PM lauds bureaucracy for cooperation

F.P. Report
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday expressed his gratitude to the bureaucracy for their support and guidance throughout the 16-month tenure, enabling the coalition government to sail through tough circumstances.
The prime minister, in his farewell interaction with the federal secretaries, said despite being hugely diverse, the 13-party coalition government ran the affairs smoothly with utmost cooperation and prudence, also setting an example of the practicability of the coalition government. He said during the 16 months, the bureaucracy also faced some difficult scenarios but the will to do something productive for the people of Pakistan paved the way.
The prime minister lamented the past practice of unnecessarily criticizing and victimising the competent officers which adversely impacted public service. Just like the politicians, the officers were also victimised and their families harassed. He said the civil service faced a severe blow during the devolution as due to the very reason, some of the youngsters also opted to join other services.
Mentioning systemic delays in the execution of 10,000MW solar energy project, Prime Minister Shehbaz called for establishing robust systems to ensure the smooth execution of projects. He said the incumbent government ensured the completion of various public welfare projects which had been halted by the previous government.
Recounting the achievements of his government, the prime minister said the signing of the IMF (International Monetary Fund) agreement was a great success, otherwise, the situation could have been disastrous for the country. He said the credit for all the successes achieved by the government also went to the federal secretaries as they had been serving diligently during the challenging circumstances, particularly floods.
The prime minister said that his government played a constructive role to mend the ties with friendly countries which were undermined by the previous government through the “worst strategy”. He said the previous government even hurled baseless allegations of corruption in the CPEC projects. He said the projects being funded by foreign grants were also impeded by the previous government as they never wanted the respective government to claim the credit.
The prime minister appreciated his Special Assistants Tariq Fatemi, AhadCheema and Jahanzeb Khan for their hard work and cooperation. Regarding his Press Secretary Abdul Akbar, the prime minister said he was very committed officer with a great personality. He also appreciated his Speech Writer Arshad Malik and Public Relations Officer Umar Faran as well as the the official media team and expressed good wishes for them.
PM advises civil servants to collectively work for country’s welfare: Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday advised the civil servants especially those employed in the PM Office and PM House to work diligently for the betterment of the country.
Addressing a gathering of the luncheon given in honour of staff of the PM Office and PM House, Shehbaz Sharif stressed the need to get united and put collective efforts to take the country towards sustainable development and stability. “We all should endeavour to free the country from all domestic and international loans and put it on strong footing,” he added.
The prime minister said Allah Almighty had blessed the country with huge natural resources but the only thing that lacked was “the will to do”. He said after rendering great sacrifices, Pakistan was formed for a certain cause. “We all have the duty to play our role in the development of the country and to fulfil the vision of the founder of Pakistan Quid-i-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah and AllamaIqbal,” he added.
“We should also promise to follow the teachings of the Holy Prophet Hazrat Muhammad (PBUH), and fulfil the vision of Quid-i-Azam and Allama Muhammad Iqbal to make Pakistan and prosperous and peaceful country.” He thanked the staff for their assistance during his stay in the office of the Prime Minister.
“I thank you all for supporting and guiding me during my 16-month stay in the office. Either they are my personal secretaries, military secretary, drivers, cook, telephone operators, deputy secretaries, PSOs, or others, all did their duties with due diligence and guided me on various matters,” he added. He said due to economic challenges, the cabinet members voluntarily withdrew from perks and privileges and most of them did not draw their salaries. On the occasion the prime minister also distributed certificates of encouragement among the staff of grades 1 to 16.