ISLAMABAD, July 12: President Gen Pervez Musharraf on Friday presented his government’s policies before the nation and announced that Pakistan had been put on the road to progress and prosperity.

Following are the highlights of his one-hour address to the nation.

* Only 12 US troops are working on the Western border only for information and intelligence exchange.

* Frontier Corps and other forces entered tribal areas to combat terrorism where no one entered in 100 years.

* Agenda of foreign elements involved in terrorism is not in national interest.

* No foreigner will be allowed to use Pakistan for terrorist activities.

* Counter Terrorism Force is being established to combat terrorism.

* Rangers and police are being imparted better training and provided better equipment.

* Investigation Cells are being separated from Police.

* Terrorists like Riaz Basra and Akram Lahori have been tackled.

* Reducing tariff rates will have drastic effect on the national exchequer and it is not a solution to the poverty problem.

* Reducing one rupee in flour price will burden the national exchequer with an added Rs18 billion expenditure.

* Reducing one rupee in ghee price will encumber the national exchequer with Rs1.5 billion.

* Reducing one rupee in petrol price will weigh the public purse down by Rs11 billion.

* Slashing gas price by 50 paisa per will translate into an additional expenditure of Rs12.5 billion.

* Cutting electricity price by 50 paisa per unit will burden Wapda with Rs26 billion.

* Previous governments used only political gimmicks to help the poor. Permanent solution of poverty lies in creating jobs and not in reducing prices of essential goods.

* Record amount of Rs34 billion allocated for development projects. With new projects, lakhs of jobs will be created.

* Khushhali Bank is providing loans to the common man.

* Network of roads will be ready in next five years.

* Dams, roads, motorways are to take priority in the next five-year plan.

* Dual track of Pakistan Railway will be ready in next five years from Peshawar to Karachi and train speeds will be increased to 140 and 150 miles per hour.

* Foreign Exchange reserves have been increased from $0.5 billion to a record $7 billion.

* Loans have been reduced from $38 billion to $36 billion.

* There is delay but there is no darkness in the way of progress and prosperity.

* Constitutional package is to strengthen democratic system.

* During 1988-98 not a single government completed its tenure because of tension between presidents and prime ministers.

* Amendments are in accordance with the decision of Supreme Court.

* People can submit their views on these proposed amendments which have been made public for the first time by any government.

* Local government project remained successful and laid a strong foundation for a strong democratic system.

* Next package of amendments will be related to strengthening of local government system and provincial setup.

* There was no real democracy in the country and it was limited to holding elections only.

* If there had been real democracy in the country, “I will not have been in power today.”

* Article 58-2B could not fulfil its purposes to keep checks and balances on political government.

* After amendments in the constitution, the president was made a “rubber stamp”.—APP