Senior Minister for Information, Transport and Mass Transit Sindh Sharjeel Inam Memon has said that journalists in Hyderabad consider him a close associate rather than a minister.
Speaking at the oath-taking ceremony of the newly elected Hyderabad Union of Journalists (HUJ) office-bearers including President Hamid Shaikh and General Secretary Ali Hamza Zaidi, he underscored the Pakistan Peoples Party’s commitment to journalist’s welfare and addressing their issues.
The event, held at Hyderabad Press Club on Monday, in which the minister administered oaths to the newly elected body and congratulated them.
Sharjeel Memon said that the PPP had always supported press freedom, former Prime Minister Shaheed Benazir Bhutto had also played a pivotal role in promoting independent journalism.
He said that during the period of dictatorship, PPP continued its efforts for freedom of press. In the past, conspiracies were made to portray the role of the Peoples Party in a bad way, but the PPP had the substance of tolerance, the PPP remained a democratic party and acted with tolerance, he added.
The minister underscored the Sindh government’s focus on the health sector, mentioning that facilities like NICVD were delivering excellent services and that healthcare remains a top priority.
He encouraged journalists to avail free treatment at state-of-the-art hospitals in the province, including civil hospital Hyderabad and NICVD.
Addressing journalist’s healthcare concerns, Memon announced plans to establish a mechanism or endowment fund for journalist’s health insurance. He also outlined the government’s resolve to clear encroachments on public land in Hyderabad and introduced EV buses in the city to modernize its transport system.
Highlighting the significance of agriculture, the minister shared the goal of boosting livestock income of the country.
In response to a question, the provincial minister said that the Peoples Party had a clear stand on the issue of canals and there had been no change in our stand. “PPP and the Sindh government were serious about the water issue and the CCI meeting should be convened soon to resolve this issue,” he emphasized.
He urged the federal government to expedite work on the Sukkur-Hyderabad Motorway to improve traffic flow and reduce accidents.
On the question about transport problems in the rest of Sindh, he said that we were trying hard to eliminate encroachments and start transport projects through public-private partnership or by government funding.
He said that he will request the prime minister to complete the Sukkur-Hyderabad motorway immediately.
Touching on political matters, he commented on the lack of protests following the 14-year sentence of Imran Khan, terming it reflected the perception of him as a source of instability.
The ceremony was attended by Divisional Commissioner Hyderabad Bilal Ahmed Memon, Deputy Commissioner Zain-ul-Abideen Memon, SSP Dr. Farrukh Ali Lanjhar, Divisional Director Information Hyderabad Irshad Ali Chandio and other officials.