"I am going to China to save my people from one more load-shedding-ridden summer,”said the premier before his departure.
The premier, on his two-day stay in China, will sign 27 MoUs and agreements. Of the 27 agreements to be signed, 21 relate to generating 16,520mw power at an estimated cost of around $33 billion.
A list of the agreements can be viewed here: List A and List B.
Further, Nawaz said the Pakistan-China economic corridor has far reaching consequences for the economy of the country.
“These projects will be a source of employment for over a million youth of Pakistan. Pak-China cooperation will also create business opportunities for local and international investors,” the premier said.
"Despite the damage done in the past two months due to political turmoil, we will make up for the loss come what may," the prime minister said.
“Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif will also hold bilateral meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang during his stay in China,” said Foreign Office Spokesperson Tasneem Aslam.
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1732621030-0/Express-Tribune-(7)1732621030-0-270x192.webp "won t leave until imran khan orders us to k p cm gandapur")
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pakistani nation have no other way to Constrait other then on pm, this is pakistan, we need to build up pakistan like canada,, why they do,nt do free zone pakistani ports, like uae, open your hands, show your honesty , there is big oil rig companies in world, skilled workers have no jobs,, why we go uae or ksa, if our country have jobs, so pls be fair!!! creating jobs for poors , good politics, i have 15 work exp in steelwork but no jobs around me !!!
@Usman: Nothing will change in the country because PTI lost an election? Grow up please.It's sad that your obsession with counting votes blinds you to the greater national good. You really need to review what independent international observers from the European Union and North America said about Pakistan's 2013 elections. They report that despite minor rigging that goes on in all 3 rd world countries, the elections were largely fair and free. No one disputes that irregularities didn't go on but as a card carrying member of the PTI I actually celebrated the showing of Imran Khan and believed that the outcome was great. PTI would hold the government to account, learn the ropes, perform well in KPK and win in the next elections come 2018. Why do you think so many former PTI members have now been turned off by Imran Khan's stubborness? Imran Khan's statements and behavior exposed his immaturity. I loved him as a cricketer and philanthropist but hate him as a politician. He has made a fool of himself. Do I really care about a few seats here and there when the nation's well being and future is at stake? The only mafia I see is PTI where you either agree with Imran Khan and his politics of power at all costs or get lost. I had great respect for Hashmi but when you surround yourself by figures such as Shaikh Rasheed and the Chaudries of Gujrat, you need to ask which mafia has Imran Khan aligned himself with. Pakistan is meant to be a social welfare state with strong institutions and a strong parliamentary democracy. We finally saw the first peaceful transition of power for which PPP and Zardari will forever be remembered. Yes I respect PPP too! The nation has the chance to be one of the few functioning Muaslim democracies if we learn to work within the system and improve things - after a few cycles, the election process and democracy will be strengthened. Not by quick fix schemes like Arab Spring style dharnas which only waste money, scare away investment and destabilize the nation. You want to blame 60 years of misrule by politicians and dictators on Nawaz Sharif and PML N - Go ahead but know that the majority of Pakistan's citizens are smart enough to know that there is no substitute for time and work. The majority wish to see the elected government complete its term and wait for elections to determine the future course of elections. And yes hopefully there will biometric systems in place for the next elections. Have pity on the nation. But I don't lose sight of the forest because of the trees so I'll let you obsess about a few constituencies here and there while you let other citizens continue to work for society and its well being because we know that Rome wasn't built in a day and we know that Arab Spring revolts will only give you Iraq, Syria, Libya or Egypt- No thanks!
@Humza: What mandate? Until we take a stand and punish people who commit fraud, then nothing will change in this country. Why should anyone compromise when you are dealing with a corrupt mafia. Anyone who supports the status quo and this corrupt system is guilty for the problems that are happening in Pakistan, because there are a few people that lack the moral fiber to stand up for injustice fraud. For them, its business as usual.
PTI has the facts on their side, and no one disputes that.
The 2013 elections are turning out to be the worst case of election fraud ever in Pakistan history. Would anyone ever compromise with a robber or a thief? The only way to sort it through is the courts, but unfortunately when the courts block you by stay orders, and motions to delay delay delay. Then its the publics right that justice be served - and yes if the system is corrupt, then you take your concerns to the masses.
Facts:
PS-114, in Sindh, the winning PML-N was disqualified and reelection ordered after it was found the final results were fraudulent.
PP-97 Gujranwala, the PML-N winner was disqualified and fresh elections were ordered after it emerged that were was widespread rigging.
The Election Commission confirmed that it did not even have the voter record of 139 constituencies!!?? What type of a banana republic allows that.
Around half of the elected seats, and confirmed that 70 of the incidents were in Punjab. On most of the rigged seats, the PML-N defeated the PTI.
The Chief Election Commissioner conceded that the Election Commission had failed to conduct free and fair elections in Karachi
The Chief election Commissioner resigned, citing extreme judicial interference preventing the investigation of voter irregularities.
The Election Commission admitted that it had no control of the Returning officers, the persons responsible for overseeing the election
The PTI has repeatedly demanded that thumb verification be held in four constituencies - in order to check if the votes were genuine or bogus. The PMLN has refused why???, the argument by them is that its due to cost, despite the fact that the PTI has offered to pay all expenses related to this.
One PTI candidate, who lost to a PML-N candidate paid nearly 500k rupees to have his votes verified. The election commission then confirmed that 265 bags of votes were fake and only 69 were genuine. What type of an election is that?
A candidate of JUI-F was disqualified after it was learned that there had been rigging on 28 different women's polling stations.
Furthermore, the PML-N is a mafia. Tariq Malik, the chairman of NADRA was fired by Nawaz Sharif after he announced that NADRA had the technology to verify votes through thumbprint verification The Islamabad High Court had him restored to his position, after which Tariq Malik resigned alleging that he had been threatened with kidnapping of him and his family by those who did not want the election process verified.
After Tariq Malik's sacking. It emerged that someone had broken into NADRA's office and tampered with the ballot boxes of seat NA-118 (Lahore) which was at the centre of the rigging allegations. The boxes had been moved to NADRA so that the votes could be thumb verified, as demanded by the PTI, but had instead been tampered with.
The election commission confirmed that there was a "typing error" on NA-68. PM Nawaz Sharif's winning seat, it emerged that the PM had received only 779 votes rather than 7879 as originally recorded.
All of these findings were announced a whole year after PTI had demanded an investigation. Imran Khan deserves our respect, this is the first time i've seen a party demand transparency. Every other party has a vested interest in keeping the corrupt practices going...the degree of apathy is a moral shame, and frankly disgusting.
Imran Khan's persistent is noteworthy, and he will always garner our respect.
@Blithe: Pakistan and China have been friends for decades. Despite all Chinese investment, nothing happened because of our corrupt system. Definition of insanity, is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.
@Pakistani: Nawaz Sharif is the only one who is finding new investment opportunities, so his cronies can siphon off money through kickbacks in their own pockets. The potential in Pakistan is immense. Unfortunately, within the current corrupt system, the amount of resources wasted is a travesty. No investment from China and outside countries will make a difference. Look at this shameful metrobus for instance.
Farrukh Saleem's metro bus cost comparison confirms PMLN corruption. The cost in Lahore is: $11m/km; Islamabad $20m/km. How much do similar bus projects cost in other neighboring countries?? Ahmedabad, India: $3m/km ; Dalian, China: $4.5m/km. This is a total shame, and absolute looting of the resources from the treasury.
@atif: I am disappointed to see that there a few people out there who cannot grasp that an elected government is given a mandate to rule and apply the policies for which they were elected. If they are found lacking after their term in power, they should be voted out but not one day sooner by brainwashed followers of Tahirul Qadri, Imran Khan or any other populist sore loser. The Sharifs have improved not only Lahore but cities throughout Punjab including Rawalpindi where I live and where we look forward to the infrastructure improvements. I have family in Sialkot and Faisalabad who will tell you the same. People support the Sharifs because they are seen as focused on jobs, the economy, energy creation and infrastructure. Poor losers in PTI cannot grasp the concept that a great many of PML N supporters want the nation to progress but IK is fixated on destabilizing the nation and seizing power at all costs. I do not support that and I am thankful that the majority of Pakistanis have rejected the taunts, mindless slogans and sore loser politics of Imran Khan and PTI. Pakistan will progress despite the negativity of PTI. Nawaz Sharif has never been allowed to complete a term but the little time he has been in power has left us with a motorway which is more than can be said for 10 years of Musharraf dictatorship or years of other rulers. The fact that you cannot tolerate the elected government completing its term only shows me you are afraid of all they can achieve in a complete term.
I am so disappointed to see a few young Punjabi youth still roaring for the sharifs. The main reason is that these sharifs HAVE improved Lahore, Raiwand n other close by punjab area infrastructure. But if u go see rest of the country including South Punjab, you will realize how small the vision of these Nawaz supporters is. The mere fact that this tycoon family pays less than 0.1 percent of tax returns in spite of being the richest family in the country should be enough, leave alone the past 15 yrs of governance of theirs that reflects their intent and abilities. I hope and pray the remaining dozen nawaz supporters from punjab will open their eyes and learn from their educated friends and colleagues who have brought hope for the first time in these 30 years of my existence. I love you my Pakistani friends for supporting IK.
@A-No.1: At least Nawaz Sharif is trying to fix Pakistan's problems unlike PTI who just wants dance and dharnas or the dictatorship of Musharraf which sat around for a decade withour adding 1 KW electricity to the national grid. Nawaz will get more done in 2 years than others have done in 2 terms. Respect I say. Let the haters hate but let the PM keep working to rebuild the nation!
@Pakistani: Only Person who is currently trying to solve problems of Pakistan … While other dumb politicians doing politics
Wrong ! He is spending poor Taxpayers money for his sojourn abroad and that too with large entourages, any idea as to the costs of each trip ? Its a small fortune for poor country.
Of the 27 agreements to be signed, 21 relate to generating 16,520mw power at an estimated cost of around $33 billion.
Forget $33 billion, but if you manage to actually achieve to manage to secure $3 billion of actual and real spending from Chinese, it would be land mark for Pakistan in its present condition.
Generating electricity requires building plants to generate electricity which takes few years to complete. It is absurd to think that lad shedding can be done away with by the summer. How?
Is Nawaz brining plane loads electricity from China.
Years of neglect and mismanagement cannot be done away with signing MOU’s or visiting China.
@Proletarian: Don't worry bro...the govt will borrow it....me and you can pay it back via our taxes. Whats the problem? :)
But we DONT HAVE 33 BILLION DOLLARS
Pakistan-China friendship zindabad!
IK and his selfish politics Murdabad!
The job meant for the civil servants in the Economic or energy ministry and not for the Prime Minister? Will he be allowed to return to his post?
Rex Minor
Enjoy your holiday nawaz. which of your kids get to go this time?
Only Person who is currently trying to solve problems of Pakistan ... While other dumb politicians doing politics
Sir, better management and corruption free Pakistan is your responsibility not Chinese. They can only provide you financial assistance. While negotiating the Chinese on power projects please also keep in mind the interest of Pakistan and its poor people.
Watch this space for 7th evening - 8th morning. Let us see which memorandums get signed and Pakistani assets sold. Then we will have to wait if any of the MOU signed are actually implemented on ground. Better be careful and not get excited and carried over by the big numbers in the reports. China is a business-person, one who needs infrastructure and employment for own people, so I sincerely doubt they will invest in anything till there is a big interest loan attached to this money. If so, the question is, Can we afford any more loans, we owe money to almost everyone in the world. I think we should in government also follow what we practice in personal financial life, FIRST SAVE THEN SPEND. Loans are bad, loans are evil, that is and has always been our fight against the money lenders (read Jews). Good morning, noon and night to all wherever you may be. I am FZR, peace be upon me (PBUM).
"I am going to China to save my people from one more load-shedding-ridden summer,”
Load shedding will be finished in 6 months, 1 year, 2 years. All these empty statements given in the past. Why would anybody believe what he is saying today?