• PM attends US president’s reception in New York
• Says May 9 rioters will be forgiven only when they ‘sincerely apologise’

LONDON: Praising the role of the army chief and friendly countries, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Saturday said the government would expand Pakistan’s tax net and that the “elite must also make sacrifices”.

The prime minister made these remarks at a press conference held at the Churchill Hotel in London, where he had a stopover after attending the UN General Assembly session in New York.

He added that brotherly countries Saudi Arabia, the UAE and China played a significant role in securing the approval of the $7 billion IMF programme. “This deal would not have been possible without them. I would like to thank them for once again taking Pakistan out of a difficult situation.”

Months ago, Finance Min­ister Muhammad Aurangzeb had made a similar statement, saying that China, Saudi Arabia and the UAE are crucial in helping Pakistan secure its IMF deal due to their potential to extend the maturity in debt owed to them.

PM Shehbaz said that chief of the army staff himself went to a brotherly country to tell them that Pakistan’s IMF time is coming soon, and asked for their support.

He expressed the hope this is the last time Pakistan is going to the IMF. “We need to expand Pakis­tan’s tax network. The elite must also make sacrifices,” said Shehbaz Sharif, adding that General Asim Munir played “a key role” in the approval of the IMF programme.

“Economic stability is not possible without political stability,” said the premier, adding that they are intertwined. “International organisations have acknowledged that Pakistan is now on the path to progress,” he added.

The PM spoke about his visit to New York, saying “By addressing the UN General Assembly, I conveyed the voice of the Pakistani people to the world.”

He noted the meetings he had with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Bangladesh chief adviser Muhammad Yunus, saying they were very positive. He added that efforts were made to strengthen relations with friendly countries.

He lauded the efforts of the caretaker government and the current government to stabilise the economy and political situation, and hit out at the previous PTI government for damaging Pakistan.

“We saved Pakistan from bankruptcy after coming to power,” said PM Shehbaz.

He critcised the PTI and dubbed the May 9 episode “unforgivable” saying those involved in the incident would be forgiven only when they sincerely apologise.

“Their attack on GHQ that day is shameful and an affront to the country’s martyrs. There will be no compromise on May 9. If the perpetrators are sorry they should apologise publicly to the nation.”

He added that the previous government left “no stone unturned in damaging relations with China”.

He also held the previous government responsible for destroying PIA.

To a question on social media curbs, he said, “With people on social media abusing the army and martyrs, we don’t need enemies.”

In New York, PM Shehbaz attended a reception hosted by US President Joe Biden in the honour of the heads of government participating in the UNGA session.

During the reception, President Biden and Prime Minister Shehbaz expressed good wishes for each other.

Later, in a post on X, the premier said, “My brief meeting with US President Joe Biden @POTUS and First Lady Jill Biden during the President’s annual reception at #UNGA79 in New York was most cordial.”

The heads of state of other countries also attended the reception.

With additional input from APP

Published in Dawn, September 29th, 2024