Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has called for national solidarity, unity and harmony to overcome the challenges facing the country, and also showered praise on Chief of Army Staff General Asim Munir for extending full cooperation to the political government in the best interest of Pakistan, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.
Addressing Ulema and Mashaikh Conference which was held at Pakistan-China Friendship Centre in Islamabad on Thursday, Shehbaz Sharif said there is an unprecedented cooperation between the political government and the constitutional institutions, emphasizing this collaboration are in the national interests and a role model for the future.
He urged the religious scholars belonging to different schools of thought to preach the message of peace and brotherhood and raise voice against divisiveness. Religious scholars must play their role to counter extremists, he added.
The prime minister regretted the propaganda campaign against the country's security forces on the social media, saying the security personnel have rendered immense sacrifices for the security and defence of the country.
Shehbaz Sharif said May 9 incident was the most despicable one in the country's history.
He urged the Ulema to play their role to do away with the division in the society and highlight the Islamic economic system, and said that no force could obstruct the country’s development if the nation was determined to achieve its goal.
Shehbaz told the gathering that the government was making all-out efforts to address the economic challenges and expected the upcoming IMF loan programme to be the last one. At the same time, it had scraped Rs50 billion to support the power consumers of the protected category consuming up to 200 units. But the consumers using 200-500 units of electricity were still under the burden, he added.
Shehbaz Sharif said the IMF loan programme was a compulsion to bring about economic stability, productive employment and reforms in the FBR and power sector.
He, however, agreed that this is not sufficient as there is also burden on the consumers using up to 500 units. He said consultations are taking place to provide relief and reduce burden on the poor people. He said a comprehensive plan is being worked out in this regard.
Referring to the sacrifices rendered by the people under the leadership of Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah for the creation of Pakistan, Shehbaz Sharif emphasized the need for working tirelessly to transform the country into the one envisioned by our forefathers.
Chief of Army Staff General Asim Munir who was the guest of honour on the occasion also addressed the conference.
In his remarks on the occasion, Minister for Religious Affairs Chaudhary Salik Hussain urged the religious scholars to play their role to counter extremist elements. He said these elements distort the teachings of our great religion Islam to stoke instability and chaos, emphasizing the need for collective efforts to ensure peace in the country.
Salik Hussain also called upon the religious scholars to spearhead an awareness campaign for the protection of rights of minorities.