LAHORE, Dec 22: President Gen Pervez Musharraf has described corruption and nepotism as big hurdles in the way of national development, stressing that these social evils should be curbed without delay.

Addressing members of the Punjab cabinet here on Monday, he said the country, despite being blessed with natural and human resources, had failed to make necessary progress mainly due to these evils. However, he believed, the situation could be improved by placing “the right man on the right job.”

The president said financial losses of billions of rupees in the state-owned institutions like PIA, Pakistan Railways and Steel Mills had been overcome by adopting the policy of recruiting suitable people. These enterprises, he added, were now earning profits of billions of rupees.

He said the graph of corruption in the upper tiers had dropped significantly while at the lower level it could be controlled by rationalizing the salaries of employees.

Appreciating the recent exchange of delegations between the provinces, he said, such efforts could help promote inter- provincial harmony and remove misconceptions about one another. Such an interaction, said the president, should continue in the best interest of the country.

He lauded the objectives identified by the Punjab government for the development of the province, and hoped that other provinces would follow the example in setting development goals.

President Musharraf assured the cabinet that the present assembly would complete its five-year term.

Earlier, Punjab Chief Minister Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi, while briefing the president on initiatives taken by the provincial government, said the federal government’s financial reforms had made sufficient resources available for the development of the Punjab.

Parting with the old traditions, he said, the Punjab did not ignore the ongoing projects while launching the new ones. He said the projects for the provision of houses to the government employees would be launched in the next three months.

The chief minister said hospitals in different cities were being provided ambulance services of international standards under a pilot project.

He said all the land revenue record would be computerized in five years to get rid of the role of patwaris. Moreover, it would help people in seeking housing loans from banks, he added.—APP