Prime Minister Imran Khan said on Thursday that his government was striving for the supremacy of law in the country and would ensure it achieved this objective.
He said the country could not progress until the powerful were made answerable to the rule of law.
He added that the corrupt had looted the country’s wealth and transferred it outside. He said Pakistan would become a great nation by implementing the principles prevalent in the state of Madina.
The premier made these remarks at the launching of the Rehmatul-Lil Alameen Scholarship Programme for intermediate and undergraduate students in Islamabad.
Addressing the ceremony, PM Imran said the scholarships would be available to all people in the country. “The federal government will provide Rs5.5 billion annually for 70,000 scholarships," the premier added. He further said 350,000 scholarships would be provided during the next five years for Rs28 billion under the initiative.
“The provincial governments of Punjab and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa will also separately provide a scholarship of Rs15,000 to students,” he added. Both provinces will give 75,000 scholarships each in five years for Rs1 billion.
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The PM hailed the Punjab government for initiating the programme and said the K-P and the federal governments were also executing a similar project. He urged the other provinces to launch similar schemes.
The prime minister said the Holy Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) was the greatest personality in the history of mankind. He lamented that the people had not followed the principles laid down by the last messenger.
He said the Holy Prophet (PBUH) was a patron for all mankind, not just for Muslims. "Therefore, the scholarships started in his name would not be limited to Muslims but students of any faith could apply."
He assured the scholarships would be awarded on merit and the procedure would be online. The premier said that nations progressed only through education and no society could develop without the rule of law. Quoting a United Nations report, he said a whopping $1,000 billion are looted in poor countries every year and transferred to rich safe-havens. He vowed that the powerful people would be brought under the law, adding that our country could not develop without it.
The premier said that health insurance would be provided to every citizen in Punjab and K-P. "Under the Ehsaas programme, food and shelter were being provided to the needy and the poor."
Published in The Express Tribune, April 16th, 2021.
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