No take backs: We will make an example out of terrorists, says Shahbaz

The chief minister presides over a meeting of the cabinet committee.

LAHORE:

The beasts behind the carnage in Peshawar deserve maximum punishment, Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif said on Thursday. “The entire country is grieved...it was among the worst terrorist attacks we have had.”

He was presiding over a meeting of the cabinet committee on law and order. Participants of the meeting discussed the law and order situation in the province and suggested arrangements to ensure foolproof security at all educational institutions.

The chief minister said the time to purge the country of terrorists and extremists facilitating them was at hand. “There is a need for national unity and harmony at this critical hour. The civil and military leaders need to be united to end this menace.”



The participants said a special prayer for the children and their teachers who were martyred in the Peshawar tragedy.

“The targeting of children needs to be strongly condemned unanimously,” he said. It has left the entire country shocked. “The savages are enemies of more than the 180 million people who call Pakistan their home... they deserve maximum punishment,” he said.

The chief minister said the incident had created a general consensus against terrorist outfits and the need to eliminate them and those supporting them. He said the nation will have to work together to achieve this. “We need to make an example out of them.”

Pakistan needed to be re-moulded along the ideals of Quaid-i-Azam and Allama Iqbal, he said. This could only happen if everyone was on the same page with regards to terrorism. “It is a matter of great satisfaction that the masses and the political and military leaderships have united against terrorism.”

This was Pakistan’s war for survival and an attempt to ensure a secure and peaceful future for its children, the chief minister said. “We need to win this war... it’s our only option.”

Sharif said there was a need to eliminate terrorists without distinction. “There can be no good or bad terrorists,” he said.

Thankfully, the government, political and religious parties, civil society, armed forces and people from all backgrounds were determined to stand up to the terrorists, the chief minister said.

All resources must be employed to protect the life and property of citizens. “The bold decisions we take will be implemented in letter and in spirit.”

A foolproof security mechanism an effective monitoring system will be devised for all educational institutions in the province, he said. Relevant departments must coordinate with each other and perform duties efficiently. “They must keep an eye out for any miscreants,” the chief minister said.

The situation demanded the utmost dedication of all public servants. “There is no room for negligence,” he said.

The chief minister directed officials to strengthen security measures at sensitive locations and to evolve a comprehensive strategy to ensure an effective communication system. He instructed officials to implement the security plan for educational institutions “at any cost”.

The home secretary and Punjab inspector general police gave a briefing on the law and order situation. Provincial Ministers Col (retd) Shuja Khanzada, Mian Mujtaba Shujaur Rehman, Bilal Yasin and Rana Mashhood Ahmed; MNA Hamza Shahbaz; Adviser to CM on Health Khawaja Salman Rafique; MPAs Rana Sanaullah and Zaeem Hussain Qadri; and Special Assistant Rana Maqbool also attended the meeting.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 19^th, 2014.