DADU: Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani said on Friday that delays in the distribution of Watan cards were tarnishing the country’s image and called upon officials to speed up the process of issuing identity cards so that further embarrassment could be avoided.
On the sidelines of a mass wedding ceremony for flood survivor couples in Dadu, the prime minister directed the chairman of the National Database Registration Authority (Nadra) to establish more centres for the distribution of computerised identity cards among flood victims, making them eligible for Watan cards. The prime minister later gave away a sum of Rs200,000 each to eight newly-wed couples.
“For the sake of democratic stability in the country,” Gilani also reiterated his government’s resolve to complete its five-year term. These remarks were made to a private television channel. Every institution, the prime minister said, wanted to strengthen the democratic system in the country, adding that everyone wanted to move forward. He pledged that the government would complete its tenure and said that elements who wanted to see its untimely dissolution would be disappointed.
Earlier the prime minister toured flood-hit areas by air and expressed concern over the scale of the devastation and urged the departments concerned to waive off utility bills in these areas. In response to the Sindh chief minister’s demand for a write-off of farm loans, the prime minister promised to consider the proposal. He also assured the chief minister that he would also consider the supply of additional irrigation water to Sindh.
According to our Dadu correspondent, the prime minister faced a barrage of questions about the provision of jobs and other problems faced by party activists. He tried to silence them by urging them to maintain decorum, reminding them of the presence of media personnel without success. When he failed to address their concerns, he cut his speech short. A brief protest was also held at the flood relief camp against the delay in provision of relief goods and Watan cards. The protesters, however, dispersed peacefully after reassurances by the local administration.
The prime minister announced a Rs200 million grant for development projects and rehabilitation of flood victims in Dadu district. He also ordered the National Highway Authority (NHA) to rebuild the old Dadu bypass and City Road.
On this occasion, he praised Turkey for its prompt flood relief assistance. The prime minister said that Turkey’s first lady had donated her necklace when she visited flood-hit areas in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, and asked philanthropists to purchase it in auction so that the amount collected from its sale could be distributed among flood victims. The chairman of Nadra, Ali Arshad Nadeem, purchased the necklace for Rs1.6 million and handed the necklace back to the prime minister, urging him to preserve it for posterity.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 20th, 2010.
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