JEDDAH, June 8: PPP co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari said on Sunday that Saudi Arabia would help Pakistan improve its strategic oil reserves and consider a request for special oil facility.

Talking to newsmen here on Sunday, Mr Zardari, who accompanied Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani on his visit, said that Saudi leaders had always generously helped Pakistan and thought of protecting its interests.

Pakistan imports around 250,000 barrels of oil per day from Saudi Arabia and it has been badly affected by the recent increase in oil price, raising its oil bill by over 40 per cent in around 10 months.

Mr Zardari said Prime Minister Gilani’s visit to Saudi Arabia would add new dimensions to Pakistan’s relations with the kingdom.

In reply to a question about President Pervez Musharraf, the PPP leader said his party did not recognise Musharraf as a constitutional president, but said the reality was that he (Mr Musharraf) was occupying a certain position and because of this the government was working with him.

“Since we have to run the affairs of the state, we have maintained a working relationship with the president,” Mr Zardari said.

“We have put aside our personal likes or dislikes as we neither give advantage nor disadvantage to anyone”.

The PPP leader said the PPP had not supported any dictator in the past nor would it do so in future, adding that the party had never sought support of dictators to come into power because it had always struggled for genuine democracy.

Mr Zardari said the PPP did not believe in relations with personalities but worked for a stable political system and strengthening institutions.

He said the country’s security, economy and democracy were priorities of the PPP government and it was working on a package of incentives for the under-privileged section of society.

Mr Zardari said the government would provide a relief of Rs1,000 to Rs1,500 to the poorest of the poor in the budget to improve their buying power, adding that the amount would be doubled within a year.

He blamed mismanagement and bad policies of the past as the main reason for the current economic woes of the country.

In reply to a question about budget deficit, the PPP leader said the government would take stringent measures to overcome this deficit and would never indulge in the blame game.

About improving the trade balance, he said all options would be utilised in this regard.

He said the government would try to improve exports to India and he himself and other leaders would visit India in near future for the purpose.

Mr Zardari said that Pakistan was an agriculture country but unfortunately all governments, except that of the PPP, had neglected this sector and as a result the country was now experiencing a shortage of food items.

He said the PPP-led coalition government would again give priority to develop the agriculture sector to overcome the food crisis.

On judges’ issue, Mr Zardari said there were some differences with coalition partners on the modalities of reinstatement of judges, but said that the PPP firmly believed in independence of the judiciary and empowerment of parliament.

Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani said the proposed constitutional package was not about any specific person, rather it was aimed at bringing about a balance of power between different state institutions.

He was addressing the Pakistani community after the inauguration of the Shaheed Benazir Bhutto Auditorium at the Pakistan International School here.

Mr Zardari unveiled the plaque of the auditorium named after Ms Bhutto.

Mr Gilani termed the hanging of later Zulfikar Ali Bhutto a judicial murder and said the matter would be reopened for investigation.

The prime minister said that PML-N leader Nawaz Sharif had assured him that after resolution of the judges’ issue he, in consultation with his party leadrs, would support the move.

Referring to the lawyers’ movement, the prime minister said the PPP was in the forefront of the movement and no-one other than the PPP could claim to be leading the lawyers’ struggle.

The prime minister said the people had voted moderate elements to power and a broad-based government had been formed to develop consensus on national issues.

Mr Gilani said that Pakistan was in safe hands because the PPP had deep roots among the masses.

The prime minister said that extremism and terrorism had damaged the country’s image in the world and asked expatriates to play their role in presenting a soft image of the country.