Balchistan Chief Minister Abdul Malik Baloch. PHOTO: REUTERS
QUETTA:
Balochistan Chief Minister Abdul Malik Baloch had renewed his appeal to the world community – mainly donors, overseas Pakistanis and philanthropists to come forward and help the earthquake affected people of Awaran and other districts.
He said the affected people need some 35,000 housing units, schools, hospitals, roads, basic infrastructure and other civic and community services.
“The world community should help build modern and model townships in the quake-affected areas and the natural disaster should be converted into an opportunity to win back our people,” CM Baloch told the anchor during an interview with a private TV channel.
The provincial government will form its cabinet in a day or two and work for the rehabilitation and relief in the calamity hit areas as a team, the chief minister went on to say.
In order to defuse the situation, he said he had met some local leaders of Balochistan Liberation Front and convinced them that they should not disrupt relief efforts in the interest of quake affected people.
Abdul Malik Baloch also disclosed that he intended to hold an All Parties’ Conference (APC) after Eidul Azha and later on form a people’s jirga to formulate a strategy for engaging the militants and their supporters for restoring peace in Balochistan.
Published in The Express Tribune, October 3rd, 2013.
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"“The world community should help build modern and model townships in the quake-affected areas and the natural disaster should be converted into an opportunity to win back our people,” CM Baloch told the anchor during an interview with a private TV channel."
Isn't it Pakistani government's responsibility to provide aid to rebuild? It is not that Pakistan is a poor country like some African countries. Why should the world community send their taxpayer dollars to Pakistan while the state of Pakistan prefers to spend the money on nuclear bombs, fighter jets, missiles and maintaining a huge army?
Also, why are not the rich local Pakistanis and those abroad not sending money to help with the reconstruction? The global community still remembers how Musharraf used the 2005 earthquake aid money to buy fighter jets, radars, bombs and missile.
"... the natural disaster should be converted into an opportunity to win back our people,” " The only people you ran away from is Pakistanis and they are the ones who should be winning you back. Has anyone moved even a little finger? As far as the rest of the world goes, did you notice not even an offer of services of sniffer dogs from anyone? All sympathy in the human breasts for Pakistanis has dried up!