PM Imran Khan calls for strengthening rule of law for country's betterment

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan on Monday spoke to citizens via live calls and answered some pressing questions related to the Opposition, the problems of Balochistan and Gilgit Baltistan, Senate elections, and various other issues. 

According to Geo.tv, the calls were broadcast live on television and were moderated by Senator Faisal Javed Khan, the Chairman of the Standing Committee on Information and Broadcasting.

Answering a question about the coronavirus vaccine, the PM said that frontline healthcare workers will be the first to get inoculated, followed by senior citizens  (above age 60) who have underlying health conditions.

The PM clarified that the vaccines will be distributed in accordance with set criteria, adding that there will be no discrimination between the rich and poor. 

Speaking about the development of Gilgit Baltistan,  the premier said that the government is planning to transform the region into a world-class tourist destination, adding that work related to installing power grids there is also underway.

Shedding light on  Balochistan, the PM said that the political set up there  damaged the province, adding that "it is crucial to introduce a local bodies system there if we want to address their problems."

PM Khan also added the PTI government has introduced development packages for Southern Balochistan.

"We will work on the development of Balochistan but people should be patient," the premier stressed.

Speaking about the developmental projects that the PTI government has initiated in the country, the PM said that no other country in the world provides housing facilities to the masses. Citing the example of the United Kingdom, he said that 80 per cent of the masses take loans from banks in order to construct houses.

As against that, the PM claimed, only 0.2 per cent of Pakistanis seek housing loans from banks.

"The government will provide a subsidy of Rs300,000 per yard for each house under the housing scheme," the PM said. 

Corruption of previous governments

 The prime minister said that the country will only progress towards prosperity when rule of law will be strengthened. 

Speaking about the corruption of previous governments and how it affected the country, the PM said that former president General Pervez Musharraf gave the NRO to the biggest looters during his tenure.

"The corrupt rulers of the country stole people's money and laundered it abroad," he said, adding that by bringing up the foreign funding case against the ruling PTI, the Opposition has put itself in a troublesome situation.

"We have provided names of 40,000 donors to the Election Commission of Pakistan in relation to the foreign funding case but the Opposition parties cannot even name one hundred donors."

"The country has been pushed into crises during the decade-long rule of the PML-N and PPP combined," the PM said, adding that people expected the PTI government to come into power and change everything overnight which is only possible in fairytales.

"It takes time to fix the problems of the country," he stressed.

Inflation  and economic problems

Prime Minister also talked about inflation and said that he is fully aware of the masses' plight.

"The country has been plunged into poverty because of corrupt presidents and prime ministers in the past," he said. "[Owing to flawed policies of the previous governments] the Pakistani rupee severely depreciated which led to inflation in the country."

The PM added that when he formed a government, Pakistan was going through the darkest economic period in history.

"We are trying to improve the country's economy but people have to be patient," he said.