A new era of cooperation and friendship between Pakistan and China has begun, said Punjab Chief Minister (CM) Shahbaz Sharif while talking on the occasion of inauguration of new building of Chinese Embassy at Islamabad on Tuesday.
National Assembly Speaker (NA) Ayaz Sadiq, federal ministers Khawaja Asif, Pervaiz Rasheed, Ahsan Iqbal, Lt Gen (r) Abdul Qadir Baloch, special assistant to prime minister Tariq Fatimi, political secretary Dr Asif Kirmani as well as leaders of political parties and ambassadors of different counties also attended the function.
The CM, NA speaker, federal ministers and Chinese Ambassador Sun Weidong unveiled the plaque of the new building.
NATION DETERMINED TO ELIMINATE TERRORISM:
Meanwhile, the CM has said the entire nation is united for eliminating terrorism and extremism from the country. He said that the Pak Army has hit hard to terrorists in operation Zarb-e-Azb.
He said that political and military leadership is determined to eliminate the menace of terrorism forever. He said that officers and jawans of the army have rendered great sacrifices for peaceful Pakistan and the whole nation is proud of unprecedented sacrifices of the army. He said that the nation will remember great sacrifices of martyrs forever.
He expressed these views while talking to assembly members who called on him on Tuesday.
The CM said that Operation Zarb-e-Azb reflects the national commitment for rooting out terrorism.
“The National Action Plan (NAP) for eradication of terrorism is yielding positive results,” he said, adding that the war against terrorism is for the survival of the country and 180 million Pakistanis will win this war at every cost.
“A decisive war is being fought against terrorists and their facilitators,” the CM said.
He vowed that terrorism and extremism will be eliminated from the country at all costs and the promise of giving a peaceful and safe Pakistan to the future generations will be fulfilled.
EDUCATION IS MUST:
Referring to the importance of education, the CM said that terrorism, extremism, ignorance, unemployment and poverty can be eliminated from the country only through promotion of education. He said that the government has taken revolutionary steps for the promotion of education which are unprecedented in the history of the country. He said that reforms in education sector are leaving far-reaching effects. He said that thousands of talented students are getting education from the biggest educational fund of the history.
“The Punjab Educational Endowment Fund has not only provided opportunities to talented children of poor families to get quality education in local and foreign prestigious educational institutions but this fund is also playing an important role for strengthening national solidarity as the intelligent students of all units of the country are benefitting from the programme of this fund,” he said.
He said the Daanish School System is another revolutionary and historic step of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) government through which children of backward areas of the province are getting education.
“Besides boarding and lodging, free educational facilities are available to the children of poor families in these knowledge centres,” he elaborated, adding that the government does not consider provision of resources for the promotion of education as expenses but a useful investment.
Therefore, funds of billions of rupees are being spent for the promotion of education throughout the province, he added.