ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan on Wednesday called on the country’s diplomats to improve their services and support to overseas Pakistanis, a state-run news agency, Associated Press of Pakistan, reported.
The prime minister’s address to the envoys comes days after his office initiated a formal inquiry against the country’s embassy in Riyadh, suspended the outgoing ambassador to Saudi Arabia, and recalled several members of staff following complaints by expat Pakistani workers in the kingdom who said their embassy had mistreated them.
“It is unfortunate how we (embassy staff) deal with overseas Pakistanis. This is unacceptable. It cannot go on in this way during the current era. The embassies were duty-bound to serve the diaspora,” Khan said in an online conference with Pakistani ambassadors and chiefs of foreign missions.
“Overseas Pakistanis are our major strength. Pakistan is running on their remittances,” the PM said. “If they would not have been remitting, the country would have gone toward bankruptcy.”
Despite the coronavirus pandemic and ensuing lockdowns across the world, Pakistani workers’ remittances in March 2021 increased by 43 percent $2.7 billion compared with to the inflows in the same period last year.
The increasing inflows last month prompted Khan to thank to thank the foreign workers for the “record-breaking remittances.”
“You sent over $2 billion for 10 straight months despite COVID, breaking all records. We thank you,” he said. “The love and commitment of overseas Pakistanis to Pakistan is unparalleled.”
The inflows came mainly from Saudi Arabia, standing at $5.7 billion, the United Arab Emirates at $4.5 billion, Britain at $2.9 billion, and the US at $1.9 billion, according to central bank data.
PM Khan urges Pakistani diplomats to improve services to expats
https://arab.news/n6xzx
PM Khan urges Pakistani diplomats to improve services to expats
- PM’s call comes in the wake of inquiry against the country’s embassy in Riyadh over complaints by expat Pakistani workers
- Without remittances from overseas workers, the country would have run into bankruptcy, PM Khan says
In pictures: the slim alleyways of Pakistan’s Mughal-era old Lahore city
- Centuries-old homes were built with small, weathered bricks instead of mud and lean gracefully into the streets
- Many have been restored, painted with frescoes and motifs, allowing the grandeur of the Mughal era to shine anew
LAHORE: In Pakistan, an old saying goes: “He who has not seen Lahore has not been born.”
To feel its heartbeat, one must wander the city’s winding alleyways that are alive with movement and color.
Centuries-old homes were built with small, weathered bricks instead of mud and lean gracefully into the streets, their walls etched with the delicate patterns of history. Many have been restored, painted with frescoes and motifs, allowing the grandeur of the Mughal era to shine anew.
The alleys are narrow, sometimes barely wide enough for one person to pass. But within these tight corridors flows a quiet, enduring rhythm of courtesy, as residents step aside for one another with an unspoken grace.
These streets were made for foot traffic, for summer shade, and for defense — narrow passages slowing invading armies. While massive gates like Delhi Gate were once closed at night, today they remain open, welcoming life to flow uninterrupted round the clock.
