PESHAWAR: PM rules out foreign loans for relief in flood-hit areas
PESHAWAR, July 3: Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz has directed government functionaries to expedite rescue, relief and rehabilitation measures in the flood-affected areas, and asked them to engage the private sector for achieving this objective.
Speaking at a briefing on recent floods in the NWFP and Fata, the prime minister said the strategy of provision of rescue, relief and rehabilitation had been adopted on the pattern of the October 2005 earthquake which devastated parts of the NWFP and Azad Kashmir.
He categorically stated that no foreign loan would be secured for the rehabilitation and resettlement of the flood-affected people, holding out an assurance that emergency requirements of the affected people would be fulfilled on priority basis.
Mr Aziz said that provision of food, shelter, medical cover and evacuation of stranded people from flood-hit areas was the top priority of the government.
He stressed the need for more coordinated efforts between federal, provincial and local governments to ensure prompt supply of relief goods to flood-hit people.
He said that short- and long-term measures had been taken to redress the real problem of resettlement and rehabilitation of the marooned people.
He directed the administration to focus on right things in emergency situation.
“Since our economic situation is stable and the kitty is full to meet emergency financial requirements of the calamity-hit people, we need not beg for loan,” he said.
The prime minister said that the reallocation of resources would be made to carry out relief activities.
“We would have faced extremely difficult situation if our economy would have been at a level of what it had been eight years ago,” he observed.—APP
