ADDRESSING two important events in the Federal Capital on Thursday, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif dwelt at length on the prevailing security situation, its linkages to the progress and development of the country and also dilated on plans to improve safety and security for citizens. Chairing a review meeting on the law-and-order situation, he gave directions for establishment of special anti-riot forces nationwide to deal with the law and order situation, emphasizing that these forces should be imparted professional training and provided needed equipment and tools as per international standards. During his address to the participants of the 26th National Security Workshop of Defence University, the Prime Minister reiterated the government’s resolve to transform Pakistan’s economic landscape, saying that the national security of the country had direct linkages with economic security.
Internal security and stability continue to be threatened by the unending vicious cycle of terrorism and extremism as well as the politics of violence and protests. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif definitely has a vision for progress and development of the country and welfare of its people and for this purpose, apart from a series of bitter decisions, a number of initiatives have been launched to improve governance and address issues that matter for the general public. It is a matter of satisfaction that due to the visionary approach of the PM and his Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb, the economy is now showing positive trends as inflation has come down to manageable limits, stock exchange is showing bullish trends, foreign exchange reserves are steadily improving, serious attempts are being made to mobilize domestic resources as part of the strategy to reduce dependence on foreign aid and different options are being explored to address the challenges facing the energy sector. Continuation of the policies and programmes has the potential to bring about a meaningful change in the lives of the people in coming months and years but a salutary environment is badly needed. The Pakistan Army is doing its best to check resurgence in terrorism and despite complicated scenarios it is achieving significant successes. There are reasons to believe that the Army will be able to eliminate the threat as it successfully did in the past, breaking back of terrorist outfits and forcing them to flee to neighbouring Afghanistan. Apart from Pakistani leadership, our friends like China and Russia are urging Afghanistan to move decisively against all terrorist groups operating from its soil and hopefully better sense will prevail in Kabul vis-à-vis export of terrorism to other countries. However, political polarization and the tendency of leg-pulling of the elected governments are matters of serious concern for people of Pakistan. All political parties claim to be champions of democracy but they use every conceivable means to grab and retain powers. Strikes, marches and sit-ins have become a routine and as a consequence the economy suffers and confidence of prospective investors is badly shattered besides the toll on human lives and disruption of daily life. The decision to establish an Anti-Riots Force reflects the resolve of the Government to tackle the situations like the one that erupted in the Federal Capital due to the ‘do or die’ call of the PTI. The Government might have the justification for creation of another force to maintain law and order despite the presence of several bodies like police, Rangers, FC and security agencies but the more viable option would be to boost capabilities of the existing forces by way of proper training, provision of modern gadgets and transport. It will not be fair to cast aspersions on the sincerity of the government to improve the security but there are fears that in the highly polarized environment the creation of Anti-Riots Force might face the same fate as the Federal Security Force (FSF) by then Prime Minister ZA Bhutto. Instead, the oft-repeated idea of having a Charter of Economy, as underlined by the PM again, is worth pursuing.
