Epaper_22-11-24 ISB

RestRaint to unwaRRanted cRiticism against aRmy has its limits: coas Bajwa

RAWALPINDI Mian abrar

chiefof army staff (coas), general Qamar Javed bajwa on wednesday said that a fake narrative was coined to malign the senior leadership of pakistan army and indecent words were used to malign the army but the army leadership despite having resources and options observed restraint but that has limits too. addressing at the defence and martyrs day ceremony as chief guest, the army chief in his last speech reaffirmed that in future, the army would have no role in the country’s politics.

without naming anyone, coas said that a fake narrative was coined to create instability in the country and now efforts are afoot to get away with this fake narrative.

“senior military leadership was maligned. let me make it clear that army leadership would never compromise on national interest. do you believe that armed forces would sit idle against a foreign conspiracy. this is impossible; rather a great sin. those who plan to create a rift between the army and the people will never succeed,” he added. he said that the army leadership had many options and resources to counter this narrative but the army showed restraint in the larger interest of the country and abstained from making any neg-

ative statements.

“one must understand that there is a limit to this restraint. i want to forgive this inappropriate and aggressive stance against me and the army and move forward as pakistan is supreme for all of us. political parties and individuals may come and go but the country will remain intact forever,” the army chief said. the army, he said, had initiated its catharsis and hoped that the political parties would also review their conduct.

“it is also a fact that mistakes have been committed by every institution, political party and civil society. we should learn from these mistakes and move forward,” he added.

g Urges all stakeholders to pUt aside personal egos and move forward

POLITICAL INTERFERENCE

SC SeeKS eIghT-year reCord oF PolICe TranSFerS FroM CenTre, ProvInCeS

ISLAMABAD Staff RepoRt

THESupreme Court on Wednesday sought details from the federal and provincial governments regarding transfer of police officials during the past eight years besides a report on political interference in these transfer.

A three-member Supreme Court bench led by Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial and comprised of Justice Ayesha Malik and Justice Athar Minallah heard a case regarding political interference in the transfers and postings of police officials in Punjab.

At the request of the petitioner, the apex court expanded the scope of the case to the federation and other provinces and subsequently, asked the federal government and other provinces to submit a response to the case. “Federation and provinces are to submit records of transfer postings in the police department over the past eight years,” the court ruled and ordered the federal government and provinces to

Maulana Fazl’s close relative appointed KP governor

ISLAMABAD Staff RepoRt

President Dr Arif Alvi on Wednesday signed off on the appointment of Haji Ghulam Ali, a close relative of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman, as the governor of Khyber Pukhtunkhwa. According to a statement from his office, Alvi accorded his approval based on the advice of the prime minister in accordance with Article 101-1 of the Constitution. The summary sent by Shehbaz Sharif was approved on the same day it was dispatched to the president. Mushtaq Ahmad Ghani of Pakistan Tehreek-iInsaf (PTI) had been serving as the acting governor after his predecessor Shah Farman, also a party colleague, resigned in April. It merits mentioning that Maulana Fazl’s son Asad Mahmood is a federal minister while his brother Attaur Rehman is a senator on JUI-F ticket. His other brother, Lutfur Rehman, is opposition leader in KP Assembly while son-in-law of the Maulana is Mayor of Peshawar.

submit their responses within two weeks.

During the hearing, the petitioner’s lawyer maintained that transfers of police officers were due to political interference and influence, which was a matter of “public importance and fundamental rights”.

“The continuous transfer of police officers makes a difference to police command and performance,” the chief

justice remarked. The petitioner’s lawyer argued that recently the Layyah district police officer (DPO) was transferred by the Chief Minister’s House following interference by local politicians, which was highlighted by the media as well.

To which, the CJP replied that he had not seen the headlines pertaining to this matter in the media. The petitioner’s counsel furthered that the DPO eventually

relinquished charge despite initial resistance to the transfer by the police.

“According to the data, the average term of DPO in Punjab is five months, and 268 DPOs were exchanged in Punjab in four years,” Justice Bandial read out data provided by the lawyer.

Justice Ayesha questioned as to from where the data was obtained, to which the lawyer replied that it was from the commissioner of police (CP) office. “Political changes in the police make a difference to the performance of the criminal justice system,” Justice Minallah remarked.

The petitioner’s lawyer stated that the average term of an inspector general (IG) of police in Punjab is six months but should be three years as per law. He added that in the past four years, police officers were changed in Punjab without reason.

The CJP said that according to the petitioner’s lawyer, the matter was not limited to Punjab. “The former IG of Islamabad was a well-educated and decent officer, who handled the case of the attack on [the] Sindh House very well.

Govt concedes 58pc tax being charged from commercial, domestic electricity consumers

ISLAMABAD Shahzad paRacha

The Federal government on Wednesday admitted before the Parliament that the Federal Board of Revenue is charging up to 58% tax on commercial and 29% on household electricity bills.

While briefing the Senate Finance and Revenue committee, Member Inland Revenue policy FBR disclosed that FBR is collecting the highest tax on electricity bills.

Member Policy Afaque Qureshi explained that there are five different types of taxes on electricity bills.

FBR has imposed 17% general sales tax and 10% advance income tax on the electricity bills of domestic consumers.

The government has also imposed an additional three percent tax from the persons who have not obtained sales tax registration or who are not on active taxpayer list, he added.

He further said that FBR is charging 40 to 58% tax on the commercial bills and extra Rs, 1950 plus 12% of the amount exceeding Rs 20,000 for commercial consumers while Rs 1950 Plus 5 pc of the amount exceeding Rs. 20,000 for industrial consumers. The FBR presented that the GST regime is structured in a manner targeted towards placing reduced burden upon low/middle income segments of society. Goods related to basic human needs are either not subject to GST or are taxed to a minimal extent for example local supply of basic food items is zero-rated.

The committee also lamented repeated and heavy taxation of electricity bills and a number of food items and items of daily

use by the citizens of Pakistan.

Committee Chairman Saleem Mandviwala said that there are many public complaints regarding heavy taxes on electricity bills and taxes on electricity bills should be reduced.

State Minister for Finance Ayesha Ghous Pasha said that the tax on their bill will be halved if people register with FBR.

She said that People have to pay taxes.

On this, Senator Kamil Ali Agha said that people are paying tax on everything then what else should be taxed.

He said that people are not getting registered with FBR due to double and heavy taxes.

The goods were seized in accordance with law. The committees recommended further probe in the matter and sought a report for further deliberation.

On the matter referred by the Chairman Senate regarding imposition of regulatory duty on Polyester Filament Yarn raised by Senior Vice Chairman, Pakistan Yarn Merchants Association, referred to the Committee on 20th October, 2022. The Federal Minister of State for finance said that the summary was rejected by the cabinet, she further said that the summary will again be placed in the cabinet after recommendations proposed by the Senate Committee. The matter was deferred for further deliberation. The committee received a briefing on containers stuck at port Qasim due to Customs. The FBR apprised the committee that presently 988 containers are held up at port Qasim, Karachi due to State Bank of Pakistan’s Circular through which such consignments are being released after the approval of the State Bank of Pakistan.

PTI chief discusses economic, political issues with senior journalists

LAHORE Staff RepoRt

Senior journalists and anchorpersons called on Chairman Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Imran Khan at his residence here on Wednesday. Spokesperson to Chief Minister and Punjab Government Musarat Jamshed Cheema was also present at the meeting. During the meeting, colossal economic and political losses caused to the country due to the incompetent imported government came under discussion. During the meeting with senior journalists and anchorpersons, Imran Khan deliberated upon the long march strategy being held on Nov 26. Later talking to the media, Musarat Cheema said that after the regime change operation, PTI chief continued to raise a strong voice against the statesponsored oppression of journalists. She said that the pressure on the imported government will be increased to ensure the freedom of the media and the security of journalists in the country. Musarat Cheema lamented that economic hitman Ishaq Dar and Shehbaz Sharif have nothing to do with people’s problems. Fugitive Nawaz Sharif and his crony Ishaq Dar have their hometown in London while the hapless people have to live in this country, she said. Meanwhile, the Punjab government’s spokesperson tweeted about the fast deteriorating economic situation of the country adding that under the leadership of the Crime Minister and Ishaq Dollar, the country has fallen into an economic abyss. Pakistan’s creditdebit swap has reached 123%. Investors’ confidence will further decline after a very gloomy economic situation. She deplored that the incompetent government is not capable of taking the country out of this spate of crises. Currently, 88% of the country’s investors are saying that the country is not going in the right direction.

Mengal underscores CBMs to win trust of Baloch people

ISLAMABAD Staff RepoRt

Sardar Akhtar Mengal, Convener of Commission constituted by Islamabad High Court, said on Wednesday that confidence building measures (CBMs) should be initiated to restore trust of Baloch people. Chairing a meeting of the Commission constituted on orders of the Islamabad High Court to investigate the grievances of Baloch students, Sradar Akhtar Mengal said the views of all sides including security agencies should be incorporated in the report and emphasized upon the significance of political solution over military approach. He expressed his resolve that the Commission would make conscious efforts to prepare and submit a comprehensive report covering the issue from all dimensions and suggesting a way forward. The Commission secretary briefed the members regarding the progress made so far in connection with compilation of the report to be submitted before the court in coming days.

Faced with revenue shortfall, ET&NC suspends biometric for vehicle transfer for two months

pROfIt REpORt Shahab omeR

LAHORE

Faced with an increasingly up-hill battle to completely digitise the legal transfer of vehicles when they are bought and sold, the provincial Excise Taxation and Narcotic Control Department of Punjab (ET&NC) has suspended biometric verification for two months.

The effort to use biometric verification has been an old goal of different provincial governments to bring the sale of cars and motorcycles into public record. Earlier this year in January, ET&NC had completely abolished the manual system of car/motorcycle registration and transfer of ownership from January 11 this year.

However, this had been followed by a sudden dip in vehicles being registered. People continued to buy and sell cars except without biometric registration. This

resulted in a lot of issues with regards to the transfer of ownership, and also meant that the ET&NC faced a significant drop in revenue that they got from these registrations.

Back when the announcement had first been made, the then Director Motors ET&NC Lahore Region Qamar Ul Hasan Sajjad had told Profit in a meeting and confirmed that the department had faced problems after the shift to the biometric system.

“That doesn’t mean you can’t say that the biometric system is faulty or has failed. Since the system is now transparent. In the beginning, the problem was definitely that people did not understand the new system properly and secondly, that the system was new, so the department had to face many technical problems. It was our dream to implement this system and it has been implemented at the right time,” he said.

In response to the question of revenue shortfall, Sajjad said that when ET&NC had given a deadline of December 31, 2020 to

end the manual registration system, everyone had reached the ET&NC office for manual registration in that time.

“There was such a rush that we had to extend. A total of 28,000 applications were processed in ten days asking for registration and transfer of vehicles and this number was the highest for any given time. This is the reason why the number of applications decreased as soon as the biometric system was implemented because people have already taken advantage of it,” he maintained.

It is pertinent to mention here that the vehicle and motorcycle registration system in Punjab has been linked with the NADRA system and registration of new vehicle or change of ownership of old vehicle cannot be done without on-site verification of thumb impression. However, this facility is available in 6000 e-facility centres of NADRA and 45 Excise offices across Punjab.

Another senior official of the motor branch of ET&NC while justifying the biometric system said that the biometric

system has made it impossible to register vehicles fraudulently. “The most important thing is that now this entire system has become paperless and you don’t even need to visit the excise office,” he said.

“You deposit the registration or transfer fee from e-pay and visit your nearest efacility centre to get your verification done and the vehicle will be registered in your name. Similarly, if the vehicle is to be transferred to someone else’s name, then both the persons need not come to the same city or the same place. If they get their verification done at NADRA e-facility centres available in their respective cities, the vehicle will be transferred to their name sitting at home. In this new system, even if your vehicle documents are lost, the value of your vehicle will not go down because the registration of duplicate documents in the system has been eliminated.”

Later, due to the biometric system, numerous vehicles that were supposed to be transferred of ownership were stopped. Nasir Mushtaq, owner of a car dealer

showroom in Johar Town, told Profit that many vehicles could not be sold in the market without biometrics available.

“The first thing is that we car dealers not only sell our clients’ cars but also buy cars from the market at investor prices. In the manual process of change of ownership of a vehicle, a transfer letter was taken from the owner and later, the name of the buyer of that vehicle was written in the letter and the ownership of the vehicle was changed. We had hired various agents for this work who used to go to the excise office and for vehicle registration and change of ownership. The sale of such vehicles was possible only if ET&NC gave us some time in which the showroom owners could take ownership of such vehicles,” he added.

However, on the other hand, ET&NC Director Motors Iftikhar Ghani informed that 50 percent vehicle and motorcycle owner will benefit from the suspension of biometric system. “All such vehicles which are in the market on open transfer letters will be able to change ownership,” he added.

SC BarS PuBlIC oFFICe holderS FroM uSIng

PhoTograPhS on govT doCuMenTS, ProjeCTS

ISLAMABAD Staff RepoRt

THESupreme Court (SC) has barred public office holders, including politicians, from affixing their photographs on public and government documents terming it a violation of their oath.

Justice Qazi Faez Isa authored a fivepage judgment while questioning affixing the photograph of then Chief Minister Chaudhary Pervez Elahi on the certificates of properties situated in a Rawalpindi katchi abadi.

According to the order, affixing one’s own photograph on a public/government document projects personal interest, therefore, this is not permissible as it would violate one’s oath of office. It is also not permissible to manoeuvre or honour oneself through one’s subordinates, political associates, or

in a manner that may call for reciprocal favours.

“Paid servants of the State, constitutional office holders and politicians in government must not use their positions for personal, partisan or pecuniary gain. If someone names a public/government place or property after themselves or affixes their own name or image on a public/government document, it is self-glorification, and if this is done by others, it would constitute obedience, flattery, nepotism and/or corruption,” added the order.

A division bench of the apex court comprising Justice Isa and Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah further noted that the apparent reason to portray the image of the chief minister, who is a politician, could only be to present him to the recipients of the certificates as their benefactor and thus cultivate in them a feeling of being beholden to him.

CPeC transformed Pakistan-China ties into strong economic partnership: minister

ISLAMABAD Staff RepoRt

The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) has strengthened relations between the two neighbouring countries, Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Ahsan Iqbal said. Calling CPEC a vital national project of Pakistan, Iqbal said it has transformed the relationship between the two countries into a strong economic partnership. Chairing a meeting of top officials of the ministry and representatives from concerned ministries, Iqbal said that the next phase of the CPEC envisages the development of industrial cooperation. He directed concerned stakeholders to expedite the implementation of CPEC projects. The minister also asked concerned ministries to speed up work on special economic zones under the framework of the CPEC to attract the relocation of Chinese industry to Pakistan with a low cost of production.

motorway funds from Sindh

KARACHI

Staff RepoRt

The National Highway Authority (NHA) has sought details about the motorway funds from Sindh government, misappropriated in a mega scam. The NHA has asked about the extent of funds released for land procurement for the motorway project, misappropriated in the scandal. A fact-finding committee of the NHA also visited Matiari and Naushehro Feroz districts. The committee members held meetings with the real owners of the land and sought details of the matter from them, sources said. The highway authority has also demanded of the provincial government to handover the matter to the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) and the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) for inquiry into the scam. “It is a matter of banking transactions, the NAB should be entrusted for return of the amount,” NHA officials quoted as saying. Chief Secretary has sought permission from the Chief Minister of Sindh over the matter.

Pakistan expresses solidarity with Qatar over FIFa propaganda

ISLAMABAD Staff RepoRt

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday said Pakistan stood in solidarity with Qatar’s Emir and people as the country faced propaganda while hosting the FIFA World Cup. “Unfortunate that Qatar is being subjected to a barrage of propaganda as host of FIFA World Cup,” he said in a tweet. Instead, Shehbaz Sharif said, Qatar should rather be commended for wonderful arrangements for mega event and being a promoter of global peace and development.

Pakistan to seek Interpol help in arresting expatriate who killed Karachi police

KARACHI Staff RepoRt

Pakistan will ask Interpol for help in arresting an overseas Pakistan man who shot and killed a policeman in the Defence neighbourhood of Karachi and apparently fled abroad.

Abdul Rehman, who was chasing a “suspicious vehicle” in the upscale neighbourhood late on Monday, was killed by Khurram Nisar who authorities said was an expatriate based in Sweden.

Closed-circuit television

(CCTV) footage of the event, making the rounds on the Internet, shows the suspect and the police, both holding firearms, disembarking from a black Toyota Mark X car and engaging in an apparently heated argument.

As the situation escalates, the man pulls a pistol and fires more than one shot at Abdul Rehman from point-blank range, killing him on the spot, before speeding away.

Irfan Baloch, deputy inspector general of police in Karachi (south), said Nisar has been declared “most

wanted criminal”. “We will ensure his arrest from anywhere [in the planet],” Baloch was quoted as saying. He said police have contacted the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) for Nisar’s arrest and they are writing a letter to the director general of the passport division National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) for canceling of purported killer’s passport.

The official said a relative of the suspect helped him in fleeing abroad, and added that further investigation was underway.

IHC directs Imran to contact administration for helipad service

ISLAMABAD Staff RepoRt

Chief Justice Islamabad High Court (IHC) has refused to pass any directions pertaining to Pakistan Tehreek-eInsaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan’s arrival on helicopter in the Parade ground for rally.

The IHC Chief Justice Aamer Farooq held hearing on the petition filed by PTI seeking permission for the rally to pass through the capital city and also to allow Imran Khan’s helicopter to land in the parade ground.

During the hearing, PTI lawyer apprised the court that Imran Khan has issued the call for a public gathering in Rawalpindi on November 26.

The CJ inquired that if the application submitted to

the administration regarding the aforementioned has been rejected? The lawyer retorted that they have submitted the application and another request for Rawat was submitted prior to this.

The council added that they have also asked for the court’s permission regarding PTI Chainman Imran Khan’s helicopter to land in the Parade ground. The CJ IHC responded that the court cannot provide helipad services.

The lawyer appealed that the court should direct the administration to decide on their request as per the law, on which the CJ IHC remarked that the said matter comes in the jurisdiction of the Rawalpindi administration and therefore the court cannot pass directions in this regard.

Pakistan to remove bottlenecks in implementation of ML-1, KCR projects

ISLAMABAD Staff RepoRt

The federal government decided to remove bottlenecks in the implementation on Main Line-1 (ML-1) Railway and Karachi Circular Railway (KCR) projects in line with the agreements reached between Pakistan and China during the recent visit of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to China.

Sources in the Planning Commission told Gwadar Pro that the Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal gave these directions during a special meeting held here to help implement the decisions taken between the leadership of China and Pakistan recently.

The minister also directed the officials to implement the decisions taken at the 11th Joint Cooperation Committee (JCC) and remove all the bottlenecks in that regard. The minister also directed the Embassy of Pakistan in China to hold a meeting with the Chinese side to follow-up decisions taken in the 11th JCC and in PM’s visit to China.

He also asked the embassy to arrange an online meeting with the Vice Chairman, NDRC to review progress on CPEC projects.

The meeting also reviewed progress made over the China-Pakistan Economic orridor (CPEC) projects in line with the decisions taken at the 11th JCC held on October 27.

The meeting was attended by the Executive Director China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), Chief Economist, Planning Commission and representatives from various ministries, said a press release issued here. During the meeting, the conveners of the Joint Working Groups on Energy, Transport Infrastructure, Gwadar, Socio-Economic Development, Security, Long-Term Planning of CPEC, Industrial Cooperation, International Cooperation, Science & Technology, and Agriculture Cooperation apprised the minister about the progress since JCC took place.

The minister said that CPEC is a vital national project, which has transformed the relation between the two countries into a strong economic partnership, adding that the next phase of CPEC envisages the development of industrial cooperation.

He directed concerned ministries to speed up work on Special Economic Zones (SEZs) for attracting share from relocation of Chinese industry to Pakistan with low cost of production.

Ahsan Iqbal also directed the officials to coordinate with the Chinese authorities for the early completion of Gwadar International Airport.

“The Gwadar International Airport should be functional before June 2023,” said the minister, while directing the relevant stakeholders to engage their counterparts in China so launch could be ensured timely.

juI-f kick-starts anti-PTI, anti-KP govt rallies from today

ISLAMABAD Staff RepoRt

The Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam has announced that it will hold rallies against Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government from Thursday (today) and announced schedule for the rallies. According to the schedule, JUI Chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman will kick start party’s rallies under the banner of Istehkam-e-Pakistan from northern areas on Thursday (today). The JUI will run an awareness campaign against the bad governance of KR government in the province by holding big protests and taking out rallies. The first rally under the banner of Istehkam-e-Pakistan will be taken out from Lower Dir on Thursday, which will be followed by a power show in Mansehra to be addressed Maulana Fazl on Nov 26. He will also address a public rally in Kohistan the next day on Nov 27. On his arrival in Malakand and Hazara divisions, as many as 2,000 uniformed volunteers of Ansarul Islam under the command of Muhammad Israr Marwat would welcome the JUI chief and make arrangements for the security of the rallies. The JUI chief would reach Timergarah on Saturday and he would arrive in Kohistan on Sunday (Nov 27) after a long period. The people of upper and lower Kohistan and Palis, and leaders of JUI (Kohistan chapter) have made all arrangements to accord a rousing welcome to their leader. During his Malakand and Hazara divisions visits, KP Provincial Ameer Senator Ataur Rehman, General Secretary Maulana Ataul Haq Darvesh and members of JUI-F executive council would accompany Fazlur Rehman.

Pakistan, Saudi deputy foreign ministers discuss bilateral relationship

Staff RepoRt

Waleed Abdulkarim, the deputy foreign minister of Saudi Arabia, called on his Pakistan counterpart, Hina Rabbani Khar, on the sidelines of the ninth Global Forum, the highest-profile event of the UN Alliance of Civilisations, in the northeastern Moroccan city of Fez. During the meeting, the two diplomats reviewed bilateral ties and ways to “enhance them in all fields of joint cooperation”. They also discussed developments in the regional and international arenas and the efforts made in this regard, according to the Associated Press of Pakistan. The cultural capital of Morocco is hosting the event under the theme “Towards an Alliance of Peace: Living Together as One Humanity”. The event opened on Tuesday, with a message from King Mohammed VI of Morocco highlighting the historic and cultural landscape of Fez, describing its hosting of the forum as “a privilege.” Contrasted by a renewed rise of the far-right and several geopolitical and humanitarian conflicts, the forum seeks to promote peace and solidarity in order to address global challenges like the Covid-19 pandemic and climate change.

nha seeks details of misappropriated

RABAt

CM ElAhi AnnounCES ownErShip riGhtS for rESidEntS of ‘KAtChi ABAdi’

KhaNeWaL staff RepoRt

pUNJABChief Minister

Chaudhry Pervez Elahi announced various development projects for Khanewal including the ownership rights for residents of “Kachi Abadi” of Tehsil Jahania. Addressing a public gathering at Chaudhry Pervez Elahi stadium Jahania on Wednesday, the CM said all possible efforts were being made to provide relief to the masses.

He said various development projects have been started across the province for public facilitation.

He announced various development projects for the district and also announced ownership rights for residents of “Kachi Abadi” in Tehsil Jahania. He said Tehsil Headquarters Hospital Khanewal would be upgraded to 150 beds from 40 beds while a blood bank and labour rooms would be established at Tehsil

Headquarters Hospital Jahania.

He said a trauma centre would also be constructed in Jahania while the campus of Bahauddin Zakariya University would be established at Jahania and Kacha Khue.

The CM further announced Girls Degree College Jahania would be upgraded and a new Children’s Hospital would be constructed there.

He said speedo bus services would be extended to Jahania and Thatha Sadiqabad for providing transportation facilities to the masses.

He said ambulances would be to 11 Basic Health Units of Tehsil Jahania. He said MRI machine would be installed at DHQ Hospital Khanewal.

He said the motorbike service of Rescue 1122 would be started soon in Jahania and he also announced funds of Rs 200 million for the sewerage system in Thatha Sadiqabad, adding 100 kilometre roads would be constructed in PP-209 and PP-210 con-

Gardezi inaugurates fruit and vegetable market in Jaranwala

Lahore staff RepoRt

All agricultural markets in the province are being linked together in view of the welfare of farmers. In these model markets, the establishment of a farmer platform and the record of collection of market fees through the Android application “Mandi App” is being set up so that the role of middlemen could be made limited and the farmers get full compensation for their labour. “Moreover plantations are being done in model markets. New fruit and vegetable markets are being set up preferably near villages so that farmers do not have to face difficulty in selling their produce,” Gardezi expressed these views while inaugurating the fruit and vegetable market in Jaranwala District, Faisalabad. The Provincial Minister of Agriculture further said that all arrangements have been made to keep agricultural markets free from illegal encroachment and market fee schedule, commission and daily rates are being displayed in clear places in model markets. After the implementation of the PAMRA Act, the system of agricultural markets is being developed on modern lines, benefiting all the stakeholders. So far, more than 100 new markets have been established under the Public Private Partnership so that the farmers could directly benefited and the role of the middleman can be limited.

stituencies and also announced that 50 water filtration plants would be installed at NA-147.

He said school kids would get a double scholarship in the province and announced small farmers, who cultivate

less than 12.5 acres of land, would be given free solar water pumps.

Chaudhry Pervez Elahi said maximum facilitation was a mission and added that people would witness positive change in their lives.

Court indicts suspects in Minar-i-Pakistan harassment case

Lahore staff RepoRt

Alocal sessions court on Wednesday indicted the suspects in TikToker Ayesha Akram harassment case that took place at Minar-i-Pakistan on Aug 14, 2021.

During hearing the TikToker Ayesha Akram harassment case, the court indicted the accused suspects including Rambo, Asad Azmat, Muhammad Bilal and others. However, the suspects who were presented before the court denied the inditment. At this, the court summoned witnesses and complainant Ayesha Akram on next hearing. The case was registered by Lorry Adda police against 400 unidentified people for assaulting the complainant, molesting and stripping her.

Earlier, the Lahore High Court judge Justice Shehram Sarwar Chaudhry granted bail to Rambo and three others in the Minar-i-Pakistan assault case and directed the accused to submit surety bonds of Rs 100,000 to secure the bail. According to the First Information Report (FIR) registered at the Lorry Adda police station, a female TikToker Ayesha Akram was harassed by a crowd of people at Minar-

i-Pakistan on Aug 14. It said Ayesha Akram along with her six companions were filming a video near Minar-i-Pakistan when around 300 to 400 people attacked them.

In the complain, Ayesha stated that the crowd was huge and people were scaling the enclosure and coming towards her. Men kept pushing and pulling Ayesha to the extent that they ripped off her clothes. According to Ayesha, several people tried to help her escape the mob, however, the crowd was ‘too huge’ and they kept throwing her into the air.

The FIR has been registered under Sections 354 A (assault or use of criminal force against woman and stripping her of her clothes), 382 (theft after preparation made for causing death, hurt or restraint in order to commit the theft), 147 (rioting) and 149 (unlawful assembly) of the Pakistan Penal Code. Rambo, a friend of the victim, and his seven accomplices were arrested later after she alleged that his associate was the mastermind of the Minar-i-Pakistan incident.

British Mp visits CoMSAtS headquarters

isLaMaBaD staff RepoRt

Honorable Shadow Minister for Women and Equalities of the United Kingdom, Ms. Yasmin Qureshi, Member Parliament, visited COMSATS Secretariat on 22 November, 2022. Ambassador Dr. Mohammad Nafees Zakaria, Executive Director COMSATS warmly welcomed the Hon. Member of the British Parliament. She congratulated the Executive Director on his appointment. The Executive Director briefed the Hon. MP on the COMSATS’ functioning, which were aimed at benefiting its members in the field of Science, Technology and Innovation in a variety of ways. Ms. Yasmin, MP, expressed keen interest in COMSATS activities and discussed prospects for mutually beneficial NorthSouth cooperation. The Executive Director underscored that the meaningful engagement of the global north can be helpful in the COMSATS march towards attaining sustainable development in the global south. Both agreed that there is significant potential in such a cooperation.

Speakers call for conscious efforts to save local languages in AJK, GB

MUZaFFaraBaD

staff RepoRt

Speakers at a ceremony stressed the need for making conscious collaborative efforts to save the endangered vernaculars being spoken in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) and Gilgit-Baltistan (GB). Addressing the concluding ceremony of a project implemented to build-capacity of the faculty of public sector Universities of AJK and GB in Language Documentation was held at City Campus of the University of Azad Jammu and Kashmir, the speakers highlighted that dozens of local and regional languages in AJK and GB are facing imminent threat of extinction. The project funded by US Government was implemented by the University of Azad Jammu and Kashmir in partnership with San Jose State University, California, USA was aimed to strengthen the capabilities of Public sector Universities of AJK and GB in language documentation. The United States Educational Foundation in Pakistan (USEFP) monitored and administered project. Speaking on the occasion Chief Guest of the event Secretary Kashmir Cause, Arts and Languages, Registrar University of Azad Jammu and Kashmir Prof Dr Ayesha Sohail, Project Director Dr Abdul Qadir Khan and others asserted that regional languages are facing extreme threats and are at verge of annihilation. “We must take some solid steps to preserve the dying languages that carrying with them the centuries-old history, civilization, and culture of the region”. They added. Sharing salient features and success stories of the project, the Director, Prof Dr Abdul Qadir Khan told the participants that under this program, training was provided to the faculty members of AJK and GB universities in basic linguistic analysis, language documentation methods, language documentation software (ELAN, FLEX, Audacity), data management, besides providing an opportunity for fieldwork experience. Dr Khan told that twenty seven participants were selected for the capacity building training program to document endangered languages in the region. “These participants included twenty one Linguistic Faculty from seven public Sector Universities of AJK and GB and six language activists”, he informed. Dr Qadir further told that these participants visited Hunza,Nagar and Skardu districts of GB during the field trip and worked closely with Shina, Khowar, Wakhi, Balti, Burushaski, and Domaaki language speakers. After the field work, the trainees annotated the collected data and also conducted one day workshops, seminars and walks on language documentation in their respective universities. “35 members and 180 students and language activists were trained through cascading workshops in seven universities”, he added.

GAnGA RAM still AliVe in heARts, PunjAb

CM tells his GReAt-GRAnddAuGhteR

LAHORE Staff RepoRt

PUNJABChief Minister Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi on Wednesday paid glowing tribute to Sir Ganga Ram for his invaluable services in the social sector and announced restoration and conversion of Gangaram’s residence in Taxali Gate into a museum.

“Sir Ganga Ram served the people regardless of race, color or religion and dedicated his life to the service of humanity”, Ch Pervaiz Elahi said and noted the world never forgets those who served human beings as Ganga Ram was still alive in the hearts of people.

Punjab Chief Minister Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi was talking to Ms Kesha Ram Hinsdale, the great-granddaughter of Sir Ganga Ram who called on the CM at his office along with her husband Jacob Croteau Hinsdale here on Wednesday.

The chief minister informed the

guests that the Punjab government had built a new 200-bed emergency block in Ganga Ram Hospital in his previous tenure and inaugurated the first phase of the mother and child block in this hospital.

“Medicines are available free of cost in all emergency rooms of the government hospitals across Punjab,” he remarked.

“Through the health card, every citi-

zen of Punjab can get free treatment for up to one million rupees per year. Cancer treatment through modern cyber knife technology has also been included in the health card”, the chief minister pointed out and added the Punjab government had allocated Rs125 billion for free treatment through the health card in the budget for year 2022-23.

On the occasion, Kesha Ram Hinsdale said that she visited Ganga Ram Hospital where patients were getting free medicines and best treatment. It is heartening to see the mother and child block in Ganga Ram Hospital. She said Chief Minister Pervaiz Elahi’s special focus on health sector was being reflected in the convenience of the common man, adding that she would never forget it.

Punjab Minister Specialized Healthcare and Medical Education Dr Yasmin Rashid, Chief Secretary Abdullah Sumbal, former federal secretary Salman Ghani, former principal secretary GM Sikandar, VC Fatima Jinnah Medical College University Prof Dr Khalid Masood Gondal, VC Fatima Jinnah Medical College University Dr Shamsa Humayun, secretary specialized healthcare and medical education, secretary Punjab assembly, COO Ferozsons Laboratories Usman Khalid Waheed, Aamir Zafar, Sikandar Zaman and others were also present in the meeting.

Restraint to unwarranted criticism against army has its limits: COAS Bajwa

cONtINuED fROM PAgE 01

KP women MPAs to protest delay in drafting of rules on ‘Prevention of Violence Against Women’

PESHAWAR Staff RepoRt

The women members of provincial assembly (MPAs) from both sides of the divide on Wednesday warned to mark a protest against Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government over undue delay in formulation of rules under “Prevention of Violence Against Women Bill” despite the passage of two-year of the bills.

It was decided in a meeting of KP Assembly Standing Committee on Population Welfare, chaired by PPP Member and chairperson of the committee Nighat Orakzai. The members of the committee expressed grave concern over non-formulation of the rule on the important issue and decided to stage a sit-in in front of the cabinet room during the upcoming cabinet meeting to mark their protest and force the cabinet to take decision over the matter.

The committee members also urged Chief Minister Mahmood Khan to issue orders to compile the rules as soon as possible and approve them in the next cabinet meeting. Earlier the meeting discussed appointments, transfers and other important administrative issues related to the Population Welfare Department. The committee chairperson Nighat Orakzai directed that academic credentials, residential certificates and other information of recently appointed family welfare workers in the Population Welfare Department should be submitted in the next meeting of the committee.

The meeting was attended by members of the Provincial Assembly, Shagufta Malik, Humira Khatun, Sameera Shams, Basirat Bibi, Madiha Nisar, Asia Khattak, Naima Kishor and Afrin Bibi besides Secretary and Director General Population Welfare, Social Welfare Department, Law Department.

Gen Bajwa said that the country was faced with a huge economic crisis and no political party can singlehandedly get the country out of economic crisis.

“It is about time for all stakeholders to put aside their personal egos and learn from the past mistakes and move forward to transform Pakistan. After 2018 general elections, some parties named the winning party as selected, using RTS failure as an excuse, and after losing the vote of confidence motion in 2022, the other party named the other rest as imported [government]. We need to shun this attitude,” he asserted.

General Bajwa said the families of the martyrs were the pride of nation and the Army would never leave their families alone. In his six-year tenure, he added, the families of the martyrs were always found in high spirit, whereas the force could not reward but would not allow the sacrifices of their loved ones, to go in vain.

The Army Chief said he was proud to have been the commander of the Pakistan Army for the last six years. He remarked that the main task of Army was to protect the geographical boundaries of the country, but it always went an extra mile for the service of nation.

Whether it was the case of Reko Diq or Karkey, FATF’s negative impacts on the country to it’s journey to the white-list, integration of erstwhile FATA, fencing the western border or providing less expensive gas from Qatar, loans from friendly countries, combating Covid-19 or eradicating locusts, relief operations during

floods, the army had always fulfilled its mandate to serve the nation and would continue to do so, Inshallah, in the future.

He said: “I assure you that despite these actions, the Army will never neglect its primary task and fight against terrorism. There are sacrifices that can never be forgotten because the nations that forget their martyrs, are the nations that vanish.”

Commenting on the Dhakka debacle in 1971, the Army Chief said the East Pakistan crisis, was not a military but a political failure. The number of fighting soldiers was not 92,000, rather only 34,000, the rest were from various government departments.”

The COAS said that these 34,000 people had been confronting 250,000 Indian Army soldiers, and 200,000 trained Mukti Bahini but still they fought valiantly despite all odds.

They offered unprecedented sacrifices, which was acknowledged by former Indian Army Chief Field Marshal Manekshaw himself, he added. He said the sacrifices of these brave Ghazis (war veterans) and martyrs, were not duly acknowledged by the nation till date, which was a huge injustice.

The Army Chief said now he would comment on the political situation : “I have been thinking for many years that the Indian army commits the grave human rights violations in the world, but their people are more or less critical of them. On the contrary, our army, which is busy day and night in the service of the nation, is criticized from time to time. The main reason for this is the involvement of the Army in politics for the last 70 years, which is unconstitu-

tional. So in February last year, the Army decided after lot of deliberation that it will not interfere in any political issue.”

He said: “I can assure you that we are strictly committed to the pledge and will continue to be so. However, instead of welcoming this constitutional process, some circles criticized it by using inappropriate and indecent words.”

The Army Chief said they should be fully careful on this count though it was the right of the people to have positive analysis. Some people opted for a fake and false narrative firstly for creating a chaos, and now they were retracting from that dubious position, he added.

He noted that the civil-military leadership was given inappropriate titles. He assured the nation that the Army leadership could do anything but never go against the interests of the country.

“I hope political parties will also review their conduct. We should learn from mistakes and move forward. Today Pakistan is faced with a serious economic crisis. No single party can steer itself from it. Time has come for stakeholders to learn from past mistakes and move forward. A true democratic culture will have to be adopted in Pakistan. Victory and defeat is a part of politics: every party has to accept this gracefully.”

General Bajwa said that Pakistan was God’s blessing for the nation, adding, “I am grateful to the families of the martyrs for coming to the ceremony; today is the day of renewal of the pledge. Let us all vow to unite for Pakistan, work for the betterment of the country, and should not hesitate from any sacrifice for the motherland.”

us envoy participates in community tree plantation drive

ISLAMABAD Staff RepoRt

US Ambassador in Pakistan Donald Blome Wednesday participated in a community tree planting drive that will become part of a larger project to develop an urban forest in the city of Quetta.

The ambassador during his visit to Balochistan also meet with Chief Minister Abdul Quddus Bizenjo, local partners working to advance climate change adaptation, representatives of higher education institutions, leaders of local NGOs, and Afghan refugees, said a news release from the US embassy in Pakistan. Ambassador Blome discussed US efforts to combat the effects of climate change through a Green Alliance with diverse partners in Pakistan and underscored the strong cooperation between the United States and Pakistan on promoting economic development through higher education and women’s empowerment. At the event, the ambassador highlighted that the U.S. government had provided more than 97 million dollars in flood-related assistance to Pakistan this year, including to individuals and communities in need in Balochistan.

“But we know that the effects of the flooding are far from over, and every nation faces the threat of climate change. So, we’re working with diverse partners to increase Pakistan’s resilience to climate change through a Green Alliance,” he said.

Ambassador Blome also met with leadership from the Balochistan University of Information Technology, Engineering and Management Sciences and the Sardar Bahadur Khan Women’s University to discuss how U.S. government support has helped them respond to local economic development needs in their academic programs. The United States, through the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), has provided scholarships to almost 300 students—56 per cent of them women—to pursue higher education at the institutions and further their communities’ economic development. In remarks at the launch event of “Entrepowered—Women Can Do,” a program that will provide $350,000 of seed funding to women entrepreneurs in Balochistan, Ambassador Blome said, “The United States believes that empowering women is a strategic investment in the future for both private citizens and the global economy.

terrorist involved in six cops’ death killed in lakki Marwat ibO

DERA ISMAIL KHAN Staff RepoRt

The Lakki Marwat district police, flanked by the Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) conducted a joint operation and killed a most wanted terrorist, allegedly involved in attack on mobile police van. According to police source on Wednesday, the police claimed to have killed a most wanted terrorist identified as Waheed Ullah alias Usama, son of Najeebullah, a resident of Kotka Gul Akhtar during an intelligence-based operation (IBO) conducted by the law enforcement agencies.

The IBO was conducted following a tip-off that Waheedullah and his accomplices were present in the proximity of Ghoriwala Police station and Naurang Police station while planning subversive activities. According to police, as soon as the terrorists sighted the police, they resorted to firing which was retaliated and during the firing exchange resulted in killing of Waheedullah.

The police also recovered a sub-machine gun and ammunition during the search. According to sources the search continued for several hours in the vicinities of Bannu and Naurang areas. The killed terrorist was wanted by CTD and Lakki Marwat Police in various cases including attack on mobile team of Lakki Marwat police which left six policemen martyred recently.

Pakistan must take advantage of Chinese agri achievements: Zhao Shireen

Zhao Shireen, the Chinese Consul General in Lahore, on Wednesday said that China will continue its support and cooperation with Pakistan for joint research to evolve best quality more new varieties of high yield hybrid rice seed for bumper crop.

“Pakistan must take advantage of agricultural achievements made by Chinese private sector.”

Chinese CG Zhao Shireen expressed the view while speaking during his visit to head office of Guard Agricultural Research and Services here on Wednesday.

Talking to Chairman Pakistan Hi Tech Hybrid Seed Association and CEO Shahzad Ali Malik Sitar-I-Imtiaz and senior executive

Momin Ali Malik, the Chinese Consul General stressed the need for further strengthening cooperation in the agriculture sector and entering into more Joint ventures for research on modern scientific lines to boost yield per acre in Pakistan.

Zhao Shireen said there was vast scope for investment in agricultural sector, adding that China was proud that Guard Agricultural Research and Services evolved first ever hybrid rice seed in collaboration and joint ventures of Chinese counterpart Longping Hi Tech Industry.

Speaking on the occasion, Shahzad Ali Malik said Guard Agricultural Research and Services is the pioneer in introducing hybrid coarse rice seed in Pakistan that developed a new ‘Extra long grain super hybrid rice’ heat tolerant seed with double per acre yield and

length after cooking as compared to competitor existing varieties.

Senior Executive Momin Ali Malik said that Guard Agricultural Research is working to bring such seeds to market which can ensure prosperity for the growers and food security for the country’s ever-increasing population.

He said they partnered with their Chinese counterparts in 1998 and since then they are putting in efforts to bring highyielding varieties and have tolerance against climate change as well. He claimed that the new variety can produce more than 100 maunds per acre provided taken good care of it.

Final data is being completed as harvesting is still underway at different places, Momin added.

LAHORE Staff RepoRt

Positive admission…

ADDRESSING, as he pointed out himself, the Martyrs Day ceremony for the last time before retiring on November 29, CoAS Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa said that the Pakistan Army was not going to interfere in politics any longer. He was addressing a Defence and Martyrs Day ceremony at GHQ, Rawalpindi on Wednesday, which had been postponed from September 6 in solidarity with the flood victims. His statement came in the light of the sequence of events starting earlier this year, with the moving of a vote of no-confidence against the PTI government, and followed by its ouster, and its building of an anti-Army narrative. He said that a “false narrative was created”, from which “an escape is now being attempted.” That was a reference to PTI chief Imran Khan’s recent Uturn on the USA, which he had earlier accused of conspiring to oust him.

General Bajwa noted that the 1971 War was a political defeat, not a military one. Even if that is conceded, it should be asked where the political leadership had come from since 1958. Merely looking at the history of the country since 2018 would not be sufficient. General Bajwa said the military was undergoing its catharsis, and called on political parties to do so too. However, he did not share any information about the process. This would not only enable informed criticism by the public (which General Bajwa conceded was its right), but might give pointers to other stakeholders about what needs to be done.

General Bajwa did not mention the late Benazir Bhutto, but his remarks were a reminder of her Truth and Reconciliation Commission proposal.

There should be a recognition of the fact that martial law has been imposed four times. The establishment stands accused of having propped up a government which could not survive without support. That party has now won much popularity by taking the line that the establishment was part of the conspiracy against it. It is to be hoped that the right lessons are learnt, that interfering in the constitutional process does not work. General Bajwa leaves to his successor the task of restoring the Army’s reputation, and reducing the criticism it faces for past interference. Whoever that officer might be, the only guideline he would have would be the Constitution.

From PSP to PSG

1965, followed by the students’ movement in 1968 when the usurper started to celebrate his decade of progress. There were pitched battles between the youth and PSG on whose support the dictator relied. By March 1969 he was gone, to be replaced by his appointed Army Chief Agha Muhammad Yayha Khan.

After the elections in 1970 followed by the break-up of Jinnah’s Pakistan in 1971, Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto (ZAB) came into power in the Western Wing. In his very opening speech ZAB warned the police force to behave and give up their coercive methods. He called it ‘ Zulum or Police Gardi ‘ which had left marks on his back.

SENIoR police officers come from the Police Service of Pakistan (PSP), a federal appointment carried out through the Federal Public Service Commission. officers of this service are then assigned to the provinces for maintenance of law and order. As a colonial arm of control, the force was not created to serve.

Under the PSP officers the rank and file of the force are recruited by the department itself. The police stations are controlled by the Station House officers (SHos), who at one time lived in-house but not any more. FIRs (First Information Reports) and other complaints are lodged with the area stations.

The SHos enjoy unlimited powers, which despite several reviews and reform recommendations, have never been curtailed in the last 75 years. In the famous Corneluis Commission Report, the unlimited authority of the SHos was covered at length for a transition from a colonial to a democratic state law enforcement agency. Unfortunately, the coercive approach prevails till today requiring major reforms.

To make the matters worse, military dictators relied on the force to extend their support which did not exist in the public.The police became a mistress of powerbrokers, which started to work against the interests of the people they were required to serve. Ayub Khan, the first usurper, discovered a dismissed ‘constable in Gujrat to be his henchman in Lahore which was then the capital of West Pakistan.

Instead of reforms to serve in a democratic setup, the PSG decided to go on strike in Punjab and KPK (NWFP then). The two young Governors (Mustafa Khar and Hayat Sherpao) rejected their blackmail and threatened them with mass dismissals. The ‘Awami Hukamat’ as it was called introduced reforms to control ‘Police Gardi ‘, PSP was restored to a great extent. Elected representatives of the people started to watch the interests of the public.

With the return of the third usurper in July 1977, the ‘ Coercive Force ‘ was restored. Discredited characters in the force, like ‘ Halaku Khan and Abid Boxer, were back in the mainstream. Mian Nawaz Sharif was given the task of converting PSP to Police Service of Gawalmandi (PSG II). All the notorious bad characters of Gawalmandi were recruited in the force in the 1980s, the pattern of the 1960s of Gujrat was repeated for the second time.

Now that first-hand lessons have been learnt, hopefully IK will go out for major reforms in the administrative structure of the country once he is back in the corridors of power. Only by strict adherence to the constitution, ‘ Azadi ‘ can be ensured and protected. Police should protect and serve, not indulge in plunder and crime

that cannot be overruled. In the 1970s, Ahmed Raza Kasuri registered an FIR aginst the murder of his father in which the sitting PM was accused. ZAB was sent to the gallows on the basis of this FIR. Imran Khan (IK), the most popular leader of his times and former PM. has not been able to file the FIR on the attempt on his life in the November 3 ambush at Wazirabad. It was not only a serious security lapse but the resistance to register an FIR against the accused individuals clearly indicates disrespect for the Constitution and rule of law. While the imported PMs misused the police force for personal gains those who followed underestimated their evil designs. The largest province of the republic has the worst track record of relief to the public. The entire civil administration, including the law enforcement agencies, are both incompetent and corrupt to the core. The ‘ Sharif Influence ‘ runs deep in the province which has to be tackled.

While IK succeeded in introducing major reforms in the police force in KP he could not apply the same formula in Punjab. Ex-IG Nasir Durrani was given the task to reform the Punjab Police, as they are called. but the resistance was overwhelming. He had to step down.

M. A. Niazi Joint Editor

Yousaf Nizami Editor

Aziz Executive Editor Aziz-ud-Din Ahmad Joint Editor

No two individuals are the same. Everyone has their view of thinking and learning. Human beings not only differ from each other in their outward appearances but also their internal capacities and capabilities.

Every individual is not only unique in outward appearance but also in intellect and imagination. Every individual has a skill set, intellectual ability, learning power, thinking capacity, grasping power, ability to recreate knowledge, and way of looking at the world.

Similarly, hardly anyone can deny the fact that no two individuals get the same environment.

They do get a similar environment to some extent at some stages of life. For example, children going to the same school, employees working at the same rank and salary for a company. But, this sameness hardly makes any difference as the overall environment in which they are born, live, and grow up is different.

Now, let us scratch the differences in the environments of individuals from the basic to the complex level.

Every child is born to parents with different capacities, capabilities, abilities, social status, health, wealth, home environment, and family. Every child grows up in a different environment depending upon the social status, bringing up techniques and society in which he is born.

Chaudhry Zahoor Elahi was given the task to convert PSP into Police Service of Gujrat (PSG). It was through PSG that the dictator kept his grip over power. It was Madare Millat Fatima Jinnah who first challenged the coercive state apparatus of the dictatorial regime in the; presidential election of

The Punjab Police today is in fact a ‘ Gawalmandi Militia ‘ loyal to the King who created them. PSP now has shades of both Gujrat and Gawalmandi well serving their real masters, the Chaudhrys of Gujrat and the Sharifs of Gawalmandi. In order to restore PSP a major purge is required starting from the Police Act of 1861 that remains in vogue till today in the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Respect for fundamental human rights as defined by the constitution have to be enforced in letter and spirit.

Police cannot refuse to register an FIR. It can then investigate and remove names of individuals falsely accused. It’s a constitutional guarantee

Unhealthy competitions

In the broader sense, we see the difference in almost every aspect. Differences and disparities in the provision of education, health facilities, employment, living standards, basic needs, and the luxuries of life, and so on.

But here the most important question is how two individuals who are unique internally with their abilities, capabilities, and intellect, and externally with their appearances, and are living in a different environment, can be judged on the same parameters and produce similar results and outcomes?

At the basic level, we see that some ambitious parents do not realize that despite their children being in the same age group, going to the same school, or living in the same society, they are different in their approaches and talents. They may go to the same school, read the same books, and be taught by the same teachers but they are different and they cannot produce similar outcomes.

The failure to the realization of this very fact results in continuous frustration and deadlock among parents and children.

Parents continue to compare their children with other children and when they lag or don’t produce similar results, the frustration continues and results in mental traumas for both.

All human beings are not meant to be the same, all professions are not the same. Every individual has their talent and field of work to showcase their skills.

But, when one individual is

made to compete with others, it not only affects his personality but also diverts his attention from what he is doing or is capable of doing to what others do.

For example, a student who is good in social sciences and can prove to be an expert in this field is forced to study natural sciences because of competition with his cousins or friends. What happens as a result is horrific.

A person who was meant to be an expert in social sciences, tries to drag himself in the natural sciences and doesn’t find peace of mind huis whole life. It not only affects the individual or his family but also the state. It deprives the state of an individual whose ideas might have helped solve many problems in the future.

This very competition starts from a very early stage and it is started by parents at home, peers outside, and teachers at school when they compete one’s abilities, skills, and intellect with others and expect the same. It goes on with the one throughout one’s life.

This slowly and gradually transforms individuals from learners to competitors. They see every other individual as their competitor and try to achieve more than them. The unending race to achieve more and more results in restlessness, anxiety, resentment, and grudge among competitors.

This applies to all individuals in different age brackets and fields. For example, a student competes with another student, a job holder with the

Earlier. Abbas Khan, another upright officer of the force, held a press conference while serving as IGP Punjab in which he highlighted the inclusion of criminals in the law enforcement agency. According to him, outlaws were tasked with law-enforcement. At the time of partition we inherited a corrupt force. Today the public has to deal with criminals in uniform; it is the worst combination of corruption and incompetence that the people have to endure. Nasir Durrani is not amongst us today, I am sure Abbas Khan can be called in to clean the mess that he had identified decades ago during his tenure as IGP Punjab.

Now that first-hand lessons have been learnt, hopefully IK will go out for major reforms in the administrative structure of the country once he is back in the corridors of power. only by strict adherence to the constitution, ‘ Azadi ‘ can be ensured and protected. Police should protect and serve, not indulge in plunder and crime.

The writer is ex-Chairman, Pakistan Science Foundation. He can be contacted at: fmaliks@hotmail.com.

other job holder, or a person in one profession with a person in another profession.And, this competition then takes the form of a battle. A battle of survival.

Usually, two kinds of competition take place between individuals. A) Competition to achieve more than others, B) Competition to achieve what others have.

The outcome of this unhealthy competition is confusion, dissatisfaction, and a state of competition in a society where all are competing with all without taking into account what they have and what they can offer.

Skills, talents, and capabilities that make individuals unique and helpful are spent on competing rather than being utilized for good. If this is to be controlled then it has to be from educational institutions and parents’ collaboration. Educational institutions create a competitive environment for students and parents provide support to them by asking their children to compete rather than motivating them to do their best.

This is done in the name of healthy competition. A competition can only be a healthy competition if all participants are given equal importance and a share of appreciation according to their born and innate abilities.A classroom with 40 students having different capabilities and capacities cannot all read, write, and learn the same way, get equal marks and opt for the same profession. Not all can stand first and not all can stand last. But, by asking students to compete we have buried their skills and intellect.

Recently, I met a parent who was asking his children to study by keeping before them one of their cousin’s success in mind and he called it a healthy competition and a motivating factor for his children.

By doing so he was undermining the skills and abilities of his children and making them fall prey to the curse of unhealthy competition. The solution to these unhealthy competitions is the realization that every individual has a talent that needs to be expressed rather than suppressed in the name of competition.

Parents, teachers, peers, media, and society all can play their part by providing children with an environment where they can express, develop and nourish themselves according to their unique abilities.This will nurture individuals with skills of their own without unhealthy competition.

But the COAS doesn’t say how the Army will follow up

The writer is freelance columnist

MUHaMMaD ali alVi

Parents, teachers, peers, media, and society all can play their part by providing children with an environment where they can express, develop and nourish themselves according to their unique abilities. This will nurture individuals with skills of their own without unhealthy competition

Dr FariD a Malik

Dedicated to the legacy of late Hameed Nizami Arif Nizami (Late) Founding Editor

Umar

The police remains a colonial tool of dominance

When competition is unhealthy, everyone loses

UN resolution offers a glimmer of hope for Rohingya?

lims and other minority communities in Myanmar was also raised in the resolution adopted by the third committee of the General Assembly.

The Permanent Mission of Bangladesh to the United Nations said in a statement that the oIC and the EU jointly presented the proposal. one hundred and nine countries co-sponsored the resolution, the highest since 2017.

In that proposal, it was said the current political situation in Myanmar has worsened the human rights situation of Rohingya Muslims and other minority communities there

mentation of the five-point recommendations adopted unanimously by ASEAN.The UN General Assembly unanimously passed a resolution on the ‘Human Rights Situation of Rohingya Muslims and other Minorities in Myanmar’. It also recognized Bangladesh’s humanitarian efforts for the Rohingya. This is definitely good news.

Editor’s mail

Seniority above competence

EvERY year, high-performing schools, teachers and students in GilgitBaltistan are given awards on the occasion of the World Teachers Day (oct 5). Comprehensive assessment tools for the three categories were developed 10 years ago outlining the relevant performance indicators to facilitate the selection and to keep the process beyond bias.

This year, I was also a member of one of the evaluation committees for the selection of the best school, the best teacher and the best students, and spent three days visiting different government primary, middle and high schools for boys where interviews with headmasters and teachers were conducted. The visits allowed me a chance to observe some of the key factors in the assessment criterion. The interviews with headmasters, for instance, made me think of what appointments made on the basis of mere seniority can do to a system.

Except a few, most schools were facing multiple challenges, such as low academic performance of students, weak leadership and management practices, and lack of teachers’ commitment to their jobs. Not many were using lesson plans or keeping track of the daily diary routine, and the students’ progress report were not being kept updated.

In addition, most of the schools were running without proper direction/vision or a school development plan. A number of schools’ elementary board examination results were found to be dismal. The low student performance can be related to poor services and inefficient inputs delivered by the subject teachers during the academic year.

However, some schools were better with relatively better students’ academic achievements, well-furnished classrooms, clean and green environment, and availability of potable water. Besides, there was proper record-keeping and the school development plan could be seen displayed in the office of the headmaster.

When I analysed the reason for the success of these schools, it was all about the quality of leadership available at any given school. Review of studies also indicated and authenticated the critical role of school leadership behind every improvement initiative. The schools with low performance were being led by teachers who had been promoted as headmasters on the basis of their length of service — seniority, in other words — without having any leadership and management training.

In most of the well-functioning schools, however, empirical data indicated efficient leadership and management practices because the headmasters had relevant background or natural inclination towards such a role. In fact, some of them were appointed through the Federal Public Service Commission (FPSC).

SINCE the overwhelming exodus of Rohingya refugees to Bangladesh in 2017, the Rohingya problem has gained attention. To continue housing more than 1.1 million refugees in Bangladesh, however, is proving to be an incredibly challenging endeavor given the recent emergence of other national and international challenges.

A ray of light is provided, nonetheless, by the recent Rohingya resolution passed by the UN General Assembly’s Third Committee. The resolution was jointly introduced on November 18 by members of the organization of Islamic Cooperation (oIC) and the European Union (EU), who all agreed that it was urgent to confront Myanmar’s reprehensible treatment of the Rohingya people and other minorities.

This is good news since, as up until now, the international community has not taken sufficient action to relieve the pressure on Bangladesh and to prevent Myanmar from abdicating its responsibility to its citizens.

The resolution is simply the first of several that must be taken to make sure that the Myanmar government creates a secure environment for the Rohingya refugees to return to; it does not, however, guarantee that the repatriation process for those refugees would be accelerated.

It is crucial that the resolution be turned into rapid action because the UN and humanitarian aid groups both have vital roles to play in this situation. The perpetrators of the crimes against the Rohingya population can finally be brought to justice with the assistance of the international community. Making sure that the refugees can finally and safely return home requires that we approach this catastrophe with the urgency that it demands.

While Bangladesh’s attempts to host the refugees demonstrate a level of generosity that the rest of the world has yet to demonstrate, it is time for the international community to take action to share the burden that isn’t ours to bear.

The Bangladeshi government has made numerous attempts to reach a deal with Myanmar and to solicit support from the international community for the safe and long-term repatriation of the Rohingya refugees.

The human rights situation of Rohingya Mus-

In addition to finding the root cause of the Rohingya problem, the resolution called on Myanmar to fully cooperate with all UN human rights bodies, including the UN Secretary General’s Special Envoy to Myanmar, to create an environment suitable for the voluntary, safe and sustainable return of the Rohingya to Rakhine State.

The statement added, “It commends Bangladesh’s continued cooperation with the ICC, IIMM and other accountability mechanisms to ensure justice and accountability for human rights violations against the Rohingya.”

This year’s resolution also called on UN member states to continue humanitarian assistance for the Rohingyas in Bangladesh under the principle of ‘Responsibility and Burden Sharing’.

The proposal seeks to find the root cause of the Rohingya problem as well as create an environment conducive to the voluntary, safe and sustainable return of the Rohingya to Myanmar’s Rakhine State. In this regard, Myanmar has been called upon to fully cooperate with all human rights organizations of the United Nations, including the Special Envoy of the UN Secretary General in Myanmar.

The international community should apply effective pressure on Myanmar, so that the country agrees to take back its citizens. It is expected that the international community will play a stronger role in the Rohingya issue after the unanimously adopted resolution at the United Nations

When the proposal was accepted in the General Assembly, the charge d’affaires of Bangladesh. Manowar Hossain said, “The Rohingya sheltering in camps in Bangladesh until their return deserve the solidarity of the international community. Adequate funding is needed to implement this humanitarian response process.”

Highlighting the problem of the Rohingya’s long standing in Bangladesh, Manowar said, “We sheltered the Rohingya fleeing from Myanmar due to humanitarian considerations, the displaced people always have the desire to return to Myanmar. Bangladesh is bilateral and multilateral in creating an environment suitable for the safe and voluntary return of the Rohingya to Myanmar.

Front has undertaken multifaceted diplomatic efforts to create an environment conducive to safe and voluntary return to Myanmar.”

In addition, the important role of regional countries and organizations such as ASEAN in the development of Myanmar’s political and human rights situation has been highlighted. Special emphasis is placed on the speedy imple-

It is hoped that the international community will be more alert and aware of the Rohingya issue at the United Nations. It can be said that the task of repatriating Rohingyas will be relatively easy if such a proposal is unanimously accepted by the Security Council in the future. The main question is whether the Rohingyas sheltered in Bangladesh will be able to return to their homeland. As long as this goal is not achieved, there will be no relief for Bangladesh.

Despite being overpopulated and plagued by socio-economic problems, Bangladesh has given shelter to the displaced Rohingya fleeing from Myanmar on humanitarian grounds. But this humanitarian step has become a burden for Bangladesh now. Rohingyas coming to this country has created a multidimensional crisis. The environment of Cox’s Bazar area has become polluted. Population density has increased.

Rohingyas are involved in various criminal activities including drug smuggling and are worsening the law and order situation in the country. This situation is not only a threat to Bangladesh’s internal security but also to regional security. In this reality, an acceptable solution to the Rohingya crisis has become very important. And this solution can be done only through repatriation of Rohingyas to their homeland.

The international community should apply effective pressure on Myanmar, so that the country agrees to take back its citizens. It is expected that the international community will play a stronger role in the Rohingya issue after the unanimously adopted resolution at the United Nations.

The writer is a freelance columnist

Likewise, officials are promoted as district education officers (DEos) and director of education (DE) on the basis of seniority, not competence. This is causing institutional decay, leading to poor performance and service delivery. The relevant authorities should have a well-informed policy related to the promotion of teachers as school heads at government schools where seniority may well be one of the factors, but not the sole factor. Competence, judged on merit, should be the key factor. This will allow the individuals to raise the bar and prepare better students for higher studies.

KARIM MUHAMMAD KHAN NOMAL, GILGIT-BALTISTAN

Looming danger

WITH the determination and strenuous effort of the country’s leadership and the armed forces, Pakistan was finally removed from the Financial Action Task Force’s (FATF) grey list in october. FATF is an intergovernmental policymaking body that develops and promotes policies to combat money laundering and terror financing. The country was first put on the list in 2008 for two years followed by the second time from 2012 to 2015 and then again in 2018. This demonstrates that Pakistan failed to meet FATF’s standards and monitor illegal activities in the country.

The federal government was particularly concerned about the country being entered into the blacklisted countries, which would harm Pakistan’s global image and discourage investors from investing in the country. The recent attacks in parts of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa are worrisome as they may increase the likelihood of unrest across the country.

Instead of claiming credit for Pakistan’s removal from the grey list, both the government and opposition must put their disagreements aside and concentrate on addressing the threat of re-emerging conflict in different parts of the country. The federal and provincial governments and all other stakeholders must come together to draw a comprehensive strategy to combat different forms of illegal activities and prevent the country from descending into unrest and chaos.

SABIR ALI PANGRIO, BADIN

Science of reading

LEARNING is a continuous process. In order to learn, one must read. Thus it is highly significant to understand the fundamentals of reading. With the passage of time and advances in research, reading has evolved as science. The science of reading encompasses the findings of experts from diversified fields, including education, psychology, linguistics and neuroscience. It paves the way for what students need to learn and how they need to learn it.

The foundational areas of literacy instruction include phonemic (i.e. the skill to emphasise and control sounds in spoken word) awareness, phonics (i.e. teaching ways to read and write an alphabetic language), fluency, vocabulary and comprehension. Each of these components plays a crucial role in increasing literacy skills for students.

Educators need to be well-aware and open-minded about the science of reading. In Pakistan, the necessary homework on the science of reading still needs to be completed. The efficacy of explicit training in various aspects of reading science shall be evident. To do so, it shall be an integrated part of the curriculum from the initial to the most advanced level, irrespective of the study discipline. The necessary professional development may enable teachers to use the most effective strategies in this concern. Especially the institutions involved in research in education shall recommend changes and serve as a significant resource. Support at the governmental level is indeed crucial in this regard. With the science of reading, the best approach for reading may be clarified. The teachers and administrators working as a team can incorporate the best strategies for their students to become strong readers, lifelong learners and leaders.

DR INTIKHAB ULFAT KARACHI

Dr arpita Hazarika

Both the OIC and the EU are on board

IrAnIAn WArnIngs AbOuT dOmEsTIc unrEsT shOuld bE TAkEn sErIOusly

IF THE TURMOIL IN IRAN CONTINUES, REGIONAL CONSEQUENCES COULD BE GRAVE

we combine the ongoing unrest, the crippling US economic sanctions, along with the West’s isolation of Iran on the international stage, in this context the responses from Tehran’s officials have to be taken very seriously.

rT robErt inlakEsh

AMID ongoing unrest throughout Iran, it has accused both Israel and Western intelligence agencies of plotting civil war inside the Islamic Republic. The implications of the claim on the direction of Iranian state policy are not to be taken lightly.

For the past eight weeks, Iran has been hit by waves of political unrest, including everything from female-dominated protests to fullscale riots and terrorist attacks. During this time, Western media, politicians and public figures have all chimed in to condemn the Iranian government in an attempt to delegitimize it. As the weeks go on, the violence escalates, as does the rhetoric of the Iranian government and Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). Tehran now seems to be losing its temper.

There has been a lot of debate about what is going on inside Iran and, while deciphering the precise details of the nation’s recent unrest can be difficult, one thing is for certain – the Western world is very much involved in an attempt to undermine Tehran’s rule. The US government is evidently interested in the prospect of regime change in Iran. President Joe Biden even stated in a recent speech that he was going to “free Iran,” and his administration has actively enforced or even enhanced the ‘maximum pressure’ sanctions campaign that was started under Donald Trump.

In the past weeks especially, Iran has witnessed an escalating range of attacks from rioters and terrorist groups that have killed multiple Iranian civilians and police officers. On Wednesday, two separate terrorist attacks in the Khuzestan and Isfahan provinces, killed at least ten people. In response to such attacks, the rhetoric from Tehran has seemed to direct much of the blame towards Western intelligence agencies, as well as Saudi-funded Persian-speaking media. If

In early november, US media began talking about Saudi intelligence analysis suggesting an imminent Iranian threat to Saudi Arabia. Although there was no official Iranian denial or confirmation, reporting by Iranian state media seemed to suggest that such an attack could be on its way. There was also a surge in rhetoric about a response to the assassination of the IRGC’s Quds Force General Qassem Soleimani. Around the time of Iran’s ballistic missile strike against the Ain Al-Assad military base in 2020, which caused more than 100 traumatic brain injuries to US soldiers, Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said the attack was only a slap and not the full response. So, when Khamenei recently asserted that Iran reserves the right to avenge the murder of Qassem Soleimani, it should have drawn notice.

Tehran has been sending repeated warning messages to its regional adversaries, especially now that the nuclear deal talks have come to a halt and attempts to normalize ties with Saudi Arabia haven’t yet seen any breakthroughs. The latest warning seems to have taken place off the coast of Oman, where a loitering munition struck an oil tanker last week. The tanker was linked to an Israeli billionaire businessman, and both Israel and the US have accused Iran of carrying out the attack. For the United States, pursuing a conventional war against the Islamic Republic is a non-starter. If the US were to launch an invasion, as it did in the Iraq war, not only would it face difficulties capturing territory and suffer many defeats, Iran’s regional allies, along with its arsenal of ballistic missiles, could devastate Washington’s allies and military facilities throughout the Middle East. Such a war would be, in a sense, akin to a doomsday situation. Therefore, the only options that the US and its allies have to effect regime change in Tehran are through proxies and economic sanctions.

There are a number of dangerous circumstances for Iran, in terms of possible proxy war opponents, which could take the Islamic Republic into a state of civil war. Iran’s population is currently just over 88.5 million, only 61% of which are Persians, with the rest being various

minority communities. During the recent disturbances, Kurds accounted for much of the initial anti-government action among minority groups, while Arab and Baloch groups seem to be more prominent where tensions exist today. Before going further, it has to be noted that most Iranians from these minority communities are not seeking to undermine the state and aren’t looking to achieve regime change.

Kurdish political and armed groups, which maintain an anti-Iranian government stance, could potentially pose a significant problem for Iran. However, earlier attempts from armed movements were put down swiftly by the IRGC. Kurdish militants were targeted a number of times over the past eight weeks in Iraq while operating near the Iranian border. The power of the Kurdish political and military movements comes from the wide-ranging locations of their operations; from Iraq to Syria and Turkey. A unified Kurdish uprising directing significant resources against Tehran could pose a real challenge. But as Ankara continues to crack down on Kurdish groups in the leadup to the Turkish elections, it is unlikely that such an escalation will occur at this time.

The biggest threat, however, could be posed from within by the Azerbaijani minority to Iran’s north. Roughly 16% of Iranians are of Azerbaijani heritage, making them the largest minority group in the country, meaning that even a small percentage of these joining any armed movement would prove a huge challenge for Tehran. Regardless of whether or not the unrest inside Iran results from Western-Saudi-Israeli influence, if it does not cease soon, Tehran will not stay silent. Unfortunately for the United States, it must now accept that its position in the region is no longer that of the sole hegemon. Messing with a regional military power like Iran by capitalizing on its internal strife will result in consequences throughout the region. What happens next now depends on the West and its allies listening to the warning signs from Tehran.

Robert Inlakesh is a political analyst, journalist and documentary filmmaker currently based in London, UK. He has reported from and lived in the Palestinian territories and currently works with Quds News. Director of ‘Steal of the Century: Trump’s Palestine-Israel Catastrophe’.

Iranian protests: a team’s silence speaks volumes

THE REFUSAL OF IRAN’S FOOTBALL TEAM TO SING THE NATIONAL ANTHEM REFLECTS GROWING OUTRAGE TOWARDS THEIR HOMELAND’S RULERS

Guardian Editorial

On Monday, 11 men defied their leaders in a show of solidarity with protests which have been led by women, but have drawn support from across society. What began as a rejection of the compulsory hijab in Iran has become a collective expression of fury with the repressive regime. not one member of the Iranian football team sang the national anthem when it was played before their World Cup match against England. Earlier, Ehsan Hajsafi, the Iranian captain, said bereaved families should know “that we are with them, we support them and we sympathise with them” and that “the conditions in our country are not right and our people are not happy”.

The players risked not fines, not a booking, but retribution from a vindictive state. In doing so, they joined other courageous athletes and stars, as well as hundreds of thousands of ordinary men and women who have taken to the streets in 155 cities. Celebrity offers limited protection: on Sunday, two prominent actors, Hengameh Ghaziani and Katayoun Riahi, were arrested for their “provocative” posts after removing their hijabs on social media.

More than two months after Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Kurdish woman, died in custody, detained by morality police for supposedly “inappropriate hijab”, a spokesperson for the Un human rights chief, Volker Türk, warned that this is a “critical” moment. He noted that more than 300 people have been killed already, across 25 of the country’s 31 provinces. A rights group says that at least 58 victims were children. Thousands have been arrested, and at least six sentenced to death in connection with the protests.

Even as Monday’s match took place, security forces were firing on protesters in the mainly Kurdish cities of Piranshahr and Javanrud, with a rights group reporting that seven died in the latter alone. Tehran’s vindictive reaction extends beyond its borders, with armed police deployed outside the Iran International television studios in London after the channel said two of its journalists had been threatened. Yet the ruthless reaction has not, so far, silenced calls for change, but inflamed them, with protesters demanding: “Death to the child-killing regime.” Last week, they set fire to the ancestral home of the Islamic republic’s founder, Ayatollah Khomeini.

Tehran blames foreign enemies for orchestrating the unrest, but its people know the truth. As the weeks pass, the protests are expanding in scope as well as geographically, with students striking, pupils walking out of schools, and supporters boycotting firms tied to the Revolutionary Guards. Yet while some businesses have closed in support of protesters, and some workers have reportedly gone on strike, there is not, as yet, any sign of the kind of widespread industrial action which helped to bring down the Shah in 1979 –partly, perhaps, because the government has hiked some wages and benefits. nor are there any signs of splits at the top, which might respond to growing pressure from the grassroots. Though its usual playbook is failing, the merciless logic of the regime, as well as the vested interests of the powerful, mean it is likely to continue escalating its response. But the fundamental contradiction between the priorities and beliefs of the hardliners in charge of the country, and the younger people under their suffocating, corrupt and incompetent rule, becomes more visible and more pronounced with every arrest, every beating and every death.

What the Twitter fiasco tells us about the future of social media

be, Twitter’s reach has nonetheless been a boon for, say, emerging researchers wanting to easily reach the largest number of their peers.

Smaller online communities are fantastic for any number of reasons. They allow members to share their interests and knowledge. Their smaller size makes them easier to moderate effectively. However, their smallness can also inhibit the serendipity of running into ideas that you wouldn’t otherwise see.

Relatedly, this debacle also confirms that advertising does not provide a sustainable business model for socially responsible social media. Twitter has only turned a profit in two of its 16 years. Advertisers are currently abandoning Twitter in the face of Musk’s content-moderation follies which, combined with Musk’s incompetence, could drive the company into bankruptcy.

ELOn Musk’s purchase of Twitter has been a fast-moving disaster. It has also created a tangible problem for journalists, politicians, activists and academic scholars: where do we talk to each other if or when Twitter finally collapses or becomes unusable?

It’s a useful question. Contemplating life without Twitter pushes us to look beyond Twitter’s odious underbelly to consider what we liked about it. In doing so, it can help us understand better what social media is, for better and worse, and to consider what we want it to be.

TWITTER COMMUNITIES: What I will miss about Twitter is its large scale and reach. It has become the default way for so many groups to communicate with each other and, because it’s basically just one big message board, across groups.

Social media companies regularly argue that this scale is why there is so much hate speech and disinformation on their networks. As harmful as this speech may

Furthermore, smaller online communities still depend on the benevolence of whoever happens to be in charge of the server. Twitter’s open design somewhat mitigates against the formation of strict hierarchies among groups on the platform, although as we’re learning, commercial social media still leaves us subject to the owner’s whims.

END OF TWITTER: Thinking about where to go after Twitter also highlights that social media networks are not substitutes for each other. Well, they are for advertisers, who will go wherever the audience is. But people use different social media for different purposes.

As an academic, TikTok has nothing to offer me in terms of creating and sharing knowledge with my peers. The Twitter-like Mastodon may allow for easier communication among colleagues, but it lacks Twitter’s out-ofcommunity reach. That there is no equivalent substitute for Twitter highlights that there is a strong public interest in fostering public social media, to provide communities with stable communication infrastructure.

Most important, however, its ad-based business model is based on the viral spread of content designed to engage our attention at any cost, be it bullying, harassment or hate speech. As journalism professor Yumi Wilson notes, “Twitter was a scary place even before Elon.”

LIFE AFTER TWITTER: All this suggests that we need to think seriously about how to move beyond adfunded social media. Mastodon on its own offers a decentralised, community-based paradigm. However, depending on the long-term commitment of volunteers and small operators is itself a recipe for instability.

Much more interesting is the proposal that Mastodon-based services could be used by an arm’s length public agency like Canada’s public broadcaster to publicly fund stable, well-run social media.

SEARCHABILITY: Finally, we need to talk about search engines. Twitter is valuable in part because it allows individuals to broadcast easily to a large audience. Without large-scale social media, we’re back to the problem of how to discover other people’s work and how to get your work in front of an audience.

Search engines have flown under the radar in our

discussions about how platforms should be governed. If we want to reduce online platform power and make the best information easily locatable, we need to reconsider whether our current search engines are good enough.

There is cause for concern: Google’s gold-standard search engine has been “getting worse,” in large part because the company has been clogging its results with advertising that makes it more difficult for users to find relevant information. Given that the big online platforms continue to rely heavily on advertising revenues, this is a problem that will worsen.

Let’s not glorify Twitter. It is, in many ways and for many people, a malevolent force. Even pre-Musk, it was a breeding ground for harassment, particularly of women and individuals from marginalised groups. It can enable often life-ruining bullying and disproportionate public shaming of otherwise private individuals, particularly through the quote-tweet function. Twitter has had a negative effect on the quality of our social discourse, serving as a conduit for mis- and disinformation, designed to encourage outrage rather than substantive conversation.

As bad as it was – and is – you don’t know what you got till it’s gone. Twitter pre-Musk was no paradise, but Musk’s rampage allows us to see both the good and bad in social media as it currently exists. And, as a result, to consider what we want (and need) social media to be.

Blayne Haggart is Associate Professor of Political Science, Brock University.

ConversaTion

blaynE haggart

IT’S GOING TO BE DIFFICULT FOR OTHER SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS TO REPLICATE TWITTER’S HUGE SCALE AND REACH

THINKING ABOUT WHERE TO GO AFTER TWITTER ALSO HIGHLIGHTS THAT SOCIAL MEDIA NETWORKS ARE NOT SUBSTITUTES FOR EACH OTHER. WELL, THEY ARE FOR ADVERTISERS, WHO WILL GO WHEREVER THE AUDIENCE IS. BUT PEOPLE USE DIFFERENT SOCIAL MEDIA FOR DIFFERENT PURPOSES

corporate corner

KARACHI staff report

Aglorious event to mark 52nd National Day of Sultanate of Oman was held recently at a local hotel in the metropolis.

Governor Sindh Kamran Khan Tessori was the chief guest on the occasion along with Sindh ministers Nasir Shah and Saeed Ghani.

Speaking to the journalists, Governor Sindh said that both Pakistan and Omani Sultanate enjoys a cordial relationship with each other since long time and it is much needed to further strengthen our bilateral ties across diversified fields.

He also congratulated the Consul General of Oman Sami Abdullah AlKhanjari and the people of Sultanate of Oman on the day of national celebrations.

CG of Oman in Karachi while speaking to the media persons said that Pakistan and Oman plays a piv-

Islamabad police acknowledge efforts of Pakistan rangers in maintain of peace

EFP recognises foodpanda as leader in women's empowerment

otal

Engro Central Asian Volleyball C’ship 2022 powered

by JAZZ

vowed to create more opportunities for the youth of both the countries to gain expertise and knowledge in different fields of mutual interest and called for increasing people to people communication between both states.

The entrancing National Day cele-

UMT holds 1st Int’l Media, Communication Conference

brations of Oman was largely attended by the city’s elite including politicians, diplomatic community including envoys of China, Korea, Japan, Indonesia, Russia, Malaysia, UAE, Qatar and others, delegation of the business community, philanthropists and journalists were also present at the event.

Omani people marked renewed renaissance and its glorious reign under leadership of His Majesty Sultan Haitham bin Tarik, who affirmed his constant quest to advance Oman’s modern cultural and economic status and his keenness to make Omani citizens as true partners in their country’s comprehensive development.

His Majesty Sultan’s vision for future of this benign land reflected positively on integration of government departments with private sector establishments and civil society institutions. This has in turn brought about tangible results in different social, economic and political fields.

HASHOO Hotels receives Shaukat Khanum Corporate Excellence Award

P&G Pakistan renews pledge with stemconnector to mentor 1000 women

KaraChI: P&G Pakistan today reaffirmed its pledge to mentor 1000 women under Million Women Mentors (MWM), a premier network and an initiative of STEMconnector, dedicated to encouraging girls and women around the world to pursue, persist, and succeed in STEM careers. This renewed collaboration of P&G Pakistan with MWM program is aimed at encouraging women across Pakistan to pursue career goals and leadership opportunities under the mentorship of senior leaders of P&G. During the pilot, P&G Pakistan exceeded its target to mentor 500 women from professional circles to benefit from better projects, access to leadership, advocacy at higher levels, and mutual support.

Adil Farhat, CEO P&G Pakistan, appreciating the initiative said, “This is something close to my heart and I strongly believe that with confidence and ambition, something women are too often discouraged from when we’re young, mentors can help reignite that fire and push women to achieve more than we’ve been told they’re destined for. Being a strong advocate of equality, P&G aims to enable women to work confidently and become an equal part of the industry through MWM program. We are aligned on taking many more of such initiatives in the future that will result in an equitable society for all.” pr

to host a 5-nation volleyball tournament to be held under the governing banner of Central Asian Volleyball Association (CAVA). The event marks the end of a 17year gap since the last time an international volleyball championship was held in Pakistan. The tourney that begins on 24th November will feature Iran, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Pakistan. Iran who are ranked number one in CAVA zonal rankings while host’s Pakistan are one step behind, ranked two. All matches of the championship will be played at Sports Hall, Punjab Sports Complex opposite Gaddafi Stadium. Nomenclature of the tournament is “Engro Central Asian Volleyball Championship powered by Jazz”. pr

Federal-Provincial Cooperation in Education workshop held in Islamabad

ISlaMaBaD: Ministry of Federal Education & Professional Training (MOFEPT) organized Federal-Provincial Cooperation in Education Workshop in Islamabad on Wednesday. Waseem Ajmal Chaudhary, Additional Secretary MOFEPT, Abdul Rauf Baloch, Secretary-Secondary Education Department (Balochistan), Asfandyar Khattak, Special Secretary, Elementary & Secondary Education Department (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), Raja Zafar Iqbal, Senior Chief Planning & Development-Elementary & Secondary Education (AJK), Junaid Samo, Reform Support Unit- School Education & Literacy Department (Sindh), Dr. Saima Malik, Deputy Director Education (Punjab) and Sajad Khan, Deputy Secretary Education (Gilgit Baltistan) along with senior officials of MOFEPT and all provinces attended the Workshop. pr

Evercare Foundation and Evercare Lahore Hospital launch ‘HEAr THIS!’

OGDCL distributes wheelchairs, rickshaws, school uniforms to Hindu community members

lahore: The Evercare Foundation and the Evercare Hospital Lahore, announced today the launch of Phase II of the Cochlear Implant Program, “HEAR THIS!. The program will address the burden of congenital hearing and speech impairment in Pakistan among vulnerable children in Pakistan. Leading the event which took place at Evercare Hospital Lahore were the CEO Evercare Hospital Lahore Mr. Irfan Khan, Lead on the Evercare Foundation Ms. Joumana Atwani, Consultant Surgeon ENT Dr. Imran Syed, Consultant Surgeon ENT. pr

Fine Daily, AWT striving for healthier, happier lifestyle for all

Fine Daily and Alamgir Welfare Trust (AWT) have a shared ambition of striving to provide a healthier and happier lifestyle for all, without any discrimination of cast, creed, or color. Since 1984, Fine Daily has established a legacy of forming long-lasting relationships with customers.

Once an aspiring startup laid down the foundations of a locally manufacture mos-

quito-killing mat and after years of service, has become an iconic flagship brand called Kingtox. Similarly, Alamgir Welfare Trust set off on its glorious mission in 1993 to provide a wide array of social services which ranged from health, education, and feeding the underprivileged.

With a shared vision of improving the livelihood of the nation, Kingtox and Alam-

gir Welfare Trust have decided to synergize their efforts to help the flood-stricken communities of Pakistan. Both these reputable organizations have dedicated countless hours to improve our lives and why should they stand back when the nation is facing the toughest conditions after getting stuck with one of the world cross- country floods seen this year? pr

Pakistan Business users to benefit from availability of SAP Build

ISlaMaBaD: SAP announced the launch of SAP Build, a powerful new low code offering to unleash the power of business users, launched at

pr

recently. SAP Build empowers users of all skill levels to create and augment enterprise applications, automate processes, and design business sites with drag-and-drop simplicity. It brings the best of SAP’s low-code offerings together in a unified development experience. It gives business users full visibility into the dynamic range of their processes as well as real-time insights and easy-to-use tools. Users can easily integrate systems; intelligently monitor, analyze, and automate processes; and build applications for the last mile of innovation – all without moving their data into an external system. The solution also includes 500+ pre-built industry and business-process

pr

role in multiple sectors of development and innovation whether it is about technology, tourism, cultural ties, education and government to government social contacts we always remain as a bosom friend.

Omani CG Sami Abdullah also

ISlaMaBaD: Islamabad Capital Police have acknowledged the efforts of Pakistan Rangers for its assistance in maintaining law and order and ensuring peace in the city. Following the directions from Minister for Interior Minister Rana Sana Ullah Khan, Inspector General of Police Islamabad Dr. Akbar Nasir Khan arranged a banquet at the Sports Complex for the personnel of Pakistan Rangers stationed in Islamabad to maintain law and order. A large number of senior officers and men from Pakistan Rangers including Brigadier Shehryar participated in this feast.

The IGP thanked all forces whose personnel are stationed in Islamabad to maintain peace. staff report

lahore: Pakistan Volleyball Federation (PVF) here made a historic announcement

SAP TechEd conference in Las Vegas, USA,

templates to accelerate development.

KaraChI: foodpanda, one of the leading q-commerce and delivery companies in the country, has been recognised by the Employers' Federation of Pakistan (EFP) as one of the ‘top 10’ organisations in the country facilitating women's empowerment through its business. pr

LAHORE: Rahnuma Family Planning Association of Pakistan (FPAP), with technical support from UNFPA, developed a Learning Management System (LMS) and Android Application on Life Skills Based Education (LSBE) to reach out to young people through digitalization . pr

US Ambassador to Pakistan Blome and S&P Global Pakistan’s Managing Director Mujeeb Zahur (1st right) at an event hosted by US-Pakistan Women’s Council and S&P Global to commemorate Million Women Mentors initiative.

S&P Global Pakistan has successfully mentored more than 12,000 women as part of its pledge to mentor 20,000 women under this initiative. pr

This October marked the sixth consecutive year since Hashoo Hotels joined hands with Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital and Research Centre for the Breast Cancer Awareness campaign. Keeping the tradition alive, qualified oncologists from Shaukat Khanum Memorial visited all of Hashoo Hotels across Pakistan to raise awareness and educate the staff, guests, and associates on the importance of early detection and self-examination. To honour the support of the Group, Dr. Faisal Sultan, CEO SKMT awarded the Shaukat Khanum Corporate Excellence Award to Hashoo Hotels for their invaluable support. pr

ISlaMaBaD: The Oil and Gas Development Company Limited (OGDCL) under its CSR program has distributed 20 wheelchairs, five rickshaws and 1021 school uniforms and shoes among Hindu community members in the Tharparkar district of Sindh province. As a responsible corporate entity, OGDCL distributed the wheelchairs, rickshaws, school uniforms and shoes worth PKR 2.4 million from the company’s CSR funds at the request of the Pakistan Hindu Council (PHC). These items were distributed to the locals of tehsil Islam Kot, tehsil Mithi and tehsil Chachro of district Tharparkar during this month.

lahore: University of Management and Technology (UMT) School of Media and Communication Studies (SMCS) organized the 1st three days International Media and Communication Conference on the completion of two hundred years of Urdu Journalism. Muhammad Baligh ur Rehman, Governor of the Punjab joined the chief guest of the conference. Director General UMT Abid Sherwani, Rector UMT Dr. Asif Raza, Dean School of Media and Communication Studies Dr. Prof. Anjum Zia, Chairman Punjab Higher Education Commission Shahid Munir, Senior Journalist Mujibur Rahman Shami, Salim Bukhari, Salman Ghani, Dr. Altaf, Former Senator Javed Jabbar, faculty, staff and a large number students participated in the conference. pr

China’s armed forCes will Continue to Contribute to world peaCe: wei fenghe

Agencies

CHINAis committed to providing stability and positive energy to the world, said Chinese State Councilor and Defense Minister General Wei Fenghe on Wednesday while attending

the 9th ASEAN Defense Ministers’ Meeting-Plus (ADMM-Plus) in Cambodia.

China’s peaceful development will surely provide new opportunities for common development of the world and play a constructive role in maintaining world peace and stability, he said, adding that the Chinese military is willing to work with the militaries of other countries

to continue contributing to world peace.

He stressed that the Chinese armed forces have the confidence and capability to defend the country’s interests.

Talking about the security situation in the Asia-Pacific region, the Chinese defense minister said that defense departments of all countries should uphold ASEAN centrality, implement Global

Security Initiative (GSI), focus on practical cooperation, and work together to build a security barrier in the region.

The GSI was proposed by Chinese President Xi Jinping during the Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference 2022. The initiative embodies a security concept highlighting “commonality, comprehensiveness, cooperation and sustainability.”

UK top court rejects Scottish independence vote plans

Britain’s highest court on Wednesday rejected a bid by the devolved Scottish government in Edinburgh to hold a new referendum on independence without London’s consent.

The unanimous ruling by the Supreme Court torpedoed the Scottish nationalist government’s push to hold a second plebiscite next year.

The Scottish National Party (SNP) had said that in that event, it would turn the next general election into a de-facto vote on splitting from the rest of the United Kingdom, threatening constitutional chaos.

First Minister and SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon said she respected the ruling but was “disappointed”.

If Scotland cannot “choose our own future without Westminster consent”, the idea of the UK as a voluntary partnership was exposed as a “myth”, she tweeted.

The Supreme Court’s Scottish president, Robert Reed, said the power to call a referendum was “reserved” to the UK parliament under Scotland’s devolution settlement.

Therefore “the Scottish parliament does not have the power to legislate for a referendum on Scottish independence”, Reed said.

Sturgeon’s SNP-led government in Edinburgh wanted to hold a vote in October next year on the question: “Should Scotland be an independent country?”

The UK government, which oversees constitutional affairs for the whole country, has repeatedly refused to give Edinburgh the power to hold a referendum.

It considers that the last one — in 2014, when 55 percent of Scots rejected independence — settled the question for a generation. But Sturgeon and her party say there is now an “indisputable mandate” for another independence referendum, particularly in light of the UK’s departure from the European Union. Most voters in Scotland opposed Brexit.

Scotland not KoSovo Scotland’s last parliamentary election returned a majority of pro-independence lawmakers for the first time.

At a hearing in the UK Supreme Court last month, lawyers for the government in London argued that the Scottish government could not decide to hold a referendum on its own.

Permission had to be granted because the constitutional makeup of the four nations of the United Kingdom was a reserved matter for the government in London.

Lawyers for the Scottish government wanted a ruling on the rights of the devolved parliament in Edinburgh if London continued to block an independence referendum.

at least six killed in us walmart shooting

Washington Agencies

An attacker shot and killed at least six people at a Walmart late Tuesday in the US state of Virginia, police said, adding the single shooter suspect is also dead.

The mass shooting in the city of Chesapeake comes just before Americans celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday and follows a weekend gun attack at an LGBTQ club in Colorado that left five people dead.

“Chesapeake Police confirm 7 fatalities, including the shooter, from last night’s shooting at Walmart on Sam’s Circle,” the city confirmed on its Twitter account.

Chesapeake Police Department officer Leo Kosinski had earlier told reporters that there had been “multiple fatalities” at the megastore, which local media reported was busy with holiday shoppers.

Emergency calls were first made just after 10:00 pm Tuesday (0300 GMT Wednesday) while the store was still open, with rapid response officers and tactical teams entering “immediately” after arriving on the scene, Kosinski said.

Local media reported that witnesses said the shooting began at the back of the store and that at least five wounded had been rushed to the hospital.

Police did not provide any details about the suspected shooter’s identity or how the assailant died.

“We believe it is a single shooter and that single shooter is deceased at this time,” Kosinski said, adding he did not believe any shots had been fired by police.

In the hours afterwards, news footage showed a major police presence around the Walmart, which is located about 150 miles (240 kilometers) southeast of the US capital Washington.

Kosinski said officers and investigators were carefully sweeping the store and securing the area.

Walmart, the largest retailer in the United States, issued a statement early Wednesday saying: “We are shocked at this tragic event.”

The company added that it was “praying for those impacted, the community and our associates. We’re working closely with law enforcement, and we are focused on supporting our associates.”

dutch court rules 2007 dutch bombing in afghanistan illegal

aMstERDaM Agencies

A Dutch court ruled on Wednesday the shelling by Dutch soldiers of a residential complex in the Afghan province of Uruzgan in June 2007 was illegal, adding the Netherlands should compensate the victims.

The Dutch Defence Ministry had asked prosecutors almost two years ago to look into this bombing, which killed dozens of civilians, following a report by a war veteran questioning the legitimacy of this action in the Chora valley.

"The Netherlands was responsible for the shelling of the houses. It was known these houses were inhabited by civilians. The State invoked the fact the taliban used the houses for military purposes (...) and thus that the bombing was not unlawful," the court in The Hague said in a statement.

"But the court rules that the State hasn't sufficiently made clear on what basis it came to the conclusion that these houses were being used by the taliban (...) therefore the bombing is illegal."

The court also said the amount of the victims' compensation should be determined at a later date.

Earthquake shakes northwest Turkey, 50 people injured

istanBUL ReuteRs

An earthquake of magnitude 5.9 shook northwest Turkey and was felt in Istanbul early on Wednesday, injuring 50 people and damaging some buildings in the province of Duzce, a government disaster agency and state media said.

There were no reports of deaths or major destruction in the tremor, which struck at 04:08 am (0108 GMT) with its epicentre in Golyaka,

a district in Duzce about 200 km east of Istanbul.

“We almost completed our checks in the villages around Golyaka. There is no severe damage reported; only some barns were wrecked in these places,” Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu said on broadcaster TRT Haber.

“There was a power cut during the quake but authorities are reinstating power now,” he said.

The Duzce court house was among some eight buildings in the

area that were damaged, said the state-owned Anadolu News agency.

Turkey’s Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD) said it sent thousands of blankets and tents to the area of the quake, which injured 37 people in Duzce. People were also hurt in Zonguldak, Bursa and Istanbul.

Earlier the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC) said the earthquake had a magnitude of 6.0 and was at a depth of 2 km (1.2 miles).

CaMBoDia

LonDon Afp

In anotHeR MaSSIve upSet, Japan Stun fouR-tIMe CHaMpIonS GeRMany 2-1

dohA stAff RepoRt

JUSTover 24 hours after Saudi Arabia set the FIFA World Cup alight with a stunning upset of Argentina, Japan did the same, holding off Germany’s furious attempts to salvage a point from the Group ‘E’ opener for both teams on Wednesday.

Upon receiving the ball wide out on the right from a free-kick in his own box, Takuma Asano took Nico Schlotterbeck out of the equation with a first touch for the ages. With the goal in his sights, Asano kept running but the angle for a shot kept getting tighter. Asano needed a ripper of a shot to beat Manuel Neuer.

Asano, on as a substitute just before the hour mark, did exactly that. The connection was pure, the ball crashed into the roof of the net and brought down the roof at the Khalifa Stadium.

Japan were seven minutes away from sealing a stunning victory against Germany and the hordes of their fans behind that goal, beating their drums, were now willing them

on to complete a famous victory.

This, just like on Tuesday, saw the Asian side come from a goal behind in the second half to win. Japan had levelled matters just eight minutes before Asano’s winner. It was another substitute who did that. Japan had been knocking and the chance came when Neuer parried away a cross from Takumi Minamino and Ritsu Doan, who had been on the pitch for less than four minutes, was the quickest to react to plant a shot into the back of the net. Following Japan’s equaliser, Germany coach Hansi Flick threw on striker Niclas Fuellkrug and attacker Mario Goetze, the man who scored the stunning extra-time winner for Die Mannschaft in the 2014 final in Brazil, to provide a moment of inspiration and stem the Japanese flow.

But when Asano scored, the Germans had been well and truly floored. They heaped pressure on the Japanese goal but the defence and goalkeeper Shuichi Gonda held on. “I believe it’s a historical moment, a historical victory to say the least,” said Japan coach Hajime Moriyasu, when asked about the influence of Germany on Japanese football. “We have seven players who feature in

the Bundesliga and that has contributed to this.” Time was supposed to have healed Germany. Refreshed, reinvigorated and under a new coaching setup, they seemed to have done away with the staleness that had settled in. The infusion of new blood with some older heads reinstated under Hansi Flick had been revitalising and they arrived for the World Cup in Qatar having lost just

Manchester United owners consider sale as Ronaldo exits

MAnChEStEr Afp

Manchester United’s owners said Tuesday they were ready to sell the club, potentially bringing down the curtain on an acrimonious 17 years under the Glazer family.

On a tumultuous day for the English giants, it was earlier revealed that star player Cristiano Ronaldo has left the club with “immediate effect.”

Weeks of turbulence appeared to have come to an end when United announced Ronaldo’s contract had been terminated by mutual agreement to bring to an end his second spell at Old Trafford. That dramatic announcement was eclipsed just hours later by the news the US-based Glazer family could also be on their way out. “The board will consider all strategic alternatives, including new investment into the club, a sale, or other transactions involving the company,” United said in a statement.

The Glazers have been unpopular

with supporters ever since a £790 million ($934 million) leveraged takeover in 2005 burdened the club with huge debts. Frustration towards the Americans has only grown during a nine-year decline in results on the pitch since Alex Ferguson’s retirement as a manager in 2013.

The Red Devils have not won the Premier League title since Ferguson’s

final campaign in 2012-2013 and have failed to win any trophy since 2017.

United currently sit fifth in the Premier League, 11 points behind leaders Arsenal. “We will evaluate all options to ensure that we best serve our fans and that Manchester United maximizes the significant growth opportunities available to the club today and in the future,” added Avram and Joel Glazer,

once in their last 16 games. But the demons of Russia don’t seem to be going away. Then, as holders, they’d limped out of the World Cup at the group ; the imagery of Neuer scrambling to get back into his box as Son Heung-Min raced away to score and seal a famous win for South Korea and hammer the final nail in the holders’ coffin is still fresh.

Facing another East Asian side at the 45,000-capacity venue in the heart of the Qatari capital, Germany had started brightly but got a scare when Japan had the ball in the back of the net in the eighth minute, only to see that being ruled off-side.

Gonda was keeping Japan in the game, repelling shots one after the other but it was his error that saw Germany take the lead. Just past the half-hour mark, Gonda tried to collect a ball in the box but in doing so, he brought down David Raum.

“He fell without much contact,” said Gonda, who was named player of the match, although he did not have any complaints about the referee’s decision.

Ilkay Gündoğan stepped up from the spot and once they had the lead, Germany came in waves and waves at the Japanese goal but had nothing to show.

“We had good opportunities to score after we got the opening goal but I think that Japan were very efficient,” said a despondent Flick. “We have to avoid those mistakes, we have to do better. We have an important game coming up against Spain and we have to bounce back from this.”

Warner, Head progress in ICC Rankings

ISlAMABAd stAff RepoRt

the club’s executive co-chairmen and directors. The statement also recognised the need for investment in stadium redevelopment. Old Trafford remains the largest club stadium in England with a capacity of 74,000 but has not had a significant upgrade since 2006.

Erik ten Hag is the fifth permanent manager at Old Trafford in the past nine years and his early months in charge have been dominated by debate over Ronaldo’s place in the team.

The five-time Ballon d’Or winner had been used sparingly by the former Ajax boss in the Premier League.

Ronaldo reacted with an explosive interview on TalkTV last week in which he said he felt “betrayed” by the club and had no respect for Ten Hag.

The Portugal captain, who is currently competing in his fifth World Cup, also took aim at the Glazers, claiming they “don’t care about the club”.

“Cristiano Ronaldo is to leave Manchester United by mutual agreement, with immediate effect,” United said in an earlier statement.

Worse for wear, Warne upstaged the pros at Dunhill: Fox

MElBoUrnE ReuteRs

Shane Warne will always be remembered for his cricket but New Zealand golfer Ryan Fox holds a special memory of the spin-bowling great upstaging the professionals at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship. Fox teamed up with amateur Warne several times at the pro-am in St. Andrews and finished runner-up with the legspinner in the team component last year.

fter winning the event’s individual title last month, Fox paid tribute to his ‘great mate’ Warne, who died at 52 in Thailand in March, saying he felt the

cricketer helped him out during his final round. On Wednesday, an emotional Fox remembered a “typically Warnie moment” at Dunhill last year, the last time they played together. “He’d got in at four o’clock in the morning. There’s some great photos of him and a few of the other cricketers playing cricket in the Old Course Hotel with a whisky bottle and a tennis ball at some ungodly hour,” Fox told reporters ahead of the Australian PGA Championship in Brisbane.

“He gets on the first tee and goes, ‘I’m no good this morning’ and he starts off with a birdie-net-eagle and we shot 56 as a team.

“He beat all the pros off the stick,

getting 10 shots. “It was …. Yeah, I mean, he was just a legend of a man.

“It was very sad for him not to be at Dunhill with us this year, but it was kind of nice to honour him in that way, too.”

Fox will tee off early in the marquee group at Royal Queensland on Thursday with a pair of Australians in British Open champion Cameron Smith and former world number one Adam Scott. However, He will Have countrymen close at Hand “They’ve both got Kiwi caddies on the bag, so we’re going to outnumber them out there, which is quite nice,” said Fox. “I’m sure there’ll be plenty to talk about.”

Ronaldo seeks new club after Man Utd exit

Agencies

Cristiano Ronaldo is searching for a new team after a tumultuous few hours at Manchester United, during which they announced the superstar forward was leaving and the club could be sold.

The veteran Portugal forward set the stage for his Old Trafford exit last week with an outspoken interview on TalkTV, in which he said he felt “betrayed” by the club and had no respect for new manager Erik ten Hag. There was clearly no way back for Ronaldo

and United issued a statement on Tuesday confirming they were parting ways with one of the greatest players in their history by “mutual agreement, with immediate effect”. Ronaldo, currently at the World Cup in Qatar, issued a statement of his own, declaring his love for the club and saying it “feels like the right time” to seek a new challenge. As well as lashing out against United and Ten Hag, the 37-year-old was scathing about the club’s unpopular US owners in his interview with Piers Morgan. Ronaldo said the Glazer family, who loaded the club with huge debts when they bought it in 2005, cared more about the

money-making potential of United than results. Hours after the statement confirming Ronaldo was exiting the club, United issued another bulletin saying the Americans were considering selling up. Former Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand, who played alongside Ronaldo at United, said both parties had got what they wanted. “Cristiano obviously did that interview with the mindset that he wasn’t happy and wanted to get out of the club,” Ferdinand told the BBC. “He made that very clear. “I think Erik ten Hag got what he wanted in this situation as well. Both parties are happy and we can move on.”level.

Australian openers David Warner and Travis Head have made notable gains in the MRF Tyres ICC Men’s ODI Player Rankings after an epic 269-run partnership at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG). Meanwhile, Steve Smith’s consistence performances in the home series against England have helped him attain a career-best equaling the seventh position, said a press release. Warner has gained one spot to reach the fifth position in the list after a score of 106 in the final match that helped him finish with 240 runs and win the Player of the Series award. Head, who accumulated 208 runs after his Player of the Match effort of 152 at the MCG, has progressed 12 spots to reach the 30th position. Smith finished third in the list of run-scorers, his 195 runs good enough to lift him three places to seventh place, a position he had held in January 2017. Marnus Labuschagne and Mitchell Marsh too have moved up the list and occupy the 68th and 84th positions, respectively. Fast bowler Mitchell Starc, who was named Player of the Match for a haul of four for 47 in the second ODI in Sydney, has moved up four places to take fourth position while leg-spinner Adam Zampa (up eight places to seventh) and Pat Cummins (up one place to 17th) have also moved up the bowlers’ rankings.

Solid Morocco hold Modric’s Croatia at World Cup

Morocco

Backed

Croatia

Al Khor, QAtAr Agencies

0-0

Bayt Stadium, the Atlas Lions followed up north African rivals Tunisia’s strong performance against dark horses Denmark a day earlier to frustrate Croatia. “This was an extremely difficult game,” said Croatia captain Modric. “I do believe as the tournament goes on we’ll be better and we’ll adopt a more proactive attitude.” Modric insisted Croatia are capable of making another deep run despite a sluggish start in the early afternoon heat. “We’ve not come here to just play and get out the group,” said Modric “Our ambitions are a bit greater on the basis of our Russia achievement, but we need to take it one step at a time. “Even before the 2018 World Cup we said our primary goal was to make it out the group.

london

held

to a

draw in their opening game of the World Cup on Wednesday, producing a spirited display against the 2018 runners-up led by Luka Modric.

by Qatar’s large Moroccan community at the Al

PresidenT in Touch wiTh Me over coAs APPoinTMenT: iMrAn

LAHORE Staff RepoRt

FoRMeRprime minister and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Chairman Imran Khan on Wednesday declared that President Arif Alvi was in touch with him and he (president) will consult him on the summary of the appointment of Chief of Army Staff (CoAS), reiterating that the army chief’s appointment should be on merit.

“of course President Arif Alvi is in touch with me and whenever he gets the summary for the appointment of the next CoAS, he will consult me,” Imran said during an interview with a private TV channel on Wednesday.

The deposed premier said that if the incumbent prime minister can consult “fugitive” — a reference to former PM Nawaz Sharif — then why can’t Dr Arif Alvi discuss the all-important

appointment with him as he’s the party chief? The chief said: “How can a criminal sitting in London appoint an army chief…simply the purpose behind the appointment of an army chief of choice is to harm the PTI.”

Two a question, the deposed prime minister said: “I don’t know how much truth there is in the words of former spokesperson of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz based in London Tasneem Haider. We will not do anything that is against the law.”

BIggeSt gAtherIng In country’S hIStory: PTI chief Imran Khan predicted that the party’s activities in Rawalpindi on November 26 will be the “biggest gathering” in the country’s history.

He said a “sea” of the public would come out because it had witnessed what the government had done in the past few months since Imran’s ouster.

“The nation will come out on its right for peaceful protest and the sea of people will tell Pakistan was not made for a small group of thieves to come and decide its affairs.”

Imran said he would give the next plan of action for the party’s long march on Nov 26, adding that his movement for “real freedom” would not stop even with new elections.

The statement came a day after the General Headquarters (GHQ) confirmed that it forwarded the summary containing the names of six senior-most lieutenant generals to the Ministry of Defence for the appointment of new Chief of Army Staff and to pave way for smooth transition in the army’s top command.

The PMo also confirmed that it had received the summary for the CoAS’ appointment. The new army chief will take charge on November 29 as the incumbent General Qamar Javed

Bajwa would doff his uniform the same day after completing six years in office.

Meanwhile, talking to journalists at his residence in Zaman Park Lahore, the PTI chief said that the army chief’s appointment should be on merit. “How can a criminal sitting in London appoint an army chief… the purpose of appointing an army chief of choice is only to harm the PTI.” The ISPR statement didn’t mention the names of potential candidates. However, it is believed that the list includes Lt General Asim Munir, Lt General Sahir Shamshad Mirza, Lt General Azhar Abbas, Lt General Numan Mahmud, Lt General Faiz Hameed and Lt General Muhammad Amir.

The prime minister is now set to pick two generals from the list to promote them to the rank of four-star and then appoint one as the Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee and the other as the army chief.

NA body approves foreign trade resolution bill, paving way for ease of doing business

pROfit REpORt Ghulam abbaS

The incumbent government has approved Pakistan’s first ever Trade Dispute Resolution law meant to mediate disputes between local and foreign importers and exporters. The bill, which was unanimously approved during a meeting of the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Commerce, is expected to facilitate both local and foreign businesses and improve Pakistan’s ranking on the ease of Doing Business (eoDB) index of the World Bank.

why It wAS neeDeD AnD whAt It MeAnS

Pakistan has long faced an issue whereby importers and exporters have not had an appropriate platform to bring disputes to. International trade regularly has such disputes. For example, if a Pakistani denim exporter takes an order from an Italian company, that company will have certain expectations as to the standard of the denim products they are making. If the product that is exported from Pakistan to Italy does not meet that standard, then the Italian company does not have any forum to complain to. This then makes foreign companies less inclined towards doing business with Pakistani manufacturers. It also goes the other way around.

The Ministry of Commerce (MoC) had set up a Trade Dispute Resolution organization (TDRo) in 2015 to resolve the ever-increasing number of such disputes in international trade, but the organisation was unable to handle the task for want of legal cover. If the bill, which has been approved in committee, is passed by the legislature then exporters will be able to file a claim or complaint in Pakistan against their foreign respondent.The arbitral award obtained in Pakistan would be enforceable in any member countries who have ratified the UN Arbitration convention, which

“Pakistan’s foreign trade is being expanded due to international trade liberalisation under World Trade organization (WTo), and also resulting in growth in the number of disputes. If the issue is not resolved efficiently, it can damage Pakistan economically as well as its image,” said Secretary Commerce Muhammad Sualeh Ahmed during a briefing. “Currently there is no law in Pakistan which settles the disputes of Pakistani exporters with their foreign buyers. The imports and exports Control Act 1950 addresses the disputes of foreing importers only with the Pakistani exporters.”

The committee was informed that the new law

is swift, relatively inexpensive and expeditious. Further the new TDR system contract enforcement position would improve the level of trust of foreign buyers of Pakistan. Through the TDR system, contract enforcement positions would also improve, leading to elevation of Pakistan’s WB eoDB Index. whAt wAS hAPPenIng Before?

According to insiders, TDRo, since its inception, has only resolved a highly negligible amount of disputes that too with the mutual consensus of disputing parties. on the other hand, the TDRo and other concerned departments receive over a hundred complaints regarding foreign trade per month.

“In the absence of any mechanism and body for quick resolution of disputes, a large number of cases are pending at various courts inside and outside the country,” they said.

The TDRo needed a legal cover to make it mandatory for all exporters and importers to sign an agreement under which they would accept the decision of the organisation in case of any dispute with trade partners abroad. The foreign trade partners usually cannot act against exporters or importers in Pakistan in case of any complaint. They have the only option of going through the hectic process of courts. In case of small disputes involving small amounts, they usually avoid going to courts, sources claim.

As per the existing law the ministry has no legal authority at call for any information or documents from importers / exporters for the purpose of investigating complaints received against them from the local or foreign buyers / suppliers or take any punitive action against them, if they do not provide the requisite information/documents or the charges levelled against them, the complaints are proved and they are ultimately found guilty of the trade malpractices reported/alleged against them in the complaints.

Keeping the legal issue in view, the MoC had drafted the TDRo act, empowering the ministry to call for any information / document(s) from the importers / exporters and debar them from import / export in case of their failure to provide the desired information documents or the establishment of their involvement in any trade mal-practice / irregularity.

As per available documents related to previously prepared draft of the TDR through the move, TDRo may be empowered to debar the delinquent importers/exporters, for a specific period, for example, limited to two years or so, from import or indenting export for reasons including

a) For contravening or failing to comply with any provision of the proposed order/SRo;

b) For failing to comply with any regulation re-

lating to import, export or foreign exchange control; c) For under-invoicing or over invoicing the value of imports or exports;

d) For selling, transferring or violating the conditions of any import or export authorization issued by MoC or any officer authorised in this behalf; e) For obtaining or attempting to obtain any import or export authorization by fraud;

f) For committing any practice relating to trade, commerce and industry, which in the opinion of the Federal Government is detrimental to the public interest;

g) For not complying with /implementing the decision given by TDRo in case of any trade dispute;

h) For refusal to furnish original export contracts entered with foreign buyers or any other information or data relating to such contracts on demand by the TDRo.

Through the proposed legislation TDRo could be authorised/empowered to, a) ask the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) and Pakistan Customs to debar any firm(s) / company/companies, for any reason given mentioned above, from import and / or indenting and/or export for a limited period, specifying the exact period up to two years or so, giving reasons for such debarment, and it should be binding on the SBP / Customs to debar such firm(s) / as the case may be, from importing and/or indenting and/or export, under intimation to TDRo.

b) Blacklist by itself any firm(s) for any reason, mentioned above, making it ineligible, for a period up to two years or so, to avail the facilities otherwise extended by TDRo to the importers / exporters for improvement / enhancement in their exports including the facilities extended for participation in the local as well as foreign fairs / exhibitions and delegations organised by the dispute resolution body.

how It wILL work If PASSeD

The purpose of drafting a law on trade dispute settlement was to provide for the establishment of a comprehensive regime in Pakistan for the swift and effective resolution of trade disputes. Making such a law was of paramount importance for the better promotion of trade in Pakistan, protection of all trading interests and improvement of Pakistan’s standing internationally.

Through the TDRo, foreign parties would be given video conferencing facilities to participate in the trade dispute process. efforts were being made to make arrangements for acceptance of TDRC decisions in foreign countries, however, non-compliant foreign companies would be blacklisted in Pakistan.

FTo open investigation into fraudulent rebate of 954 tractors

pROfit REpORt Daniyal ahmaD

The Federal Tax ombudsman (FTo) has instructed the Federal Bureau of Revenue (FBR) to open an investigation on a fraudulent rebate of 954 tractors by benami growers with the fraud allegedly linked back to the tractor company itself. Media reports have suggested the fraud to be in excess of Rs 10 billion.

The FTo uncovered the fraud on account of a complaint where the complainant alleged to have only received 47 of the 1,001 tractors they had booked for a total amount of Rs 1,252,851,600 (inclusive of 5% sales tax) through 91 pay orders. The complainant had highlighted how the order had been placed in June 2022, and the remaining 954 tractors had not been delivered. Failure to deliver the aforementioned remaining tractors, the complainant highlighted, was in violation of Section 9.1 of the Auto Industry Development and export Policy (AIDeP 202126) whereby automobiles purchased have to be delivered to the buyer by the manufacturers within a period of 60 days. The order for the tractors was made under a previous agricultural scheme aimed to benefit farmers. However, the requisite Departments were unable to prove the authenticity of the transactions with the FBR unable to find the transactions adherence to the section 2(33A) of the Sales Tax Act, 1990. The FTo traced the 91 pay orders to 47 individuals with no connection to one another who circumvented authorised dealers to make the transaction. The case was then identified to be a violation of the Benami Transactions Prohibition Act, 2017. Practices such as this are employed to hide the identity of the actual buyers, who in this case would have masquerade as farmers. Fabricating their identity would have allowed the perpetrators to obtain the tractors on favourable terms, per the policy, use them for other commercial purposes, and avoid having taxes levied on their gains.

The perpetrator has been suggested to be the company itself in the situation, however, details of the name of the company itself have not surfaced. There are many reasons to suggest that the company itself was the complainant, and had initiated the complaint to benefit from the gains it would make from the sales rebate.

Firstly, the company did not register the 1,001 tractors purchased by the complainant in their sales tax returns for the month of June 2022. The company refuted claims of malpractice by stating that it registers the sale of tractors once they have been delivered to the buyer. However, the company was unable to provide a justification for not registering the 47 tractors that the complainant did receive within June 2022.

Secondly, the company stated to the media and the Governmental bodies that the aforementioned section of the Auto Policy is only applicable on partial payments. However, the policy does not state this. The investigation into the entire matter is set to be conducted by the FBR in the coming days.

Time to promote screen tourism to show world true image of Pakistan: Marriyum

ISLAMABAD: Minister for Information and Broadcasting Marriyum Aurangzeb on Wednesday underlined the need for boosting screen tourism to showcase the country’s true image across the globe through its culture, heritage and tourism.

“In Pakistan, we discuss film industry in a stereotype way but it has been replaced with screen tourism across the world. It (film) has been added in the educational curriculum which does not only use for telling story of a country, but also help showcase its culture, heritage and tourism,” she said while addressing the signing ceremony of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Fatima Jinnah University Rawalpindi and PTV Films for the Naqash Digital Film Initiative. The signing of MoU between the representatives of PTV Films and Fatima Jinnah University was witnessed by the information minister, Secretary Information and Broadcasting Shahera Shahid and others officers of the ministry and the varsity. Under the agreement, the PTV Films would promote the short films and other film related work of the university’s students through massive projection. Staff RepoRt

Coalition parties say firmly stand with PM over crucial appointment

iSLAMABAD

Staff RepoRt

Top brass of all parties in the federal coalition government on Wednesday expressed their full confidence in the leadership of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and entrusted him with the appointment of new Chief of Army Staff as per his constitutional responsibility.

During a meeting held here at the PM House on one-point agenda of constitutional appointments, the leadership of all the coalition parties mandated the prime minister to take decision on these appointments, PM office Media Wing said in a press release.

They said that they would fully support

the prime minister’s decision.

The leaders of the coalition parties including former president and PPP co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari, JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman and PML-Q leader Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain among others attended a high-level meeting, chaired by the prime minister.

on the occasion, Co-chairman PPP and former president Asif Ali Zardari, in his address, said that being a prime minister, it was his constitutional prerogative to take decisions.

“Shehbaz Sharif sahib, you are the prime minister and the Constitution has assigned this authority and right to you,” insiders quoted Zardari as saying during the meeting.

“God has placed you on this position… it is your constitutional right,” said Chaudhry Shujaat.

BAP’s Khalid Magsi said that whatever the premier decides, he will firmly stand with him over the crucial appointment.

Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and MQM-P’s Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui also expressed their support for PM Shehbaz. “We have full confidence in you. This is your constitutional right. We’re thankful to you for making us part of the consultation process,” said Siddiqui.

The prime minister thanked the coalition parties’ leaders for holding a consultation. He also expressed his gratitude to the coali-

tion parties’ leadership for reposing confidence in him.

‘PreSIDent wILL LeAve BehInD ‘LegAcy of cLASheS’

Defence Minister Khawaja Asif on Wednesday expressed optimism that President Dr Arif Alvi would not leave behind a “legacy of clashes” on the matter of new army chief’s appointment.

In an interview on Dawn News show “Live with Adil Shahzeb”, the defence minister was asked whether the president would delay the summary for important army appointments for some days to which he said: “I don’t think the president will want to leave a legacy of clashes. It is my opinion

that he will not want to leave controversy behind as his office’s legacy.”

“There is no disagreement between army and government about the appointment of the new army chief as the whole process, including the matter of forwarding the summary to the prime minister, is as per the [mutual] agreement including the dates,” he said.

Asif said Gen Bajwa has served for over six years and his recommendation held weight.

The defence minister also revealed that the government had “informal contacts” with the PTI, including those in the party who portrayed themselves as hawks but were not and some doves who wanted the situation to improve.