HE the Prime Minister and Interior Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa al-Thani holding talks with the Speaker of the National Assembly of Pakistan Sardar Ayaz Sadiq yesterday.

By Umer Nangiana/Staff Reporter

A visiting parliamentary delegation from Pakistan has held talks with HH the Deputy Emir, HE the Prime Minister, HE the Defence Minister, HE the Foreign Minister, HE the Labour Minister and influential businessmen in Qatar, leader of the delegation and Speaker of the National Assembly Sardar Ayaz Sadiq said.
The delegation comprises National Assembly members Mir Ali Khan Magsi, Aslam Bodla, Rasheed Khan, Rana Mohamed Hayat Khan, Sardar Mansab Dogar and Asif Hasnain.
The seven-member, cross-party delegation, which arrived in Doha on Saturday on a three-day official visit, also interacted with the members of Pakistani diaspora in Qatar.
“Such visits basically cement the relationship between the two countries. It is the parliament that we are trying to focus here but apart from it, I think you can consider it as a follow up to HH the Emir’s visit to Pakistan,” Sardar Ayaz Sadiq told Gulf Times at a lunch reception at Pakistan House hosted by Ambassador Shahzad Ahmed.
The delegation, he said, will discuss a host of issues during their official meetings here in Qatar. “We will be discussing the same issues such as the procurement of LNG for three 1,200 MW each power plants that are in the process of being installed in Pakistan and the workers that HH had said Qatar was ready to take from Pakistan to work here,” said the speaker of the National Assembly.
Sadiq said such visits created an atmosphere of personal relationship and ultimately it was this relationship which really mattered. “I think after the visit of His Highness to Pakistan, the relationship has gone to a different level which I don’t feel we have seen before. If we keep meeting each other, I think we will be proceeding in the right direction for the benefit of both countries,” he added.
The National Assembly speaker said Pakistan can export a lot of products to Qatar including edible items,  besides textiles and engineering goods. Besides, there is a lot of potential of some good Pakistani companies taking part in infrastructure development here both as main contractors or secondary contractors.
“We have technical manpower, we have engineers, we have all kinds of expertise that is available in Pakistan. It is just basically opening up and having a little bit of flexibility for Pakistanis and I think there is no end to how we can co-operate between the two countries,” said Sadiq.
He said he had the privilege of sitting next to His Highness the Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani at the reception at PM House during his visit to Pakistan. He said he was in Qatar on an invitation from  the Advisory Council (Shura).
Sadiq said he and his colleagues had been very warmly welcomed here and they had some very meaningful meetings.
Unfortunately, he said, HH the Emir was not here but except for him he would be meeting all the people concerned and he would try to lay a foundation of a new relationship.
It was Sadiq’s first trip to Qatar. “I see a lot of development taking place here. Except for the heat; I thought my country was very hot but this country is also extremely hot. I see a lot potential here and I think they are focused,” said Sadiq about his first impression of the country.
“They know what they want to do, they have the resources and they are capable of doing good things not only here but investments in Pakistan can also be very fruitful for them,” he added.
The National Assembly speaker said he had plans of having a get-together with the Pakistani community here. He said Pakistanis living overseas were generally very inquisitive.
“They want to know what the situation is and how things are moving in Pakistan and I will meet representatives of all political parties because my post is a neutral one and the Pakistani community is our community,” said Sadiq.
He thanked His Highness the Emir for the invitation and for the hospitality. He also thanked the Speaker of the Advisory Council, who had received him at the airport, and his hospitality.