QUETTA, April 12: President Gen Pervez Musharraf has said womenfolk were not only 50 per cent of the country’s population but were more dedicated, motivated, honest and hardworking.
Speaking to the women delegation, which called on him at the Governor’s House here on Friday, the president recalled that his government had allocated 33 per cent seats in the local government and increased their representation in the national and provincial assemblies.
“With the increased representation, women can now take part in decision-making at higher level,” Musharraf said. Women should come forward and play their role in making Pakistan a developed country, he stressed.
He said his government would continue making efforts for the betterment of the womenfolk, and they would be provided maximum opportunities in all spheres.
Musharraf, referring to the new local bodies system in the country, said through the devolution of power plan a silent revolution was taking place, making people the master of their own destiny. Through the local government system, the country would move towards the path of progress and problems of the people would be solved at their doorsteps, he added.
It was now the duty of the elected men and women representatives to make all possible efforts for the success of the local bodies system in the country, he emphasised.
The elected representatives, he hoped, would fulfil their promises they made to the people of their areas during the LB polls. In this context, he said, the government would extend all cooperation to the elected councillors.
NOTABLES: The president, speaking to the notables of the province, said he wanted complete harmony between the parliament, the prime minister and the president for the success and continuity of the political system.
He said he decided to seek people’s mandate through referendum for the approval of his reforms policy and its future continuity; and urged upon the notables to convey his massage to the common man and mobilize the people against those who wanted to undermine the reforms of his government. He hoped the people would vote in his favour in the April 30 presidential referendum.
The president said he was against those individuals who plundered the national resources twice in the past and were now trying to create problems. “No major project was launched by them except a section of motorway which caused a loss of Rs5 billion annually during the last 12 years, increasing the foreign debt by 24 billion dollars,” he claimed.
INDUSTRIALISTS: Speaking to the delegations of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry, industrialists, transporters and Hindu community, Musharraf asked them to come forward and take part in the referendum and cast their votes for the continuation of reforms introduced by his government.
He also met with students, scouts, Girl Guides and youth delegations; and asked them to work hard and try to improve the standard and quality of education as it was an era of competition. His government, he reiterated, believed in merit.
Musharraf also appreciated the efforts of Balochistan Governor Justice (retired) Amirul Mulk Mengal and Corps Commander Lt-Gen Abdul Qadir Baloch in the development of the province.
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