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CLIMATE CHANGE: PM CALLS FOR PUTTING INTO USE LOSS AND DAMAGE FUND
Profit
Friday, 1 December, 2023 I 16 Jamada Al-Awal, 1445
STRESSES FUND SHOULD NOT BE LINKED WITH DEVELOPMENT FUNDS AND LOANS FROM MULTILATERAL LENDERS
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DUBAI
TERMS CLIMATE CHANGE NO MORE A FASHIONABLE POINT TO DISCUSS AS IT HIT PAKISTAN VERY HARD LAST YEAR
STAFF REPORT
ARETAKER Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq Kakar on Thursday stressed the need for immediate operationalization of the Loss & Damage Fund, asserting its utilization on merit to cope with the issues of climate change. He said the utilization of Fund should not be linked with the development funds and loans from multilateral financial entities, but the funding should be additional and tangible. The prime minister, in an interview with CNN on the sidelines of United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) COP28, said that currently Pakistan’s focus was on transformation from the coal-based power plants to renewable energy projects to contribute towards minimizing the climate change impacts in the region and beyond. “This is the area which could attract interest of countries here in Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and the settled economies and democracies on the Western side, so it is an opportunity for all of
them and all of us,” he added. He said the climate change was no more a fashionable point to discuss as it hit Pakistan very hard last year. The prime minister pointed out that Pakistan was not primarily responsible for contributing to the climate disaster in which the country’s two provinces Sindh and Balochistan faced historical devastation.
Petrol prices to remain unchanged for next fortnight g
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DIESEL SLASHED BY RS7 PER LITRE; KEROSENE OIL REDUCED BY RS3.82 PER LITRE ISLAMABAD
STAFF REPORT
The caretaker federal government decided on Thursday to maintain the petrol price at Rs281.34 per litre for the next fortnight — till December 15. However, the high-speed diesel (HSD) has been slashed by Rs7 per litre while kerosene oil reduced by Rs3.82 per litre. The light diesel oil has also been cut by Rs4.52 per litre. Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar approved the new fuel prices which will be effective from Thursday midnight and remain in place till December 15. The country fixes fuel prices on a fortnightly basis after evaluating fluctuating international energy market costs and the rupee-dollar parity to transfer the impact on domestic consumers. On November 15, the interim government reduced the petrol and diesel prices by Rs2.04 and Rs6.47 per litre, respectively. The government is charging zero general sales tax (GST) on all petroleum products while the rate of petroleum levy (PL) on petrol and diesel is Rs60 per litre. Diesel is widely used in the transport and agriculture sectors and the reduction in its price could bring inflationary impact down. According to brokerage reports released on Wednesday, inflation is expected to surge in November, primarily due to a massive hike in gas prices, The consumer price index (CPI), which measures changes in the prices of goods and services, is likely to rise to 28.6-29.6% year-on-year in November, up from 26.9% in October. A report by brokerage Insight Securities predicts that the inflation rate will register a 2.1% month-on-month jump, defying earlier expectations of a gradual slowdown from September onwards. Optimus Capital Management estimates that the CPI will increase by 2.9% month-on-month, primarily driven by an 11.6% jump in the housing index due to gas price revision and a 1.6% increase in the food index.
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“Everyone knows who have been contributing in last one century so it is more of a question of an honest conversation rather than passing judgment on countries and economies,” he remarked. Therefore, he said, the responsibility shown by the wealthy nations themselves would be a welcome step. To a question whether the Fund
should be operationalized through a United Nation framework, the prime minister said, “If we wait for a UN framework it will take years of years. Therefore, initially it is possible to operationalize it under the World Bank and other multilateral entities.” PM TO LEAD PAK DELEGATION IN COP-28: Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq Kakar will lead the Pakistani delegation in the high-level segment of the 28th UN Conference of Parties (COP 28) starting here at the Expo City on Friday. The prime minister will attend the World Climate Action Summit on December 1 and 2, a press release by the Prime Minister Office Press Wing said. Prime Minister Kakar will give a national statement at the World Climate Action Summit on December 2. Meetings of the prime minister with various world leaders are expected on the sidelines of the conference. Caretaker Foreign Minister Jalil Abbas Jilani, Caretaker Finance Minister Dr Shamshad Akhtar, Caretaker Minister for Climate Change Ahmed Irfan Aslam and Caretaker Energy Minister Muhammad Ali will also participate in the COP 28.
In letter, Imran draws CJP’s attention towards PTI’s ‘victimization’ ISLAMABAD
STAFF REPORT
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief Imran Khan on Thursday penned a letter to Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Justice Qazi Faez Isa, seeking affirmative action against the political victimization of his party, and abductions, and disappearances of its workers. In a seven-page document, Imran emphasized the need to assert Article 184(3) of the Constitution of Pakistan, which safeguards the ‘right to liberty, to associate, assemble, and speak’ on account of their political affiliation. ‘Set up commission’ In his letter, the PTI chief urged that a commission be established to further investigate the disappearances of PTI journalists and political workers. “These disappearances or abductions, quite apart from the arbitrary arrests, have spread fear through society and are a grotesque affront to the claim that Pakistan is a country ruled by a constitution and a set of laws,” the letter noted. “Today, the power to prosecute and arrest is being used in a blatant attempt to engineer and skew the political landscape of the country,” Imran wrote. Lifting media ban Imran Khan further said that all political parties, along with the PTI, should be allowed “coverage without any restriction or discrimination”. It is noteworthy to mention that the Pakistan Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) has banned the former prime minister’s speeches and live broadcasts.
In a six-page document, PEMRA noted that, “Therefore, the competent authority, i.e., Chairman PEMRA, hereby prohibits the broadcast or rebroadcast of the speech(s) or press talks (recorded or live) of Mr Imran Khan on all satellite TV channels with immediate effect.” May 9 riots Referring to the May 9 riots, Imran argued that a large number of women arrested in Lahore were a “tragic indictment of law enforcement”. He said that these women were imprisoned for six months, with further re-arrests when bail was already granted in one case, The PTI chief particularly highlighted Punjab, Khyber-Paktunkhwa, and Islamabad authorities for their ‘maltreatment’. His letter further maintained that any worker affiliated with the
PTI is “being targeted through the registration of multiple and successive criminal cases so as to ensure continued imprisonment”. Imran said party workers were being re-arrested, as he demanded the conduct of a fair trial against them. “…the apex court cannot be unaware of the phenomena of the disappearances of individuals affiliated with the PTI or those connected with the government led by PTI between august 2018 and April 2022. These persons have re appeared and made press conferences that are clearly tutored”. “Without the intervention of the apex court in halting the widespread arrests and abductions that are presently underway, there is no possibility of a fair general election being conducted on February 8, 2024, Imran concluded.
‘Politically-motivated’: Justice Naqvi moves SC against SJC’s show-cause notices ISLAMABAD
STAFF REPORT
Justice Syed Mazahar Ali Akbar Naqvi on Thursday challenged in the Supreme Court the two show-cause notices issued to him by the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) over allegations of financial misconduct. In his petition, Justice Mazhar Ali Akbar Naqvi termed the “so-called complaints” filed against him with the SJC politically motivated. He contended that he was merely fulfilling “his solemn duty to protect and safeguard the Constitution” which was being violated by delaying the general elections in the provincial assembly of Punjab. The judge made the Federation of Pakistan a respondent through the Ministry of Law, the president of Pakistan and the SJC were also added as respondents. The petition was submitted under Article 184(3) of the Constitution. In his petition, Justice Naqvi requested that the complaints against him be heard in the open court. In its October 27 session, the SJC, the Constitution platform for accountability of judges of the superior courts, reviewed 29 complaints filed against different judges. The council, however, dismissed 19 of them and issued a show cause notice to Justice Naqvi for the remaining 10, accusing him of financial misconduct. In the petition, Justice Naqvi recalled the principles of the salience of judicial accountability in upholding the legitimacy of the judicial institution and maintained that Justice Mansoor Ali Shah had explained it in his judgement in the case of Justice Qazi Faez Isa v Federation of Pakistan. The petitioner contended that the right of a judge to be treated in accordance with the law is “equally important”. The petitioner, citing Article 9, protested that access to justice is a fundamental right that is guaranteed by the Constitution. “Without the independence of the judiciary this right is illusory,” he maintained and added that due to this the interference in the office and/or the tenure of a judge is “a matter of public importance relating to the enforcement of fundamental rights”. Justice Naqvi said that he was a part of the two-member bench that presided over the former Capital City Police Officer (CCPO) Hameed Dogar’s transfer case in which the issue of elections of the Punjab Assembly within 90 days of its dissolution was discussed. The petitioner claimed that the bench then took notice of the issue of elections and that the former chief justice (CJ) Umar Ata Bandial initiated suo moto proceedings, forming a nine-member bench to preside over it. He further added that Justice Athar Minallah, in his additional notes in the same case, observed that the delay in holding the general election deprived the citizens “of their most valuable constitutional right”. Justice Naqvi, in his 40-page petition, has claimed that this proves that the then-federal government delayed the elections in the provincial assemblies of Punjab and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa. In the petition to the SC, the judge of the apex court protested that a malicious campaign was started against him for a suo moto notice taken by a two-member bench of which he was a part. “They held press conferences and issued maliciou statements against me,” he contended, adding that former members of the cabinet were amongst those who launched a campaign against him. He remarked that during this, members of bar councils, the Pakistan Bar Council (PBC) in particular, met with then-prime minister of Pakistan Shahbaz Sharif and other cabinet members after which the complaints were filed against him to the SJC, terming them “politically motivated”.
Careem launches Flexi Ride in bid to compete with Bykea, InDrive
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WITH COMPETITION GETTING FIERCE IN RIDE-HAILING MARKET, IS CAREEM READY TO FIGHT BACK? PROFIT
NISMA RIAZ
Ride-hailing platform Careem has realigned its strategy with the launch of a price bidding option for customers, as competition in the ride-hailing industry gets fiercer with the entry of Russian Yandex-group backed Yango in the country. Careem already faces stiff competition from inDrive, also a Russian origin company. Matters are not helped by the entry of Bykea in car-hailing. Both companies allow users to bid fares and offer them more control over pricing. Yango also offers these rides at discounted prices. Which is why, in a recent announcement, Careem launched Flexi Ride, in the company’s new bid to allow for more user flexibility. Careem has kept the original model of automatically generated fares without the bidding option intact in all categories. What is Flexi Ride? The Flexi Ride feature might be a new offering by Careem, but it is not a new concept in Pakistan. This feature allows commuters to set their preferred price at the time of booking,
with an average fare initially displayed. Users on the Careem app can only bid fares 15% over or under the displayed average fare, while users on Bykea and InDrive do not have any range restrictions. The rest of the process remains the same, where the user’s offered price is sent to multiple drivers, who either accept the fare or offer counter bids. When an agreement over the fare is reached, a driver is assigned, commencing the journey. Careem’s justification for having a 15% upper and lower cap for bidding range is to prevent users from offering exploitative fares to Captains and keeping the prices fair. The new offering was piloted in Faisalabad and Multan in Spetember, where it received a positive response, according to the company, prompting its launch in Islamabad and Rawalpindi in November. The company plans to expand to other cities like Lahore and Karachi soon. Imran Saleem, General Manager Ride Hailing at Careem Pakistan told Profit, “We launched Flexi Ride because we saw an appetite for it in the market based on surveys
and routine connect sessions with the Captains and customers. While the early adoption rate is promising, we will continue to monitor and see how it progresses.” The company refused to share the exact adoption rate but informed Profit that the new feature has gained positive traction. Flexi Ride is currently available in three categories of rides, including Flexi GO, Flexi GO Mini, and Flexi Bikes. GO Premium remains unchanged, and maintains the existing variable price marketplace model. While Careem did not disclose the commissions charged to Captain, it was confirmed that commissions under Flexi would be lower than in the original non-bidding fare model. Recently, there have been complaints that Careem captains can not earn enough from rides, as they are charged hefty commissions between 30% to 40%.This means that from every Rs1,000 that a driver earns, anywhere between Rs300 and Rs400 will go to Careem. Careem was forced to charge high commissions, as investors demanded more profitability from Careem’s parent company Uber.
Competitors such as inDrive took advantage of the situation, and started with no commissions. Now, Careem appears to be forced to adopt the same route by introducing a similar offering and lower commissions for drivers. Recently, Careem had also announced that it would resume bonuses and incentives for its drivers, in a bid to prop up the supply of drivers which had fallen since the pandemic. But why would commuters, especially ones opting for the smaller GO and GO Mini cars, continue using the original model when Flexi exists? Should Careem not have discontinued the previous billing model in GO and GO Mini cars because customers and captains alike have greater incentive to opt for the new price model? A Careem captain, who requested to stay anonymous, disclosed that the company is using several incentives for captains to adopt the new model. “Careem is charging less service fees from Captains on Flexi Rides,” he shared, confirming that high commissions might have been part of Careem’s troubles. With the new offering, Careem’s own commissions might suffer, but
the company will have to succumb to market demand, especially in today’s highly competitive ride-hailing landscape. The captain also told Profit that in a briefing session for captains prior to the launch of Flexi Ride, a Careem spokesperson said, “The idea behind keeping both the Flexi (fixed) and marketplace (variable) models operational is, to account for factors that influence the cost of the ride. This way Captains have liberty to take rides on the marketplace model during peak hours, whereas, customers who prefer the original model due to any factors, such as having multiple stops or longer journeys, but want a cheaper and smaller car can also opt for it.” It is safe to say that this new feature was launched to cater to more price sensitive customers, who prefer having control over the fares they pay. It is also safe to assume that Careem was urged to introduce this new feature in order to retain its market share in a highly competitive market, so that it does not lose its user base to alternatives like Bykea and InDrive.
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