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news Monday, 5 August, 2013
Noose being tightened around power thieves: Asif SIALKOT
WATER AND POWER MINISTER SAYS ELECTRICITY TARIFF WILL NOT BE RAISED FOR PEOPLE HAVING LOW INCOME
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INISTER for Water and Power Khawaja Asif on Sunday said the government had tightened noose around the electricity thieves across the country as they had been stealing electricity worth Rs 135 billion to Rs 200 billion. Talking to the local media at his residence in Cantt, he said the PML-N had
given up practice of taking loans from the international donors, saying it would be an unwise decision to borrow money for debt servicing. He pledged that the electricity tariff would not be raised for the people be-
Govt heading towards one unit: shah RABBANI COMES DOWN HARD ON PML-N FOR NOT IMPLEMENTING 18TH AMENDMENT ISLAMABAD/KARACHI NNI
Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Khurshid Shah has said that adoption of one unit policy by the federal government is dangerous and rights of smaller provinces are under threat. Talking to reporters on Sunday, he said stability of the federation rests with making provinces stronger. After the 18th Amendment,
URGE IMRAN TO AVOID CONFRONTATION WITH JUDICIARY, SHUJAAT TELLS RASHID ISLAMABAD INp
PML-Q President Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain on Sunday advised AML chief Sheikh Rashid Ahmed to ask PTI chairman Imran Khan to avoid confrontation with the judiciary. Shujaat contacted Rashid to discuss possibility of formation of a grand opposition alliance. He asked the AML chief to convince Imran Khan to avoid confrontation with the judiciary. He said if such an important opposition leader adopted the course of confrontation with the judiciary it would be harmful for the grand opposition plans. He said after the PML-N, the PTI and to some extent the JI, have the influence in Punjab to take the people to streets. He said he has also contacted the PPP leadership and would soon contact the JI. Shujaat said people were crying over the raise in GST and petroleum and power prices. He said the opposition parties instead of raising scattered voices should be unified in the national and Punjab assemblies. He said the contacts with the opposition parties would be enhanced after the return of Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi from London. Both leaders also discussed the option to unite all Muslim League factions and contact Pir Pagara in this regard.
the provinces were given complete authority on natural resources but the present government was trying to limit these authorities, he expressed his concern. Meanwhile, addressing a press conference in Karachi on Sunday PPP leader Raza Rabbani said the PML-N government was planning to introduce amendments in the 18th Amendment in order to curtail the powers of provinces. Rabbani said according to the 18th Amendment, the utilisation of natural resources was the prerogative of provinces and the PPP and other opposition parties would resist any move to usurp this right by the federal government. “We want the federation
to devolve the ministry of health and education to the provinces,” he asserted, adding, “we wanted to give the government a 100-day honey-moon period but now consultations will be held after the Eid over talks of 18th amendment’s rollback,” the PPP man said. According to sources, opposition parties have decided to raise the issue of gas sharing formula in the parliament and it is expected that soon an adjournment motion will be submitted in the national assembly and senate. The sources said opposition parties from smaller provinces had started making contacts with each other to constitute a collective strategy on this issue.
Ban Ki-moon to arrive in Pakistan after Eid MOnITORIng DESK United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon is expected to arrive in Pakistan in the second week of August, the Foreign Office (FO) confirmed on Sunday. A FO official said, “This would be his second visit to Pakistan. Earlier he had visited Pakistan during the 2010 floods”. He said, “Ban Ki-moon will call on President Asif Zardari and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on the day of his arrival in Pakistan between August 12 and 14.” Sources in the FO said, “The UN secretary general, along with his wife, also intends to meet the families of slain health workers and those
who were deputed to run the polio vaccine drive to offer condolences and to pay tribute to their services.” Official spokesperson for UN Mission in Pakistan, Ishrat Rizvi said that the UN secretary general and his wife would be heading a large delegation, comprising of 21-22 members in Pakistan but did not confirm the finalised dates of his arrival. She said that an advisory for the media will be issued on August12 once everything gets finalised. The secretary general, when he visited Pakistan during the floods in 2010, had announced an additional aid of $10 million from the Central Emergency Response Fund of the UN.
longing to low-income brackets. He claimed the PML-N government had reduced the duration of power load shedding in the country despite the ongoing unavoidable circumstances. He said technical issues in the national grid system were also the main reason behind the ongoing load shedding, however, the PML-N had the capability to get the nation rid of prolonged and unbearable energy crisis. Replying to a question, the minister pointed out that the electricity system was badly damaged in
INDIAN FORCES KIDNAP FOUR KASHMIRI MEN NEAR LOC MOnITORIng DESK Four people belonging to Azad Jammu and Kashmir were allegedly kidnapped by the Indian armed forces on Sunday night near the Neelam Valley, reports said. The men were plucking herbs near the Line of Control (LoC) when they were kidnapped by Indian forces who unlawfully entered the area. The four men were identified as Zafran Ghulam Sarwar, Shazaman, Wajid Akbar and Mohammad Faisal. Last week, unprovoked firing from the Indian side on the Line of Control (LoC) near Rawalkot had killed one Pakistani solider and critically injured another. According to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), there had been no evident reason for the firing. Asim Iqbal, the soldier who had died due to the firing incident, was a resident of a village near Rawalpindi.
PAKISTAN PROTESTS INDIAN SPY PLANE’S AIRSPACE VIOLATION SIALKOT STAFF REpoRT
Pakistani authorities have launched a formal protest and asked India to explain an airspace violation on Saturday by one of its spy planes. An Indian spy plane violated the Pakistani airspace near the border at Sialkot on Saturday. Chenab Rangers officials confirmed the airspace violation by Indian spy plane and said the plane violated Pakistani airspace near the Sialkot Working Boundary at 1:55 pm and remained in Pakistani airspace for about two minutes.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa due to the alleged slackness of the previous governments. Asif vowed to make Pakistan a load shedding-free country within a stipulate period of three years, adding the PML-N government had taken the issue of energy crisis as a challenge and the government was heading towards right direction. He urged the masses to give up unnecessary use of electricity and lend a sharing hand of cooperation to the government for ending the power load shedding.
Celebrating eid with silent mobiles! INTERIOR MINISTRY SEEKS EID SECURITY PLAN FROM PROVINCES, MOBILE SERVICES TO BE BLOCKED IN 77 DISTRICTS ON EID DAY ISLAMABAD/LAHORE/PESHWAR AgENCIES
The Interior Ministry decided in principle on Sunday to block mobile phone services in 77 districts of the country on the Eid day and also sought security plans from the provinces. According to sources in the ministry, the provinces have been directed to inform the Centre about security arrangements at their respective sensitive, extremely sensitive and normal areas, especially at jails and other vulnerable points. The information has been sought to avoid any negligence in terms of security and in the backdrop of terror threats on Eid day. Provincial home secretaries and IGs have been given special directives to ensure implementation of SOPs issued for the security of specific sensitive points. Increasing the number of security officials on Eid in Islamabad and provinces has also been advised by the interior ministry. Meanwhile, the Interior Ministry has decided in principle to block mobile phone services in 77 districts of the country on the Eid day. Mobile phone services
will remain blocked from 05:00 am to 12:00 pm in all the districts except Karachi where the services will be restored at 01:00 pm. The provinces have been directed to make foolproof security arrangements on the Eid day. These security arrangements are being made on the report of security agencies which warned terror threats to 77 districts including 21 in Punjab, 20 in Sindh, 10 in Balochistan and 16 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. A high-level meeting will also be held on Wednesday in the Interior Ministry where the decision about blockage of mobile phone services in other cities will be decided according to the reports from the provinces. In the wake of likely terror attacks, the district administration Peshawar has also started implementing security plan chalked out to maintain law and order on the occasion of Eidul Fitr. Per the plan, additional check posts have been established in different areas of the city besides deployment of more security personnel at all previous and new checkposts. Deployment and patrolling of civil-dressed police personnel at public and over-crowded places has been ensured to keep a watch on miscreants. Under the traffic plan, there will be ban on entry of certain types of vehicles in cantonment and intercity during certain times - Eid prayer timings - while some of the roads have also been declared one-way. Peshawar Division Commissioner Sahibzada Muhammad Anees said terror attacks on Eid could not be ruled out.
PAKISTAN-BOUND PASSENGERS STUCK AT MANCHESTER AIRPORT FOR 40 HOURS MOnITORIng DESK An Airblue flight, coming from Manchester to Islamabad, reported a fault on Friday, causing around 300 passengers a delay of over 40 hours. The flight to Islamabad was scheduled to take off at 9:50pm on Friday. It was then postponed to 3pm on Sunday, but passengers were still found themselves waiting at 4pm. A spokesperson for Airblue, a private Pakistani airline, stated that passengers were offered rooms in the nearest hotel that could accommodate them. However, many passengers preferred to stay at the airport instead of going to a hotel which was at least 80 miles away in Birmingham. Manchester Airport on Sunday said it was assisting Airblue in the regard.
MAN, SON KILLED IN KHARAN QUETTA SHAHZADA ZULFIQAR
A man and his son were killed in Kharan District on Sunday. Police officials say that a man identified as former Zakat district chairman Muhammad Sharif and his son Muhammad Younus were on their way home when unidentified assailants riding a motorcycle opened fire on them. Both died on the spot. However, the attackers managed to escape from the scene. The bodies were shifted to a hospital for autopsy. Motive behind the killing could not be ascertained. A case has been registered against unidentified killers and investigation was underway. Separately, bandits stopped a passenger bus in Kalat District on National Highway and deprived passengers from their mobile phones, cash and other valuables. The bus was bringing passengers to Quetta from Panjgur district.
Maximum contempt notices issued to politicians since restoration of judiciary: Khosa PPP SECY GENERAL SAYS JUDICIARY RETARDING DEMOCRACY IN PAKISTAN LAHORE NNI
Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Secretary General Latif Khosa on Sunday said maximum number of contempt notices had been issued to lawmakers and politicians since the restoration of the judiciary in November 2007. In a press statement, Khosa said the judiciary had, to an extent, re-
tarded the growth of democracy in Pakistan. He said the contempt notices were issued to former prime ministers, including Yousaf Raza Gilani, Raja Pervez Ashraf and Nawaz Sharif, which led to the imposition of martial law in 1998. “It is imperative in the interest of the development of the democratic system that contempt notices be issued sparingly to legislators and heads of the political parties,” he said, adding that rampant issuance was fraught with dangers for the continuity of the political process. Khosa said the highest court in the United Kingdom (UK), the
House of Lords, had issued one or two contempt notices over 50 years. Despite the fact that a newspaper termed the judges donkeys the UK court did not issue any contempt notice, which enhanced the judges’ stature. He said Article 19 of the constitution stated the freedom of speech and expression as a fundamental right of the citizens of Pakistan, which was critical for the promotion of democracy and should be protected by giving the benefit of doubt to the people. Khosa said the contempt notice to Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan was a wakeup call and all parliamentarians
should come together to clearly define the circumstances warranting the issuance of judicial contempt notices. “Failure to do so will put the future of democracy at stake,” he warned. Khosa said the Contempt Ordinance 2002 promulgated by General (r) Pervez Musharraf did not exist because it was not sanctified by parliament. “Therefore, the parliament needs to come up with a law on the subject soon,” he said. The PPP leader said fiddling of the judiciary in the political domain would lead to tensions between the judiciary and the politicians as well
as between the judiciary and the people, which would not augur well for the administration of justice. He referred to the recent resolution of the Lahore High Court Bar, the biggest bar in Asia, in which it vowed to take legal recourse to proceed against violators of the constitution. Khosa said the politicians, lawyers and the civil society had launched the struggle for the restoration of the judiciary to ensure the prevalence of “rule of law”. He said they wanted the judiciary to come up to their expectations and pose minimum hurdles in the ongoing evolutionary process of democracy.