Prime Minister Syed Yousaf Raza Gilani on Wednesday, informing about the serious threats being faced by the country, called for forging unity to uphold the national sovereignty and dignity. "Pakistan is facing serious threats and the situation demands more co-ordination between the political forces and all state institutions," said the Prime Minister while speaking in Senate, adding, we should not give opportunity to 'others' for pointing fingers at Pakistan.
He said, "We are at the cross roads today and the situation demands resolve and commitment of the nation to stand-by the State institutions to defend our geographical and ideological frontiers." "I appeal all of you to become one nation and give a strategy on national policy on security, as Pakistan is facing serious threat," he informed the senators, adding that it was time for strengthening state institutions so that they could work in harmony to further strengthen Pakistan.
He said anybody might have wrong perception of the situation, but all are patriots and want to overcome these challenges. He said we can only save our country with unity and determination. As for as the country's defence and security is concerned, the Prime Minister added that all state institutions were on the same page and there was no division on the country's defence and security. "If there is Pakistan, there is politics and we should avoid politicising the issue of country's defence. We should talk about strengthening the country's defence institutions," he said, adding that it was not time for point scoring, but putting heads together to devise a comprehensive and workable strategy to safeguard the country. He also said that we will not allow our territory to be used for terrorism.
About the issue of Osama bin Laden, he said Osama was not a Pakistani citizen rather he was involved in heinous crimes while leading al Qaeda which is responsible for killing thousands of innocent Pakistanis during the last few years. He said the government has decided to convene in-camera session of the Parliament on Friday in which the parliamentarians will be briefed about the situation by the security agencies. Beside, he added that a meeting of the Defence Co-ordination Committee has also been convened later this month to review the situation.
About the May 2 incident, Gilani said he received a call from the Chief of Army Staff at 2:00 am at night and informed about the US helicopters. Subsequently, the Prime Minister said he telephoned Foreign Secretary Salman Bashir, who called the US ambassador in Pakistan Cameron Munter. "On the meantime, Amry Chief telephoned me again and confirmed about the US operation," he added.
He further said that in the meantime, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton telephoned him and President Barack Obama talked to President Zardari. Gilani said that a meeting was convened early in the morning and it was decided to issue a statement from the Foreign Office.
He said the British Prime Minister David Cameron also telephoned him and acknowledged Pakistan's contributions and assured of full co-operation. Besides, he added that Nato and the European Union also issued statements recognising Pakistan's role and contributions in the war on terror. He recalled his meeting with French President Nicholas Sarkozy, who called him a guarantor of democracy in Pakistan.
Gilani paid rich tributes to those who sacrificed their lives to save our future and urged the entire nation to fully stand-by the armed forces to eliminate terrorism. "We should not forget the countless sacrifices of those who sacrificed their lives for the better and peaceful future of the coming generation," he added.
Referring to providing funds to development schemes, he said that the government has adopted a policy to develop all parts of the country across the board and no discrimination is being made with any part of the country regarding socio-economic development.
He said Ministry of Finance has been directed to pay attention to the point of view of all the provinces regarding their complaints for delaying in development projects. However, he said that a committee headed by Leader of the House Syed Nayar Hussain Bokhari would be constituted to address the delay in any specific development project.
The Prime Minister also said that a record development work has been done in the last three years, adding that he can challenge if more development projects were undertaken previously. He said special development packages have been announced for Khyber- Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan.