ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) has decided to hold a three-day convention for overseas Pakistanis in March.

According to an announcement by the Central Media Department of the PTI, Prime Minister Imran Khan will address the convention in Islamabad and it would be participated by the overseas Pakistanis in a large number from all over the world.

In this connection, secretary of the PTI’s overseas chapter Dr Abdullah Riar met party’s secretary general Asad Umar and discussed the plan for the first-ever convention of overseas Pakistanis.

Besides the office-bearers and activists of the PTI living in foreign countries, special guests and delegates would also be invited from the United States, Europe and Central Asian Republics for participation in the “historic gathering”.

Opposition parties have already announced long marches

Mr Umar said that the overseas Pakistanis had been standing by Prime Minister Imran Khan from day one. He said the overseas Pakistanis were playing a key role in the country’s development and the PTI valued their role in the country’s politics.

He said the convention would be the biggest and historic event. He said the PTI had already granted the voting right to overseas Pakistanis.

Adviser to the Prime Minister on Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development Ayub Afridi on Wednesday issued various directives for addressing the complaints of overseas Pakistanis living in Saudi Arabia.

According to the state-run Associated Press of Pakistan, the adviser issued the directives during his interaction with the Pakistani community during his visit to Madina with a parliamentary delegation headed by National Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser.

Mr Afridi listened to the complaints of the Pakistani community at Pakistan House in Madina and issued directions for the community welfare attaches and welfare wing of the consulate general, Jeddah, to address their complaints on priority. He also directed them to set up a passport office in Madina soon, besides expediting work for the establishment of such offices at Abha, Jizan, Albaha, Bisha and Nijran.

He directed the community welfare attaches to visit Madina and hold open Kutcheris on a weekly or bi-weekly basis. These visits should be regular and problems of the community should be addressed on a war footing, he said. He also directed them to start paper work for establishment of a Pakistani school in Madina.

The adviser directed the diplomats to hire a legal firm for pursuing cases of the Pakistani prisoners in Saudi Arabia. He assured the community that a mechanism would be devised to solve the problem of transportation of the human remains and bodies of overseas Pakistanis.

The Pakistan Democratic Movement had already given the call for a long march to Islamabad on Pakistan Day.

The Pakistan Peoples Party has also given a separate call for a long march from Sindh to Islamabad on February 27.

And on Wednesday, the Jamaat-i-Islami also asked its workers and the people to hold a “decisive long march” towards Islamabad. Before it, the party had directed its local chapters to hold over 100 sit-ins at tehsil, district and provincial levels in various parts of the country from February 6.

Published in Dawn, January 27th, 2022