Tall claims ended in a whimper: PM

Nawaz Sharif says mudslingers can’t be called leaders

KAHUTA: The people of Pakistan have rejected ‘politics of mudslinging’, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif said on Friday in an apparent jibe at his political arch nemesis, Imran Khan.

“Pakistanis honour others and deserve honour in return. Those hankering after publicity, and disgracing and humiliating others cannot be called leaders,” Sharif said while speaking at a public gathering in Narh village of Kahuta.

Without naming the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf chairman, Sharif said the opposition was scared of the government’s march on the road to progress and prosperity, and wanted to interrupt it midcourse.

“Such elements want to halt the development process which the PML-N government has initiated in the best interest of the common man,” he added. However, he vowed not to give in to mudslinging and propaganda.

The prime minister said people had already rejected those impeding the government’s national development agenda. He ridiculed Imran’s backtracking on his Nov 2 plan to lock down Islamabad. “Tall claims ended in a whimper,” he said.

The prime minister said no previous governments — including that of Pervez Musharraf and the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) — had taken steps for the country’s development, including construction of motorways and  overcoming of electricity shortage.

He called those responsible for the energy crisis ‘public offenders’ and said their apathy resulted in worse load-shedding of even 16 to 18 hours a day.

“The PML-N is the sole political party which can claim credit for an economic turnaround, nuclear tests, motorways and overcoming energy shortage,” he said, adding that the PML-N would also sweep the next general elections of 2018 on the basis of its track record of development.

Talking with reference to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, the prime minister said construction of a highway from Pakistan-China border at Khunjrab – located at an altitude of 16,000 feet – to deep sea port in Gwadar was in progress, which would connect the country’s north with south.

“The ongoing march on the road to progress is in fact putting our opponents ill at ease,” he remarked.

He advised the opposition to support the government rather than impeding national development. “Inflation is going down and an end to unemployment tops our priorities,” he added.

Sharif claimed his government had broken the back of terrorists. He highlighted his government’s welfare schemes such as laptops and scholarships worth billions of rupees to students and free health treatment schemes for the poor.

“The free health treatment scheme will also be extended to Kahuta and Narh,” he assured the audience chanting pro-PML-N and pro-Sharif slogans.

He said the government was overhauling the railways into a self-sufficient entity. “The Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) is offering efficient services to passengers and Hajj pilgrims have been served with honour,” he added.

Highlighting his government’s ‘transparent policies’, Sharif claimed no one could blame the government for any kickback in projects’ execution during the last three and a half years.

He announced various development projects for Kahuta and Kalar Sayedan. These include a project to widen the Rawalpindi-Kahuta road, project for provision of electricity and gas to all union councils of both the towns and project for upgrading of Kahuta hospital and 12 high schools.

Sharif also announced to fund the construction of roads with total stretch of 100 kilometers in Kahuta and Kalar Sayedan – a construction that he believed would bring in progress and prosperity in the area.

“A tunnel will be constructed through the hills falling on the way from Rawalpindi to Narh to reduce travel duration from three to one hour,” he added.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 5^th, 2016.