International Poverty Alleviation Day was observed throughout the world including Pakistan on Sunday. The day is observed every year on October 17 to promote awareness among the people to earn livelihood with hardworking and creating jobs for the unemployed people.
In this connection, a special function was held in Rawalpindi during which the speakers urged the government to take concrete steps and devise comprehensive plans to overcome the menace of poverty from the country.
The function was organised by Pakistan Amn Party (PAP), which was attended among others by PAP central chairman Haji Mohammad Gulzar Awan, Dr Niaz Ahmed, Athar Hussain, Chairman of International Lawyer's Forum Naseem Ahmed Bajwa, Begum Shaheen Bashir, Shahid Waheed and Pir Karamat Ali.
Haji Mohammad Gulzar Awan said there were many factors stood behind the poverty in the country, but the main cause was not other than the big landlords, who were also the sole decision makers of our fortunes.
He said lust for wealth is also one of the major reason for increasing gap between rich and poor which needed to be bridged down. Dr Niaz Ahmed, Athar Hussain and other speakers said poverty rose sharply in the country due to bad governance of the previous governments.
They said agricultural production had long been a mainstay of the Nation's economy, successfully feeding and clothing the domestic population as well as exporting agricultural goods, but due to lack of attention by the rulers, this important sector was also declining. Meanwhile, Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani in his message on the occasion said that the battle of fighting extremism and terrorism cannot be won comprehensively without forming global alliances and partnerships for the eradication of poverty.