PML-N supremo and former premier Nawaz Sharif on Sunday asked the nation to compare the country’s situation in 2017 when he was in power with that in 2024 that was plagued by a plethora of crises including the high prices of roti, electricity, gas, fuel and other essentials.
“The people were subjected to a great deal of atrocities. I can put up with atrocities but not with those against the country’s people,” he told a public gathering at Sialkot’s Jinnah Stadium held as part of his party’s election campaign for the next general polls scheduled for February 8.
Nawaz pledged that if the nation gave its mandate to his party once more, its government would restore the country on the path to development and prosperity again.
The PML-N supremo regretted the regression of the country. “I don't see the Pakistan I left where roti was available for Rs4 and now it is Rs25; petrol was sold at Rs65 per litre and now it costs Rs260 per litre; and the price of sugar was Rs50 per kg at that time, but today it stands at Rs150 per kg,” he added.
He maintained that if he was not ousted from power in 2017, the country would have been progressing now without any unemployment.
Nawaz promised if the PML-N came to power, it would provide loans to the country’s youth for a period of 20 years so that they could become financially stable and earn a respectable livelihood.
He continued that imparting skills to the youth, providing them with better employment opportunities, attracting them to the field of information technology, and handing out laptops to them like in the past were all part of the PML-N’s manifesto and if the party came to power, the implementation of these steps would be ensured.
Addressing the residents of the city, the former premier recalled that the Sialkot to Lahore motorway was built during the PML-N’s tenure.
He regretted that the motorway was not of the quality that he wanted, but said if the Almighty gave his party another chance to serve the public, then it would improve it.
The PML-N supremo said an excellent train project from Lahore to Sialkot would be started so that the residents of the city could run their business in a better manner and increase the country’s foreign reserves.
Read: Nawaz vows to revive the ‘golden era’
Nawaz said his political comrades from Sialkot had always supported him and the PML-N and stood by side in every hardship including former defence minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif; his late father Khawaja Muhammad Safdar; Rana Shamim Ahmad Khan; the Vario family; late Syed Iftikharul Hassan also known as Zahray Shah and now his daughter Nosheen Iftikhar; Ali Zahid Hamid and his father.
Speaking at the public gathering, PML-N president and former premier Shehbaz Sharif said the party would emerge victorious on February 8.
Echoing his elder brother’s sentiments, he too praised the business community of Sialkot, saying that he saluted it for the role it was playing in the development of the country by providing it with billions of dollars.
Shehbaz said that everyone should remember the brilliant era of Nawaz Sharif’s premiership from 1997 to 1999 when he ordered carrying out six nuclear explosions in response to India’s five, making Pakistan's defence invincible.
He added that Nawaz even rejected the US president’s offer of $5 billion in exchange for not carrying out the nuclear explosions because he had always prioritised the country's interests.
PML-N senior vice president and chief organiser Maryam Nawaz while addressing the gathering said the people of Sialkot had always honoured them for which they were grateful to them.
She said her father, Nawaz, always fulfilled his promises and so she assured them that on February 8, if they stamped on the ‘tiger’ – the PML-N’s electoral symbol – on their votes, he would not let them down.
Former defence minister Asif along with the nominated candidates of all five National Assembly and provincial legislature constituencies of Sialkot were also present at the public gathering.
COMMENTS
Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.
For more information, please see our Comments FAQ