James Shera meets Prime Minister

Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani has said that his government would consider grant of voting rights to the expatriate Pakistanis and was studying the cases of other countries which had already provided this facility to their overseas nationals.
 
The Prime Minister was talking to Mr. James Shera, Former Mayor of Rugby, who called on him at the PM's House, during his visit to Pakistan.
 
Talking to Mr. James Shera about his government's initiatives for the uplift and welfare of the minorities in Pakistan, the Prime Minister said that all necessary measures were being taken to protect their rights and to ensure their equal status to the Muslim majority in the country.  
 
In response to the points raised by Mr Shera, the Prime Minister directed the relevant authorities for facilitating overseas Pakistanis' swift home remittances through Banking channels at a lower cost, lowering of the registration fee by 50% on their purchase of properties in Pakistan and putting in place a system under which they could get their properties vacated from the tenants at a short notice of three months period. 
 
The Prime Minister welcomed Mr Shera's proposal for inviting the notable expatriates to Pakistan every year in a conference to enlist their support for lobbying abroad for Pakistan’s cause and to attract their investment in the country.
 
Mr James Shera paid tributes to the Prime Minister for his Dec 16th speech in which he had announced grant of 5% job quotas to the minorities in government's jobs, plans to increase the number of minorities seats in the National and Provincial Assemblies, declaration of August as Minority Day and allocation of seats for them in the Senate for the first time in Pakistan's history.  Mr Shera also applauded Prime Minister's decision to appoint a representative of minorities as the Federal Minister for Minorities.
 
While raising the issues for the improvement of existing facilities offered by the government of Pakistan to overseas Pakistanis, he stated that Prime Minister was immensely popular amongst the expatriates abroad. 
 
Federal Minister for Minorities Mr Shahbaz Bhatti was also present during the meeting.

 

 

January 09, 2009