LAHORE: Punjab Chief Minister and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) President Shehbaz Sharif on Saturday said that Pakistani political leadership needs to have consensus on the economic roadmap of the country.
He expressed these views while addressing the Punjab Conference. The conference was attended by ambassadors, councilors and senior officers from economic institutions from more than 60 countries.
In his keynote speech at the conference, Shehbaz said that Pakistan is a peace loving country and Pakistani people are wonderful, hardworking and peace lovers. The country needs leadership which has the determination to serve the people and resolves their problems, he added.
He said that parties and governments come and go but the economic agenda of the nation should not be changed. He also said that if PML-N emerges victorious in the upcoming elections then it will advance the agenda of development and progress of the country.
He said the PML-N is working on the ideology of the founder of Pakistan and Allama Iqbal and it is moving forward while acting upon their vision. He also said that Pakistan had faced difficult circumstances in 1979 and it became a frontline state in a big war. Pakistan became a frontline state again in 2002 in the war against terrorism and in this war, Pakistan gave sacrifices of more than 70,000 lives, including officers and soldiers of Pakistan Army and security institutions, he added.
Shehbaz said that Pakistan played the status of the frontline state in the Cold War. He said that in the 21st century, Pakistan is again the frontline state in the war against terrorism and extremism and the Pakistani nation has displayed determination and courage in this war. He also said that the success in this war is the result of consensus between military and political leadership.
“In the Operation Rah-e-Rast of 2009, Operation Zarb-e-Azab of 2014, and the current Operation Radd-ul-Fasaad, political and military leadership are on the same page,” he said.
He said that Pakistan Army has rendered great sacrifices in the war against terrorism which started after 9/11.
“Pakistan discharged the duty of keeping largest number of the refugee population,” he added.
Shehbaz said that Pakistan has a long history as a responsible state at the international level and has always respected the resolutions of the United Nations (UN) and international treaties. He said that ensuring peace and having good relations is PML-N’s top priority.
He said, “Pakistan has a long history of relationship with Islamic countries while Pakistan also has a strong and consistent relationship with western countries. We are proceeding forward while getting benefits after experiments of friendly countries and are thankful for the economic cooperation of these countries.”
He said that the PML-N government has taken concrete measures to strengthen the economy due to which the country’s economy is strong enough and the GDP has reached 5.8 per cent which is highest in the last 13 years. Similarly, the ratio of agriculture progress remains at 3.8 per cent, he added.
He said, “We are facing the challenges of the deficit and we have to resolve it by promoting trade not by taking loans. The net of taxes needs to be increased and additional resources must be created. We have to utilise natural resources for progress and development of the nation. 60 per cent population of Pakistan consists of youth and we should impart to it the latest skills to change the fate of the nation.”
