President Asif Ali Zardari delivers records 5th address to joint-sitting

Amid shouts of protest from opposition parties of the house, President Asif Ali Zardari made history on Saturday when he delivered the fifth consecutive address to a joint session of Parliament.

Asif Ali Zardari is the first president of Pakistan to deliver a fifth address in accordance with clause 3 of Article 56 in the Constitution. He chose to speak in English rather than in Urdu, saying Pakistan had achieved a new milestone in democracy.

The one-day joint sitting will meet a constitutional obligation for a presidential address at the start of a new parliamentary year while another joint sitting is expected to be convened next week to review strategic relationship with the United States in light of recommendations of a parliamentary committee on national security.

Opposition parties walked out of the Parliament house after chanting scathing slogans against the ruling Pakistan People’s Party (PPP). Members of Pakistan Muslim League- Nawaz (PML-N) and Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam- Fazl (JUI-F) shouted “stop plunder and looting” and stop lying, “fulfill your promises” “stop deceiving public”.

The president congratulated the political parties for strengthening democracy, saying that the nation is proud of prevailing democracy in the country. He said that he surrendered his powers to the Parliament, adding the government for devolution of powers, new development projects, National Finance Commission Awards.

Zardari said, Prime Minister Syed Yousaf Gilani deserves unqualified appreciation for his political wisdom says Zardari. At the same time, he observed, “We acknowledge PML-N, PML-Q, MQM, Fata, legislations, ANP, PML-Awami and also the leaders of opposition and members of opposition parties”.

Asif Ali Zardari said the general elections will be held in the upcoming year in a fair and transparent manner.

The President also claimed successes in the fight against terrorism, saying the country’s offensives against militants were bearing fruit. He also hailed the services of the security institutions of the country for battling the threat of terrorism.

Talking of the power crises, he said the government was fully aware of the hardship being faced by people. Since 2008, the government has added 3,300 MW to the power sector, he added.

About foreign policy, he said his eight visits to China during the past four years are indicative of the importance of Pak-China bilateral ties. He informed the house that Pakistan’s exports exceeded $25 billion this year.

About Balochistan, he said it has been, and continues to be, our priority. In his view, much more needs to be done to heal the wounds of the past in Balochistan.

“We apologise for our mistakes”. He apologized for both political and economical mistakes in Balochistan.

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Posted by Faisal Farooq on Mar 17 2012. Filed under Latest News, National, Pakistan, Politics. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.