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| Prime Minister of Pakistan |
A March 24, 2011 press release prepared by the Department of Foreign Affairs
The Philippine Embassy in Islamabad reported that Ambassador Jesus I. Yabes called on Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani Wednesday at the Prime Minister’s House in Islamabad to hand over a check worth US$100,000 as the Philippines’ contribution to the reconstruction and rehabilitation efforts in Pakistan in the wake of the unprecedented floods that devastated the country last July.
The flooding, which killed more than 1,600 people and cost the Pakistani economy US$10 billion, was Pakistan’s worst natural disaster and humanitarian crisis since its partition with India in 1947.
The United Nations mobilized and appealed to the international community for US$2 billion to assist in the reconstruction and rehabilitation of flood-affected areas.
During the call, Ambassador Yabes assured Prime Minister Gilani that the Philippine Government would continue to work for the enhancement of Philippines-Pakistan relations.
He cited improvements in bilateral trade, and the close collaboration between the two countries’ in advancing interfaith harmony.
For his part, Prime Minister Gilani thanked the Philippine Government for the donation and expressed his country’s keen desire to increase cooperation with the Philippines in international forums.
The Prime Minister reiterated Pakistan’s support of the Philippines’ bid for Observer Status in the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC), while requesting the Philippines to back Pakistan’s own bid for Full Dialogue Partnership in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
Prime Minister Gilani also recalled his visit to Manila in 1996, when he was Speaker of the National Assembly, to head a parliamentary delegation to a conference on climate change.
A year before that, he accompanied then-Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto to the Philippines as guest of then-President Fidel V. Ramos.
The Prime Minister said one of his fondest memories of the Philippines was the jeepney, the Philippines’ primary mode of transportation, which he likened to the ubiquitous Pakistani trucks, called “jingly,” for their elaborate designs and accessories.
Accompanying Ambassador Yabes during the call were Vice Consul Conrado B. Demdem, Jr. and Finance Officer Florencio Constantino, Jr. The event was covered by the press.
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