Last week, while Gen Asim Munir’s tour of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia was beginning, I was departing the sacred land of Saudi Arabia.
I found out through a friend in the military that Gen Asim Munir has been diligently working to boost the morale of the army since taking over as army chief in November 2022, in addition to enhancing the nation’s reputation abroad. After taking over, General Hafiz Syed Asim Munir made his first trip to Saudi Arabia, where he was cordially received. After taking office, Pakistan’s government and armed forces have a custom of travelling to Saudi Arabia to seek blessings and deepen ties with the Islamic nation.
Relations between Pakistan and Arab nations are anticipated to improve under General Asim Munir, particularly with Saudi Arabia. Gen Asim Munir is affiliated with Arab nations as he has worked as a military attaché in Riyadh, hence Saudi Arabia is not a foreign country to him. Prince Muhammad bin Salman gave the order to evaluate raising Saudi Arabia’s investment in Pakistan to $10 billion after his trip to the kingdom. He also told the Saudi Development Fund to enhance the amount deposited in the State Bank of Pakistan to $5 billion.
Both sides agreed to deepen bilateral relations and promote military and defence cooperation during his meeting with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. General Asim Munir was fed at the crown prince’s winter camp in Al-Ala, near Madinah, which is a remarkable symbol of welcome for him. Discussions were made to promote bilateral relations, and as a result of this meeting, Saudi Arabia pledged aid for Pakistan, but they also issued instructions to spend ten billion dollars on Pakistan’s economy.
Pakistan is currently experiencing significant economic challenges, and to recover, the military and political authorities must collaborate for the welfare of the country.
The head of Pakistan’s military forces visited the UAE, an Islamic nation, and spoke with the top officials there after a successful mission to Saudi Arabia. Emirati President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan met with Chief of Army Staff General Asim Munir in Abu Dhabi during his trip to the United Arab Emirates. It is a testament to General Asim Munir’s diplomacy that he received positive news from two Islamic brother nations. Following the UAE’s and Saudi Arabia’s successful diplomatic and military missions, optimism has been sparked that the Pakistan Army, led by General Asim Munir, will offer favourable news for the nation on all fronts.
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We are a country that is generally not kind to the elderly.
I know some folks that do not treat their elderly relatives with respect. The National Database and Registration Authority provides an innovative solution to the age-old issue of fingerprint verification, which is encouraging amid a flurry of news about the welfare of senior residents. According to the announcement, senior citizens will be given some secret questions, particularly if biometric verification in banks is problematic; if they respond properly, their verification will be completed instantly.
What will happen if they are unable to answer questions? There is a possibility that they have mild or severe dementia.
Senior citizens may encounter the difficulty of their pension card becoming stuck in ATMs as part of the Old Age Pension scheme, which is assisted by the personnel of the bank that disburses the EOBI pension. To renew the card every few months, even if the thumb and fingerprints are not visible on the corresponding machine, the bank personnel will ask a few questions to complete the formal verification. To make use of the benefits of National Savings Schemes, a biometric verification process is also necessary every few months. The same method is used in this chapter as well. Senior people’s convenience is projected to improve when the verification procedure is streamlined. All certificate holders, including senior persons, will profit from the recent decision to boost the rate of interest on National Savings Schemes. There is a need to give the elderly easy medical treatment and nice travel amenities at reduced rates, as is done in other civilised countries.
