Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz vowed on Tuesday to tackle the critics of the province's progress.
Speaking at the unveiling ceremony, the Chief Minister described participation in the "Suthra Punjab" event as an honour, adding that wearing the programme’s jacket was a matter of pride. She paid tribute to the people involved in the campaign, saluting them as heroes and praising the continued success of the sanitation programme across urban and rural areas of Punjab.
CM Maryam said the government and administration had worked as a team during the recent floods, adding that the relief activities in flood-affected areas were described as commendable. She said the initiation of the cleanliness drive in cities and villages was exemplary.
The ‘Suthra Punjab’ programme, involving a workforce of 150,000, includes 35,000 modern machines, with each vehicle bearing the name of its respective district. The chief minister said that a state-of-the-art fleet had been established in every district within one year. She noted that there had previously been no sanitation arrangements in Punjab, and the launch of the programme brought a sense of relief to the people.
She also referred to a special sanitation campaign launched during Eid-ul-Adha. Advanced machinery had been acquired for cleaning canals and drains, which she said would also help to reduce the risk of floods.
Commenting on past administrations, the chief minister criticised the previous tenure, saying that the "Gogi-Pinky era" had only brought destruction to Punjab. She said that the so-called agents of change had left behind only piles of waste.
She said the leadership of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) had laid a comprehensive network of development projects across the country. According to her, serving the people was a hallmark of the party’s leadership. She added that access to education, health and transport facilities was a right of the people.
A merit-based scholarship programme had also been launched to support higher education for young people. She said that as the Punjab CM it was her duty to speak for the province and its progress.
CM Nawaz said she wished to see Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan and Sindh as clean as Punjab is today. She also said that the government’s arrival had resulted in a visible reduction in crime, with 25 districts in Punjab recording a zero crime rate.
She affirmed that providing rights to the people of Punjab was her responsibility and expressed her desire to see similar development in other provinces.
It is pertinent to note that CM Maryam has unveiled a new sanitation fleet as part of the ongoing "Suthra Punjab" initiative, reaffirming her commitment to a zero-waste future across the province.
