PPP to continue politics of reconciliation according to Benazir Bhutto's vision: Prime Minister

Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani has said that People's Party (PPP) will continue politics of reconciliation according to the vision of Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto. Talking to media persons at a function arranged by Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP) here on Tuesday, the Prime Minister said, "We will not move away from the politics of reconciliation and accommodate harsh Opposition."
To a question, he said Shuhada Trust of Pakistan Army and provincial governments have made arrangements to give compensation to those who lost their lives in terrorist acts. The Prime Minister said the government is observing the norms of parliamentary democracy and it incorporated the name of Fakharuddin G Ibrahim recommended by leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly for Abbottabad Commission.
Fakharuddin G Ibrahim withdrew his name as he was not consulted by the Opposition leader, he added. The Prime Minister said the Supreme Court has already taken a decision on the commissions and nobody can question the credibility of its members.
The Prime Minister said as wished by Benazir Bhutto herself, a UN commission was formed to probe her death and the report was made public. Gilani said nobody should jump to the conclusion on working of the Abbottabad Commission. The state institutions including intelligence agencies should be supported, he said adding, "If we will not support them, then who will do it."
Commenting on a recent statement of the Chief Minister of Punjab Shahbaz Sharif, he said Pakistan belongs to everybody and there should be no discrimination on the basis of provinces. The Prime Minister stated that BISP was playing an important role in alleviation of poverty and to empower women besides providing facilities of life insurance, vocational training and interest free loans so that women can start their own businesses under Waseela-e-Haq.
More than 7,000 families have benefited from the Waseela-e-Haq Programme, he added. Prime Minister Gilani said the efforts of development partners and international community supported the government in bringing revolutionary changes in the lives of deprived sections of the society by continuing BISP.
He expressed the hope that the development partners would help in making BISP programme more effective and efficient. The Prime Minister said the government will ensure that the deserving families are provided health facilities under Waseela Sahet Programme.
He said BISP is also providing financial assistance to families of citizens affected by acts of terrorism and has started imparted training to one member of a needy family under BISP's Waseela Rozgar Scheme, which will make people productive citizens of the society.
He assured the terrorism-affected families that the government would stand by them in their hour of difficulty. The Prime Minister mentioned poverty survey through which till now poor have been identified in 85 percent of the country. The poverty survey is conducted according to international standards and with a poverty card, the poor and deprived sections will be provided assistance in a transparent and impartial manner and without any political discrimination, he added.
The Prime Minister said the government policy is to bring the backward areas at par with the developed areas of the country by providing them with basic amenities of life and bringing them into the national mainstream. Poverty survey has been started in Fatya and on its completion, the government can better formulate policies for the social sector, he added.
Gilani said the government will ensure that the national wealth is used for the welfare of people through direct assistance. He mentioned the introduction of mobile phone banking and Benazir Smart Card for speedy and transparent transfer of money to female beneficiaries. He instructed the Finance Ministry to devise a way to provide relief to poor families on electricity and gas bills.
Speaking at the ceremony, Chairperson Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP) Farzana Raja said BISP distributed Rs 54 billion through opposition parties, which proves that money is not distributed for political reasons. While mentioning the accusations made by some politicians regarding use of BISP funds during the elections campaign in AJK, she said that the factual evidences are entirely different as Rs One billion have been distributed among the 30 thousand families identified by legislators of Muslim Conference and allied parties while less than 500 million have been distributed among 15 thousand families identified by legislators of Pakistan Peoples Party in AJ&K. She said that opposition for the sake of opposition is of course not a sign of mature politics.
She lauded the leadership qualities of President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani and said the government is committed to continue to reach out to poor through targeted subsidies. Farzana Raja said BISP is the vision of Benazir Bhutto and it is part of the PPP manifesto to raise living standards of the poor. She said leader and workers of PPP will not let the blood of Benazir Bhutto go waste and will continue to follow in her footsteps. She said that BISP would keep striving to achieve the objective of making Pakistan a social welfare state as it was envisioned by Shaheed Benazir Bhutto.