LAHORE – The LCCI President Irfan Qaiser Sheikh Wednesday complimented Pakistan Bait-ul-Mal’s Sweet Homes Project for giving honour, dignity and respect to orphan children and termed it a unique initiative aiming at bringing them to mainstream of society.
The LCCI President was talking to Goodwill Ambassador for Orphan Children Jahan Ara Wattoo and Director Pakistan Bait-ul-Mal Col (Retd) Syed Ahmad Nadeem Qadri during a visit to Sweet Homes established by Pakistan Bait-ul-Mal.
After visiting facilities made available to orphan children, Irfan Qaiser Sheikh praised Pakistan Bait-ul-Mal for providing shelter, quality education and grooming opportunities to children who lost their parents and were left under the open skies with no one to look after them. “There could be no substitute to the blessing of having parents but we can, at least, provide these children social cover and an environment to help them stand on their own feet and become asset for the society”, he added.
The LCCI President urged the well to do people and philanthropists to contribute generously to fill in the vacuum created by fate in the lives of such unfortunate children. He said that taking caring for orphaned children was a hallmark of the Muslim society.
“This is what our religion teaches us.” “This being our religious and national responsibility, we will not let down the needy and the poor,” he said adding that government should focus on ameliorating plight of poor of the country, especially children and women. He said that in view of large number of orphaned children there was a need for setting up a comprehensive network of such institutions all across the country.
This, he added, requires active and generous support of civil society, well-off persons and philanthropists. Irfan said that protecting one needy child from falling into wrong hands by any citizen who can afford would not only contribute to his ultimate success in hereafter but it would be a source of great personal satisfaction and a great national service. “By caring for these children and protecting them from falling into wrong hands we are in fact protecting our own children from becoming orphans”, he remarked. The LCCI President said that the Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry was fulfilling its Corporate Social Responsibility in an amicable manner. It has very recently constructed hundred houses in flood ravaged district Layyah while through Lahore Businessmen Association for the Rehabilitation of Disabled (LABARD) the disabled persons were not only being provided free-of-cost medical facilities but being imparted with various technical courses to enable them to play their role as an effective citizens. He said that LCCI would extend every possible help to Sweet Homes to ensure all facilities to the orphan children. He also appreciated Chairman Pakistan Bait-ul-Mal Zumurd Khan for running Sweet Homes in an excellent manner.