ISLAMABAD: Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Overseas Pakistanis Sayed Zulfikar Abbas Bukhari applauded Pakistani nationals residing in the United Arab Emirates for helping their fellow countrymen who lost their jobs due to the coronavirus pandemic and found themselves stranded in the Arab state, said an official statement issued in Islamabad on Saturday.
During a brief interaction with the Pakistani diaspora community, Bukhari said that 75,000 Pakistanis living in the UAE had recently returned to their homeland. These people, he continued, faced tough circumstances due to the spread of the infectious respiratory disease and its overall economic impact.
The prime minister’s special assistant on overseas Pakistanis, Sayed Zulfikar Bukhari, meets with UAE Human Resources and Emiratization Minister Nasser bin Thani Al-Hamli in Dubai on July 23, 2020. (Photo courtesy: Sayed Z. Bukhari)
The prime minister’s adviser informed that the government had arranged 154 special flights to bring back stranded Pakistanis from the Gulf state, adding that it gave 1,276 free tickets since many people could not afford the airfare due to their difficult financial situation.
He also noted that the country’s diplomatic mission had distributed free ration among more than 19,000 needy Pakistanis to help them as much as possible.
Bukhari, who met with Emirati officials, announced in a news conference held in Dubai on Thursday that the UAE was going to resume visit visa services for Pakistani citizens from August 1.
He also met with UAE Human Resources and Emiratization Minister Nasser bin Thani Al-Hamli to discuss the availability of jobs for Pakistanis in the Emirate.
