MAIWAND (Marri-Bugti Tribal Agency): Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto declared here today [July 28] that those who were working to undermine the integrity … of the country would be dealt with severely. … The Prime Minister praised the Pakistan Armed Forces and told his audience that it was a national Army and it was engaged in defending the country from external threat and internal subversion. He asked his audience if they were satisfied with the performance of the Armed Forces in their area. The audience unanimously replied in the affirmative and told the Prime Minister that the Army had undertaken a lot of development work in the area. The Army had laid the foundation for progress in this area, the tribesmen told the Prime Minister. …

The Prime Minister told the Marri tribesmen that the Sardari system had been done away with for good and the steps being taken by the Government were aimed at their socio-economic uplift so that they could derive the benefits of progress along with their brethren in other parts of the country. … “We are against such elements who are trying to halt progress like construction of roads and other developmental activities in this area,” he said.

Published in Dawn, July 29th, 2024