Kashmir Committee Chairman Shehryar Khan Afridi on Monday strongly protested over an article published by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) Urdu on his video log (V-log) of the Time Square – a place in Midtown Manhattan of America’s New York City.
It was aimed at highlighting Prime Minister Imran Khan’s Shelter Homes (Panahgah) initiative taken in line with his vision for homeless people in Pakistan, he said in a tweet.
I lodge strong protest to a biased & opinionated piece by @BBCUrdu on my Vlog at #TimeSquare. I reiterate that my comments were about shelter homes of hon'ble PM @ImranKhanPTI 4 destitute & homeless. Le'me assure you @AngelaAggeler this is vicious, out of context @usembislamabad https://t.co/3Fv1vRGJSb
— Shehryar Afridi (@ShehryarAfridi1) September 20, 2021
“I lodge a strong protest to a biased & opinionated piece by @BBCUrdu on my Vlog at #TimeSquare. I reiterate that my comments were about shelter homes of hon’ble PM @ImranKhanPTI 4 destitute & homeless,” he tweeted.
“Le’me assure you @AngelaAggeler this is vicious, out of context @usembislamabad,” he added to his tweet.
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US Charge d’ Affairs to Pakistan Angela Aggeler and the American Embassy was also tagged in the tweet to explain that the contents of the BBC article were out of context from his Vlog and malicious in nature, said a news statement issued by the chairman office.
Serve poor with dignity
In his speech, he exhorted the administration to serve the people at shelter homes with dignity and respect. The premier said: “The poor don’t have a voice and they will never object. This is our duty to serve them with quality and dignity.”
Dr. Sania Nishtar, PM’s aide on alleviation of poverty and social welfare projects, briefed the premier about the overhauled administrative setup and service standards.
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“Thank you, prime minister, for entrusting Poverty Alleviation and Social Safety Division with a mandate to enhance the quality and scale of Panagahs,” she said.
Administrative problems at shelter homes
Last year in December, reports emerged that PM Khan’s key initiative shelter homes named “Panahgaahs” for the homeless people were reeling with limited funds to function smoothly.
The report claimed the local authorities and administration are funding the makeshift homes from their budget since the federal authority had not allocated the budget for the operations of Panahgahs.
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An unnamed source from the administration warned that the running of shelter homes will be difficult in the long run if the government does not assign the funds for the project.
APP with additional input by GVS News Desk