Prime Minister Imran Khan said on Friday that change in the nation cannot be achieved without protracted efforts. PM Khan made the comments in Islamabad at the groundbreaking ceremony for the Lodhran to Multan highway upgrade and rehabilitation project.
“Ever since our government came [into power] the opposition has been screaming that it has failed,” the PM said. “People ask where is the change that was promised? I tell them that it is not something that comes overnight, nor is it a switch that one can turn on.”
PM Khan slammed the opposition leaders, saying they claim to be democratic yet speak about overturning the government.
“They [the opposition] openly asked the army to overthrow the government,” the premier lamented.
The PM, using Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah as an example, said the great leader had to fight hard for the nation we currently live in.
“Even he was disappointed at times and went to England. But he came back and struggled hard for Pakistan,” the PM said.
The prime minister went on to say that his administration was reviving the same policies that had helped Pakistan become Asia’s fourth-largest economy.
Farmers have been provided appropriate incentives, he noted, and the consequences will be seen in record crop output.
“When farmers are given incentives they invest in farming and not buy apartments and houses in London,” the premier said.
PM Imran went on to say that no prior administration has considered Pakistan’s potential, instead of concentrating only on how to win the next general election.
“Pakistan has the potential of producing 50k MW of hydroelectricity,” he said, adding that 10 dams were being constructed for this purpose.
He went on to say that the present administration has also taken on the problem of climate change, in order to protect future generations from the country’s negative impacts of global warming.
When it came to tourism, the premier bemoaned the fact that the industry had been overlooked in the past despite its enormous potential.
“If people would spend their holidays and Eid in London, how would they know what scenic beauty Pakistan possesses,” he said. “We are also working on improving the tourism industry as it alone can improve Pakistan’s reserves.”
He emphasized that Pakistan’s darkest days were behind it and that the moment for progress had come.
“The construction industry was booming and 30 other industries along with it because they are inter-connected,” he said.
He also suggested that the government’s “Naya Pakistan Housing Scheme” will take off now that the foreclosure legislation had been passed by the courts and banks were now willing to lend to those who had previously been hesitant.
“More jobs would be provided as the construction industry booms,” he said. “In the coming days, I would give more good news to my people,” the premier concluded.
