigorously pursuing a well-planned and coordinated strategy to find a meaningful solution to the problem of terrorism.
Expressing the utility of dialogue, the prime minister said, “The window of dialogue should be kept open all the times.”
“FATA parliamentarians are the real stakeholders and their input and consultation for finalising road map for peace in the region is a must.”
Expressing pity over lawlessness and economic backwardness prevailing in FATA due to terrorism, the prime minister said he wanted to give peace as a gift to the people of the region.
Enumerating the sacrifices that Pakistani civilians and law-enforcement agencies’ personnel had rendered in the war against terror, the prime minister said, “We salute those who laid down their lives in the fight against terror and those who withstood the onslaught of hardships of time without getting intimidated in the process.”
Nawaz said the people of Pakistan had shown their utmost resilience in their hour of adversity and it was this national character and unrelenting hope for peace that would help “us defeat the forces of terror”.
The meeting also discussed various proposals and recommendations put forward by FATA parliamentarians to bring the area into the national mainstream.
Responding to their suggestions for the uplift of FATA, Nawaz expressed the resolve of his government to institute such policies and projects in the area that helped the people to play their role at the national level.
The FATA parliamentarians expressed confidence in the leadership of the prime minister and further hoped that Pakistan would be able to surmount several challenges it faced under his visionary leadership.