https://arab.news/jmu8y
- Prime Minister Imran Khan maintains his government has shifted the country’s focus ‘from geopolitics to geoeconomics’
- In his felicitation message, Khan says Pakistan will overcome all challenges with its ‘characteristic determination’ and emerge ‘stronger as nation’
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan on Saturday felicitated the nation on Pakistan’s 75th Independence Day while pointing out that his administration was striving for peace in and around the country to fulfil its socioeconomic agenda.
In a message to Pakistani citizens, the prime minister maintained his government had “shifted [the country’s] focus from geopolitics to geoeconomics with the well-being and welfare of our people as the topmost priority.”
“Pakistan today can stand tall among the comity of nations,” he said. “Our policies toward reviving the economy, handling the pandemic, and protecting the environment have received universal acclaim.”
Khan added that the nation must reiterate its firm resolve to uphold its values of unity, faith and discipline on its independence anniversary.
“We have surmounted monumental challenges during the course of our history to emerge as a united, peaceful and resilient nation,” he continued. “Even today, the changing regional dynamics along with some domestic issues continue to test our resolve. Like each time, we will also overcome these obstacles with our characteristic determination and come out stronger as a nation.”
The prime minister urged the nation not to forget the residents of Indian-administered Kashmir who were facing “unspeakable repression.”
He also mentioned the ongoing conflict in Afghanistan, saying he had consistently stressed there was no military solution to the political and security problems of the neighboring country.
“Pakistan will continue to support a negotiated political settlement for durable peace and stability in Afghanistan,” he added.
As the country began its Independence Day, the federal capital echoed with thirty-one gun salute and Pakistan’s national flag fluttered on public and private buildings.
The main feature of today’s celebrations was the national flag hoisting ceremony at the President House in Islamabad which was attended by President Arif Alvi as chief guest.
In a formal statement, Alvi said August 14 reminded people to pay rich tribute to the Father of the Nation Muhammad Ali Jinnah and his colleagues who spearheaded the Pakistan Movement and created a separate homeland for the Muslims of the Subcontinent.
"It is because of their sacrifices that we are here today," he said while addressing the flag hoisting ceremony.
The president maintained that "three wars were imposed on Pakistan" during the course of its history, adding that the country more recently lost hundreds of thousands of precious lives due to the conflict in Afghanistan.
He said that despite being an agricultural country that was striving to become an industrial nation, Pakistan had managed to emerge "victorious" from these wars.
Outside the President House, Pakistan’s national flags, buntings, posters and banners could be seen in every city as Independence Day celebrations continued in the country.