LAHORE: Punjab Specialized Healthcare and Medical Education Minister Khawaja Salman Rafiq on Wednesday said that there was a need to create an endowment fund to help needy artists, and that both the government and well-to-do artists and philanthropists should contribute to it.
He stated this while talking to media persons after handing a cheque of Rs500,000 on behalf of Punjab chief minister to comedian and stage artist Muhammad Javed (known popularly as Javed Kodoo) at his office.
Rafiq said that artists were a precious asset of the society who forgot their own troubles for the happiness of other people.
Javed thanked Khawaja Salman Rafiq and Shehbaz Sharif for the financial assistance given to him. He also acknowledged Rafiq’s assistance to him during his treatment for a brain haemorrhage at the General Hospital.
Javed requested the Punjab government to extend more support to needy and ailing artists by making permanent arrangements for them. He also prayed for the country’s prosperity and the success of the chief minister.