LAHORE: Pakistan’s President, Dr Arif Alvi, has said that insurance is highly significant and important for the welfare of the community and humanity as they could benefit from it on rainy days.
Addressing a seminar on the ‘Role of Insurance Ombudsman to Strengthen Business Sector’, held at Governor’s House here on Saturday, the president said that collective efforts were needed to enhance the quantum of insurance in the country for the larger benefit of the masses.
Dr Alvi further said that sometimes people have trust concerns; therefore, measurements should be taken to narrow down the trust gap, adding that the basic concept behind insurance was community consciousness, particularly the insurance at old age that should be encouraged by all relevant stakeholders.
The president apprised that the Employees Old Age Benefits Institution was a social insurance institute while the Benazir Income Support Programme also served as a financial support scheme.
Referring to the elite class, Alvi lamented that such a capitalist culture created inequality in a society where rich people possessed almost 50 percent of the total wealth of the world.
Pakistan’s President Seeks Following Islamic Teachings to Help Poor
Dr Arif Alvi said our beloved Holy Prophet Hazrat Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) taught the world about the essence behind charity. He said that according to the teachings of the holy prophet, almsgiving was all about compassion towards humanity.
The president reminded that Islamic laws and teachings were community-related, where love and care for each other could be practiced and encouraged, adding that wherever there was a democracy, there would be compassion towards humanity, but the situation in Gaza was totally opposite. He said the world should consider brown and black people equally.
Dr Arif Alvi said that it was important to be aware and inform people about the Insurance Ombudsman that it was a stop shop for solutions to their problems, adding that he was also listening to appeals himself so that the backlog could be cleared.
Ari Alvi further said that Hazrat Umar (RA) taught us that decisions regarding cases of people coming from far-flung areas should be done swiftly and on a priority basis with proper monitoring, adding that a decision should be revisited if any wrong was made and the decisions should be implemented immediately.
Arif Alvi said that insurance contributed 0.85 percent to the country’s GDP, while this percentage was higher in other countries. He said that decisions made by the Insurance Ombudsman should be highlighted to create awareness among the masses.
