CULTURE OF POLITICAL RECONCILIATION A MILESTONE TOWARDS UNANIMOUS DECISIONS & NATIONAL INTEGRITY-Senator Waqar Minister for Privatisation
 

Islamabad, April 10, 2010

The culture of political reconciliation introduced by the Pakistan Peoples Party’s leadership, is a milestone towards achieving unanimous decisions on national issues and to strengthen the national integration. Senator Waqar Ahmed Khan Federal Minister for Privatisation said while talking to a group of media persons here today.

The Minister said that the unanimous approval of 18th constitutional amendment by National Assembly was an historic step towards the restoration of the democratic and constitutional rights of the people of Pakistan. It was not merely an attempt to restore the 1973 constitution in letter and spirit as it has also ensured to close the doors for those elements who have been giving legal protection to those who have been disfiguring the constitution by inducting undemocratic clauses for their ulterior motives, he said.

Senator Waqar Ahmed Khan further stated that the President Asif Ali Zardari has given his presidential powers to the parliament’s elected leader of the house the Prime Minster Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani in a democratic manner keeping in view the guiding principles of Qauid-e-Awam Shaheed Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto and Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto and has proved that the source of power was the people of this country and not a single person. After 1973 PPP has again proved that it was the only federal political party, which has the potential and believes to take on board all the political forces for having unanimous decisions on all national issues, he added.

Elucidating the steps taken by the PPP led government, he said that all anti labour black laws and civil servants efficiency law to terminate the service without assigning any reason have been abolished, the forcibly retrenched employees have been reinstated, steps taken for provincial autonomy and introduction of “Agaz-e-Haqooq-e-Baluchistan” were the hallmark of our government.

Senator Waqar informed that under Benazir Employees Stock Option Scheme (BESOS) the workers were being empowered by making them owners of their respective entities through distribution of 12 % of GoP shares in these entities free of cost, which was effective from August 14, 2009. Around 500,000 employees of 80 State Owned Entities will get shares worth billions of rupees. So far more than 40,000 employees of eight (8) entities have received share certificates and they would also get dividend on them.