F.P. Report
ISLAMABAD: President Dr Arif Alvi said that the present government was pursuing the vision to develop Pakistan as a modern Islamic welfare state as no society could progress in absence of a social welfare mechanism.
Addressing the 11th International Corporate Social Responsibility Summit and Awards 2019 ceremony here, the president said even the initial verses of the Holy Quran directed the wealthy people to spend for the welfare of have-nots.
He said “while developing Pakistan as a modern Islamic welfare state, we were supposed to absorb the modern developments taking place around the world.”
He said Islam also had the distinction of ensuring the protection of human rights. Islam was originally based on social services including human rights and public welfare like freeing slaves, paying Zakat and carrying out charity works.
He told the gathering that 26 individuals in the world were richer than 3.5 billion people across the globe and even a fraction of their wealth was sufficient to eradicate world’s poverty.
The president said Pakistanis had distinction in charity works and cited the philanthropy services during 2005 earthquake.
He said the country had hosted millions of Afghan refugees unlike European countries which had been bargaining to host even a few hundred refugees.
Citing the death of a three-year Syrian refugee child in the Mediterranean Sea while his family was trying to reach Europe, the president said such incidents were the failure of the civilizations for being unable to protect human rights.
He said China had steered its people out of extreme poverty by heavily investing in education and health sectors which provided basis for national development. Pakistan should also do the same and would do too, he added.
The president said corporate sector could not remain indifferent to its social responsibilities and it was criminal to ignore the communities around them.
President Alvi said the states should tax the wealthy class to protect the lower income groups and provide them equal opportunities.
He said the government alone could not do the social services and the corporate sector must also perform its responsibilities simultaneously. He urged the corporate sector to carry out projects for the residents of Thar region by extending education and health facilities to them.
The president also urged the corporate sector to encourage other people to take part in social welfare services.
He believed that the democracies get hijacked by capitalism when they acted in isolation without spending the low-income groups. The president also gave away awards to the corporate firms which had carried out distinctive works under their corporate social responsibility.
