KAHUTA: Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi on Saturday said that it is the people alone who can decide their future through the ballot.
Addressing party supporters in Kahuta after inaugurating the start of work on the rehabilitation and improvement of the Rs 12.5 billion four-lane Rawalpindi-Kahuta road, Abbasi said that the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) government promoted politics of serving the public in its five-year tenure.
“The people alone will decide their future. Whatever decision they take will have bearing on their future,” he said.
Abbasi said that former premier Nawaz Sharif served the nation for the last four years and after his disqualification, the federal government took forward his mission of service.
He said they accepted the Supreme Court verdict against the deposed premier because they respected the judiciary.
“We accepted the court verdict against Nawaz even though not a single citizen agrees with the judgement,” he said, referring to the disqualification of Nawaz Sharif as prime minister last year.
The country is making progress owing to a buoyant economy, the premier said, adding strong economy will generate more opportunities of employment for young people and the economy was being strengthened without compromising on the country’s sovereignty.
He said he believed PML-N candidates from the city will be elected in the upcoming general elections.
During his address, the prime minister vowed to establish a university in Kahuta and promised that work on the varsity would start in three months.
Commenting on the Rawalpindi-Kahuta road project, he said the linkage of motorways and expressways with those being built on the other side of River Jhelum would bring about economic activity and prosperity for the people of the area. He said that initiation of the project was yet another promise fulfilled by former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and the people would soon see its real impact.
Earlier, National Highway Authority (NHA) Chairman Jawwad Rafique Malik briefed by the prime minister about the scope of the 28 kilometre (km) road and informed that construction on the strategically important link would begin soon and reach completion by May 2019.
He said the project would benefit a population of over two million and cater to a traffic of 14,000 vehicles per day. The average cost-benefit of the road had been estimated to be Rs 4.6 billion a year over the next 25 years.
The road expansion starting from Kaak pul on the Islamabad Expressway would include a six km long bypass at Sihala and a nine km bypass at Kahuta, before linking with Azad Pattan road in Azad Jammu and Kashmir.
The project would provide the shortest route for traffic between Rawalakot, Kotli and the twin cities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad. It would also cut down on transportation costs and reduce travel time, particularly for agricultural products and other perishable items.
The prime minister was accompanied by Minister for Health Saira Afzal Tarar, Minister of State for Information Marriyum Aurangzeb, and Minister for Capital Administration and Development Division (CADD) Dr Tariq Fazal Chaudhry.
On the occasion, the premier also claimed to have ended gas and electricity shortage in the country.
Later, PM Abbasi cast his vote as polling continued on Saturday at the Parliament House for electing six senators to represent Islamabad Capital Territory and the Federally Administered Tribal Areas after the completion of the Senate elections.
