ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani on Wednesday citing the grave economic challenges urged the political leadership to help the government find a way out.Talking to mediapersons after the ground-breaking ceremony of Parliament Lodges phase-II here, the Prime Minister said his government was striving to overcome the financial crunch taking it as a challenge.“I don’t have a political threat, I have an economic threat and I am two hundred percent sure that we will overcome it,” the Prime Minister said.He said the war on terrorism greatly impacted the country’s economy along with global recession, adding, prudent steps were required to deal with the gravity of economic situation.He said had proper planning been done some five years back, the issue of inflation would not have grown to such proportion. He also attributed the increasing demand to the rapidly growing population that has burdened country’s capacity to generate gas and electricity.To a question regarding any decision on governor rule or deployment of army in Karachi to control the law and order situation, Gilani said it would be taken in consultation with all political stakeholders.
The Prime Minister said he had summoned the session of National Assembly to discuss the issue of law and order to reach a decision with mutual consultation.He said intelligence agencies, provincial government and political parties were giving feedback to the government on law and order situation about the elements involved in target killings in Karachi.There has been some reduction in the target killing incidents.Gilani said he would also be briefed by Interior Minister Rehman Malik today on Karachi’s law and order situation.He mentioned that the government had also dealt the issue of war on terror effectively, with the support of country’s political leadership.He said the government was ready to hold dialogue with those terrorists who would lay down their weapons and surrender themselves before the local political agents.He said the matter was sub-judice and the rental power plants against whom there were no complaints, were working. He said action would be taken against controversial RPPs.Earlier addressing the gathering at the ground breaking of 104 additional family suites for the parliamentarians to be constructed with Rs 2.9 billion, Gilani directed the Chairman CDA to ensure that the project, spread over four acres, meets international quality and completes on time.
Gilani said, he in his capacity as Minister for Housing in the ‘80s had the credit for the construction of several landmark buildings in the federal capital.He mentioned the Parliament House, the Gulshan-e-Jinnah Complex, Parliament Lodges, Ministers Enclave and Faisal Mosque and said he was pleased to have performed the ground breaking.
The Prime Minister also asked the Capital Development Authority (CDA) and the Speaker National Assembly to deliberate on the feasibility of constructing an underground access from the Parliament Lodges to the Parliament building.He said it would be faster, shorter and secure way and help ease the problem of parking.He also directed CDA to ensure that work on the low-cost housing project at Kurri is initiated at a fast pace.He said he was pleased to note that the scheme initiated to provide housing to the federal government employees was still continuing and those who spend their entire life in the service of the nation are provided shelter, when their retire.Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani rejected reports that he had given any plots to 11 journalists. He said the plots were awarded out of the 3 per cent quota for the journalist community and the application has to route through the Information Minister to the Housing Minister.“I have nothing to do with it,” Gilani said and added that he accepted all the criticism with an open heart and did not even deny it.The event was attended by Chairman Senate Farooq H Naek, Minister of Water and Power Raja Pervaiz Ashraf, Leader of House in Senate Nayyar Bokhari and larger number of parliamentarians – APP
