PM vows to ensure writ of state at all costs

Abbasi calls for encouraging tax-payment culture in the country

KARACHI: Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi has said his administration will establish the writ of the state come what may by challenging those who want to destabilise the development goal.

“We will not detach from our mission to take Pakistan to the height of success. The PML-N’s economic policies will continue to be pursued without any disturbance,” he said while talking to members of Karachi’s business community at the Governor House on Saturday, the first day of his two-day visit to the commercial hub of the country.

This is Abbasi’s second visit to the metropolis since he was sworn in as premier on August 1 after the Supreme Court disqualified his predecessor Nawaz Sharif.

The premier said the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) is the lifeline of the country, and the business community should take full advantage of the multibillion-dollar project.

“We must expand our tax-base and encourage tax-payment culture in order to boost the national economy. Interactions between the government and the business community need to be more frequent,” he added.



Abbasi said the PML-N government had already started the reforms process for ease of doing business in the country. “Our government has focused on expanding infrastructure, including the road network and power projects that are a pre-requisite for a robust economy,” he added.

He said the business community was always welcome to provide tangible advice and to propose out-of-the-box solutions that could help in further strengthening the economy.

The businessmen said they were ever willing to support the government in its endeavours to increase exports.

Led by Muhammad Ali Tabba, the delegation comprised Fawad Anwar, Zain Bashir, Jawed Happy, Asif Tata, Shahid Surti, Shehzad Ahmed. Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Economic Affairs Miftah Ismaeel was also in attendance.

Earlier, in a separate meeting, a delegation of Young Presidents Organisation, led by Mahmood Maulvi called on the prime minister at the Governor House.



Delegation members included Ali Jameel, Jameel Yousuf, Khawaja Iqbal Hassan, Abbas D Habib, Abrar Hassan, Raziur Rahman Khan, Maheen Rehman, Sohail Taba, Ghais Khan, Amin Lakhany, Nadeem Lodhi, Adnan Sarfaraz, Muhammad Ali Habib and Ahmed Zuberi.