Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said the Radio Pakistan Peshawar building was the place from where the world was told that the country had come into being.
Addressing a ceremony at Radio Pakistan Peshawar today, the PM said a heart-wrenching incident took place on May 9 and 10, adding that nations sacrificed their lives to defend their heritage.
“The archives here were torched and the record of over 100 years old destroyed,” the PM lamented.
He also said he had found out the Radio Pakistan employees had not been paid their salaries in May, and ordered that they be paid immediately.
“You will get the funds in 48 hours,” he announced.
“There is no difference between those behind the shameless attack on the building and anti-state elements. Even our long-lasting enemy could not think of such incidents,” PM Sharif stressed.
He said those who carried out these attacks will be punished according to the law and Constitution.
Earlier, speaking at the ceremony, Marriyum Aurangzeb said the PTV was attacked in 2014, and this time Radio Pakistan was attacked under a plan.
A large mob attacked Radio Pakistan with petrol and clubs, she said, adding the transmitters and other items will be replaced, but valuable assets like archives have been torched.
An FIR was filed in the case, the minister remarked, adding attempts were made to disturb the transmission on May 10 also.
She further said many people were injured and shifted to hospital while saving the building.
She also stressed that May 9 cannot be repeated and the culprits will be severely punished.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif touched down in Peshawar and visited the Radio Pakistan building.
The caretaker Khyber Pakhtunkhwa chief minister, the KP governor, federal ministers, including Ishaq Dar and Marriyum Aurangzeb, and other personalities were also present in the ceremony.
The PM received a briefing on the damage caused to the Radio Pakistan building, records and broadcasting during the attack on May 9.
The Radio Pakistan director general briefed Prime Minister Sharif and others.
The gathering was told that the Radio Pakistan broadcast was restored 26 hours after the attack. The attack damaged 100-year-old recordings and historical heritage, the briefing mentioned.
However, the radio’s Quran channel was not damaged at all.
The prime minister is likely to preside over an important meeting at the Peshawar Governor House.
He is also expected to inspect the building of Radio Pakistan that was vandalised and set on fire by miscreants on May 9 in protest against the arrest of PTI Chairman Imran Khan.
The prime minister is scheduled to be briefed on the events of May 9 and the situation so far.
He will also issue important instructions on law and order and the security situation.
Earlier, the PM was scheduled to visit the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa capital on May 19, but it was later postponed.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s scheduled visit to Peshawar for today has reportedly been postponed.
The prime minister was supposed to visit the damaged Radio Pakistan building and Fort Bala Hisar in the provincial capital.
The prime minister was scheduled to pay a visit to the Radio Pakistan building in Peshawar, which was set ablaze in an attack on May 9.
During his visit, the premier was also supposed to receive a comprehensive briefing on the extent of the damage incurred on the building, as well as the ongoing restoration efforts.
