Prime Minister Imran Khan Monday said the country could not make progress when its resources were plundered and the corrupt criminals kept on stuffing their personal coffers, and declared that the ongoing battle against corruption and corrupt elements would help secure future of Pakistan and its upcoming generations.
The elements who nurtured fears that their corruption would be exposed, and that they would be nabbed, had been crying hoarse, he said while addressing an 87-member delegation from Balochistan province, participating in the National Security workshop. The participants belonged to different spheres of life, PM office media wing in a press release said.
The prime minister said a country could not progress when criminals held the high offices. Few elements were asking the government to focus on other issues and neglect those criminals who had never been sincere with the country, he added. He said a leader did not instill fear in the nation to secure their votes but a real leader always gives hope.
Referring to the recent incidents in India, he said leaders never divide the nation or society by misguiding it or through creation of an atmosphere of fear.
About government's reforms, the prime minister said they faced fiscal and trade deficit challenges but due to the government's efforts on the economic front, stability was achieved as manifested in the economic indicators of the country. The year 2019, was a year of economic stability and in the upcoming year of 2020, efforts would be made for economic growth rate and promotion of the economic activities, he added. He expressed his resolve to focus on those areas which lagged behind in terms of social and economic progress.
About China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), the prime minister said it would benefit the whole country specially Balochistan province and would usher in an era of progress and prosperity in the province. He observed that with the development of Gwadar port as an economic hub of the country, the whole province would reap fruits.
The prime minister said the economic stability was a vital component of the national security and the nations facing the burden of debts had to face numerous national security issues. He said the nations facing economic challenges could not utilize resources for the human development which was inevitable for the national development.
Exemplifying Germany, Japan and US, the prime minister said by focusing upon the human development, Japan had joined the comity of developed nations despite having faced immense losses during the World War-II. He told the delegation that Pakistan had been blessed with huge resources and human resource capital with a great potential.
He said the Northern Areas of Pakistan were double the size of Switzerland besides being rich with picturesque beauty. There existed a huge potential of tourism in Northern Areas as well as the religious tourism which had faced neglect in the past.
He said Switzerland generated revenue of around $80 billion merely from the tourism sector which was more than the total exports of Pakistan which stood at $25 billion. Literate people, cleanliness facilities and a disciplined society were the basic factors behind the success of tourism sector in Switzerland, he added.
The prime minister said a long term future planning was essential to utilize the human resource and counter the national challenges as had been done by China. Referring to the issues of water in Quetta, Lahore and Karachi, the prime minister said such serious problems had been ignored in the past that had led to their deterioration.
He said unfortunately the pace of country's agriculture development was lower than the developed countries despite the country being rich with fertile land and sufficient water. The national economy could be stabilized to a great extent only if the country enhanced its agriculture produce by taking advantage of the latest technology.
The government had decided to take benefit from the Chinese expertise in the sector and was focusing on the agriculture technology transfer, he added.
Responding to a query about corruption cases in Balochistan province, he said for nabbing white collar crimes, special expertise was required and the government was paying special attention on the capacity building with respect to elimination of white collar crimes, the effective prosecution of these cases leading to the logical end.
To other questions, he said the government was paying full attention to the infrastructure development and economic prosperity of Balochistan province, noting that exploration of mineral resources and their proper utilization would open a new chapter of progress and prosperity in the province.
The prime minister maintained that the federal and the provincial governments had been cooperating to provide sports facilities and play grounds to the youth of the province.
The province was rich with resources and the international companies had been expressing their keen interest in the provincial resources under the present government's policies, he added. The prime minister observed that the province and its residents would avail immensely with the exploration of natural resources.
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