LAHORE – Two days after the statement by PML-N President Mian Nawaz Sharif that the Punjab government was considering a proposal to buy the Pakistan International Airline (PIA), Punjab Information Minister Azma Zahid Bokhari Monday said that the Punjab government had no intention to buy the national flag carrier. Addressing a press conference here, the information minister also clarified that Mian Nawaz Sharif never said that the Punjab government was planning to purchase the national airline. “All Pakistanis want the national airline to improve, and if investors from Karachi are interested in investing in PIA, it’s a positive development”, she remarked. Azma Bokhari also mocked the KPK government’s bid to buy the PIA saying that KPK government doesn’t even have funds to pay salaries of its employees and yet they dream of buying an airline. She also said that KPK needed jail reforms more urgently as prisoners can break out of jails there. “When there was a forest fire in KPK, their so-called revolutionary fire brigade didn’t even have money to refuel their vehicles”, she added. Talking about air pollution, she said that tackling smog is not easy; China has been fighting it for 26 years. She noted that smog has become one of the biggest issues currently. “When wind from India blows towards Pakistan, Lahore’s air becomes more polluted.
We are aware that efforts are also being made on the Indian Punjab side”.
She said that according to today’s data, Delhi ranks first for smog, while Lahore is second. Delhi’s air quality index is around 393, and Lahore’s is close to 280. Primary schools in Punjab have been given holidays due to the smog. She said that the Chief Minister of Punjab will soon write a letter to the CM of Indian Punjab.
She mentioned that a news article was published yesterday, claiming that all provinces except Punjab are financially stable, which, she said, was far from reality. In 2025, Punjab is set to present a surplus budget of Rs 630 billion Punjab has cleared all its wheat loans since 1952 and is now free from the burden of a 56 percent markup.
She further stated that the Punjab government had invested Rs 200 billion in treasury bills. “If these 200 billion rupees were included in the budget, the news story would have ended right there. The PTI is using this news political point scoring. The information minister said that Maryam Nawaz was introducing excellent projects in Punjab. High-quality hospitals are being built in Punjab, and the Punjab government is establishing the country’s first public cancer hospital. “The ‘Fitna Party’ should tell us what new hospitals Gandapur has established in KPK. Gandapur’s actions are something no woman, or even a reasonable person, would do. “It’s a joke that Maryam Nawaz is following Gandapur”, she observed.
She said that she was saddened to hear that Bushra Bibi cried in court. When Maryam Nawaz Sharif was in custody, she never saw her cry. It would have been better if Bushra Bibi had apologized for the false cases filed against
Mian Nawaz Sharif, Maryam Nawaz and Rana Sanaullah. No matter what drama they play now, they will have to provide receipts. Bushra Bibi coming forward on the rostrum and speaking out was a good media stunt.
