News
Wednesday, May 17, 2006
Food prices will be halved: Musharraf* President supports Shujaat
* Calls Benazir and Nawaz’s Charter of Democracy a political gimmick
* Renews commitment to FATABy Shahzad Raza
ISLAMABAD: President Pervez Musharraf said on Tuesday that the government would subsidise essential kitchen items and would make sure that they were available to the public at half the price.
Sources privy to the meeting quoted Musharraf as telling Pakistan Muslim League (PML) MNAs from Lahore and Kasur that items such as wheat, rice, sugar, ghee and pulses would be subsidised.
Musharraf also said he would announce his “Pakistan Vision” right before or right after the upcoming federal budget, proposing measures for the public’s benefit. He said the vision would also focus on large development projects in the country.
The MNAs said the government must control the increase in the prices of essential commodities in the country. The meeting also proposed appointing magistrates under district coordination officers to check the increase in prices.
Sources said Musharraf made it clear that Shujaat would continue as PML president and lead the party in the 2007 general elections. “Nobody should doubts his leadership,” he added.
He said differences within the PML must end so that the party could be successful in the elections. He told Shujaat to listen to the grievances of other PML leaders, if there were any.
Musharraf also asked the MNAs about the possibility of electoral alliances with other political parties in the general elections, sources said, adding that the MNAs told the president that it was too early to talk about electoral alliances. However, they said the PML would win the elections without electoral alliances.
Musharraf said he would go on a countrywide tour to tell people about the development projects and initiatives taken by the federal government.
He also criticised former prime ministers Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif, saying they were still ignoring the people and were more interested in their personal interests.
He said the ‘Charter of Democracy’ was another political gimmick to fool the nation. He said he would not allow anybody to play with the people’s destiny. Musharraf told Mushahid to examine the “Charter of Democracy” and prepare a comprehensive reply in light of the democratic and political reforms taken by the government. Sources said the president admitted that he had not read the contents of the charter.
He said there was no room for Nawaz or Benazir in the general elections.
PML chief Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain, Punjab Chief Minister Pervaiz Elahi, Mushahid Hussain and MNAs Humayun Akhtar Khan, Farooq Amjad Mir, Sardar Tufail, Sardar Talib Nakai, Sardar Asif Nakai and Habibullah Warraich were at the meeting.
Later, Musharraf met a delegation of senators from the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), and renewed the government’s commitment to develop the tribal areas. He also said elected representatives had an important role to play in this regard, APP reported. Musharraf also said foreign elements hiding in the tribal areas would be flushed out.
Courtesy http://www.DailyTimes.com.pk