Summary AJK PM Iftikhar Gilani pledges Kashmir advocacy, administrative reforms, job creation, education, healthcare and development while emphasizing merit and technology.
MUZAFFARABAD (Dunya News) - Newly elected Azad Jammu and Kashmir Prime Minister Iftikhar Gilani has said the Kashmir dispute is not merely a territorial issue and will remain unresolved until India implements the relevant United Nations resolutions.
Speaking to the media outside the AJK Legislative Assembly, Gilani strongly condemned what he described as Indian terrorism in occupied Jammu and Kashmir and the measures imposed by India on August 5, 2019.
He paid tribute to the people of occupied Kashmir for maintaining their resolve, saying Pakistan and Kashmir were incomplete without each other and reiterating the longstanding view that Kashmir is Pakistan’s jugular vein.
The newly elected prime minister also paid tribute to the Pakistan Armed Forces, saying troops guarding the borders enabled people to sleep peacefully. He thanked Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Field Marshal Asim Munir, saying the world had witnessed India being challenged and that Kashmiris now felt more confident.
Gilani said AJK was currently passing through a difficult period as elections had not yet been held in two districts. He expressed hope that elections in Poonch and Sudhnoti would be held soon, adding that the legislative assembly remained incomplete without seven members.
Turning to domestic issues, the AJK prime minister said inflation, employment and the future of young people were major challenges that required practical solutions rather than speeches.
Also read: PML-N's Iftikhar Gilani elected new AJK prime minister
He expressed his desire to replicate Punjab’s development model in AJK, saying agriculture, livestock and tourism were key sectors that would receive greater attention.
Gilani said the government would ensure transparency in appointments and continue the merit-based system established by the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz government between 2016 and 2021.
He said digital systems would be introduced to expand employment opportunities, as the nature of jobs was changing rapidly with new technologies. He stressed the need to adopt modern methods to create more opportunities for young people.
The AJK prime minister also promised further reforms in education and healthcare, saying efforts would be made to improve public confidence in both sectors and reduce the need for residents to travel to other cities for medical treatment.
He said the new cabinet would be formed within a few days.
Addressing the bureaucracy, Gilani pledged to identify shortcomings in the government system and said he would neither sit back himself nor allow his team to become complacent.
He further vowed to modernize the traditional patwari and police station systems so that citizens would no longer need political recommendations to access government services.
