LAHORE: President Dr Arif Alvi on Wednesday had an exclusive meeting with a delegation of the Lahore Chamber of Commerce & Industry (LCCI) led by it President Kashif Anwar at the Governor House in a bid to discuss recent meetings of the army chief General Syed Asim Munir with the business community in Karachi and Lahore.

The LCCI’s spokesman, through a press release, also confirmed the development, stating that President Alvi held a meeting with the LCCI President to have details of his recent meeting with the COAS in Lahore.

“I wanted to talk to the LCCI because its President Kashif Anwar had a meeting with the Chief of Army Staff”, the release quoted Dr Arif Alvi as having said on the occasion, adding that he was happy to see that armed forces were also playing role for economic revival of the country.

It also quoted Mr Alvi as saying that the “meeting between COAS and LCCI President was like a dialogue on investment from Gulf, political and economic issues.”

The president said that there were many elite classes in the country, including politicians, establishment and the business elite. All these elites ruled the country together and “businessmen bear their burden and pay taxes of the others. They (the businessmen) bear the burden of power theft. We want to carry all the weight and keep the status quo going,” he said.

On the occasion, Mr Kashif Anwar informed the president that the meeting with the COAS was positive and constructive during which the issues of rupee devaluation, inflation, taxes, smuggling, energy, international relations, foreign direct investment and charter of economy came under discussion.

Dr Alvi said that we are hardworking people and we must first look at our past. He said that no heavenly calamity had descended on Pakistan but all the problems we were suffering from were due to our own decisions, he said. “If people say that the floods were coming, you cannot do routine work with eyes closed,” he added.

According to an insider, the president was anxious to meet the LCCI delegation comprising its president, secretary and a couple of chamber’s executive body members.

“There was no desire to meet the president of Pakistan on the part of LCCI president or members, as the former himself desired to meet the latter at the Governor house in Lahore. So on his (the president call), the LCCI president and some members went to meet him. The core objective of the talk was to have information from the LCCI president, members etc about the meeting with COAS recently,” he explained requesting anonymity.

When contacted, the LCCI President Mr Anwar said during discussion, the president discussed various issues related to education and other fields. But when asked about others, he said: “Yes he also talked about our meeting with the COAS, as he already knew about it. So it was also part of the discussion,”

But when reminded about the LCCI press release that states that the president had an exclusive meeting with the LCCI president to have detail about his (Mr Anwar) meeting with the COAS recently, he said: “We have already issued press release on this.”

Published in Dawn, September 7th, 2023