ISLAMABAD: The annual Pakistan day parade will be held today in Parade Avenue near the landmark Shakarparian hills.
Personnel from all three services: Pakistan Army, Navy and Air Force, along with their counterparts from China, Saudia Arabia and Turkey will give their respective performances on the occasion. Pak Air Force`s jet, Shaheen, will also flypast over the skies of Karachi today.
In his special message on Pakistan Day, Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa called upon the entire nation saying “Let us pledge today to clean ‘our Pakistan’ from fasaadis.”
According to a tweet by Director General Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR) Major General Asif Ghafoor, the COAS in his message on Pakistan Day said, on March 23, 1940 we pledged to create Pakistan. We honorably succeeded in creation of our homeland. Let us pledge again today that we shall clean our country from facetious, he said. “We all own Pakistan. Pakistan Zindabad.”
President Mamnoon Hussain in his message for the day said that Pakistan has made its mark globally and we are proud of our identity.
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, President Mamnoon Hussain and Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa will attend the ceremony along with Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Mohammad Zakaullah and Defence Minister Khawaja Asif.
Earlier, Chinese Prime Minister Li Keqianghas extended his warm congratulations and best wishes to the government of Pakistan and Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif on the occasion of 78th Pakistan Day.
In his message of felicitation to his Pakistani counterpart, the Chinese premier said in recent years, under the leadership of Your Excellency, the Pakistani people had properly responded to different kinds of challenges and made new achievements in maintaining national security, stability and economic development.
He said Pakistan relations maintained a rapid momentum of development and in particular, the construction of China Pakistan Economic Corridor moved forward steadily, and had played a demonstrative role for the mutually beneficial cooperation among China and other countries along the “Belt and Road”.
Li Keqiang said the Chinese government had always viewed and developed China-Pakistan relations from a strategic and long-term perspective.
He said China was willing to work with the Pakistani government to push forward China-Pakistan all-weather strategic cooperative partnership for new and continuous progress. “May I wish Pakistan enjoy prosperity and its people well-being,” the Chinese premier said.
Pakistan Day commemorates the passing of Lahore Resolution, under which a separate nation for the Muslims of The British Indian Empire demanded by Muslim League was passed on March 23, 1940. Every year the nation celebrates the day with extraordinary zeal.
