THATTA: PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif has said if voted to power his party will eliminate poverty, illiteracy, load-shedding and lawlessness and steer the country out of the present quagmire.

Addressing a large public meeting at Naka ground here on Thursday, he pledged to revive the Keti Bunder Port of Thatta, bring an end to gruelling power load-shedding, electrify 2,000 villages and supply gas to almost all villages in the area.

The PML-N leader also promised to build Thatta to Ghorabari double road and a motorway from Karachi to Hyderabad connecting Thatta.

About loadshedding in the area, he asked people how many hours of load-shedding they faced daily and the reply was an average of 18 hours.

Mr Sharif regretted how miserable the life of patients in hospitals and children and people in general would be in such a situation and asked the audience if they would vote for a party which had ruled the province but done nothing to rid the masses of this menace.

The PML-N chief said now was the time to vote for a party which was promising to end this situation and lead the country to the path of progress and prosperity.

Mr Sharif claimed that he was not power hungry, but interested only in people’s welfare and betterment of the country. He asked President Asif Ali Zardari what sort of services his party had rendered in Sindh, particularly during floods which left hundreds of thousands of people in the province marooned and without shelter. He said fertile land of Sindh was destroyed, but the PPP government did nothing for the people.

Referring to the condition of educational institutions and roads in Thatta, Mr Sharif said it was a pity that there was not a college or university, not even a proper school here. He promised that if voted to power, the PML-N would set up a university of international standard in this historical town.

He said that after visiting several areas of Punjab and Khyber Pukhtunkhwa and Tando Allahyar and Thatta in Sindh during the election campaign, he came to the conclusion that the PPP had miserably failed to do anything for the people, especially in its home province of Sindh.

Referring to the problems of unemployment and poverty in the area, he turned to youths at the meeting and said that his party would set up a bank in Thatta which would extend loans to help them set up their own businesses.

Mr Sharif claimed that during the term of Mr Shahbaz Sharif in Punjab there had been no plunder of public money and merit was the only criteria for appointment, but in Sindh corruption, nepotism and favouritism were promoted.

He said if the people of Sindh voted PML-N candidates to power, they would themselves witness a change in their fate.

Praising PML-N candidate for NA-237 Marvi Memon, Mr Sharif said Ms Memon was a brave woman who was struggling for the cause of all people, especially the poor.

Addressing the meeting, Ms Memon said she would do her best to bring about a visible and concrete change in the living condition of the people of this poverty-stricken and neglected district of Sindh.

Our Staff Reporter in Karachi adds: Mr Sharif refuted a claim made by PPP, MQM and ANP that the PML-N had been spared by terrorists in their anti-poll bomb and gun attacks and said leaders and supporters of his party had also been victim of terrorism and extremism.

He said that the son and nephew of PML-N Balochistan President had been attacked by terrorists during a recent election rally.

He claimed that leaders of the former coalition government were trying to divide the people because they had lost their vote bank as a result of bad governance and poor performance over the last five years.