C O N T I N U E D O N PA G E 05
S a t u r d a y, 1 3 A u g u s t , 2 0 2 2 I 1 4 M u h a r r a m , 1 4 4 4 I R s 1 5 0 0 I Vo l X I I I N o 4 4 I 1 2 Pa g e s I La h o r e E d i t i o n
g s ay s e V m w a s s o l e ly h i s i d e a f o r f r e e, fa i r p o l l s g Banks
wh le agreeing with the views of the ournal sts, alvi said that the po itical par ties and stakeholders needed to sit to gether and chalk out an agreed way for ward, espec al y with regard to hold ng free and fair elections and develop ng a charter of economy the pres dent explaining the funding received by pti from abroad said that under united states laws, f a party wants to collect funds it has to establish a company [the eCp] however claimed that a ‘company ’ sent us funds, whereas it were those companies which we established in line with the us and Canadian laws he said “ i believe that corruption s o counter corruption is to make all finan cial transactions through formal Bank ing channels especially by the po itical parties while rece ving and managing donations he added must Be used for party funding to keep donations transparent Alvi ‘reAdy to pl Ay role’ for defusing rising pol ArisAtion
a ma or f a c t o r i n t h e b a c k w a r d n e s s o f a n y c o u n t r y o n e o f t h e b e s t w a y s t
president
LAHORE s ta f f r e p o r t p resident dr arif alvi on friday expressed h s readiness to play a role within the Const tutional ambit to bring all polit cal stakeho ders on a negotiating table to help defuse the increasing po lar sation in the countr y speaking to a group of ed tors and owners of media houses here at the governor ’s house president alvi sa d though the const tution d dn t al ow h m any such role however he would l ke to faci itate d alogue as an e der n his ca pacity as president “i be ieve there is a need to nitiate a consultative process to br ng a l mpor tant stakeholders on the table to listen to each other however, the constitutional role of the president does not al ow me officially to reach out to the stakeholders Basical y, it is the primar y responsibi ity of the executive and the oppos tion within the assembly and n the mainstream and the relevant inst tutions to del berate upon defusing the polar sation he said alv said that as pres dent of pakistan all state institutions were respected and dear to him and he did not bel eve in trigger ng any controversy “ Being pres dent, i had met pm she hbaz more times as compared to h s meet ngs with the then pm imran khan,” president alv sa d adding that the pur pose of his media interaction with emi nent med a persons was to get a qual fied input over the prevail ng politi cal and economic situation and discuss possible ways and means to bring down the pol tical temperature in the countr y
TurkIyE PTA
Former federal minister and PML Q leader MNA Moonis Elahi, PTI leaders including Fawad Chaudhry and Shafqat Mahmood were also present on the occasion Imran Khan acknowledged the Punjab government’s decision to lift the ban on timing for markets closure He also appreciated the steps to launch Ehsaas Rashan Programme for the people of Punjab The PTI chief also lauded the Punjab government’s steps under the leadership of CM Pervaiz Elahi for making excellent security arrangements for Muharramul Haram, especially on Youme Ashur The chief minister also briefed the PTI chief regarding steps being taken by the Punjab government to provide relief to the masses, especially about Ehsaas Rashan Programme Ch Pervaiz Elahi also apprised the former prime minister about the steps being taken to maintain law and order situation in the province Earlier, PTI Chief Imran Khan said that Shehbaz Gill’s statement was objectionable and he should not have said it In an interview with a private channel, PTI Chief said that they are ready to have a dialogue with the government if they announce the date for fresh elections According to details the PTI Chief said that he would talk about his future plans in the public gathering in Lahore tomorrow Their government was ousted by a conspiracy, and conspiracies cannot succeed without Mir Jafer and Mir Sadiq’s help, he added He added that the country is suffering from severe inflation since these thieves took charge People who have multiple cases have been imposed upon the nation, he added The PTI chief said that they succeeded in the Punjab by polls despite rigging, which is why the government is trying to knock them out technically
The police on Friday claimed to have arrested two of the seven nominated accused involved in sexual assault on a girl and pornography scandal in Layyah According to the spokesperson for Punjab police, the police arrested the two accused identified as: Abrar and Shaukat and started investigation, adding that special teams have been conducting raids to arrest rest of the accused As soon news of the news about the incident aired, Punjab Chief Minister Ch Pervaiz Elahi and Punjab Inspector General of Police Faisal Shahkar took notice and ordered for the arrest of the accused Following the directives, the Additional Inspector General Police South Punjab formed two special teams The spokesman further said that the Joint Investigation Team (JIT) has also been formed to investigate all aspects of the incident, adding that DNA samples of the victim girl have been sent for forensic lab The police have been making strenuous efforts bring all the accused to the book,” the spokesperson said and added all facts about the incident would be revealed soon He further said that all aspects of the incident were being examined and the police teams were proceeding with investigation in the light of incidental and forensic evidences IGP TAKES NOTICE OF KILLINGS IN MURREE: Punjab IG Police Faisal Shahkar took notice of the incident of killing of two persons due to firing between two groups in Patriata area of Murree Police Station He sought a report from the RPO Rawalpindi about the incident and ordered the senior officers to reach the spot immediately Staff RepoRt Former Chief Minister Punjab Hamza Shahbaz on Friday filed a petition in the Supreme Court (SC) to reconsider its July 26 2022 decision in which it had declared the Punjab Assembly (PA) deputy speaker ’s ruling in the election for Punjab chief minister null and void Advocate Mansoor Ali Awan submitted the petition on Hamza’s behalf In the petition, CM Pervaiz Elahi a d f o r m d have been made parties case T s t M a z a r i ’s i n t h e r u n o ff e l e c t i o n f o r t h e P u n j a b CM O n J u l y 2 2 , M a z a r i h a d r e j e c t e d t h e v o t e s o f Pakistan Muslim League Quaid (PML Q) members of the Punjab Assembly (MPAs) in the favour of Chaudhry P e r v a i z E l a h i d u r i n g t h e p r o v i n c i a l c h i e f m i n i s t e r election citing a letter from PML Q’s head Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain under Article 63 A of the constitution The apex court, in its 11 page short order, accepted the plea of Elahi and pronounced him as Punjab chief minister LAHORE: Wapda House and Charing Cross decorated with giant national flag and hoardings ahead of Independence Day Photo by zubair Mehfooz H a m z a S h e h b a z m ove s S C fo r rev i ew o f ve rd i c t i n Pu n j a b C M e l e c t i o n c a s e
02-03 NEWS 13 AUGUST_Layout 1 8/13/2022 1:29 AM Page 1
FCCU contributed to creation of Pakistan: Rec tor T wo of 7 rapists held in Layyah rape, pornography scandal LaHoRe/MULtaN S ta f f r e P o r t
Calling it the most important achievement” of the commerce ministers of Pakistan and Turkiye and their respective teams the prime minister said the said agreement was a manifestation of the bilateral brotherhood and relations anchored in mutual trust and respect However, he said the volume of bilateral trade and investment did not reflect the existing unique relationship He said both the countries had already resolved to take the bilateral trade to $5 billion in next three years The prime minister said he had “fruitful and productive” discussion with Turkish business community during his visit to Turkiye in May last The ongoing visit of the Turkish delegation and signing of the PTA was in pursuance of the very understanding to further the discussion, he added He said he would welcome Turkish firms to invest in Pakistan in hydel sector, as the country was bestowed with immense potential with hydel resources which remained unexplored He said the national economy could be strengthened and the increasing import bill could be curtailed by exploring renewable, solar and wind energy “Solar energy is the order of the day,” the prime minister remarked and mentioned the government s decision to introduce solar tube wells, establishment of solar parks of 5000 6000 MW capacity, installation of solar panels on households and solarization of government offices Shehbaz Sharif assured that he would personally engage with the ministers and officers concerned to find out from where to start implementing the energy projects He also guaranteed the swift payments of profits and other funds to potential investors without any impediments of red tapism and nepotism
Imran, Elahi discuss political situation, public welfare LaHoRe S ta f f r e P o r t
Saturday 13 August, 2022 LAHORE 02 NEWS
PAk- To TAkE To nEw hEIghTs: PM
e r
e p u t y s p e a k e r D o s t M u h a m m a d M a z a r i
n
Punjab Chief Minister Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi and PTI Chairman Imran Khan on Friday discussed administrative affairs political situation and steps to provide relief to pubic in Punjab at a meeting held in CM s House Both the leaders also discussed matters with regard to the public meeting being held in hockey ground Lahore on Saturday (today) They also expressed satisfaction over the arrangements made for the public show during the meeting
First Pak- C hina dual degree program on c ards: D r Mukhtar
The government has launched propaganda against PTI, their plans would damage the country, he added Toxic liquor kills eight in Alipur Staff RepoRt Three more people breathed their last after consuming poisonous liquor in Alipur, taking the death toll to eight on Friday Following the incident, police have launched a crackdown on the people associated with the business of manufacturing and selling liquor The dead include Munnawar, Abdul Wahid, Bilal, Irfan Ramzan and Jam Ihsan Staff RepoRt Dr Mukhtar Ahmed, Chairman of Pakistan’s HEC in a meeting with a delegation from Tang International Education Group led by Director and Executive President Max Ma, where he stated that Higher Education Commission (HEC) is formulating and improving the policy for dual degree programs in Pakistan I look forward to the first China Pakistan dual degree program officially approved by HEC which will be launched at Karakoram International University” There are 57 universities and colleges in Pakistan that are committed to vocational education In the future more will be transformed into vocational institutes It is expected that the first China Pakistan dual degree program officially approved by HEC will be launched at Karakoram International University to train talent in mining engineering, which will become a model for other Pakistani universities in providing more practical knowledge and experience in cooperation with Chinese universities HEC Chairman added, that the Commission highly values the role of vocational education in training and developing skillful technical talents in Pakistan to meet future needs He expects that more Chinese disciplines will continue to be introduced to Pakistan through the program to enhance the local vocational and technical education capacity Among the over 700 vocational education majors in China, Tang International Education Group has selected 210 most needed ones to be introduced to Pakistan under “CCTE” model “CCTE”, short for “China Pakistan Dual Diploma/Degree & China Pakistan Cooperation Chinese Language Courses & Chinese Commercial Cultural Courses, Technical Education Subjects & Technology in Education and Further Education & Employment , is a model developed by the education group Students participating in CCTE programs will learn in Pakistan for the first two years and in China for the third year before obtaining degrees from both sides
bIL ATErAL TrAdE
SHaHaB oMeR Rector Forman Christian College (A Chartered University) Jonathan Addleton while talking about the 75th anniversary of Pakistan said that the Chief Justice who administered oath to Quaid i Azam for the first time as Governor General on Aug 18, 1947 was an old Formanite “Now if we look through the windows of the past, it will be known that FCCU was there at the time of formation of Pakistan and this institution contributed to the early years of Pakistan With all the trauma of partition, our dorms became a temporary hospital and that actually became the precursor to later on it became UCH and Christian Hospital Pre 1947, FCCU had Muslim students but also Hindus and Sikhs and most of them left by 1947 but the graduates from that time had an influence in the 50s and 60s with the Civil Service, he explained The Rector, while speaking about the history of FCCU, informed that FCCU was founded in 1864 with a vision to impart quality education to the people of this region by Dr Charles W Forman, a Presbyterian missionary from the USA “The college was initially known as the Lahore Mission College, but in 1894 the name was officially changed to Forman Christian College in honor of the founder In the early years, degrees were awarded through Calcutta University College level instruction was interrupted in 1869 due to the illness of key faculty members College classes resumed in 1886, with degrees being awarded through the University of the Punjab In 2004 FCCU became a chartered University and from 2009 onwards has awarded its own degrees he said adding that it was founded to contribute to the people of Pakistan’s academic economic and social development From the premises of a small college FCCU has grown into an academically robust university that offers a wide range of opportunities to its students to grow and reach their full potential FCCU welcomes students from all backgrounds and all regions of Pakistan and abroad to a university where they live grow and learn meet some of the greatest thinkers in their chosen disciplines and make lifelong friendships a place they can truly call home,” he said Jonathan Addleton further said that FCCU is an HEC recognized, W category University as it currently has over 7,500 students in its University & College sections and over 250 full time faculty members in the University with over 200 PhDs, and over 30,000 registered alumni Addleton also informed that the university offers Baccalaureate and Postgraduate programs and the 4 year Baccalaureate Honors program started in 2005, offers an American style world class liberal arts education New postgraduate programs started with the MBA in 2007 and now include PhDs MPhils, Masters and Executive education programs in specific disciplines He said that FCCU s generous financial aid program and scholarships for deserving students make high quality education accessible to students from various socioeconomic backgrounds and it has an extraordinary community that is characterized by its learning environment diversity excellence in service and commitment to its values of discipline, justice, and respect Our students come to FCCU for various reasons; chief among them is the quality of education we provide Our values of commitment to excellence and service to community have remained strong throughout our 158 year history, just as our academic plans have expanded to include 26 majors at the Baccalaureate level and 23 Postgraduate programs that meet international standards Our highly qualified faculty and staff are dedicated to achieving excellence in teaching and support to our students who come from across Pakistan and abroad to study in our University & College Our 35+ student societies provide opportunities for personal growth while our international education programs will open doors for transformative experiences We place special emphasis on building an inclusive community that produces an environment that is safe and friendly and makes education a joy for everyone You will find people here who share passion for knowledge, and for making a difference in the society ISLaMaBaD S ta f f r e P o r t P R I M E Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Friday said the landmark trade in goods agreement” between Pakistan and Turkiye would reflect the strength of bilateral fraternal relations, and take trade and investment ties to further heights The prime minister, addressing a luncheon reception he hosted for the visiting Turkish Trade Minister Dr Mehmet Mus and his delegation, urged the business communities from both the countries to explore the opportunities in varying sectors, particularly the renewable energy Earlier, Pakistan and Turkiye signed the Preferential Trade Agreement, which includes comprehensive provisions on bilateral safeguards, balance of payment exceptions, dispute settlement, and its periodic review
in the
h e S C h a d o n J u l y 2 6 , 2 0 2 2 a n n u l l e d t h e r u l i n g g i v e n b y t h e t h e n P u n j a b A s s e m b l y d e p u t y s p e a k e r D o
Ahsan Iqbal direc ts NDMA, provinces to expedite damage assessment sur vey
LaHoRe P r
The National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) has approved and notified a massive Rs9 90 per unit increase in the power price under the head fuel charges adjustment (FCA) for the month of June 2022
03NEWS Saturday, 13 August, 2022 | LAHORE ISLaMaBaD S ta f f r e P o r t A district and sessions court on Friday turned down the police request for extension in PTI leader Shahbaz Gill’s physical remand Gill was arrested on Tuesday afternoon at Banigala Chowk in the capital after a video clip of his controversial remarks went viral on social media He was subsequently booked on charges of sedition and inciting the public against the state institutions On Thursday another charge of disappearing evidence and giving false information was added to the first information report registered against Gill, officials from capital police revealed Gill was presented before Judicial Magistrate Umar Shabbir on Friday upon expiry of his two day physical remand On the occasion, a number of PTI members gathered outside the court and raised slogans in his favour Before the hearing, his handcuffs were removed and he was allowed to meet his legal team When the hearing began, the investigating officer (IO) submitted an application to the court seeking the extension of Gill’s physical remand by 12 days According to the court order, the IO stated in the application that Gill had made disclosures during the course of investigation and revealed that his mobile phone contained data regarding the commission of the offence “But he is intentionally causing hindrance in the progress of the matter,” the order said, quoting the application The order further said the court was informed that a transcript of Gill’s remarks was obtained from the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (Pemra) and sent to the Federal Investigation Agency’s (FIA) cybercirme wing for voice matching the report for which had come out positive But further physical remand was necessary for the arrest of others involved in the offence and the recovery of the mobile phone used by Gill for the commission of the offence, the IO contended The “IO has also submitted in his application that the accused is continuously telling lies [and] hence, physical remand may be granted for his polygraph test,” the order read The order further stated that Islamabad Advocate General Jahangir Jadoon and Assistant Director Public Prosecutor Naveed Akhtar also argued that although the prosecution had made substantial progress in the investigation during the two days of Gill’s physical remand, it had not been able to recover the PTI leader ’s mobile phone laptop and other digital devices due to the suspect’s non cooperation They contended that the recovery of the said devices was necessary for a “just and fair investigation” According to the court order, Jadoon went on to allege that Gill had attended a “special meeting” before joining the TV channels’ bulletin and the “complete transcript of the interview was sent to his mobile phone via Whatsapp Hence the recovery of Gill s mobile phone was necessary to reach other suspects and “designers of the entire conspiracy he added During the course of today’s proceedings, the transcript of Gill’s remarks was read out in the court with Jadoon maintaining that comments were aimed at giving rise to “mutiny” in the ranks of the armed forces He also alleged that Gill s driver who was with him at the time of his arrest and was said to be in possession of his mobile phone, was in hiding at Banigala a reference to PTI chief Imran Khan’s residence Gill’s driver, Izhar, had claimed that he had been tortured by men who had arrested Gill and was later booked along with his family members in a case of rioting and assault on law enforces after police carried out a raid at a house where he was staying for the recovery of Gill’s mobile phone His wife, Saira, was arrested in the episode while he had fled For his part, Gill objected to the IO’s application claiming that police were “using [the] physical remand only for the purposes of torture”, and that he had been “pressurised” to only give statements to the prosecution s liking According to the order he maintained that no mobile phone was used for his comments pointing out the remarks during the live transmission were aired on August 8, which was the ninth day of Muharram, when mobile phones services remained suspended
According to the authority’s notification issued on Friday, the increase of Rs9 8972 per kilowatt per hour increase in the power price shall be applicable on all consumer categories except lifeline consumers of all DISCOs The said adjustment shall be shown separately in bills on the basis of units billed in the month of June DISCOs shall reflect the FCA in respect of June 2022 in the billing month of August, 2022, the notification reads, adding that the concerned power distribution companies shall keep in view and strictly comply with court orders notwithstanding while applying the adjustment charges As per details, actual fuel charges for June 2022 were recorded at Rs15 8316/kWh while the corresponding reference fuel charges were earlier fixed at Rsy5 9344/unit However the authority after reviewing the case, assessed an increase of Rs9 8972/unit in the applicable tariff for DISCOs except K Electric on account of variation in the fuel charges for June Based on the information provided by CPPA in its application on behalf of power distribution companies (DISCOs) the total power generation with various fuels was 13,876 14 Gigawatt hour while net power delivered to DISCOs was 13 471 05 GWh in June Similarly, power generation in the month under review with hydel source totalled 24 22 per cent, coal 13 57pc, Residual Fuel Oil (RFO) 10 48pc, gas 10 66pc Re gasified Liquefied Natural Gas (RLNG) 24 43pc, nuclear 9 12pc, wind 5 58pc Iran import 0 37pc mixed 0 07pc, solar 0 62pc and Baggasse 0 60pc Meanwhile reference fuel charges for June were fixed at Rs5 9344/kWh while CPPA proposed an increase of Rs9 9095 per kWh Earlier, CPPA asked for an increase of Rs9 91 per unit on account of the FCA of June whereas NEPRA conducted a hearing to consider the application on July 28 It is pertinent to mention here that NEPRA, in a notification dated July 7, had asked all DISCOs except KE to charge Rs7 9040/ kWh in the billing month of July
The minister said that the policy makers leaders and stakeholders should set the target to give a Pakistan free from hatred and division which had love tolerance and harmony “When the societies are fed with hatred, discrimination they just wither away The generations that of me or my parents, the historians will judge that what we have done for this country and what has not been done, he said Kh Asif mentioned that the sense of hopelessness was permeating into our population particularly among the youth that had to be changed into opportunity and end this dejection “Information Minister Marriyum told me that a great celebration would have to be held for celebrating 75 years of independence but I agreed to her with a caveat,” he remarked He continued saying that the biggest element in this diamond jubilee celebrations should be of accountability, adding, “This motherland the blessing of God what we have done to it ” He said the Pakistanis of 1947 had a passion, love for motherland and an enthusiasm for a bright future “You all should ask this question that is that spirit and commitment still prevailing after 75 years? he added He further queried that were we pursuing our personal agendas or national agenda? Is the center of every focus and effort is our own self or our nation and state? “This is due from us that we ask these questions to ourselves before celebrating our 75 years of independence,” the minister said while sharing the caveat he set for the diamond jubilee celebrations nATIonAL PLEdgE To furThEr
kh AsIf for
Court turns down extension in Shahbaz Gill’s physical remand
sTrEngThEn CounTry
Massive rallies voice concerns over ‘miscreants ac tivities’ in Swat
SWAT: Thousands of residents took out peace rallies in Khwaza Khela Tehsil and Kabal Tehsil, categorically declaring that no one will be allowed to turn Swat into a battle field and leave its residents at the mercy of militants Panic gripped the entire Swat region after personnel of the law enforcement agencies officers were held hostage by unidentified miscreants and a DSP was injured during a search operation in the upper areas of Tehsil Matta on August 8 To give vent to their anger and apprehensions, thousands of people carrying placards took to streets to raise their voice for peace “We had witnessed rain of gunpowder in the past and displacements of people on a scale having no precedent in the Swat history said Dr Amjad Ali Advocate Ali Namdar Khan, Mufti Arif Ullah, Ziaullah and other speakers while addressing thousands of protesters They said the people of Swat had always struggle for peace and will remain working for peace No one will be allowed to hurt peace of the region and take the area hostage,” they warned, adding that the masses will deal such elements with sternly They said that the people of Swat had rendered numerous sacrifices for the sake of peace, adding that peace was restored in Swat as result of unparalleled sacrifices The sad incident that had taken place in the last few days has caused severe anxiety and unrest among the people They demanded the central and provincial government to take practical measures to maintain the atmosphere of peace, considering the delicacy of the situation S y e d S h a h a b u d d n
It is noted that the federal government had already declared an emergency situation in the flood affected areas
02-03 NEWS 13 AUGUST_Layout 1 8/13/2022 1:29 AM Page 2
ISLaMaBaD S ta f f r e P o r t Minister for Planning Development and Special Initiatives Professor Ahsan Iqbal has directed National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) and all the provinces including Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), Gilgit Baltistan (GB) to expedite the relief assessment survey for flood affected area in the country particularly in Balochistan The Minister issued these directions while chairing a Flood Relief Committee’ meeting to review progress over flood relief activities, said a press release issued here on Friday The Committee was formed by the Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif after recent floods in the country and Professor Ahsan Iqbal is the head of the committee The meeting was attended by the Prime Minister ’s Adviser for Kashmir Affairs and GB Qamar Zaman Kaira, Secretary Planning Commission Secretary Communication Chairman, NDMA, Chairman Higher Education Commission (HEC), Secretary Housing and Works and Provincial heads of Disaster Management Authorities
s t
ISLaMaBaD a h M a d a h M a da n
nsPP hosts workshop on public financial management
The Executive Development Institute (EDI) of National School of Public Policy (NSPP), on 11th& 12th of August 2022 organized a Two Day Workshop on Public Financial Management (PFM) The course was officially introduced by Dean EDI, Ahmad Nazir Warraich, who highlighted the importance of fiscal discipline and efficient financial management He pointed out that the government was also emphasizing result oriented financial management He reiterated the unique role of EDI in being able to act as a bridge between public and private sectors, including academia In this regard, he also emphasized the diversity of the cohort that attended the course Rector NSPP Dr Ijaz Munir highlighted the importance of Public Financial Management While emphasizing the need for PFM course, he said that efficient management of expenditure and resources in an equitable manner is essential for good financial management He appreciated the hard work of Dean EDI and his team in organizing the Training 24 participants from all over the country attended the session, including academia, public sector officials, private sector, Military, and Airforce officers A team of eminent professionals was invited to conduct the course Former governor of State Bank Mr TariqBajwa explained the theoretical framework of public financial management and the concept of fiscal federalism, along with National Finance Commission Award (NFC) Federal Finance Secretary, Mr Hamed Yaqoob Sheikh discussed with the participants about budget cycle in Pakistan and its legal and institutional framework He reiterated the fact that proper public finance management could be achieved by efficiency and effectiveness of expenditure through observance of laid down budget planning process Mr Sibtain FazalHalim, a former federal secretary explained in detail the process of public procurement and expenditures for effective public financial management He gave a holistic view of the process and snags in the procurement He also quoted real time case studies of procurement and shared his vast experience by answering participants’ queries a d e m y S a n d h u r s t o f t h e U n i t e d K i n g d o m w a s r e c o g n i t i o n o f P a k U K s t r a t e g i c p a r t n e r s h i p “ C O A S G e n Q a m a r J a v e d B a j w a ’s a d d r e s s a t R o y a l M i l i t a r y A c a d e m y S a n d h u r s t U K a s c h i e f g u e s t i s n o t j u s t a m a t t e r o f h o n o u r f o r t h e a r m e d f o r c e s b u t a l s o f o r P a k i s t a n ” t h e p r i m e m i n i s t e r s a i d i n a t w i t t e r p o s t “ T h i s i s a r e c o g n i t i o n o f t h e P a k i s t a n U K s t r a t e g i c p a r t n e r s h i p a n d t h e s u c c e s s o f o u r a r m e d f o r c e s i n w a r o n t e r r o r, ” h e a d d e d T h e p r i m e m i n i s t e r ’s t w e e t c a m e a f t e r G e n e r a l Q a m a r J a v e d B a j w a s a d d r e s s a t t h e s o v e r e i g n ’s p a r a d e f o r c o m m i s s i o n i n g c o u r s e 2 1 3 ( C C 2 1 3 ) o f t h e R o y a l M i l i t a r y A c a d e m y S a n d h u r s t ( R M A S ) a s t h e f i r s t e v e r P a k i s t a n i c h i e f g u e s t t o b e t h e r e p r e s e n t a t i v e o f t h e Q u e e n d u r i n g t h e s o v e r e i g n ’s p a r a d e a t t h e M i l i t a r y A c a d e m y S a n d h u r
ISLaMaBaD S ta f f r e P o r t M I N I S T E R for Defence Khawaja Asif on Friday called for a national pledge to further strengthen the country as the nation is going to mark diamond jubilee 75th Independence Day celebrations with zeal and fervor He was addressing the ‘Pakistan Youth Convention along with Federal Minister for Education Rana Tanveer Hussain, Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Marriyum Aurangzeb and Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Youth Affairs Shaza Fatima Khawaja Kh Asif said that Pakistan’s population youth bulge was around 65% of its total population which was an asset It is actually our future We have spent our lives and seen Pakistan progressing for 75 years and pray for its further stability and progress Our youth is leading different sectors like politics, military, bureaucracy, media, business etc
The provincial governments had also been directed to declare them as calamity hit areas Last week, Professor Ahsan Iqbal wrote letters to the Chief Ministers of Balochistan, Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Punjab and Prime Minister AJK and GB asked them to devise a plan for the joint flood relief efforts During the meeting, the representatives from all the provinces including AJK and GB have informed the meeting that soon after the flood, immediate measures have been taken and for medium and long term planning further progress is underway in collaboration with NDMA The Minister directed the concerned stakeholders to expedite the relief activities while ensuring the completion of joint relief assessment surveys in flood hit areas so the rehabilitation process could be started During the meeting, it was also decided to engage Benazir Income Support Program (BISP) for the disbursement of cash to the needy people of the flood In this regard, BISP will collaborate with the provinces so immediate cash could be disbursed The most deserving people should be given a top priority, said the Minister, while directing the authorities to complete the damage assessment survey, which is the second phase of the flood relief activities
NEPRA notifies Rs9.90 per unit hike in power tariff CoAs address at royal Militar y Academy recognition of Pak uk strategic par tnership: PM ISLaMaBaD S ta f f r e P o r t P r i m e M i n i s t e r M u h a m m a d S h e h b a z S h a r i f o n F r i d a y s a i d t h e a d d r e s s o f C h i e f o f A r m y S t a ff ( C O A S ) G e n e r a l Q a m a r J a v e d B a j w a a t t h e R o y a l M i l i t a r y A c
ISLAMABAD S ta f f R e p o R t a M B A S S A D O R of Italy in Pakistan Andreas Ferrarese on Friday said that Italy and Pakistan have a poten tial of €4 billion bilateral trade saying it’s perfectly doable with collective efforts of both gov ernments and private sectors collab oration Talking to the Pakistan Italy Alumni Network the Ambassador said this year trade had exponen tially risen and can reach around €2 billion and in 2021 it was recorded to €1 52 billion It is the first time that Pakistan s exports surpasses €1 billion and are more than imports in Italy making Italy the second largest export desti nation in the European market He told the alumni that to achieve the €4 billion goal both countries need to enhance investments and ex plore new avenues of business coop eration such as in Information and renewable technologies
S tudents should avoid being par t of fif th- generation war fare: MD OPF
App Women convention on Friday unanimously pledged protecting, upholding women’s rights as enshrined in the Constitution besides ensuring social, political and economic empowerment of women as their re spective party manifestos provide a central focus to women In a resolution adopted by the convention, organized by National Assembly s Women Parlia mentary Caucus (WPC) here at National Assembly Hall in connection with Diamond Jubilee celebra tions of first Constituent Assembly, the resolution said that the representation of women and men in health, education, economy, and politics validates the foundations of democracy and renders legiti macy to it
Saturday 13 August 2022 | LAHORE 04 NEWS
Convention pledges to protect women’s rights
Ah m a d Awa i s a p p o i nte d a s AG Pu n j a b
The resolution said the women con vention was committed to practice gender sensitive budgeting and uplifting institu tions working on women specific issues The res olution said the participants were committed to eradicate all forms of social, economic and politi cal discrimination against women The women participants including legislators, pledged to uti lize their legislative authority in improving lots of womenfolk It committed providing opportuni ties for education of girls It said the members of Women s Parliamentary Caucus and representa tives of political parties, participating in the Dia mond Jubilee Convention appreciate women s illustrious contributions in the creation of Pak istan and its freedom struggle The resolution re called that the Constitution of Pakistan which recognizes Quran and Sunnah as the basic source of governance, provides women full rights, re jects all forms of discrimination, and promotes their full participation in public life under Arti cles 25, 34, 35 and 37 of the Constitution
I ta ly - Pa k I
Pakistan has expressed its regret that the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party government in India is attempt ing to play with the sentiments of the people through a one sided and distorted interpretation of history as part of fulfilling its political agenda Foreign Office Spokesperson Asim Iftikhar at a press briefing on Friday asked the BJP led Indian government to refrain from politicizing the events related to Independence and in stead pay sincere tribute to the memory of all those who sacrificed their lives for a better future for all He said it is unfortunate that as the people of India and Pakistan are preparing to celebrate their Independence Days, the BJP government by announcing to mark August 14 as the “Day of horrific commemoration of partition” has shown its true colors We strongly condemn this move which reflects the reprehensible policy of hatred, misin formation and communalism that has become the hall mark of today’s BJP led India,” he said, adding that the BJP is trying to play with people s emotions for its politi cal agenda The Spokesperson maintained that Pakistan will proudly celebrate the Diamond Jubilee of its inde pendence in a befitting manner He said preparations are underway by the federal and provincial governments to celebrate this important occasion of Pakistan’s Independ ence Day with various activities across Pakistan and abroad He said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will pay a musical tribute to Pakistan At 75 through a special rendition by officers of the Ministry On Kashmir, the Spokesperson reiterated Pakistan’s call to international community to demand an end to India s gross human rights violations in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir and reversal of its unilateral and illegal actions of 5th August 2019
Ahmad Awais has once again taken charge as the advocate general of Punjab province months after he resigned fol lowing removal of Omar Sarfraz Cheema as the governor of the Punjab province Punjab government has once again elevated Ahmad Awais to the slot after Hamza Shahbaz was removed as the chief minister following orders from the Supreme Court and election of Parvez Elahi to the slot On May 30, Ahmad Awais tendered his resignation from the position of Ad vocate General of Punjab and said that he could not continue performing his du ties in the current scenario Awais said that he could not con tinue his duties as the AG Punjab any more and he will submit his resignation just after the new governor assumes of fice The senior lawyer Ahmad Awais had performed his duties as AG Punjab from 2018 to 2019 He had been appointed again to the same position on July 29 2020 Earlier, the Punjab government led by Chief Minister Hamza Shahbaz had issued a notification to stop Awais from perform ing duties The provincial law depart ment had stopped Ahmad Awais from appearing before courts on behalf of the Punjab government and assigned the re sponsibility of the office to Additional Advocate General Jawwad Yaqoob However, the provincial government revoked the order after the Lahore High Court (LHC) took notice
StAff REpORt
ISLAMABAD S ta f f R e p o R t Managing Director Overseas Pakistanis Foundation (OPF) Dr Amer Sheikh on Friday urged the students not to be a part of the fifth generation warfare by indulging in undue discussions particularly on the social media in the wake of freedom of speech Addressing an event organized by the OPF Girls Col lege F 8/2 to celebrate the 75th Independence Day, he said we had been enjoying freedom of speech movement and association but with certain limitations defined in the Constitution Drawing students attention towards Article 19 of the Constitution Dr Sheikh said “Let’s not violate the Constitution by criticizing the armed forces and play ing at the hands of the enemies Speaking on the occasion Chairman Pakistan European Union Friendship Federation Pervez Iqbal Losar said stu dents had to counter the ongoing fifth generation warfare by defending their country institutions and armed forces He alarmed the students that the enemy, with the help of lat est gadgets of warfare, could be playing through their hands and heads Losar said Afghanistan was a brotherly country of Pakistan but India was polluting the minds of Afghani children against Pakistan by dispatching teachers at the pri mary level there He said we should be proud of Pakistan Army as it had defeated the enemy at various fronts from time to time He urged the students not to compromise on the integrity security and sovereignty of Pakistan at any juncture of life as it was our identity on the globe Principle OPF Girls College Darakhshan Waqas, in her welcome note presented gratitude to the chief guest Losar and said his presence would help build the confi dence of the students Pakistan condemns BJP’s attempts to distor t histor y
Ambassador said that on August 10 during his meeting with Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif, he stressed the need to further enhancing the existing potential to enhance trade and investment rela tions between Pakistan and Italy The Prime Minister also showed his interest in collaborations in the renewable energy sector He also told the Alumni that dur ing the last 10 years the Pakistani community in Italy had surged from 25,000 thousand to 200,000 “ He further added that Pakistan and Italy had a long history of cordial relations and cooperation in political, economic, cultural, and social spheres It is a matter of great satisfac tion that the two nations had unanim ity of views on several issues of global importance and mutual cooperation in all fields had been on the rise Ambassador also urged the members of alumni to play their role in further cultural cooperation and economic integration between both countries Apart from business and trade, Italy has carried out significant proj ects in archaeology agriculture health, culture, and tourism Italy’s Archaeological Mission is one of the oldest present missions in Pakistan and has made significant contributions to Pakistan’s already rich archaeological sphere With a population of around 220 million and a constantly growing de mand for high end products, Pak istan remains an attractive market for Italian manufacturers and busi nesspeople, he concluded It is worth mentioning that re mittances from Pakistani workers in Italy hit an all time high With the figures of $711 7 mil lion in FY22 Italy has become the seventh largest center of worker re mittances to Pakistan globally and the top one in the EU countries s ta n h av e t r a d e P o t e n t I a l o f € 4 B : I ta l I a n e n v o y
ISLAMABAD S ta f f R e p o R t
StAff REpORt Factors of production in agriculture of Pakistan and China can be complementary to each other noted Rabbia Nasir Third Secretary in Pakistani Embassy in China while at tending 2022 ChinaSeed Congress and the Nanfan Agri cultural Silicon Valley Forum recently Both countries need to strengthen cooperation in agriculture and food se curity to achieve a win win solution, Rabbia Nasir added As good neighbors and all weather strategic cooperative partners, Pakistan and China have been working together to ensure food security with food as one of the major sources of trade between the two countries China Eco nomic Net (CEN) reported According to Chinese cus toms statistics, Pakistan exported $610 million of agricul tural products to China in the first half of 2022 up 30 85 percent year on year Among them, rice exports to China amounted to $345 million Chinese investors are also in vesting more and more in Pakistan s agricultural sector Both countries are conducting agricultural coopera tion under the Belt and Road Initiative and the Global De velopment Initiative To further enhance agricultural cooperation and food security, we should make the most of the complementary factors of production in agriculture of both countries Rabbia Nasir said For example she added, Pakistan can contribute a friendly policy of afford able production factors, abundant agricultural products and investment in food processing
Sino Pak cooperation in agriculture, food security strengthened: Rabbia Nasir
LAHORE S ta f f R e p o R t
04 NEWS 13 LAHORE_Layout 1 8/13/2022 12:20 AM Page 1
The Office of Punjab Ombudsman worked to provide a cumulative re lief of Rs7 5 million to 41 plaintiffs of different dis tricts who approached it to redress their grievances relating to provincial gov ernment departments In a statement issued on Friday a spokesman for the office mentioned the intervention of the ombudsman office helped five complainers from Mianwali to get Rs1 mil lion, five applicants from Attock received Rs0 6 million and four people from Muzaffargarh got Rs1 2 million from con cerned departments Also three com plainants from Lahore re ceived Rs0 9 million Meanwhile, three Sahi wal based applicants re ceived a legal relief worth Rs0 4 million after they submitted complaints to the ombudsman’s office for the protection of their legal rights Ombudsman office helps citizens to get Rs7.5m relief
05NEWS Saturday 13 August 2022 | LAHORE
corporate corner
The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has constituted more teams to expand the scope of investigation into the prohibited funding case against Pakistan Tehreek e Insaf (PTI) on Friday
More teams set up as FIA expands probe into prohibited funding case ISLAMABAD S ta f f R e p o R t
The Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz government started the process for the second recording of the National Anthem in August 2017 In this connec tion, all prominent newspapers published advertisements A steering committee headed by Senator ® Javed Jabbar with audio and visual sub committees were formed for re recording of the anthem After Marriyum Aurangzeb assumed the office of Minister of Information and Broadcasting in April this year, work on the proj ect was sped up
ISLAMABAD ag e N c i e S t H E United States government on Friday has announced a new $1 million grant in sup port of Pakistan’s ability to address natural disasters such as the ongoing flooding Funded by the U S Agency for In ternational Development (USAID) this humanitarian assistance will build the resilience of agricultural communities and would support Pakistan’s disaster management authorities in Sindh, Khy ber Pakhtunkhwa and Gilgit Baltistan provinces to better respond to future disasters, said a news release The U S Ambassador Donald Blome said: “The people of America stand with the people of Pakistan dur ing this challenging time Our hearts are with the families who lost loved ones in the floods across Pakistan and who are also dealing with recovery ef forts We are proud to help build the resilience of Sindh communities so they are better able to face such disas ters in the future We remain committed to helping Pakistan recover and rebuild as quickly as possible ”
The United States and Pakistan have worked together for 75 years on issues that are important to both na tions including energy economic growth, peace and inclusion, education, and health Since 2002, the U S gov ernment has provided over $32 billion of support to foster a more stable, peaceful and prosperous Pakistan
The newly appointed board was welcomed by CEO KE Moonis Alvi along with KE's Senior Management Talking about his election as the Chairman of the KE’s Board of Directors Mark G Skelton said, "As a power utility, KE has a historic relationship with the city of Karachi, and my priority will be to build a deeper connect with our customers and to bolster Karachi s growth trajectory I would like to thank Shan Ashary for his leadership over his tenure, during which we have made significant progress on some key challenges I hope to bring further momentum to the discussion around timely redressal of these challenges, which is extremely important if we want to achieve the vision of a revolutionized energy sector on a country level The new members joining the KE Board include Arshad Majeed Mohmand, Boudewijn Clemens Wentink, Muhammad Kamran Kamal, Saad Amanullah Khan and Muhammad Zubair Motiwala Whereas Shan A Ashary, Adeeb Ahmad, Ch Khaqan Saadullah Khan, Dr Imran Ullah Khan, Mark Gerard Skelton, Mubasher H Sheikh, Sadia Khuram and Moonis Abdullah Alvi continue to be on the KE Board p R ISLAMABAD a p p Shehbaz Sharif will become the second prime minister after the first elected prime minister of Pakistan Liaquat Ali Khan, who will unveil the newly recorded National Anthem on August 14 After the establishment of Pakistan, for the first time in De cember 1948, a Government of Pakistan committee led by Sardar Abdur Rab Nishtar began working on creating the National Anthem The music composed by Ahmad Chagla for the National Anthem was presented before Prime Minister Liaquat Ali Khan and other members of the com mittee, and it was approved on August 10, 1950 The anthem written by Hafeez Jalandhri was formally approved in August 1954
Ch Khaleequz Zaman notified as new Punjab prosecutor general Advocate Lahore High Court (LHC) Chaudhry Khaleequz Zaman on Friday was notified as the Punjab prosecutor general for a period of three years He replaced Arif Kamal Noon who retired from his post after completion of his term in office Sources said Zaman, who hailed from Gujrat, had retired as a sessions judge and had been appearing as the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) deputy prosecutor general in cases against the former prime minister and PML N supremo Nawaz Sharif S ta f f R e p o Rt
According to details the FIA has constituted five investigation teams to collect data and record statements in Islamabad and the other four provinces Deputy Director Amna Baig will head the probing team in the federal capital, which includes Ajmal Siddique, Sardarullah Babar, Asghar Ali Baloch, Rehana Kausar, and Arbab Abbasi A four member probing team in Balochistan includes Muhammad Ali Abro Muhammad Rashid Bhatti Afroz Ahmed Kalwar and Raja Muhammad Imtiaz Meanwhile, a five member team in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) will be headed by Deputy Director Mohammad Aftab Butt The team includes Afzal Khan, Muhammad Tahir, Irfanullah and Saima Nadeem
contInueD fr oM pAge 01 Replying to another question, the presi dent said stakeholders within Pakistan should only be involved in resolving the issues confronting the country without any involvement of any foreign persons or country While replying to another question, Alvi said that social media is now here to stay but unfortunately, we are not used to it and that it is difficult to control Therefore we need to focus on so cial media and on what is happening on it Around 90% of the social media is good and provides lots of information while we should learn to deal with the re maining 10% by filtering out fake news and hearsay he added He further said he had a very cordial relationship with the existing government and he accorded timely approval to all the summaries except four summaries which were delayed while remaining within the ambit of the constitution “Around 85 summaries have been sent to the presidency by Prime Minis ter ’s Office and I have approved all but two summaries which also were ap proved by the Joint session of the Parlia ment Even today, I approved few summaries including the appointment of Chairman Pemra,” he asserted He said that he was the main propo nent of the Electronic Voting Machines ( E V M s ) s i n c e l o n g e v e n d u r i n g t h e g o v e r n m e n t s o f t h e P a k i s t a n P e o p l e s P a r t y ( P P P ) a n d l a t e r M i a n N a w a z Sharif government “It was me who convinced PTI for the use of Technology during elections to help stop rigging EVMs provide ex tremely simple solutions to conduct free and fair elections There is a need for evolving consensus on the use of the technology during the election process which would strengthen the democratic process in the country, he added While replying to a question, he said that through Mufti Taqi Usmani had of fered the Afghan government to provide Distant Learning and Virtual Mode of ed ucation to Afghan students especially fe male students He said Mufti Taqi Usmani during his talks with Pakistani Taliban, told them that out of all consti tutions of the Muslim world, the closest constitution to Islam was the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan While commenting upon the recent r e p o r t s o f Ta l i b a n a r r i v a l i n c e r t a i n p a r t s o f t h e c o u n t r y, A l v i s a i d t h a t h e d i d n o t h a v e a n y o p i n i o n o n i t a s a c c o r d i n g t o r e p o r t s , t h e n e g o t i a t i o n s a r e u n d e r w a y H e s a i d t h a t h e w a s o f t h e o p i n i o n t h a t a n y s u c h n e g o t i a t i o n s s h o u l d b e m a n d a t e d b y t h e p a r l i a m e n t a n d m a y b e p u r s u e d i n c o n f i d e n c e t o r e a c h s o m e a m i c a b l e o u t c o m e T h e r e sult should be reported back to the par l i a m e n t b e f o r e m a k i n g t h e m p u b l i c h e a d d e d
President Alvi ‘ready to play role’ for defusing rising polarisation
Saleem Baig takes charge as Pemra chairman once again The establishment division has issued a notification in this regard on Friday The approval for the reappointment of Mr Baig as Pemra chief was taken by the federal cabinet through the circulation summary The office of Pemra chairman fell vacant since June 28 2022 as Mr Baig s four year tenure was expired on June 27, 2022 S ta f f R e p o R t
Pakistan witnesses surge in COVID-19 deaths Pakistan witnessed a fresh surge in the daily COVID 19 death count as 11 more people succumbed to the virus overnight National Institute of Health Islamabad’s (NIH) data showed Friday morning The last time coronavirus death toll rose this high was on March 3 Meanwhile the country s COVID 19 positivity ratio also witnessed a slight rise as 624 new infections were detected during the last 24 hours The new cases took the positivity rate to 3 83% and the number of total COVID 19 cases surfaced so far to 1 561 579 Meanwhile 1 068 patients suffering from coronavirus recovered as well After the new deaths and recoveries, Pakistan’s active case count moved to 9 256 S ta f f R e p o R t
Acknowledging the continuing U S Pakistan partnership, Chief Min ister Syed Murad Ali Shah said, “The American people have always stood with the people of Pakistan during the challenging times in the past, and now, when torrential rains have wreaked havoc in several parts of Sindh province The people of Sindh, and in particular the people of Pakistan are highly grateful for the United States Government’s announcement of this $1 million grant to bolster Pakistan’s abil ity to address natural disasters ”
U S A N N O U N C E S $ 1 M g r A N t F O r PA K I S tA N t O A D D r E S S N At U r A l D I S A S t E r S
The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting along with other institutions, departments and a large number of artists worked together to complete the national effort The armed forces, including the Inter Services Pub lic Relations (ISPR) and their bands also collaborated About 155 singers, 48 com posers and six band masters par ticipated in the preparation of the anthem The noteworthy fact is that it was recorded with a new orchestra and cinematography The new recording of the National Anthem is a rainbow of cultural, civilizational and re gional colours, which gives a message of unity, brotherhood and regional identity P M t o u n ve i l n e w l y r e c o r d e d N a t i o n a l A n t h e m o n A u g u s t 1 4
Saleem Baig takes charge as Pemra chairman again
Moreover, Deputy Director Rabia Qureshi will head the five member probing team of Sindh Zone One, which include Rauf Sheikh, Sabeen Ghori, Aftab Vito and Rahat Khan The probe team of Punjab Zone One will be headed by Deputy Director Mian Amir Iqbal The team includes Muhammad Yusuf Shahid Ali and Irfan Khan Earlier in the day, Pakistan Tehreek e Insaf (PTI) leader and former Sindh governor Imran Ismail moved Sindh High Court (SHC) against FIA’s notice in a prohibited funding case Imran Ismail was summoned by FIA to probe into PTI foreign funding case after the ECP announced its verdict Pak rupee continues upward trend against US dollar I s l a m a b a d: The Pakistani Rupee on Friday gained 3 88 rupees in intraday trade against the US Dollar in an interbank market when compared to the previous close of 218 88, backed by the news flow that Pakistan is likely to receive the Letter of Intent (LoI) from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) very soon According to sources in the Finance Ministry the fund was likely to send an LoI “anytime soon as the IMF’s mission chief had to rush to Australia for some personal engagement We may receive LoI within the next 24 hours and then it will be jointly signed by the Minister for Finance Miftah Ismail and Governor SBP Acting Governor State Bank of Pakistan Dr Murtaza Syed is confident that the country would soon bridge its external financing gap of $4 billion with the help of friendly countries under the IMF conditions amid dwindling foreign reserves N e w S D e S k EU ambassador calls on Miftah Ismail at Finance Division I s l a m a b a d: The Ambassador of the European Union to Pakistan Dr Riina Kionka called on Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue Miftah Ismail at Finance Division Minister of State for Finance and Revenue Dr Aisha Ghous Pasha, Special Secretary Finance and senior officers attended the meeting Finance Minister Miftah Ismail welcomed the Ambassador of the EU and highlighted bilateral relations and development cooperation between the EU and Pakistan He said that Pakistan highly values its bilateral ties with the EU including trade and economic relations He stressed the need to further strengthening trade relations between Pakistan and the European Union The Finance Minister also apprised the EU ambassador on recent economic developments and policies of the present government The Finance Minister stated that enhancing revenue collection boosting exports, increasing remittances and making the energy sector sustainable are the foremost priorities of the present government S ta f f R e p o R t
Newly-elected KE BoD holds first board meeting K a r a c h i: The newly elected KE Board met for its first board meeting on Thursday The Board, which was reconstituted following an Extraordinary General Meeting (OEGM) held on 29th July 2022 as per statutory requirements appointed Mark Gerard Skelton as the Chairman of the utility s Board of Directors
06-07 Comments - 13th August 2022_Layout 1 8/13/2022 1:15 AM Page 1
Umar Aziz Executive Editor Aziz ud Din Ahmad
Joint Editor
N ev e r t h e l e s s , o n ly 3 6 v e h i cl e s a r e e n o u g h t o d i s s i p a t e t h e a n t i - U S s t a n c e o f t h e P T I , a t l e a s t i n K P K
Th
D
Rather than leading, elites have merely exploited
I
Dedicated to the legac y of late Hameed Nizami Arif Nizami (Late)
Joint Editor
06 Saturday, 13 August 2022 COMMENT Lahore Ph: 042 36300938, 042 36375965 I K arachi Ph: 021 35381208 9 I Islamabad Ph: 051 2204545 I Web: www pakistantoday com pk I Email: editorial@pakistantoday com pk P O L i t i C a L rivalry, a concomitant of a multi party democratic system, plays a healthy role by keeping the ruling party on its toes the opposition keeps a check on the government by critically examining its policies and pointing out its mistakes in parliamentary debates or through press conferences and if nothing else works through public protests the opposition thus provides the government an opportunity to correct its course it is in the government’s own interest to allow the opposition to speak out, instead of steamrollering it Problems arise when political rivalry degenerates into political enmity and rivals try to knock each other out through foul play as one has often seen happening in Pakistan During the last 75 year of the country’s history, rival political parties have generally treated one another as foes rather than competitors the PML(n) and PPP not only tried to destabilize each other ’s governments but also used accountability laws to discredit each other ’s leaders a faint realisation of the futility of their unending feuds led the two to agree on a Charter of Democracy (COD) Both vowed to abide by it and undertake the agreed legislation whenever either of them came to power Both came to power but the key recommendations of the CoD remained unimplemented With the appearance of imran khan on the political horizon, politics became a war between “us” and “them” rather than a competition between parties with different manifestos never in the country s history were swear words and curses hurled on opponents so liberally Once in power the Pti resorted to an unprecedented character assassination campaign of its opponents through social media trolls a number of opponents were sent to jails through naB without there being any solid cases against them With PDM in power, Mr khan s liberty march was foiled with the help of government machinery, caring little for democratic norms the Pti government in Punjab has now put officials loyal to it in charge to teach a lesson to the PML(n) the way the PDM government at the centre treated the wife of a driver while trying to recover khan’s chief of staff shahbaz Gill’s smart phone is illustrative of how the desire for revenge has replaced better sense in decision makers there is need to treat political opponents as challengers rather than enemies Need to introduce tolerance in politics
P a k i s ta n is a day short of celebrating its 75 h freedom anniversary but is still ago nized by similar past troubles Both the state from which we emerged (india) and the state that emerged from us (Bangladesh) are doing better than us in various sectors these states experienced a natural and organic political develop ment that assisted them in surmounting their social and economic afflictions in many ways Whereas the politics in Pakistan predominantly revolved around various groups of elites and its development was a re sult of the clash among the ranks of these different elite groups the approach from this perspective of elitism can provide great insights into the complexities of the turmoils faced by this country after the partition three major groups of elites emerged and controlled the affairs of Pakistan by making major decisions for the country they were the landowning elites bureaucratic elites and mil itary elites the landowners of vast agricultural and n o n a g r i c u l t u r a l l a n d s r e s i s t e d t h e l a n d s u b d i v i sions in every way possible which threw us back in time at the same time, india was proposing and implementing its land reforms another group that consisted of educated and cultured individuals took charge of all the state departments as bureaucrats a m o n g t h e s e b u r e a u c r a t s , t h e o ff i c e r s f r o m t h e Civil service of Pakistan (CsP) were at the top who devised policies for the state and benefited them s e l v e s f r o m k e y g o v e r n m e n t a l p o s i t i o n s t h e b u reaucratic elites have a more secularized approach r e g a r d i n g s t a t e a ff a i r s r e s u l t i n g i n a t u s s l e w i t h landlord elites after a decade of freedom the military elites di rectly came into power as a result of a successful mil itary coup they liaised with other groups of elites such as religious and industrial elites to suppress the powers of bureaucratic and landowning elites Gen eral ayub khan passed the first land reform legisla tion of Pakistan in 1959 it also gave a stronghold of governmental and administrative positions to military elites this broke the monopoly of bureaucratic elites and lessened the influence of the landowning elites in 1971, the clash among the elites of the West and East Pakistan led to Bangladesh’s making the elites of west Pakistan enjoyed more power and held major administrative positions, they neglected the needs and issues of East Pakistan which sparked the ultimate crisis also the industrial and corporate elites of west Pakistan used their ties with bureau cratic elites to suppress the corporate elites of East Pakistan by starving them of export permits and other trade permits the power hungry political elites also played their part by challenging the electoral output of the 1971 elections all this along with some ethnic and cultural differences created a rift between East and West Pakistan and ultimately led to the formation of Bangladesh Mr Zulfiqar ali Bhutto, after seizing the power in 1971, introduced more land and labour reforms He also nationalized the corporate and industrial sec tor in Pakistan, creating a rift between political and industrial/corporate elites this ended when Gen Ziaul Haq imposed Martial law in 1977 and got rid of Bhutto on a murder charge During the dark and torturous Zia era, another group of elites came to prominence; the religious elite they were the output of the soviet afghan war in which Pakistan played a key role by manufacturing Mujahedin and over im plementing jihad doctrine they, the religious elites, considered themselves the true protectors of Pak istan’s identity and saviours of islam in south asia subsequently, the landowning elites backing PPP and industrial elites backing PML(n) kept coming into power one by one along the way there arose some middle class political parties such as the MQM, tLP, and Pti but they fell prey to the populist narratives, and their true essence and ideologies were suppressed when they became puppets to protect the interest of these elite groups the country which came into being because of the sacrifices of poor peasants, labourers, and other working class individuals fell into the claws of the elites they devoured the resources of this country without making any sustainable developments throughout the brief history of this country, they kept vanquishing each other directly or indirectly to satisfy their needs their clashes to protect their self interests resulted in the polarization of society and gave rise to religious fanaticism as a result, the deficits of this country plunged, and still today more than $17 billion of privileges are enjoyed by these different elite groups What kind of Machiavellian approach to protecting self interest is this where the inflation rate of the country exceeds 20 percent the purchasing power of the layman is continuously decreasing, the currency is in freefall, and public welfare institutions are crumbling? after 75 years, we are a country where the major stakeholders of the destruction of Pakistan are these elite groups and their rifts and still, we are unable to see them stopping at any cost On the 75 h birthday of this country, let’s pray to God to have some mercy on this country because the blood sucking leeches are not having any The writer is a freelance columnist . . r Q a i s a r r a s h i D T r a s h e d b y t h e e l i t e s e p r i c e o f t h e K P K P T
T h i r t y s i x v e h i c l e s o n l y
M A Niazi
Founding Editor
B a Da r K h a l i D A f t e r l o s i n g t h e d e m o c r a t i c b a t t l e o n A p r i l 1 0 t o a n o c o n f i d e n c e m o t i o n i n t h e N a t i o n a l A s s e m b ly, t h e a n t i - U S p o p u l i s m h a s b e e n t h e m a i n s t ay o f t h e P T I ’s p o l i t i c s
The economy is perking up W H i L E the economy is far from out of the woods, the swift hurtling towards a train wreck seems to have halted for the time being With the news that the iMF will issue a letter of intent, the revival of the iMF’s EsaF is now inching closer towards certainty, allowing a bridge between the staff level agreement, which has been achieve, and the approval by the iMF’s Board of Directors, which is expected to approve, but later on/ this was reflected in Friday’s gain of Rs 3 39 to the dollar, after it went to Rs 215 49 to from Rs 218 88, where it closed on thursday One optimistic prediction had been of the rupee reaching Rs 200 to the dollar if there was an iMF agreement By that evaluation, the rupee is undervalued an unrelated development, but one which also means good news for the government is that international oil prices seem to have reached their limit, and are beginning to come down that also means that falling dollar rates are combining with falling oil prices to enable the government to pass on the benefit to the consumer by reducing fuel prices as much as the government took tough decisions by increasing the price of fuel so as to meet iMF conditionalities, it should now not hesitate in providing the common man some relief it is no coincidence that the opportunity to provide relief has come with the iMF demanding the imposition of another Rs 30 billion in taxes the government must tread the fine line between doing the iMF’s bidding and providing relief to the common man Quest for power is not jihad There is more good news coming in Yousaf Nizami Editor
O n august 4, at the Governor House in Pe shawar, a ceremony was held to display the handing over of keys of 36 vehicles the donor was the Usa and the recipient was the provincial government of khyber Pakhtunkhwa Us ambassador to Pakistan Donald Blome graced the occasion and handed over the keys to Provincial Minister for Health and Finance tiamur saleem khan the kPk government is run by the Pakistan tehreke insaf (Pti) this is the same party the chair man of which raised an anti Us slogan to stir the masses to win votes in the recently held bye elec tions the chairman, imran khan, laid the blame for the fall of the Pti s government in the Centre on a conspiracy hatched by the Usa, which got local col laborators including the Pakistan Democratic Move ment (PDM) the anti Us slogan moved the voters emotionally Even on July 16, President arif alvi, who was oth erwise a devoted member of the Pti insinuated the Us’s role in toppling the Pti’s government in Pakistan He said so while addressing a group of Pakistani doc tors working in the Usa without realizing that his sham stance could stir anti Us sentiment in expatriate Pakistanis settled in the Usa and that his pretense could jeopardize the interests of Pakistanis in the Usa the major slogan functional in the bye elections held on July 17 was that the voters had to cherry pick between Azadi ya Ghulami (freedom or servitude) of the Usa that is, if the voters wanted freedom, they should vote for the Pti’s candidate Hence, the rele vance of losing and winning the bye elections was the perception that the Usa had occupied Pakistan and the Pti was the only saviour Consequently the Pti performed better than any bye elections it took part in before the credit was owed not to the Pti’s projects on the ground but to the anti Us narrative heating up the streets By that time, Us ambassador Blome had arrived in Pakistan the situation must have caught his atten tion to deal with it aptly in principle, the ceremony in Peshawar was not so auspicious as to require a per son of the ambassador s stature Moreover the am bassador was not required to be there, because the Mission Director of the donor agency, UsaiD, Reed ashelman was in attendance in fact this could be the job of ashelman to perform On the one hand, the kPk government was keen to wash the stain of being anti Us, whereas on the other hand, the Us represen tatives in Pakistan were en thused to brush up the image of their country initiatives coincided and conciliated the ceremony took place to dispel all doubts of estrange ment and hostility the cer emony was a win win situation for both parties On the occasion, Us ambassador Blome stated that the generosity expressed was to mark the 75th an niversary of the Us Pak partnership the ambassador knew that these words should have been spoken in islamabad and not in any provincial capital His words were a lame justification couched in diplomacy as per the ambassador ’s words, Us Pak relations dipped so low as to be confined to the health sector only in the past bilateral relations saw Pakistan’s de fence, economic and social sectors get benefits the last memorable interaction was the kerry Lugar Berman act of 2010 that earmarked for Pakistan $1 5 billion per year for five years the later years saw de terioration in bilateral relations, boiling down now to the donation of 36 vehicles for health surveillance purposes through the ceremony, Us ambassador made his first public appearance Former federal minister shireen Mazari got surprised and remained unsuc cessful in holding her breath on the aerial visit of the Us delegation to the Pak afghan torkham border the ceremony was notable for two reasons First, the ceremony shattered the political narrative of the Pti that it lost power to the Us sponsored conspiracy sec ond, the ceremony helped the Us representatives show the Pakistanis that they were not antagonistic to them showcasing the amicable interaction was vital for both the parties to tell the Pakistanis that the anti Us narrative nurtured by the Pti chairman was a farce, though the narrative had served its purpose neverthe less, the rise in the Pti’s popularity to cash in on the opportunity of bye elections indicated that the ground for anti Us sentiment was still fertile the fecundity must be a point of disquiet for the Us delegation By donating 36 vehicles to the provincial health sector the Us officials must have got a respite from the accusation that the Usa had any role to play in toppling the Pti’s regime in the Centre apparently the ceremony showed that 36 vehicles were potent enough to smack the anti Us narrative and lay bare the reality now, it is ex pected that the Usa is no longer seen as a conspirator and that the Pti has no grievance against the Usa the delegation also met kPk’s Chief Minister Mehmood khan in the CM House and discussed issues of mutual interest the CM preferred neither to agitate nor to issue any caveat to the guests on the supposed inter ference of the Usa in Pak istan’s internal affairs the CM’s complacency meant that there was none if some one could convey this point to Murad saeed and Faisal Javed of the Pti, that realism in politics is far different from the rhetoric of the podium the kPk s CM remained grateful to the Usa for its support on various health projects going on in the province the same also means that more such projects are expected and more gifts are on the way after losing the democratic battle on april 10 to a no confidence motion in the national assembly, the anti Us populism has been the mainstay of the Pti’s politics nevertheless only 36 vehicles are enough to dissipate the anti Us stance of the Pti, at least in kPk it is yet to be seen what new narrative the Pti comes up with to rouse the voters again sentimentally The writer is a freelance journalist and can be reached at qaisarrashid@yahoo com
IRFAN ALI NAUSHAHRO FEROZE Health reforms in KP i recently took my one year old daughter suffering from diarrhoea to the Lady Reading Hospital in Peshawar there were two separate lines for men and women outside the entrance to the paediatric emergency section it was a pathetic scene watching men and women holding ailing babies in their arms while standing in the line under the shade they were waiting for their turn to go inside the emergency room where two doctors were examining the patients the government should make adequate arrangements to facilitate the parents of ailing children so that they may not have to wait for hours in queues i saw some children whose condition warranted quick medical treatment, but their parents were not allowed to go inside the emergency room and were made to wait in the queue for their turn a precious life could be lost if an ailing child is not treated promptly the government in khyber Pakhtunkhwa is headed by a party that has been at the helm for nine straight years, but it has failed to improve the healthcare delivery system despite talking a lot of health reforms the authorities should establish a spacious emergency department meant only for children to provide them timely emergency cover instead of making them wait for hours
E x
Merit at MoFA i have been wondering whether i became a victim of foul play or it was just bad luck since i got an email after nine months from the camp office in karachi of the Ministry of Foreign affairs (MoFa) regarding the cancellation of my selection as a consular assistant this is despite the fact that the same office had informed me of my selection for the position in september 2021 the latest email informed me that the ministry in islamabad had cancelled the recruitment completely without stating any reason now, let me give a brief background i qualified for consular assistant at the camp office after qualifying written examination and skill test, and later passed the panel interview as well i was informed about my selection in september last year since then i had been waiting for the appointment letter when, on my inquiry, i was informed simply that the recruitment had been cancelled without stating any reason behind the decision or explaining why i was not informed of the decision this has certainly put a question mark on the recruitment process of the said ministry, and makes one wonder if there is any such thing as merit in MoFa i could have taken it as my bad luck or my incapacity to hold the position i had applied for, but the multi stage recruitment process was cancelled without any reason nine months after informing the candidate of his selection that i was ‘selected’ suggests that i was good enough for the job Once a decision was taken to overturn the selection, i would have been informed if it was owing to some issues with the recruitment process or if there was some other element, like, say, austerity drive But i was never informed and i kept waiting for the appointment letter instead of looking for employment openings somewhere else together, the two elements suggest there is something fishy in the whole process the relevant authorities definitely owe me an explanation there is already a dearth of employment, and if the government functionaries start fiddling around with the recruitment process, where will the educated youth go?
tHE country apart from facing political upheaval has also been suffering from economic meltdown owing to currency fluctuations the major reason for this is higher import compared to export, and a lack of inward remittances the policymakers have been endeavouring to reduce the quantum of imports, but without the cooperation of exporters and non resident Pakistanis, the momentum will not survive We faced a difficult time during the Covid pandemic and exporters and expatriates played their role But, now a majority of people have been avoiding to send home remittances, and exporters have been delaying their shipments deliberately, both hoping they would gain more profits owing to currency fluctuations However, they do not realise that because of these tactics, the country’s economic condition is going from bad to worse, and this will ultimately affect one and all it is time to think only for the betterment of Pakistan and exporters should now play their role and bring export proceeds back to the country without any delay RAVI KOTAK HYDERABAD
Hypocrisy
06-07 Comments - 13th August 2022_Layout 1 8/13/2022 1:15 AM Page 2
Tactics of expor ters
AKHTAR ALI PESHAWAR
MuhaMMaD Wajahat sultan Th e
T H E proponents and opponents of tech innovation argue about the blessings and harms of the expanded technological ad vancement in the global arena From hunter gatherer societies to modern day s post capitalist societies; the art which has indisputable progress for humanity is the art of technology and change technological change provides the economic base and societal revolu tion in the general Regardless of unprecedented changes in facets of communications its expan sion could turn into cyber warfare, data privacy rights political malice and a threat to democracy Discussing the inverse logic in the first place; there is not an iota of doubt that expanded infor mation technology has revolutionized the health care industry across the globe the people from nigeria can connect to new York for medical con sultancy with little effort it has changed the para digm of the health sector with potential phases secondly, in the political arena, the concept of e governance hasdeveloped automation and infor mation technology can be used to collect records and data statistics to make new and efficient poli cies for the public by using evidence based poli cies Regardless of robust socio economic and socio political changes in the structure of society, information technology posited a major setback to the overall growth of society the threat to individual liberty due to mass surveillance is circulated everywhere with the dawn of excessive information technology Peo ple have lost the true independence and liberty to choose and to decide about themselves Google and media giants have replaced autonomy the cannibalization of jobs is also a melting point with the advent of information technology Humans cognitive skills are outperformed by artificial in telligence One of the most lethal problems which are caused by expanded information technology is inequality; the flow of information technology led revenue from the south towards silicon Val ley all the data of the world is owned by a minute minority which is problematic a small data elite can capture the entire globe within clicks the au tocratic hold of data by companies can pose a major threat to the independence and rational de cision making of individual as well as collective states the prior economic inequality was less po tent than the subsequent data inequalities between north and south
For example the apple Market Value in 2021 was $2274 34 billion and Microsoft’s net worth was $1988 67 billion, respectively quarter and a third the en tire GDP of any nation in asia the digital elites have become super humans which is a global threat to governance in third world countries the owners of big firms can sabotage and chal lenge the governance of any small country for the collective goodwill of their companies state sov ereignty has been diluted and replaced due to the more powerful Leviathan traits of big data firms the possible remedies to expanded technol ogy are many the de mocratization of data is a way forward in which the concentra tion and autocratic hold of all the data chains can be diluted into different units by breaking up Big Data like Google and Face book For example, the Rockefeller Oil Com pany was diluted into 34 companies when it became a giant holder of all the oil supply in Europe in the same vein, Big Data can be distributed into differ ent units for democra tization purposes secondly strict gov ernment regulations and oversight mecha nisms can be used to control artificial intel ligence research the expansion of it should be controlled and ethi cal otherwise it can be a potential threat to hu manity Modern informa tion technology has changed human lives in general but the flip side of negative outcomes can’t be overlooked the ethics and innova tion should be balanced otherwise the corpora tions will monopolize all data and algorithms for ulterior motives technological advances present significant op portunities for progress and advancement of human beings from nuclear deterrence to commu nication But the long lasting negative conse quences are many which proved modern technology a bane rather than a boon it is high time across the globe to re consider the ethical side and controlled expansion of information technology before it becomes an uncontrollable fact for human beings to survive and sustain in the 21st century the balance between expanded technology and human growth should be dis cerned in contemporary times The writer is a transportation engineer with post graduations in English literature and political science p a n d i n g I n f o r m a t i o n Te c h n o l o g y : A b o o n o r b a n e ?
Technological advances present significant oppor tunities for progress and advancement of human beings from nuclear deterrence to communication. But the long lasting negative consequences are many which proved modern technology a bane rather than a boon. It is high time across the globe to re-consider the ethical side and controlled expansion of information technology before it becomes an uncontrollable fact for human beings to sur vive and sustain in the 21st centur y re i s a p ro b l e m w h i c h c a n n o t b e p u t o f f
ABBASS RAZA KARACHI E d i t o r ’ s m a i l S e n d y o u r l e t t e r s t o : L e t t e r s t o E d i t o r Pakistan today 4 S h a a re y F a t i m a J i n n a h L a h o re P a k i s t a n E m a i l : l e t t e r s @ p a k i s t a n t o d a y c o m p k L e t t e r s s h o u l d b e a d d re s s e d t o Pakistan today e x c l u s i v e l y
Yuval noah Hariri argued that the biggest threat to the working class is not exploitation but irrelevance, in the 21st century in the past technology couldn’t re place human intellec tual abilities but artificial intelligence can overshadow the cognitive skills of human beings these cognitive skills were peculiar human traits that empowered them to main positions in companies and firms but the modern ex panded technology has outnumbered this pecu liar trait now robots and automated machines can do a better job of hiring and recruiting people than humans Due to this reason, humans have become irrelevant with the cannibalization of jobs Every decision is made by algorithms which are amoral Google owns preferences and likes and dislikes mechanisms for humans it is a big moral dilemma that expanded technology poses to human authority and autonomy the unique de cision making of humans is replaced by tech based decision powers the margin of independent thinking has declined in the 21st Century it is argued by scholars that the ultimate goal of Google is to outsource every decision of humans to Google Due to expanded technology, multinational companies and firms are becoming stronger and
Democracy which is based on the trust factor is plagued by cyber attacks and disinformation Public opinion is engineered in the firms where the analysis of public behaviour through different apps like Candy Crush can be used to mould and shape their opinions of the favourite leader the democ racy which stands over the general will is compro mised by manufactured consent Boot camps and lobbying big data tailor made the wishes and pref erences to make political campaigns for voting and triumphing the preferred members the manipulated biases are justified through echo chambering by advertising all the biases and prejudices of hu mans to confirm their biases for political agendas Democracy is replaced by populism due to expanded infor mation technology the other side of democracy is based on communication it was the improved commu nication in the society that established demo cratic governance in different parts of the world but with time the malfunctioning communication due to a matrix of misinforma tion can halt the global growth and sustainabil ity of democracy
07 Saturday, 13 August, 2022 COMMENT
D U R i n G the previous government, we heard a lot about islamophobia in the West the ousted prime minister, who led the campaign against discrimination on the basis of religion, spoke against islamo phobia while addressing various global forums several Muslim and non Muslim states followed suit and supported him While the focus on islamophobia is on the West, we need to see what sort of policies Muslim countries, the Gulf states, in particular, have adopted the main destinations for Pakistanis looking for employment overseas happen to be in the Gulf region However, a man with a beard is more likely to fail than to get employed there this is a startling fact i discovered recently this is a key condition all Pakistani overseas employment promoters keep in mind when looking for a potential candidate While we never leave any opportunity to denounce islamophobia in the West the question mark continues to hang against some of the countries in the islamic world itself it is unfortunate that the beard has come to get associated with the stereotype that the West has created for terrorists But there is no ground for islamic countries to have the same attitude How can one hope that non Muslims and other countries will form a favourable opinion of the targeted community if the Muslims themselves do not take action against islamophobia?
more sovereign than entire states
At the meeting there is no overt mention of al Qaida, the terrorist organization that the Taliban had given safe harbor a generation ago, providing Osama bin Laden with a base from which to plot and execute the 9/11 terrorist attacks Behind the scenes, though, the Taliban, in violation of the 2020 peace agreement, con tinue to offer sanctuary to al Qaida and its leaders A re cent U S drone strike killed Ayman al Zawahiri bin Laden’s successor who was one of the chief architects of September 11 who was staying in a safe house in the middle of Kabul There are armed Taliban everywhere at the confer ence, but the outer cordon of security seems lax My fixer comes up to me, looking mournful and nervous: “We must leave They will bomb this place The security is not serious ” I agree, and we leave for lunch We are drinking tea when we hear the concussion An explosive, we later find out had detonated as the meeting was end ing, killing one Taliban member and wounding several others It was a suspected ISIS K attack, but no group claims responsibility (The Taliban government contin ues to fight the Afghan wing of ISIS as well as remnants of Tajik resistance in the Panjshir Valley )
The provinces are accessible via National highway 1, a ring road that circles the major cities of the country every so often our car has to slow down because of damage to the highway the result of the roadside bombings that, during the war, had targeted Afghan and coalition convoys Small outposts dot the road and the landscape They are built out of hescos a shell of thick fabric liner and wire mesh, filled with dirt, meant to stop bullets and shrapnel The wire and fabric, valuable materials in a devastated economy have been stripped off the abandoned outposts, leaving slowly disintegrat ing silos of dirt, which serve as ghostly reminders: the decaying remnants of the U S military presence We arrive at a clearing in the middle of Wardak province for a cricket game The field is ringed with men and the players take their positions We eat water melon and nuts and drink cup after cup of tea A group of boys goes swimming in the lazily flowing river It is a scene remarkable for its normality “This is the first cricket game we ve been able to host in 20 years the organizer tells me “It was just too dangerous before ” Under the Taliban’s new rules, journalists wishing to work in Afghanistan must receive a series of permits First, one needs a work permit from the Ministry of For eign Affairs When traveling outside of Kabul, one must make a stop at the governor s office In between one must receive clearances from Taliban officials in charge of particular districts At one point, I drink some tea and explain my in tentions for a photo shoot After a few pleasantries and a curt nod, I’m turned over to the governor ’s staff, one of whose members types up a paper granting approval From there, it’s the same ritual with the district police chief On a trip to Wardak I received permission from the district police chief, but not the military commander stationed next door his men saw us wandering through the ruins of an American base, and angrily called us over We were surrounded by a Taliban contingent and interrogated “If you take one more picture, I’ll shoot you,” warned the commander “Now get in your car and don t stop driving until you are out of the province With typical Afghan hospitality he insisted we drink a cup of tea with him before hightailing it out of there We politely declined Members of the intelligence services are every where At our hotel in Ghazni, when I open my door to the courtyard, a silhouette suddenly flits back into the shadows Shortly afterward I hear a knock A colleague and I are asked to go downstairs for a chat with the local intelligence officer The next day, we are at a restaurant waiting for permission to enter a base Another plain clothes officer sidles up to us to ascertain who we are and why we are there They don t interfere with our work but it is clear we are being closely watched I see convoys of Toyota hilux pickups packed with Taliban heading on the road toward the Panjshir Valley, where fighting still continues even so the country is mostly at peace, in marked contrast to the tumult and terror of earlier years My memories of my previous trips are dominated by violence One night I was with an American medevac crew as they picked up a body on a hillside It turned out to be the 19 year old son of an American soldier who happened to have been de ployed in the same unit The teenager had been shot in the head on one of his first patrols Blood oozed through a tear in the body bag and coated the floor of the helicopter In another incident, I remember an Afghan soldier, hysterical with fear after regaining con sciousness thrashing and biting until the sedative kicked in he never woke up A Taliban fighter at a checkpoint in Qargha, Afghanistan Such sentries are a constant presence, par ticularly in larger towns Tens of thousands of armed Taliban, with little to do after the war, had been hastily mustered into a police force Largely armed with aban doned American made weapons and equipment the Taliban check cars for contraband, unaccompanied women, and infractions such as overly tinted windows or proper registration The high top sneakers seen here with green and yellow stripes, are much in demand and worn by most of the rank and file Occasionally there are the signs of the invisible of Afghanistan: perhaps hundreds of thousands of peo ple who were unable to flee, who are in hiding for fear of their lives I meet one of them, an ex translator for the U S and the Canadian Army he has stayed in the same room with his wife and two boys for six months, desperately waiting for a smuggler to secure his family visas to Pakistan From there, he hopes to begin a new life in Canada he explains that he doesn’t want to go to the United States, recounting a story of watching every day as the excess food from mealtime was dumped in the corner of an American base and burned I would later get a WhatsApp message from him he had safely made it to Pakistan I meet a family in the hazaras district of Kabul They are mostly members of a Shiite minority, persecuted under the previous Taliban regime and now steadily targeted by the remnants of ISIS Three hazara mosques have been bombed in just a few short weeks, killing dozens The mother and father are elderly Two wild young children bounce off the walls, play with toy dinosaurs and trucks, poke each other, and collapse in their grandma’s lap The parents unpack the tae kwon do medals won by their son, Mohammed Jan, who was killed in the bombing at the end of last summer s evac uation at the airport They rub at their tears as they show me pictures of his face on their cell phone, yellow and bloated in the morgue They point out the wound and tell me how he died They say that a companion with him that day had told them their son wasn t killed by the blast Instead, as the two friends were running away Mohammed Jan was shot behind the ear by a panicked Marine I have no way of verifying their story, but I feel their anguish and their ire his wife is too sad to talk; his father too infirm to work Mohammed Jan was the couple’s only child, and his death has likely condemned them to a life of poverty For some Afghans particularly in the rural provinces that saw the bulk of the fighting, it is a period of pro foundly welcome peace But the cost of this peace has yet to be calculated So many lives have been lost bro ken, or marginalized So many must live with their trauma, must live in silence and submission, must live in the shadows Where does the balance lie? What is the price for this uneasy peace?
Saturday, 13 August 2022 08 WORLD VIEW
FBI has become dangerous to Americans
I W E N T B AC K TO W I T N E S S L I F E U N D E R TA L I B A N R U L E, C H R O N I C L I N G I N T R I G U I N G A N D, AT T I M E S , U N S E T T L I N G S C E N E S F O R S O M E A F G H A N S , PA RT I C U L A R LY I N T H E R U R A L P R O V I N C E S T H AT S AW T H E B U L K O F T H E F I G H T I N G , I T I S A P E R I O D O F P R O F O U N D LY W E LCO M E P E A C E. B U T T H E CO S T O F T H I S P E A C E H A S Y E T TO B E C A LC U L AT E D. S O M A N Y L I V E S H AV E B E E N LO S T, B R O K E N , O R M A R G I N A L I Z E D. S O M A N Y M U S T L I V E W I T H T H E I R T R AU M A , M U S T L I V E I N S I L E N C E A N D S U B M I S S I O N , M U S T L I V E I N T H E S H A D O W S . W H E R E D O E S T H E B A L A N C E L I E ? W H AT I S T H E P R I C E F O R T H I S U N E A S Y P E A C E ?
Christopher Wray last week cut short his evasive testi mony before Congress he claimed he had to leave for a critical appointment only to use his FBI Gulfstream luxury jet to fly to his favorite vacation spot in the Adiron dacks Wray took over from disgraced interim FBI Direc tor Andrew McCabe The latter admitted lying repeatedly to federal investigators and signed off on a fraudulent FBI FISA application he faced zero legal consequences McCabe, remember, was also the point man in the softball hillary Clinton email investigation while his wife was a political candidate and recipient of thousands of dollars from a political action committee with close ties to the Clinton family McCabe took over from disgraced FBI Director James Comey On 245 occasions, Comey claimed under oath before the house Intelligence Committee that he had no memory or knowledge of key questions concern ing his tenure With impunity, he leaked confidential FBI memos to the media Comey took over from Director Robert Mueller Im plausibly, Mueller swore under oath that he had no knowledge either of the Steele dossier or of Fusion GPS the firm that commissioned Christopher Steele to compile the dossier But those were the very twin catalysts that had prompted his entire special investigation into the Russian collusion hoax FBI legal counsel Kevin Cline smith was convicted of a felony for altering an FBI war rant request to spy on an innocent Carter Page The FBI by Comey’s own public boasts, bragged how it caught National Security Advisor designate General Michael Flynn in its Crossfire hurricane Russian collusion hoax As special counsel, Mueller then fired two of his top investigators Lisa Page and Peter Strzok for im proper personal and professional behavior he then stag gered their releases to mask their collaborative wrongdoing Mueller ’s team deleted critical cell phone evidence under subpoena that might well have revealed systemic FBI related bias The FBI interferes with and warps national elections It hires complete frauds as informants who are far worse than its targets It humiliates or exempts government and elected officials based on their politics It violates the civil liberties of individual American citizens The FBI s highest officials now routinely mislead Congress They have erased or altered court and subpoenaed evidence They illegally leak confidential material to the media And they have lied under oath to federal investigators The agency has become dangerous to Americans and an existential threat to their democracy and rule of law The FBI should be dispersing its investigatory responsi bilities to other government investigative agencies that have not yet lost the public s trust Victor Davis Hanson is the Martin and Illie Anderson Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution and the author most recently of The Case for Trump
VAnity FAir P E t E r Va n aG t M a E L K A B U L fell a year ago Afghanistan after decades of near constant violence, rampant corruption, failure to establish a sustainable government and to many observers only limited gains in terms of women’s rights was back to square one The end had returned to the begin ning Now the nation was in the hands of the Taliban the same fundamentalist faction that had ruled the coun try from 1996 to 2001 I d covered Afghanistan in the post 9/11 years ac companying the American and Afghan armies into com bat as the Taliban was reascendant I also focused on the Afghan civilians caught in the middle of the cycle of vi olence After a failed attempt to enter Afghanistan during the 2021 American withdrawal, I finally made it back to Kabul this past May The process to enter the country, in fact, is similar to that of my previous trips Secure a visa, the same one as I d received from the former U S backed government Buy a late night ticket for the daily flight from Dubai to Kabul on Kam Air, which serves the same surprisingly delicious omelet Get stamped through customs by im migration officers in the same uniforms But upon leaving the airport, the changes begin to become apparent Checkpoints are still everywhere, yet are now manned by the Taliban The fighters are casual The war is over and it seems like they need an activity to occupy their time They particularly don t like the tinted windows on the passing vehicles It’s jarring to see the Taliban on nearly every corner On my previous trips, I d feared them I d been caught in ambushes been on patrols hit by roadside bombs and felt the constant dread of being kidnapped Now, the Taliban fighters dressed in a mix of tra ditional shalwar kameez captured Afghan Army uni forms, and off market tactical gear are often smiling and curious, at times sheepish and at other times even a bit flirty And sometimes aggressive too A fighter watch ing bumper cars smacks me when I take a photograph of the surreal scene Most want to practice their english often learned in refugee camps in Pakistan WhatsApp numbers are exchanged, and I begin to receive selfies, animated GIFs of roses and the occasional propaganda video During one car ride, one of the men accompanying me, a supremely confident practical joker, addresses the guards at a checkpoint giggling hysterically at the amused and slightly scandalized sentries, who nonethe less wave us through They often want to pose for snap shots with the rare foreigner A one eyed fighter with an American made carbine slung across his chest takes his deeply calloused hands and grasps my own in his, beam ing for the camera My hotel is filled with Chinese workers living in Kabul as they help the new government extract the country’s vast mineral wealth They’ve brought a chef with them, and I end up eating more Chinese food than Afghan
T H E F B I I N T E R F E R E S W I T H A N D WA R P S N AT I O N A L E L E C T I O N S I T H I R E S CO M P L E T E F R AU D S AS I N F O R M A N T S W H O A R E FA R WO R S E T H A N I T S TA R G E T S. I T H U M I L I AT E S O R E X E M PT S G OV E R N M E N T A N D E L E C T E D O F F I C I A L S B AS E D O N T H E I R P O L I T I C S I T V I O L AT E S T H E C I V I L L I B E RT I E S O F I N D I V I D UA L A M E R I C A N C I T I Z E N S RETURNING TO AFGHANISTAN—ONE YEAR AFTER THE FALL OF KABUL 08 WORLD VIEW 13th August 22_Layout 1 8/12/2022 10:12 PM Page 1
At one point there is an event to celebrate friendship between Afghanistan and China; a large dis play offers inexpensive wares, shrink wrapped and pris tine: power tools fans plastic roses electric scooters The Americans are gone, and the Chinese are rapidly filling the void One day the Taliban s senior leadership holds a con ference and invites the media Their speeches reveal dis agreements within the upper ranks The moderate elements purported to want to guarantee basic rights and education to women and thereby keep the taps of inter national funding open The hardliners, however, appear to hold the most sway, and continue their crackdown on women’s rights
T h e FBI is dissolving before our eyes into a rogue security service akin to those in eastern europe during the Cold War Take the FBI s de liberately asymmetrical application of the law This week the bureau surprise raided the home of former President Donald Trump an historical first A massive phalanx of FBI agents swooped into the Trump residence while he was not home, to confiscate his personal property, safe, and records All of this was over an archival dispute of presidential papers common to many former presidents Agents swarmed the entire house, including the wardrobe closet of the former first lady Note we are less than 90 days out from a midterm election, and this was not just a raid, but a political act The Democratic Party is anticipated to suffer histor ical losses Trump was on the verge of announcing his 2024 presidential candidacy In many polls, he remains the Republican front runner for the nomination and well ahead of incumbent President Joe Biden in a puta tive 2024 rematch In 2016 then FBI Director James Comey announced that candidate hillary Clinton was guilty of destroying subpoenaed emails a likely felony pertaining to her tenure as secretary of state Yet he all but pledged that she would not be prosecuted given her status as a presi dential candidate As far as targeting presidential candi dates, Trump was impeached in 2020 ostensibly for delaying military aid to Ukraine by asking Ukrainian of ficials to investigate more fully the clearly corrupt Biden family given Joe Biden at the time was a likely pos sible presidential opponent in 2020 The FBI has devolved into a personal retrieval serv ice for the incorrigible Biden family It suppressed, for political purposes, information surrounding hunter Biden’s missing laptop on the eve of the 2020 election Previously, the FBI never pursued hunter s fraudu lently registered firearm, his mysterious foreign income, his felonious crack cocaine use, or his regular employ ment of foreign prostitutes Yet in a pre dawn raid just before the 2020 election the FBI targeted the home of journalist James O’Keefe on grounds that someone had passed to him the lost and lurid diary of Ashley Biden Biden’s wayward daughter At various times, in Stasi style the FBI has publicly shackled Trump economic advisor Peter Navarro, swarmed the office of Trump’s legal counsel Rudy Giu liani, and sent a SWAT team to surround the house of Trump ally Roger Stone Meanwhile, terrorists and cartels walk with impunity across an open border FBI Director
AmericAn GreAtness V i c to r DaV i s H a n s o n
I S L A M A B A D: U Microfinance Bank in collaboration with the Capital Development Authority (CDA) organized a tree plantation drive on 12th August, 2022 at G 8/1 Islamabad To celebrate the onset of monsoons, U Bank employees participated in plantation activity 5,000 trees were planted in order to continue U Bank’s drive to be an environmentally conscious company U Microfinance Bank is led by a triple bottom line ambition and have been organizing tree plantation campaigns every year Cognizant of the impact of its work on the planet, U Bank has kept its tradition alive and has been playing its part in conserving and protecting environment from the past four years The initiative is part of U Bank’s larger vision as a company to work towards reducing its carbon and waste footprint as well as incurring a set of products to support climate resilience and a sustainable change in society as a whole Emphasizing the need to conserve and safeguard the environment
p
A c c o r d i n g t o a p r e s s r e l e a s e i n
Jv projects in agriculture sector to be discussed during Pm visit to Qatar
corporate corner
p r
09NEWS Saturday 13 August 2022 | LAHORE
Federal Minister for National Food Security and Research Tariq Bashir Cheema chaired the meeting, which was attended by Minister of State for Petroleum Division Dr Mussadik Masood Malik and officials from Ministry of National Food Security and Ministry of Foreign Affairs Among various proposals, it was discussed that Pakistan and Qatar can jointly form a company to co invest in agriculture sector Furthermore, modern farms can be established with the latest technology and techniques to improve the standards of farming Value addition and food processing were identified as areas through which farmers can benefit The participants were of view that accreditation of farmers and certification of agricultural products can help to ensure standard and quality Qatar heavily relies on food import to meet the local demand The participants of the meeting were of view that joint venture projects with Qatar in agriculture and livestock can help Qatar ensure food security, while Pakistan can gain by getting investment in the sector Federal Minister for National Food Security and Research Tariq Bashir Cheema said that the ministry plans to improve the agriculture sector, and for that we are planning for mechanisms to bring the farming at par with international standards He added that this will help the farmers in improving their productivity and pave the way for value addition Regarding the proposals for PM’s visit to Qatar, Federal Minister Tariq Bashir Cheema directed that the officials that they should identify the areas of co investment and joint ventures through which agriculture supply chain and infrastructure can be improved p r
LONDON r e u t e r s Oil prices fell on Friday depressed by recession fears clouding the demand outlook, but remained on track for a weekly gain Brent crude futures were down $2 16, or 2 2%, at $97 44 a barrel by 1340 GMT while US West Texas Inter mediate (WTI) crude fell $2 48, or 2 6%, to $91 86 Brent was on track for a 3% gain this week after last week’s 14% tumble on fears that rising inflation and inter est rates will hit economic growth and demand for fuel
A sia spot prices near record highs as buyers foc us on winter supply KARACHI s ta f f r e p o r t continuation of steps taken for ease of doing business, State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has au tomated the verification of refi claims under the Export Finance Scheme (EFS) t h i s r e g a r d a u t o m a t e d v e r i f i c a t i o n w i l l s i g n i f i c a n t l y e n h a n c e t h e e ff i c i e n c y o f r e f i n a n c e o p e r a t i o n s a n d improve exporters access to liquidity With this move, refinance claims can n o w b e v e r i f i e d t h r o u g h a n o n l i n e s y s t e m b y b a n k s a n d c a n b e m a d e available for performance calculation and loan entitlement within minutes After a brief parallel run, this au t o m a t e d v e r i f i c a t i o n o f r e f i n a n c e c l a i m s w i l l p e r m a n e n t l y r e p l a c e t h e e x i s t i n g m a n u a l v e r i f i c a t i o n b e i n g performed by Foreign Exchange Op eration Department (FEOD) and De velopment Finance Divisions (DFDs) in SBP BSC offices T h e n e w a u t o m a t e d s y s t e m a l l o w s b a n k s t o g e n e r a t e p r o v i s i o n a l export performance of their exporters during the concluded financial year, review it with the exporter and submit the finalized performance to the sys tem electronically Subsequently the system will verify the finalized per f o r m a n c e a n d c a l c u l a t e l o a n e n t i t l e ment, which will be granted by SBP BSC upon banks request The automated verification of re f i n a n c e c l a i m s i s e x p e c t e d t o c o n s e r v e r e s o u r c e s a n d e n h a n c e e ff i c i e n c y b y r e d u c i n g t u r n a r o u n d t i m e a n d c h a n g e o f h a n d s T h i s w i l l e n s u r e s w i f t p r o c e s s i n g o f e x p o r t r e f i n a n c e t o e x p o r t e r s a n d p r o v i d e t h e m e a s i e r a c c e s s t o l i q u i d i t y u l t i m a t e l y b e n e f i t i n g e x p o r t e a r n i n g s o f t h e c o u n t r y
No power on ear th can undo Pak istan: Losar ISLAMABAD: Chairman, Pak EU Friendship Federation Mr Pervez Iqbal Losar, an overseas Pakistanis stationed in Belgium for the last 35 years said that no power on earth can undo Pakistan Addressing a ceremony of 75th anniversary (Diamond Jubilee) of Pakistan s Independence Day at OPF Girls College F 8/2, Islamabad, he further stated that Pakistan is a miracle that came into being on 14th August 1947 by rendering valuable sacrifices by our forefathers “Now, it is our duty to make Pakistan prosperous, peaceful, developed and dynamic country by contributing our due role ” He said that education is a social process that enables human beings to improve their quality of life and lead a productive life It makes individuals to contribute to human development in accordance with the requirements of the nation Education is one of the most important elements for collective development of a society and a state Mr Losar appreciated OPF for rendering valuable services in the field of education by providing quality education to the children of Overseas Pakistanis and general public Earlier, the national flag was hoisted at OPF Girls College, Islamabad and prizes were distributed among the high achievers p r nuSt, Jaz z launch Digital Pakistan tech fellowship I S L A M A B A D: National University of Sciences & Technology (NUST) has signed an MoU with Jazz, the leading internet and mobile broadband provider, to launch Digital Pakistan Tech Fellowship Program The Fellowship is designed to engage the youth in a meaningful discourse around tech based innovation It will equip participants with tech insights, thus enabling them to play a pivotal role in building the creative economy based on the digital Pakistan narrative The program will also make participants understand the nuances of tech journalism Speaking at the occasion, Rector NUST Engr Javed Mahmood Bukhari expressed that NUST's partnership with Jazz is a reaffirmation of its commitment to fostering innovation led growth in Pakistan He maintained that creating an enabling environment for technological development is one of the top priorities of NUST and we are continuously on the lookout for more avenues that can help in securing a bright future for our youth He also hoped to expand the scope of NUST Jazz partnership in future Speaking at the ceremony, Mr Aamir Ibrahim, CEO Jazz, said that industry academia collaboration is instrumental in addressing socio economic challenges of any country He further said that our partnership with NUST is founded on our collective desire to bring about national development through leveraging Information & Communication Technology
S B P a u t o m at e S v e r i f i c at i o n o f r e f i n a n c e c l a i m S t o fa c i l i tat e e x P o r t e r S , B a n kS
GLOBAL LNG
u microfinance Bank planted 5,000 trees
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif witnessing signing of Free Trade Agreement between Pakistan and Turkiye pr LAHORE: Samina Alvi, spouse of President Dr Arif Alvi, in a group photo with Pakistan Society for Rehabilitation of Disabled President Syed Shamsi, Chairperson Nighat Saeed, Saeedullah and others during a visit photo by Zubair MehfooZ
The market was absorbing con trasting demand views from the Organ isation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and the Interna tional Energy Agency (IEA) “We are seeing an economic slow down but it is unclear if it s as big a slowdown as some of the recent out looks, have been predicting,” said Ole Hansen, head of the commodity strat egy at Saxo Bank “The demand will ebb and flow, but supply is still the main concern ” European sanctions on Russian oil are due to tighten later this year while a six month coordinated energy release agreed by the United States and other developed economies is due to run its course by the end of the year On Thursday OPEC cut its forecast for growth in world oil demand in 2022 by 260,000 barrels per day (bpd) It now expects demand to rise by 3 1 mil lion bpd this year The IEA, meanwhile, raised its de mand growth forecast to 2 1 million bpd, citing gas to oil switching in power generation “There’s a great deal of uncer tainty about demand in the short run Until that settles it (the market) will be like this for a while,” said Justin Smirk, a senior economist at Aus tralian bank Westpac The IEA also raised its outlook for the Russian oil supply by 500,000 bpd for the second half of 2022 but said OPEC would struggle to boost production The oil market has bounced back this week, with Brent once more flirt ing with triple figures,” said Craig Erlam, senior market analyst at Oanda in London All things considered, the price moves highlight just how tight the mar ket remains and how sensitive it still is to spikes il falls $2 on demand concerns but set for weekly gain
i n
west Europe at $47 123/mmBtu on Aug 11, a discount of $15 65/mmBtu to September TTF prices Platts nWE forward curve was assessed throughout winter months at a nearly $13/mmBtu discount to the equivalent TTF contract month, meaning that the market per ception currently is that heavy discounts will remain for the coming months Roe added More gas is being used for power generation in Europe than expected due to difficul ties securing alternative energy sources, posing additional challenges for already tight gas markets, according to Hans van Cleef senior energy economist at ABn AMRO Wind power output is weak low water levels are hindering deliveries of coal to power plants and nuclear plants are running at lower ca pacity due to a heatwave Most of the available LnG is heading towards Eu rope, as it is still paying more for LnG than Asian buyers Question is whether this will remain when the summer is over and when the heating sea son starts Such uncertainties will continue to drive LnG and gas prices for the coming months,” Van Cleef said Refinitiv shipping data shows Russia has exported its first ever direct LnG volumes to Indonesia in what could be a re allocation of Russian LnG cargoes to new trade routes
ISLAMABAD: A meeting to discuss proposals related to co investment and joint venture projects with Qatar government was held at the Ministry of National Food Security and Research on 12 August 2022 The participants explored avenues to further strengthen the ties between Pakistan and Qatar in agriculture and livestock sector in the backdrop of the PM’s upcoming visit to Qatar on 23 August 2022
O
LONDON r e u t e r s Asian spot liquefied natural gas (LnG) prices climbed to near record levels this week as Asian buyers sought to secure supply ahead of winter, nar rowing the price spread with Europe where Russian gas flows remain curtailed The average LnG price for September delivery into north east Asia was estimated at $48 per million British ther mal units (mmBtu), up $3, or 6 7%, from the previous week, industry sources said The average price for Oc tober delivery was estimated at $51/mmBtu exceeding Reuters estimated record lev els seen in December at slightly over $48/mmBtu “Prices continue to be el evated in Asia, with Japan and Korea propping levels up with recent tenders, while there is still some apprehension about when China will come back said Toby Copson, global head of trading and advisory at Trident LnG In a week when winter buying demand from Japan and South Korea came into focus for market participants, the differential between Asian and European LnG prices has widened On Thursday, the October derivatives for Platts Japan Korea Market (JKM) widely used as an Asian benchmark rose to a $4 70/mmBtu pre mium to its European LnG benchmark Platts DES north west Europe, according to Ciaran Roe, global director of LnG at S&P Global Com modity Insights “This would allow for At lantic Basin LnG to flow to north Asia over northwest Europe, Roe said In Europe, S&P Global Commodity Insights assessed LnG prices on a delivered ex ship (DES) basis into north
U Microfinance Bank President & CEO, Mr Kabeer Naqvi said, “There is a dire need to initiate such drives in order to reduce the adverse impacts of climate change U Bank has always been taking steps to protect the environment We are committed to our ambition in consciously designing products to support our fragile environment which is constantly under threat from climate change Let us all pledge not only to plant trees but also nurture them” r
nance
10 FOREIGN NEWS Saturday 13 August 2022 | LAHORE B r i t i s h indian author salman rushdie was stabbed on stage as he at tended an event in western New York on thursday morning, according to witness photos and videos from the scene the attack happened as rushdie was about to speak at the Chautauqua institution a nonprofit education center and summer resort, located near Buffalo While his condition is unclear, one witness told the Daily Beast that her husband saw rushdie “able to walk with assistance” after the ambush r u s h d i e s w o r k p a r t i c u l a r l y his 1988 novel the satanic Verses, has attracted fierce protests, death threats, and even a fatwa for his as sassination by the former religious l e a d e r o f i r a n , w h o a c c u s e d r u s h d i e o f b l a s p h e m y A $ 4 m i l lion bounty on his head remains ac tive to this day A witness, Ward Pautler, told the Daily Beast that rushdie had just come out and sat down” on stage when he was attacked by an individ ual who Pautler described as “heavy set and wearing a black headpiece sitting just three rows away from the small stage next to his brother in law, Pautler, 76, said that at first he thought the assailant was “punching rushdie, but then i real ized he was stabbing him ” it didn t take long for me to re alize that he wasn’t punching rushdie because you don’t punch with the side of your hand, he said Quickly, Pautler said that several people jumped on the at tacker to subdue him while others began to treat the au thor As people moved rushdie away from the stage, Pautler said “there were other people with tow els wiping up the blood ” “ i t ’s s o s u r r e a l t h e m o r e y o u t h i n k a b o u t i t t h e s c a r i e r i t s e e m s , ” h e said adding that he had to e v a c u a t e q u i c k l y b u t h i s f a m i l y a l l m a d e i t h o m e safe A U T H O R S A L M A N R U S H D I E S TA B B E D O N S TA G E AT N Y E V E N T P I D ( I ) 8 8 3 / 2 2
Legend Olympian Mati Ullah passes away APP Legend Olympian hockey player Mati Ullah Khan has passed away after a prolonged ailment
Saturday 13 August 2022 | KARACHI 11SPORTS PESHAWAR S ta f f R e p o R t Y OUNg Star Bajaur upset Bajaur Star by 2 1 in a thrilling final of t h e f o o t b a l l m a t c h , p a r t o f t h e 75th Independence Day celebra t i o n s o rg a n i z e d b y D i s t r i c t A d m i n i s t r a t i o n , S p o r t s A s s o c i a t i o n M e rg e d A r e a a n d F r o n t i e r C o r p s K h y b e r Pakhtunkhwa North on Friday The final match between Young Star Ba jaur and Bajaur Star witnessed a capacity crowd present on this occasion along with officials of the district administration and Frontier Corps Khyber Pakhtunkhwa North The final started at a slow pace and soon it took momentum when Bajaur Star took the lead through Jan Alam, the right winger, who got a free ball from his mid fielder Sajjad Ahmad After receiving the ball from his midfielder, he zoomed in and slammed a beautiful goal on the field attempt After taking lead, Bajaur Star kept up more pressure to consolidate their lead but due to pack defence of Young Star Bajaur the Bajaur Star players did not succeed and thus the first half ended in favour of Bajaur Star with a goal lead I t w a s t h e s e c o n d s e s s i o n w h e r e i n Young Star Bajaur managed their position d e s p i t e c o n c e d i n g a g o a l i n t h e f i r s t s e s s i o n a n d s o o n s u c c e e d e d i n l e v e l i n g t h e lead through center striker Inam Ullah on the field attempt Inam got a free ball from the right winger Shakir Ullah and did nothing wrong in dispatching it into the net to make the tally 1 1 Inam’s goal really fascinated Young Star Bajaur and their players made some key moves as a result it was in the dying moments when Young Star Bajaur scored a superb goal through Barkat Ullah on the field attempt Barkat Ullah, the left winger, travelled past three defenders before netting a fine goal from the top of the box area to make the tally 2 1 Bajaur Star after going into deficit tried their hardest to level the tally but failed and thus Young Stars Bajaur won the final match by 2 1 Akram and Zahid supervised the match while Ibrahim Khan acted as match commissioner At the end, the chief guest Nawabzada N a s e e m u d d i n K h a n , a l o n g w i t h t h e o ff i cials of the district administration, Sports Association Bajaur and the Frontier Corps K h y b e r P a k h t u n k h w a N o r t h , g a v e a w a y trophies medals and certificates The play e r s o n t h i s o c c a s i o n a l s o p r e s e n t e d t r a d i tional “Atharn” wherein local arts display melodious Doll (drums) and Surna (Pipe) There were more joys and enthusiasm be tween all the players in the football event organized in connection with the 75th In dependence Day celebration Nawabzada Naseemuddin Khan urged the players to actively participate in sports and said that the aim of the Championship was to promote healthy activities and estab lish an atmosphere of peace and brother hood The people and especially the youth of Bajaur appreciated the organizers of the sports championship and paid tribute to the Frontier Corps
11 Sports 13 August 2022 (Lahore)_Layout 1 8/13/2022 12:27 AM Page 1
PID
Y O U n g S ta r B a j a U r U p S et B a j a U r S ta r i n f i n a L e O f ‘ i n d e p e n d e n c e d aY f O O t B a L L ’ (I) 883/22
He as a member of Pakistan Na tional Hockey Team played four Olympics and several international matches and earn good name and fame across the world Mati Ullah Khan was uncle of legend hockey players Sami Ullah Khan and Kalim Ullah Khan He was suffering from heart dis ease for long time and recently was admitted to Cardiac Center at Ba hawal Victoria Hospital He as a member of Pakistan National Hockey Team played several international hockey matches in several countries He also participated in four Olympics hockey matches Due to dynamic performance in hockey sports, he has earned international fame
S E N I O R O F F I C I A L S AY S B O A R D O F F E R I N G R E B AT E S O N H O U S E S F I V E TO 2 0 Y E A R S O L D
Professional competence hallmark of successful militar y leadership: COAS
The Auditor General of Pakistan (AGP) on directions from the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has started an audit of recoveries and de posits of National Accountability Bu reau (NAB) during the past 21 years, Profit learnt on Friday According to sources, the AGP office has assigned the task to a team of auditors which has already started its work It may be noted here that the audit of NAB s accounts closely fol lows the passing of a recent amend ment in the parliament Under the amended law corruption cases in volving an amount below Rs500 mil lion will not come in the bureau’s purview However, insiders privy to the development informed Profit that since the audit involves recoveries and deposits of many years, the process may take time Earlier, the PAC had directed the AGP to audit recoveries during the last one year and had also sought de tails of accounts in which the bureau deposited Rs821 billion In a meeting of the Senate Committee on Finance before that, NAB officials had dis closed that its recoveries reached over Rs821 billion The bureau stated that the recovered amount is usually disbursed among victims It may be mentioned here that PAC had ordered NAB officers and their family members to declare their assets back in June According to the details, PAC Chairman Noor Alam Khan had is sued directives asking NAB officers, their spouses, children, siblings and parents to declare their assets The committee also directed the bureau to provide a record of the perks and salaries given to officers and sought an audit of the distribution of funds among victims of corruption Soon after, during a meeting of the PAC, a NAB official while comment ing on the situation had said that NAB should not be discriminated against “PAC has not asked for asset details from officers of any other organisation till date so why are NAB officials being asked? All of the bureau’s offi cers already submit their tax returns and details of assets he claimed Moreover, PAC’s mandate has also been challenged by NAB offi cials in the Islamabad High Court (IHC)
Prayer tImINGs FA J R S U N R I S E Z U H R A S R M AG H R I B I S H A 4:10 5:00 1:30 5:15 7 08 9:15 Saturday 13 August 2022 NEWS Published by Arif Nizami at Qandeel Printing Press 4 Queens Road Lahore for PT Print (Pvt) Limited Ph: 042 36300938 042 36375965 Email: newsroom@pakistantoday com pk
Residents of DHA have expressed seri ous concern over the hike in property tax rates and rejected it Speaking with this scribe, Ishtiaq Khan, a resident of DHA Phase I, said that the increase in tax rates this time as compared to last year was very stressful Such a huge and sudden increase as people grapple with inflation is incompre hensible I have a one kanal house for which I paid Rs15 000 as property rent last year In our street, there are about twenty four houses If this amount of tax was paid by each house, then our street alone was paying Rs360,000 last year Now, I have been sent a property tax bill of Rs70 000 which means that WCB will collect around Rs1 7 million in tax from our street alone On the other hand, the board does not pro vide any such facility that justifies this amount he lamented Similarly, Zeenat Kamil, a resident of DHA Phase III, said that WCB was under the illusion that people living in DHA are rich “I have a two kanal house in Phase III, the property tax of which was Rs28,000 last year has now reached Rs140,000,” she in formed What is the justification for receiving such a huge amount as tax despite having your own property in Pakistan It is justifi able to collect such a tax from people who have rented out their properties or are doing commercial work, but for a resident who is living in his own house, this amount is non realistic WCB should reconsider their de cision and send bills of actual amount for taxes,” she lamented It may be noted here that DHA resi dents have issued a protest call against the huge increase in the tax rates and are also raising their voices against the move through various social media platforms W h e n c o n t a c t e d U m a i r S h a u k a t a s e n i o r o ff i c i a l o f t h e W C B , i n f o r m e d t h a t t h e p r o p e r t y t a x r a t e s o f a l l t h e a p p r o v e d s o c i e t i e s i n t h e W C B l i m i t s h a v e b e e n i n c r e a s e d These rates are levied as per section 64 of the Cantonments Act but there are also many exemptions and rebates which vary from case to case This was not the case ear lier and the tax rates did not increase every year At present, the property tax of a one kanal house located in DHA is about Rs65, 000 We have reduced the tax by one third on self occupied property The formula we applied for this is based on the cost of land and cost of construction However, this for mula is not for rental properties he in formed When asked what kind of rebates and exemptions are being given by WCB, he replied that the board is providing exemp tions based on the year of construction of each house “If a house is five to nine years old, it is being given a rebate of 10 per cent Sim ilarly, a 10 to 15 year old house is being given a 15pc rebate, and a 15 to 20 year old house is given 20pc rebate and a house over 20 years old is being rebated up to 25pc he maintained However, there was no mention of any such rebate or exemption on the tax bills given by WBC on which Shaukat informed that such cases are being solved on individ ual bases “Actually, we don't have the record of the construction year of any house located in DHA Because if we talk about DHA, they don't share any such record with us However, we guide whoever comes to us For this we ask for the house map which is approved by DHA and from the map we ac cess the year of construction to give the re bate accordingly,” he said He added that the WBC does not assess the cost of land according to the FBR rate, but according to the present Deputy Com missioner (DC) rate which is one million per marla in DHA whereas cost of construc tion is assessed for the same year in which any house is constructed When asked how many property own ers in DHA have so far paid taxes as per the new rates, he replied that more than a 1,000 bills have been collected When Shaukat was asked whether mil itary officers or employees are fully ex empted from the property tax, he replied that every government employee is ex empted from property tax “A government servant whether a peon or a secretary working in any civil institu tion and drawing salary from the Account ant General (AG) office is exempted from 60pc property tax in only one house in which he or she is living Military officers and staff are also included in this category Similarly, 100pc property tax exemption is given to retired employees and officers However these exemptions are not avail able to autonomous bodies,” he added S h a u k a t f u r t h e r i n f o r m e d t h a t t h e e x p e n d i t u r e b i l l s o f t h e b o a r d h a v e i n c r e a s e d b y o n e h u n d r e d p e r c e n t i n t h e l a s t t w o y e a r s “Two years ago, our essential expenses were around Rs120 million, including DHA's street lights bills Similarly we pro vide sanitation services in DHA through highly paid contractors and bear the ex penses ourselves Then there are the ex penses of the salaries of the employees Now these expenses have increased to Rs250 million Property taxes are increas ing in the cantonment areas all over Pak istan he said Shaukat also informed that the assess ment of the rates of the properties located in the vicinity of Walton Road and Defence Main Boulevard has not been done and these areas are also included in the bound aries of the board 300pC
ISLAMABAD G h u l a m a b b a s
The COAS said the primary reason for armed forces to exist today, should not be to prosecute wars, but to ensure that they do not take place "Mankind’s destiny, more than ever before, hinges on our collective capac ity to come together and take the route of peace and cooperation instead of conflict, communication instead of clash and multi lateralism instead of self preservation " He concluded with his best wishes and prayers for the officer cadets I wish and pray for your rewarding careers ahead May you serve your countries with honor, dignity and pride " He also applauded the efforts of Commandant RMAS and his team for this impressive parade adding "I would like to pay my rich tribute to Major General Dun can Capps, Commandant Royal Military Academy who is retiring today Be rest as sured General, that your 37 years of merito rious services will always be remembered and acknowledged I wish you all the best and God speed for your future endeavors "
SANDHURST/ISLAMABAD s ta f f r e P o r t
Gen Bajwa further said, "In the words of Sir Basil Liddle Hart and I quote An officer who has not studied military history as science, is of little use beyond the rank of a captain ' You must also understand that persona of a just and impartial commander, who exhibits merit in dispensation of reward and punishment, is the one who will earn unconditional loyalty and obedience of their under command " The COAS said Sandhurst, for over 200 years had groomed young boys and girls from United Kingdom, Common Wealth Countries and Royalty from across the globe, adding, "Your alma mater is without a doubt, one of the finest military institutions in the world which has produced some of the great est military leaders that this world has seen " "Graduating from Sandhurst is of course a matter of great honor and pride Today I see that pride on your beaming faces, just as I see it reflected on the faces of your loved ones sitting across the square You all de serve this moment of fulfillment you, for the remarkable hard work and dedication and your families, for all the patience and support that was lent to you by them Two Pakistani cadets would also be graduating with you today Let me say that I am as proud of you all, as I am proud of them " He underlined that his presence at this oc casion bore testimony to the deep rooted re lationship that existed between Pakistan and the United Kingdom, based on mutual respect and shared values which were carefully nur tured by both nations over many decades "Our huge Pakistani diaspora in United Kingdom displays the strength of our historic relationship I am sure that this relationship will scale greater heights in times to come Similarly, the bondage between the two armed forces is uniquely special as well, forged on the battlefields of Great Wars and kept alive over the years through exclusive regimental affiliations and close professional contact in training and a myriad of other mil itary activities " Addressing the Officer Cadets, he said, "The journey that awaits you is challenging as well as exciting The demands of profes sional military service will be much high as you grow in service You need to equip your selves with lofty attributes of leadership, with clear sense of purpose, to gain respect and trust of your subordinates He added that it was only through devel opment of unwavering trust and confidence that you could instill Esprit de Corps ( the common spirit existing in the members of a group and inspiring enthusiasm devotion and strong regard for the honor of the group) in your under command, which would hold you together in times of crisis He underlined that as a direct conse quence of the onset of fourth industrial rev olution, dual use technologies and niche capabilities led by artificial intelligence were fundamentally altering the character of fu ture war The battlefield of tomorrow would be characterized by extreme precision, lethality and transparency which would be particularly challenging for military leaders, especially young officers in the battle, both mentally and physically, he added "This future is inevitable, and each one of you would have to adapt to new realities in the technological domain to ensure successful outcome in the battle While it is important to understand this change in the character of war let me tell you about some realities in battle field that are immune to the ebb and flow of technological advancements and WOULD NEVER CHANGE, let me enumerate a few First! The value of keeping up a brave face in front of your troops, when you are as shat tered and frightened inside as all of them The contagious energy that you will instill in your troops, when you would lead them by exam ple and not merely by words " He emphasized, "Remember, when lot of lead was flying in the air in the battlefield, an officer never says advance, rather always says follow me The importance of keeping the wellbeing of your troops ahead of your own is the hallmark of a successful military leader The essence of the last point cannot be better articulated than what was said by Field Marshal Philip Walhouse Chetwode who said and I quote: 'The safety, honor and welfare of your country come first, always and every time The honor, welfare and comfort of the men you command come next Your own ease comfort and safety come last, always and every time " He mentioned that these eternal words were boldly etched even today on the walls of Brig Francis Ingall Memorial Hall, in Pakistan Military Academy to remind every officer cadet of the importance of these es sential tenets of military leadership
ISLAMABAD N P
LAHORE s h a h a b o m e r t H E Walton Cantonment Board (WCB) and Lahore Cantonment Board (LCB) have increased the property tax rate of developed housing societies in areas in their jurisdiction by more than 300 per cent, Profit learnt on Friday
In a major development for the release of $1 17 billion tranche, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has agreed to the letter of intent forwarded by Pakistan According to sources privy to the development, the IMF has signed the LOI sent from Pakistan and returned it to the country which will now sign it “Pakistan will send back the signed LOI to the IMF today they said adding that the letter of intent was prepared by Pakistan a month back and since then IMF has been satisfied over its points and ac tion plan On August 02, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) confirmed that Pakistan has achieved all the set targets for the revival of Extended Fund Facility (EFF) programme
According to information available to Profit the annual property tax rate of a house stretched on one kanal in Defence Housing Authority (DHA) within WCB limits has reached Rs70,000 which was be tween Rs12,000 to 17,000 last year Simi larly, DHA residents will have to pay an annual tax of up to Rs143,000 for a house stretched on two kanals which was Rs33 000 until last year
AGP begins audit of NAB recoveries, deposits
Pa k i s t a n i n c h e s c l o s e r t o r e c e i v i n g $ 1 . 1 7 b f r o m I M F g Gen Bajwa Becomes first ever Pakistani to Be invited a s chief Guest at rma s
Talking to a private Tv news channel, Interna tional Monetary Fund s (IMF) resident representa tive in Islamabad, Esther Perez Ruiz said Pakistan has achieved all the financial targets set by the fund and the last action was accomplished on July 31 by extending levy on petrol Ruiz said the 7th and 8th reviews have been completed and the Fund’s Exec utive Board will meet in the third week of August Esther Perez hoped that Pakistan will take steps to narrow the funding gap till the board s meeting On July 14, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and Pakistan reached a staff level agreement for the release of $1 17 billion under the combined 7th and 8th reviews of Pakistan’s Extended Fund Facility (EFF) A statement issued by the Fund said that the agreement is subject to approval by the IMF’s Ex ecutive Board
WCB and LCB inCrease propert y ta x rates By
Chief of Army Staff (COAS), General Qamar Javed Bajwa on Friday said no one was born with professional knowledge it had to be acquired through constant pursuit as without it, one could not achieve profes sional competence, which in turn was the hallmark of successful military leadership Chief of Army Staff Gen Javed Qamar Bajwa was addressing at the sovereign’s pa rade for commissioning course 213 (CC213) of the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst (RMAS) as the first ever Pakistani chief guest to be the representative of the Queen during the sovereign s parade at the Military Academy Sandhurst The Army Chief said, "As a leader today, you need to have courage and ability to take difficult decisions and then accept full re sponsibility Correct decision making re quires competence and confidence, which can only be acquired through high class mil itary education rigorous training and contin uous study of military history " Apart from UK cadets, 41 international cadets from 26 various countries including two cadets from Pakistan military academy Cadet Muhammad Abdullah Babar and Cadet Mujtaba also attended the 213 Regular Commissioning Course
