Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday announced intent to auction gifts he has received from foreign states during his time in office to support the welfare of orphan children.
Speaking with delegations of the Council of Pakistan Newspaper Editors (CPNE), All Pakistan Newspapers Society (APNS), and the Pakistan Broadcasters Association (PBA), he said he would auction gifts “worth millions of rupees” that had been deposited with the Toshakhana during his time as prime minister. “The whole of the amount will solely go to institutions supporting orphan children, whether they are welfare organizations, educational institutions or medical facilities,” he said. “We will hand them over under a mechanism to support the orphans who are unable to face the challenges of life,” he added.
Recalling his assumption of the Prime Minister’s Office after the ouster of Imran Khan through a vote of no-confidence, he said the government had inherited “very tough economic conditions” far beyond their expectations. He lamented that the previous government had spent four years focused on political victimization rather than economic progress, adding that it had also strained ties with friendly countries.
The prime minister said his government had worked to restore Pakistan’s strained ties with friendly countries, adding the damage had been “controlled” to a great extent, eventually leading to the inking of a $3 billion stand-by arrangement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). He stressed that this was not a cause of celebration, and urged the nation—particularly its youth—to work toward ridding the country of the begging bowl and making “Pakistan a great nation.”
Cognizant of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s allegations of the incumbent government victimizing its leaders and supporters, Sharif claimed his government had not done anything of the sort. “We were far too busy tackling the challenges of floods, inflation, economy, IMF, wheat import and foreign policy issues,” he claimed, regretting that the PTI-led government had “poisoned” society and reversing this was not easy.
Discussing the IMF agreement, the prime minister said the country had averted default, adding if the deal had not gone through, the economic situation could have spiraled, with people left with no choice but to take to the streets. He noted even friendly countries had linked their support to the IMF deal and stressed that the country had to become self-sufficient as the agreement with the global lender left no further space for subsidies. This, he emphasized, could be achieved through the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC). “The SIFC is a program for economic recovery. If it goes on, this will be a game-changer,” he added.
The prime minister also confirmed that he would send a summary for the dissolution of the National Assembly to President Arif Alvi on Wednesday (today). He hoped that whichever government was formed next would pursue the incumbent’s policy of facilitating investment through the SIFC to rid the country of its reliance on loans.