EpaperLHR_22-2-14

Monday, 14 February, 2022 I 12 Rajab, 1443 I Rs 15.00 I Vol XII No 227 I 48 Pages I Lahore Edition

US ‘war on terror’ bred more terroriStS, Pm imran tellS Cnn

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riMe Minister imran Khan has said that the united states’ ‘war on terror’ bred more terrorists, adding that islamabad was virtually a “fortress” during this period. the premier expressed the views during an exclusive interview with journalist fareed zakaria on cnn, which aired on sunday, when he was asked about his take on terrorism in the broader Middle east. “the us ‘war on terror’ actually bred terrorists. i can tell you from Pakistan’s example because by joining the us, we had 80,000 people die,” he said, adding that the war produced more terrorists as it went along. “i am convinced it’s exactly the same what happened in afghanistan. these night raids and drone attacks […] the us must review its policy.”

PM imran said us citizens were being told that the drone attacks were accurate and the terrorists were targeted. “bombs exploding in villages; how would they only [target] terrorists?” he asked, adding that there was a lot of collateral damage. “i am afraid, the public in the us didn’t know the amount of collateral damage [that happened]. we bore the brunt.” he said that Pakistan was considered a collaborator of the us and, therefore, had to face revenge attacks. “there were sui-

cide attacks all over the country. we lost 80,000 people.” “but the us has withdrawn and the terror continues,” zakaria noted, to which PM imran said that the attacks now “are much less”. “you can’t compare […] during the height of the ‘war on terror’ islamabad was a fortress. you had suicide attacks going [on] everywhere. compared to what used to happen, terrorism is almost insignificant now.” when asked about the situation in wartorn afghanistan, the premier said that it was imperative for the us to understand that disliking the taliban government was one thing but it was ultimately about the country’s 40 million people. “half of them are in a very precarious situation […] winter in afghanistan is extremely wicked, ruthless,” he said, adding that the afghans were also facing food shortages and there were concerns of the situation spiraling into a humanitarian crisis. zakaria also asked PM imran about his experience in dealing with the afghan taliban and his advice to the us. “what are the choices?” asked PM imran. “is there an alternative to the taliban right now? no, there isn’t. is there a chance that if the taliban government is squeezed there could be a change for the better? no.” he went on to say that the only “alter-

CoronavirUS in

PakiStan

CONFIRMED CASES:

1,483,798

LAST UPDATED AT 7:18 AM ON FEBRUARY 13, 2022

DAY'S DEATH TOLL:

NEW CASES:

41

3,206

RECOVERED:

DEATHS:

1,375,628 29,772 SINDH:

PUNJAB:

557,931

494,971

KPK:

BALOCHISTAN:

209,758

35,056

AJK/GB:

ISLAMABAD:

41,862/11,183

133,037

native” that was currently available was to work with the taliban and incentivise them in achieving things, such as inclusivity and human rights. “that’s the only way forward right now.”

PM imran said that if afghanistan is abandoned, the neighbouring country could descend into chaos. “our best hope is that a stable afghanistan will ensure stability and peace in Pakistan,” he said, adding that peace in afghanistan was in everyone’s interest. asked whether the us should recognise the taliban government, PM imran said recognition would have to come “sooner or later”. “the world wants some guarantees before it recognises the taliban. so how far is the us going to push the taliban to conform to [their expectations]. this is the question. can the taliban go all the way? are they capable of going all the way bearing in mind this is a very strong ideological movement that represents a culture that is completely alien to western societies.” the premier said that there would have to be “give and take”. not recognising the government and freezing their accounts was only harming the people of the wartorn country, he said. during the interview, PM imran was also asked about china’s alleged mistreatment of Muslims in Xinjiang. he said that Pakistan had sent its ambassador to Xinjiang who said the situation was different than what was being portrayed by the western media. the prime minister also highlighted that indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir (iioJK) was a disputed territory between Pakistan and india. “over the last 35 years, approximately 100,000 Kashmiris have died,” he said, adding that in 2019 india unilaterally revoked the region’s special constitutional status. “there are extra-judicial killings. there are no rights, there are clampdowns [and] 800,000 indian troops in the valley.”

PM imran said that there was “hardly any indignation” about what was happening in iioJK compared to what was supposedly happening in Xinjiang, lamenting the fact that the Kashmir issue “did not get the attention it deserved”. News Desk

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Shehbaz Sharif meets Chaudhrys of Gujrat, seeks support to oust PM Khan LAHORE staff report

President of Pakistan Muslim league-nawaz (PMl-n) shehbaz sharif called on PMl-Q leaders at their residence here and sought their support for the opposition’s no-trust motion being moved against Prime Minister imran Khan. shehbaz was meeting the chaudhry brothers after a gap of 14 years as part of their efforts to muster support for the no-confidence motion against Prime Minister imran Khan. he was accompanied by a PMl-n delegation. the PMl-n delegation discussed matters of mutual interest and prevailing political situation with former prime minister chaudhry shujaat hussain and Punjab assembly speaker Pervez elahi, according to an official statement. the PMl-n delegation included former speaker national assembly sardar ayaz sadiq, rana tanveer hussain, Khawaja saad rafique, ataullah tarar, shabbir usmani, Mna salik hussain and shafi hussain.

Furore as blasphemy vigilantes kill ‘loony’ suspect g

PM Khan vows 'zero tolerance' for Mob lynchings, says PerPetrators will be dealt with full severity of law LAHORE staff report

Prime Minister imran Khan ordered action against the police who failed to protect a man stoned to death by a mob of angry locals for purportedly desecrating the Quran in a remote village of Khanewal district late saturday, in the latest violence focusing attention on the blasphemy laws. the custodian of a local mosque said he saw the man, who some suggested was appeared to be suffering from mental illness, burning the holy book inside the mosque saturday evening and told others before informing the police, according to police spokesman chaudhry imran. imran said police rushed to the scene, where a man was found surrounded by an angry crowd. sub-inspector Mohammad iqbal and two subordinates tried to take custody of the man but the group began throwing stones at them, critically injuring iqbal and slightly injuring the other two officers.

leader of the opposition in national assembly shehbaz inquired after chaudhry shujaat’s health on behalf of party supremo nawaz sharif and wished him a speedy recovery, the statement said. the PMl-Q chief thanked the former premier for showing concern about his health, it added. sources privy to the details of the meeting said that the meeting lasted for over an hour during which the PMl-n leader sought PMl-Q’s support for no-confidence motion against PM imran Khan in national assembly. the opposition leader said during the meeting that despite being an ally of the Pti government, the PMl-Q on various occasions had expressed concerns over the government’s policies. “now it’s time to make a big decision,” shehbaz was quoted as saying. however, the sources said that the chaudhry brothers said that the coming days are crucial and their party will take decision after evaluating the situation.

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more inside

Pakistan to raise use of Iranian soil

by Baloch terrorists as Iranian interior minister arrives today STORY ON BACK PAGE

Munawar gujjar, station house officer (sho) of tulamba police station, said he rushed reinforcements to the mosque but they did not arrive before the mob had stoned to death the man and hung his body from a tree. witnesses said a police team that reached the village before the stoning began, took custody of the man but the mob snatched him away from them and beat the police as they tried to rescue him. i “have asked Punjab [police chief] for a report on action taken against perpetrators of the lynching in Mian channu

[and] against the police who failed in their duty”, the prime minister tweeted. “we have zero tolerance for anyone taking the law into their own hands [and] mob lynchings will be dealt with the full severity of the law.” gujjar said the victim was identified as Mushtaq ahmed, 41, of a nearby village. “the ill-fated man has been mentally unstable for the last 15 years and according to his family often went missing from home for days begging and eating whatever he could find,” he said.

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islamabad seeking a broad-based relationship with the us: amb Masood Khan STORY ON PAGE 03 in today’s issue

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Monday, 14 February, 2022 | LAHORe

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PIA huntS foR new BoSS AfteR outgoIng Ceo tuRnS down extenSIon ISLAMABAD

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StAff report

AKISTAN International Airlines (PIA) is looking for a new chief executive officer (CEO) to replace Arshad Malik after he refused to go beyond his constitutional tenure of office.

Reports citing sources suggested that a recent meeting of the airline’s board of directors decided to give Malik an extension. But when Malik, whose

three-year term expires on April 25, was approached to offer the same, he turned it down.

Malik served in the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) for over four decades, during which he rose to the rank of Air Marshal.

Prior to joining PIA, he was serving as the vice chief of air staff.

He is a recipient of the Hilali-Imtiaz (M), Sitara-i-Imtaiz (M) and Tamgha-i-Imtiaz (M).

Those with knowledge of the process say Malik was offered the

extension because those most likely to replace him were not yet seen as being suitable for the job.

The airline has also advertised the position.

According to the eligibility criteria, the candidate must be in possession of a 20-year of experience in the field of civil aviation and should also have a degree in aviation management and engineering sciences.

Interested candidates can submit their proposals to the flag carrier by February 28.

Karachi police find body of 23-year-old woman from water tank KArACHI StAff report

Buzdar’s sister hurt in road accident

Police on Sunday found a dead body of a 23-year-old woman from a water tank of a plot in Karachi’s Mochko.

The body has been identified as Salma, who went missing after she left for her office in the morning. The case of

the incident has been registered at the Mochko police station.

The brother of the deceased woman said her sister went missing after she left for her office. He added that Salma was divorced and alleged that her exhusband Nabi Hussain killed her as he was issuing her threats.

“Nabi Hussain often used to chase

my sister and was issuing dire threats,” he added.

Meanwhile, the police have said they are investigating the allegations raised by the family of the deceased and raids are being conducted to arrest the suspect.

Earlier, a dead body of a missing child was found from the water tank of

LAHore StAff report

The sister of Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar sustained wounds in a road accident after her vehicle collided with a tractor-trolley loaded with sugarcane and parked near Taunsa Mor of Muzaffargarh district on Saturday night. According to rescue services, the woman, identified as Mrs Abdul Haadi, was heading to her hometown of Taunsa tehsil of Dera Ghazi Khan from Lahore when the accident occurred. Reportedly, the trolley was parked on the wrong side of the road.

‘Missing’ Khairpur teacher confirms marriage with her student

Opposition’s no-trust vote won’t succeed, says Fawad ISLAMABAD App

Minister for Information and Broadcasting Fawad Chaudhry said on Sunday the Opposition will never succeed in a no-confidence motion against the prime minister.

He was talking to National Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser.

Chaudhry said the government will respond to the proposed motion in a constitutional manner.

“The allies are with us and they have expressed full

confidence in the leadership of Pakistan Tehreek-iInsaf,” he added.

“We have the potential to defend the opposition’s motion.”

The minister said Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) had internal differences and it lacked unity in its ranks.

During the meeting, the leaders discussed issues of mutual interests including the overall situation in the country.

Matters related to the forthcoming session of the National Assembly were also discussed in the meeting.

a house in Korangi, said sources.

A seven-year child was missing from his home in Korangi but the parents didn’t file a missing report with the Karachi police.

The dead body of the child was recovered on February 6 from a water tank at some distance from home in a premises, rescue sources had said.

Brother of former ISPR boss passes away ISLAMABAD Monitoring report

Akhtar Iqbal, elder brother of former Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) director general Lt. Gen. Asif Ghafoor, passed away in Rawalpindi on Sunday. Iqbal breathed his last at Military Hospital Rawalpindi where he was under treatment. His funeral will be offered in the Askari IX neighbourhood in Lahore on Monday and he will be buried in a graveyard in Defence Housing Authority (DHA).

KHAIrpur newS DeSk

There was a drop scene in the alleged kidnapping of a female teacher of Khairpur (Sindh) on Sunday, when she, in her latest statement, said that she was not kidnapped but had contracted marriage with her student at a court in Karachi. The teacher, aged 23, had gone missing on January 24, 2022, and there was speculation that she might have been kidnapped. Her mother had got a case of kidnapping registered with Gambat police station.

Interestingly, the boy, aged 20, had also gone missing on the same date. A day earlier, on February 12, it had been reported that a schoolteacher in Khairpur had tied the knot with her ninth-grade student Shahzeb Rajput and sought refuge and protection from the local police and the administration. The video of the newly-wed asking for protection from the authorities had gone viral. On the other hand, earlier it was reported that a private schoolteacher was allegedly abducted by three suspects, including one of her students, from Gambat in Khairpur on Friday.

Shehbaz Sharif meets Chaudhrys of Gujrat, seeks support to oust PM Khan ContInueD froM pAge 01 A day after the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) announced its plans for bringing a no-trust motion against the government, the opposition on Saturday kicked its strategic preparations into high gear to muster support for its ambitious plan.

The chief of the anti-government alliance, Maulana Fazlur Rehman, met with the leadership of the ruling party’s ally, Chaudhry brothers of the PML-Q, at their residence on Saturday.

Similarly, former president and PPP Co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari, in a telephonic conversation, assured Fazl of fully supporting the motion against the prime minister.

Zardari expressed his willingness to throw weight behind the move as Fazl inquired after his health. The two discussed the overall political situation of the country.

On Friday during a news conference, the JUI-F chief had announced that the participants of the PDM meeting unanimously decided to bring a no-

confidence motion against the government, adding that the alliance would constitute a committee to peel off allies of the ruling party to put the word into action.

However, he added, the members of the committee would be announced later. The fate of the opposition’s no-trust motion hinges on the defection of government allies or its lawmakers. During the telephonic conversation with Zardari, Fazl also said that he would soon contact the government’s allies to ensure the success of the no-confidence motion.

Furore as blasphemy vigilantes kill ‘loony’ suspect ContInueD froM pAge 01 He said the body was handed over to the family.

HUNT FOR PERPETRATORS UNDERWAY: Punjab Inspector General of Police (IGP) Rao Sardar Ali Khan submitted a preliminary report of the incident to Chief Minister Usman Buzdar Sunday morning.

According to the report, a police case was registered against 33 suspects and 300 unidentified persons while sections related, but not limited, to terrorism were also added.

Gujjar, the SHO, said investigators were scanning available videos to try to identify the assailants.

In the report, the police said it conducted over 120 raids at various locations and detained 62 suspects, including primary suspects, while more raids were underway.

A secret police operation was carried out

throughout the night, with senior police officers present in the field, it added.

The report said forensic analysis of the incident’s footage would help identify the culprits and determine their role.

The first information report (FIR) of the incident was registered at Tulamba police station on the complaint of Gujjar under Sections 148 (rioting, armed with a deadly weapon), 149 (unlawful assembly of people), 186 (obstructing public servant in discharge of public functions), 302 (intentional murder) and 353 (assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty) of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC) and Section 7 of the AntiTerrorism Act (ATA).

The complaint said the police raiding party was also subjected to violence by the suspects due to which Iqbal suffered wounds and required medical treatment.

‘CONDEMNABLE’ INCIDENT: Minister for Human Rights Shireen Mazari said the incident was “condemnable and should not go unpunished”.

“Punjab government must immediately take action against the police that watched it happen and the perpetrators. Laws exist — the police must enforce these laws and not allow mobs to rule the day,” she said.

Minister for Information Fawad Chaudhry observed he “repeatedly pointed out” the destructive extremist elements present in the country’s education system.

Tahir Ashrafi, an aide to the prime minister on religious affairs, condemned the killing and pledged to bring the culprits to justice. He said no one had the right to take the law into their own hands, even if a suspect was involved in an offence, including blasphemy.

The incident follows the lynching in

December of a Sri Lankan manager of a sporting goods factory in Sialkot who was accused by workers of blasphemy.

The brutal killing prompted days of soul searching, and drew intense responses from politicians, celebrities and journalists on social media.

Khan described the incident as a “day of shame” for his country.

BLASPHEMY LAWS: The killing has raised alarm over the potential for accusations of blasphemy to fuel crowd violence, coming just months after at least seven policemen were killed in clashes with the radical Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) movement, which has built its identity on fighting what it sees as blasphemy.

Blasphemy is punishable by death in Pakistan, and although no executions have been carried out, suspects are often killed by vigilantes.

The offences relating to religion were first codified by India’s British rulers in 1860 and were expanded in 1927. Pakistan inherited these laws when it came into existence in 1947.

Between 1980 and 1986, a number of clauses were added to the laws by the government of President Gen. Zia ul-Haq. The laws were created and expanded in several instalments during the 1980s. In 1980, making derogatory remarks against Islamic personages was made an offence, carrying a maximum punishment of three years in jail. In 1982, another clause prescribed life imprisonment for “wilful” desecration of the Quran. In 1986, a separate clause was inserted to punish blasphemy against Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H.) and the penalty recommended was “death, or imprisonment for life”, in that order.

Monday, 14 February, 2022 | LAHORe

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Islamabad seeking a broad-based relationship with the uS: Amb Masood Khan ISLAMABAD

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StAff report

MBASSADOR-DESIGNATE of Pakistan to the United States Masood Khan has said that Pakistan wants to enhance economic, investment and trade ties with the United States and that he will try his best to push the bilateral relations to new heights.

He said Pakistan would build better mutual bilateral relationships between the two countries for which every option will be explored and the business community of both the countries will be taken on board for the purpose.

This was stated by Masood Khan while talking to the President US-Pakistan International Chamber of Commerce (USPICC) Muhammad Ahmed, Secretary-

‘Bismillah’ found on 195 million-year-old marble discovered in turkey IStAnBuL

Leopard cats released in Margalla hills, PM Imran Khan releases video ISLAMABAD StAff report

Prime Minister Imran Khan on Sunday shared a video of leopard cats being rescued and released by the wildlife department back in Islamabad’s Margalla Hills National Park.

The video shared by the prime minister from his personal Twitter handle showed a leopard being released into the Margalla hills. “I commend our Wildlife [department] for rescuing two leopard cats and releasing them back in the Margalla Hills National Park,” PM Imran Khan said. He further said that they are committed to protecting Wildlife and promoting tourism in Pakistan. In December 2021, Prime Minister Imran Khan shared footage of a snow leopard roaming and roaring over the snowy mountains in Khaplu area of Gilgit Baltistan. “Rare footage of the shy snow leopard in Khaplu, GB,” the premier captioned the footage shared on his official Twitter handle. Also called the “ghost of the mountains”, the snow leopards are shy and of elusive nature.

Masood Khan as Permanent Representative of Pakistan to the United Nations, Pakistan’s Ambassador to China, and President of Azad Kashmir and said that his efforts had exponentially pushed Pakistan’s exports to China.

They said that the Chairman of USPICC Siddique Sheikh and President Sajjad Qamar are very well-connected with Senators, representatives and big business houses.

They are waiting for his arrival in the US so that he can assist him in cementing bilateral economic ties to advance the shared agenda and common goals of prosperity.

The USPICC officials informed that a delegation of Pakistan entrepreneurs from various sectors will soon visit the US to explore trade and investment opportunities on which Masood Khan assured all-out cooperation.

Technical College in Sabzazar invaluable gift of PTI govt to people: Aslam Iqbal

newS DeSk

The marking that appear to form Bismillah, or In the name of Allah, was on a marble slab found in a marble quarry in Turkey’s Mediterranean province of Antalya. The discovery was made in the marble business area of Antalya Marble Industry and Trade Company in Taskesigi village of the Antalya Korkuteli district. The figure that appeared on the stone attracted the attention of miners while the stone was being processed in the quarry.

Removing dust from the stone, workers noticed the marking appeared to spell “Bismillah” in Arabic letters. The slab was then sent to Suleyman Demirel University in Turkiye’s southwestern Isparta province for analysis.

Scientists Fuzuli Yagmurlu, Rasit Altindag and Nazmi Sengun made an interesting discovery in their analysis. While 195 million years old remains were found in the content of the marble, the marking is believed to occur naturally. Bioclastic remains of fossils belonging to sea creatures that lived 195 million years ago during the Jurassic dinosaurs period were found on dolomitic limestone that formed the plate. It was also noted that the remains, named after the Jura mountains in the European Alps, are concentrated in parts of the plate. The report said the figures on the plate with Bismillah were completely “natural” formations and the writings were formed as a result of the fragmentation, deformation and arrangement of the remains of heart-shaped shellfish over time. According to a scientific report given by Ahmet Ogke, Dean of Akdeniz University Faculty of Theology, the Arabic figures on the marble are the same character as Bismillah which is mentioned in the Holy Quran.

General USPICC Malik Sohail Hussain and founder member and director of the chamber Hasnain Kazmi.

He said that business delegations from Pakistan to the US and from the US to Pakistan will be encouraged to boost bilateral trade, investment and joint ventures.

The ambassador-designate said that Pakistan desires broad-based and multidimensional relations with the US and therefore the business community should utilise their best abilities towards further enhancement of Pakistan-US relations.

The United States is Pakistan’s top export destination and a strategic partner, and both countries know the value of relationships across a number of fronts, Khan added.

On the occasion, leaders of USPICC Muhammad Ahmed, Malik Sohail and Hasnain Kazmi appreciated the services of

LAHore StAff report

Punjab Minister for Industry and Commerce Mian Aslam Iqbal has said that Government Technical Training Institute for Women at Sabzazar is an invaluable gift of the PTI government to the people of the area.

Addressing the public meeting after laying the foundation stone of the Technical Training Institute for Women here on Sunday, he said that the institute will be a state of the art on 14 kanal land and the project will be completed in a record time of one year.

A variety of skills will be taught to the students in the college. A display center will be set up in the college for the sale of products made by the students. Students will be offered advanced courses in dress designing and

making, digital social media marketing and commercial arts and graphics.

Mian Aslam Iqbal said that we have built not only roads and bridges but also educational institutions for the children of the nation. The health card will be received every citizen of Punjab. The government revolutionized the health sector by providing modern treatment facilities to poor patients through Health Card.

He said that welfare schemes are being introduced for the disabled and senior citizens and the Ehsas Ration Card Scheme has been started to provide relief to the poor families.

The provincial minister said that in the last 72 years no one thought of cultivating imported goods in the country, the present government is bringing revolutionary schemes for the promotion of industry and agriculture. Those who took five turns did not think of the welfare of the people.

Rs 300 billion spent on Orange Line Metro train, repayment of loan for the project will increase financial difficulties. The former rulers planned to get kickbacks instead of welfare schemes.

The PTI government has taken a step towards establishing a welfare state by launching real public welfare projects, he said, adding that under the leadership of Prime Minister Imran Khan, the goal of an Islamic welfare state would be achieved.

Chairman TEVTA Ali Salman Siddique gave briefing regarding the project and said that TEVTA is establishing a comprehensive technical college in Sabzazar where world class courses will be taught to female students. TEVTA officials, PTI leaders and a large number of people attended the meeting.

PTI’s like-minded group to discuss no-trust move today LAHore StAff report

In a major development, which could also be termed a matter of concern for the Pakistan Tehreek-iInsaf (PTI) government, some likeminded members of the ruling party will meet in Lahore today (Monday, February 14, 2022) to discuss the no-trust move the opposition parties plan to bring against the government, it was learnt on Sunday.

Group head Ghazanfar Abbas Cheena has convened the meeting to thrash out the strategy to be adopted with respect to the no-trust move by the opposition.

Only a day ago, former president and Pakistan People’s Party Co-Chairman Asif Ali Zardari had said that the PPP stood with the other parties of the opposition, part of the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM), over tabling of a no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Imran Khan.

The former president made the statement during a telephonic conversation with PDM President Maulana Fazlur Rehman, who

called Asif Zardari to discuss political issues.

A day earlier, on Friday (February 11, 2022), the PDM had decided to move a no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Imran Khan in the National Assembly.

The decision was unanimously taken by the PDM leadership in a summit held at the Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) secretariat at Model Town in Lahore.

Maulana Fazl declared the situation was favourable for tabling

the no-confidence motion against the prime minister. He also confirmed that the Long March will be held on March 23 as per the announced schedule.

The PDM president announced that they would not make contacts with PTI members but the government-allied parties for getting support because fighting on two fronts is not wise.

The JUI chief said they will not give a date for tabling the noconfidence motion without preparation.

Aamir Liaquat, wife shed light on their ‘dream wedding’ newS DeSK Aamir Liaquat Hussain has been making headlines after announcing his third marriage with Syeda Dania Shah. The newlyweds recently made an appearance on a local morning show and Hussain spilled the beans on how he met his 18-year-old wife. “When we met for the first time, it was only for 28 minutes. It wasn’t a 28-day affair. Nothing of that sort ever happened,” Hussain shared. “I visited Lodhran for an event. It was a Milad function organised by an affluent family. I also called Jahangir Tareen Sahab from Lodhran. He later invited me to his farmhouse.”

“After Milad, we went to Lodhran’s Pir’s house. I didn’t know him. I discussed some personal affairs with him. He told me he will settle me with someone now but the only condition was that I wouldn’t get to see her before. When I met her, it was Dania.”

Hussain continued, “But when I did meet her, I came to know that when she was a kid and would cry, her parents would put on Aalim Online to calm her.” Shah went on to add she found meeting her now-husband surreal. “I didn’t think he was real,” she commented.

“To meet someone you have idealised since you were a kid, someone you have been obsessed with and he just appears in front of you; how would you feel?”

Hussain then shared how Shah has already allowed him to tie the knot for the fourth time. “She told me I have you, now I don’t want anything or anyone else.

You can even marry someone else now.” To this, Shah quipped, “I have also told him that if he wants to marry someone else, he should. I have given him permission to get married for the fourth time.” She went on to add, “It is not my right to stop him from tying the knot again. If he is happy with me and I love him enough, he’d stay with me. If I don’t, then he will find someone else and marry her.”

farah Khan denies rumors of first Lady living at her residence instead of Bani gala LAHore inp

Farah Khan, friend of First Lady Bushra Begum, has denied rumors that the first lady lives at her residence instead of Bani Gala in Islamabad. Farah Khan, in a twitter post, said that one should not fall so low in politics that lies are spread about people’s personal lives.

She further said that negative propaganda was being spread about the Prime Minister and the First Lady through false WhatsApp messages.

Monday, 14 February, 2022 | LAHORE

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NEWS

PM IMRan says ‘PakIstan wants RelatIons wIth eveRyone Instead of tIltIng towaRds a ceRtaIn caMP’

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rIMe Minister Imran Khan on Sunday stated that the country’s strategic direction was to “maintain relations with everyone”.

“We do not want to be in a position that implies as if we are a part of a certain camp,” the prime minister said while interacting with journalists, former diplomats and representatives of think tanks in Islamabad.

Highlighting the challenge his government had been facing since he assumed power in 2018, Imran said one reason of the country’s plight was that some government officials’ own interests had not been aligned with the national interest.

“All government departments should know their roles clearly and they must have an idea what has to be done for wealth creation,” he underlined.

He said most of the countries generated much of their revenue through exports, however, “Pakistan is disconnected to it. In fact, the government is not facilitating exporters in sectors which can

benefit them,” he said while pointing towards certain officials of his own government without naming them.

PM Imran said he believed that rawalpindi — home to the country’s military establishment — was also clear about Pakistan’s strategic position.

He further recalled that the CeO of popular clothing brand Zara intended to visit Pakistan sometime back, saying he applied for a visa online. “However, our embassy emailed him to first report to them before proceeding further.”

“How can we prosper when there are problems like this,” he asked.

The premier also informed the meeting that businesses from China faced problems in Pakistan mainly due to “a lack of synergy between Centre and provinces, especially provinces where the ruling PTI do not have its government”.

The prime minister expressed regret over the government’s helplessness in bringing reforms, saying “we cannot amend laws related to special economic zones after the 18th Constitutional amendment.”

He said the country’s decision-making had been “fractured” after the amendment was passed by a previous government.

He said the imbalance created by the amendment could be gauged from the fact that wheat was being sold at different rates in different provinces — a practice he said should be discouraged by all means. “There are many similar examples,” he added.

The prime minister also briefed the gathering about his “remarkable” tour to China, which he said made ties between the two countries “stronger than ever”.

He said the world was rapidly undergoing changes, adding that his visit to China was much relevant in that context.

“China also appreciated our strategy to tackle Covid-19 and also they offered us economic support which will be translated into specific projects,” the premier said.

When a journalist said that a slowdown in the pace of Chinese projects in Pakistan was being taken as Beijing being unhappy with Islamabad, Informa-

tion Minister Fawad Chaudhry chose to answer the query, saying the claim required a review of statistics.

Chaudhry said the two countries had seven working groups previously, which have now grown to 11. Similarly, he said the number of completed projects stood at two till 2018 and “now they are seven in three and a half years of this government”.

Chaudhry said the construction of Chinese projects during the incumbent government’s tenure had sped up and not slowed down.

Imran also highlighted another challenge his government was facing regarding the numbers game in Senate, where it lacks a majority.

He stressed that it was essential for a [ruling party] to have a two-thirds majority in parliament for the effective functioning of parliamentary democracy.

“If we want to reform society, then we must have this majority. Otherwise, any reform will face impediments,” he said, adding “we still face problems in the Senate where we do not have a majority.”

NAB KP seeks action against illegal housing schemes Result-oriented measures taken to control environmental changes: minister ISLAMABAD: Minister of State for Climate Change Zartaj Gul on Sunday said the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) government took multiple measures to control environmental changes which would be proven result-oriented in time. Speaking to PTV News, she said that on the special directive of Prime Minister Imran Khan the vision of a greener Pakistan will come true through technical teams. The government imparted awareness amongst the public about environmental changes as the 70 percent of the population was unaware of environmental matters. Keeping in view the current situation, Khan directed to take initiative which reduced environmental pollution as the country was affected by the menace. She said her ministry converted all brick kilns on zig zag technology on an emergency basis to avert air pollution related issues, adding that initiatives such as the ban on polythene bags, the billion-tree tsunami and Clean and Green Pakistan were highlighted internationally. Staff RepoRt

PESHAWAR aziz BuneRi

The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has urged the Local Government Department to take action against illegal housing schemes in Peshawar.

After the NAB direction, the KP Local Government Department has sent a letter to Peshawar’s towns administration asking for full action against illegal housing schemes.

Similarly, the LG department directed towns to register cases

against the owners and management of housing schemes for looting or deceiving public.

Before this, some 200 illegal housing schemes were identified and banned in the provincial capital, Peshawar.

However, the operation against such schemes has now slowdown, therefore, the National Accountability Bureau has urged to relaunch operation.

According to the Local Government Department, a detailed report will be sent to the NAB in this regard.

In light of KP government’s di-

rectives, all types of transfers and registries were banned in 181 illegal residential colonies in Peshawar last year.

The government sources said that illegal societies has devoured some 70% of fertile agricultural land in KP which is a clear violation of Supreme Court of Pakistan judgments.

Similarly, documents from of the Peshawar Development Authority last year revealed that there were more than 150 illegal housing societies in Peshawar that had been set up without approval or NOC.

Major cricket teams to tour Pakistan soon: says NSA National Security Adviser (NSA) Dr Moeed Yusuf has said that there was no security issue in Pakistan anymore and all major international cricket teams will visit the country soon.

He was speaking to reporters in Lahore ahead of a match during the ongoing HBL Pakistan Super League (PSL).

“Unfortunately, the image projected abroad by international media over the past 15 to 20 years was extremely negative about Pakistan,” he said and added many foreigners even said that cricket cannot return to the country.

Moeed said that Pakistan has now successfully countered terrorism and has achieved major achievements in its fight against terror. “Now, Australia is coming

[next month] but you will see others will also follow.”

He said that he finds it hard to watch cricket regularly due to his official commitments but added that he came to the stadium to watch the match as he was already in Lahore.

“When we were children, we used to see cricket regularly in Pakistan and all streets and corners were filled with children playing cricket… unfortunately, this generation could not see that,” he added.

The NSA lauded the environment during the PSL matches, saying that it will take the Pakistan cricket a long way.

“It is very important for our nation as well as the world to see what real Pakistan is.”

Moeed said that the country is often criticised over its security problems but the real Pakistan is which can be witnessed here in Gaddafi Stadium today.

“You will see further improvement and [arrival of foreign teams] it will become a routine activity… we’ll be back where we were,” he added.

He said that Australian security teams visited Pakistan and were satisfied with the security arrangements, hoping that it will be a successful tour from the Aussies.

To a question regarding his favourite team in PSL, Moeed said that since he was from Lahore so he was supporting the Lahore Qalandars but said that his children were supporting Peshawar Zalmi today. Staff RepoRt

CMYK

India given permission to ship wheat to afghanistan via Pakistan ISLAMABAD MonitoRing RepoRt

India’s wheat shipment to Afghanistan as part of its humanitarian aid to the trouble-torn country through Pakistan’s soil is expected to start on February 22 as New Delhi and Islamabad have finally agreed on the modalities after months of discussions.

In October, India said it would provide 50,000 tons of wheat to Afghanistan and requested that Pakistan allow its transportation through Wagah to Attari, the entry point for goods between the two nations.

From there, it would go by road to Torkham, an Afghanistan-Pakistan crossing point.

After almost four months, the wheat aid has not crossed at Wagah, making it almost impossible to deliver it to starving Afghans before winter’s end.

Hinting at a further delay, Foreign Office spokesperson Asim Iftikhar told Nikkei Asia on February 9 that the “first consignment” will be allowed through “likely at the end of the month.”

The first shipment had previously been expected to go between February 10 and February 12 after Farid Mamundzay, Afghanistan’s ambassador to India, was quoted in the Indian press saying that Pakistan had provided all assurances required by India.

Initially, Pakistan wanted the transportation of humanitarian assistance goods to Kabul in its trucks under the banner of the United Nations but India insisted on using its own vehicles or Afghan ones.

The two sides then agreed that wheat would be carried by Afghan trucks and a list of Afghan contractors was shared with Pakistan.

Islamabad also asked that a focal point be established in Pakistan to coordinate between the Afghan logistics company and Indian authorities, and required that the truck movements take place without publicity.

Pakistan promised visas and travel permits for the journey to Torkham, along with security provisions along the route, details shared by the Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi with the relevant Indian authorities suggested.

Monday, 14 February, 2022 | LAHORE

NEWS

05

PM SayS ChINa vISIt gave New IMPetUS to bIlateral tIeS, CPeC ISLAmABAd

Surging oil prices, strong dollar may keep rupee under pressure KARACHI Staff RepoRt

Rupee slipped 0.13 percent (-23 paisas) against the US dollar last week despite recent inflows from the International Monetary Fund. The rupee slipped from 174.48 to 174.71 against the American currency in the interbank market last week after registering a strong recovery in the preceding week. The local unit has appreciated by Rs1.80 during the current year 2022 while it has devalued by Rs17.28 during the ongoing fiscal year 2021-22. On the other hand, inflation in the US climbed to its highest level in 40 years in January, with prices rising by 7.5pc from a year ago. The Federal Reserve has signalled that it intends to raise interest rates by 50bps at its meeting in March in an effort to dampen spending and bring down prices. This has supported the dollar index to climb 0.28 percent up at 95.85.

Moreover, surging crude oil and commodity prices globally amid Russia-Ukraine tension, which have rattled the financial and equity markets across the globe, may also keep the rupee under pressure. The rupee started last week on strong footing and remained almost firm on the first two days. It appreciated by one paisa on Monday and depreciated by three paisas on Tuesday.

The local currency came under pressure on Wednesday and shed 39 paisas (-0.22 percent). The lowest level of the rupee against the dollar during the week under review was recorded at 174.89 on Wednesday. However, the rupee remained firm for the next two days and gained two paisas on Thursday and 16 paisas on Friday, which eroded most of the losses of the week. The rupee’s depreciation, albeit marginal, was against the market’s expectation after receiving $1 billion each recently from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and international sukuk. The net reserves with the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) have surged to $17.34 billion; however, they are still below the December 2021 level of $17.69 billion due to higher imports. The experts said that besides massive trade deficit on the local front, the elevated demand for dollars from Afghanistan, which is still untraceable by regulators, has stalled rupee to realise its true valuation in the interbank market. On the other hand, remittances from overseas workers declined by 14.9 percent on a month-onmonth (MoM) basis in January 2022, amounting to $2.14 billion.

The SBP said that workers’ remittances remained above $2 billion for the 20th consecutive month. However, these have been the lowest monthly remittance figures since August 2020.

The support provided through inflows from overseas Pakistanis as well as investments through Roshan Digital Account and measures taken by the central bank in recent months to improve the transparency in the foreign exchange market may help improve market confidence.

US ‘war on terror’ bred more terrorists, PM Imran tells CNN ContInued fRom pAge 01 “Are you saying that the treatment of Muslims in Kashmir is worse than the treatment of Muslims in Xinjiang?” Zakaria asked, to which the prime minister replied that there would be “absolutely no comparison”. “I have only one source which is our ambassador in China […] what is happening in Kashmir is criminal.” When pressed by the journalist on whether he condemned what was happening in Xinjiang, the premier said: “Sadly, and I hope it doesn’t happen, we are heading towards another Cold War. We all know that once these sides are taken, which side do you believe?” He said that what China was saying was completely different to what the US was saying. “So who do you believe? That’s why we asked our ambassador to give us his opinion and its not what is appearing in Western media.”

He added that the world should not head towards another Cold War-like situation.

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Staff RepoRt

HE prime minister said his recent visit to China and meetings with the host leadership added a new impetus to the time-tested friendship and further accelerated the pace of work on the projects under the ChinaPakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).

During an interaction with journalists, former diplomats and representatives of think tanks, Imran Khan said the tour was connected to the rapidlychanging global political scenario.

Beijing appreciated his government’s measures to combat the Covid19 crisis, he said, recalling the economic indicators were also positive. China reaffirmed economic support to Pakistan through specific projects, he said.

Members of the cabinet were also present during the interaction.

Khan said he met President Xi Jinping of China for the first time since the Covid-19 outbreak in early 2020.

The meetings he held with the Chinese leadership added further impetus to the CPEC projects, Khan said, dismissing the impression of the slowed-down pace of work on the billion-dollar corridor.

On Afghanistan, the prime minister said the international community had a consensus over the catastrophe looming over the war-ravaged nation.

Europe and Afghanistan’s neighbouring nations agreed to take measures to avoid the crisis and stressed the de-freezing of its assets held in the US. Washington also understood this and realised the gravity of the situation, he added.

We have a consensus that steps should be taken and Afghanistan must not be allowed to descend into chaos yet again.

To a query, Khan said that after the passage of the 18th amendment in 2010, issues regarding decision making surfaced and cited the difference in prices of wheat in Sindh and other provinces.

Discussing the functioning of the Chinese government, the prime minister said when a decision was taken, it was implemented, but here in Pakistan, the government lacked such synergy among the centre and provinces.

In China, the whole country worked towards the aim of wealth creation.

During the Winter Olympics 2022, the native crowd warmly cheered the arrival of the Pakistan contingent, reflecting how deep-rooted these ties had been between the two countries, he observed.

Responding to another question, the prime minister said the strategic direction of his government was very clear. They wanted to maintain relations with all and would not become a part of any camp.

Since 2018, the government navigated from “the minefield” of economic challenges, he said, adding that due to the prudent policies, the country was witnessing growth rate, record tax collections, revenue generation, and remittances which indicated that the country’s economy had been moving in the right direction.

To another question, the prime minister opined that unless a party had a two-thirds majority in the parliament, it could not enact legislation to bring in reforms in the society, stressing there was a requirement for reforms.

These pieces of legislation, some-

times, stuck up in the parliament or in the Senate, he maintained.

He said that in China, they had meritocracy and a rule of law. About 400 ministerial-level people were held accountable over corruption charges which increased the popularity of President Jinping there.

Khan said the global pandemic had devastated the world. Different countries of the world including Italy, Spain and Britain opted for blanket lockdowns, but he went against such precedent for which he was criticised by his political opponents.

He said that had questioned the logic of imposing the complete lockdown as it would have created problems for the lower segments of society.

Defending his decision of smart lockdown, the prime minister said in the US, Germany, and France, people had been on the roads against lockdowns.

“We are ahead of everyone as we have not only saved our economy but also the lives,” he said, adding that in India, the growth rate had been negative.

To a query, he replied he had met Russian President Vladimir Putin in Bishkek.

After his tweet about the negative use of freedom of speech to hurt Muslims’ feelings, they held a telephonic conversation wherein Putin conveyed to Khan there was no wave of Islamophobia in Russia and the central mosque in Moscow was fully functional.

Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, who also spoke during the sitting, said that prime minister’s meeting with President Jinping was marked with great outstanding.

The clarity he witnessed over such meetings had not happened in the past which was another encouraging sign,

he added.

The foreign minister further said the leadership of the two countries conveyed clear messages over the core issues. They removed certain concerns over the CPEC projects which were not based upon facts.

On Afghanistan issue, Pakistan and China shared the views, Qureshi said, adding as there had been close coordination and collaboration between the two countries.

Furthermore, they had agreed on a future roadmap. A meeting of Afghanistan’s immediate neighbours, besides a trilateral meeting of Pakistan, China and Afghanistan would be soon convened to expedite efforts to avert humanitarian crises in Afghanistan.

Minister for Finance Shaukat Tarin said that China had helped in building infrastructure and connectivity projects under CPEC and now they would support the establishment of SEZs, so that trickle down effects could be fully reaped.

Minister for Information and Broadcasting Fawad Chaudhry — while comparing the number of CPEC projects under the incumbent governments with its predecessor — said the number of working groups has increased to 11, they have completed seven projects in the last three years.

A further investment of $3.45 billion has been made in various sectors.

He further said that three new projects had been added, the power generation stood around 3340 megawatts in 2018 which had now increased to 5864 megawatts since then.

Not a single transmission line was added by the previous government, but they had installed 880 km of new transmission lines, he added.

11,000 Pakistanis secure job contracts in S Arabia in December ISLAmABAd Staff RepoRt

Pakistan has secured the second position among the countries that won the highest domestic worker recruitment contracts in Saudi Arabia during the month of December 2021.

According to the data released by the Saudi Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development, Bangladesh topped the list of countries with 12,000 contracts during the month of December followed

by Pakistan with more than 11,000 contracts, while India was able to make around 11,000 contracts.

The data showed that Saudi Arabia recorded an increase of more than 15 percent in the total recruitment contracts of domestic workers during the fourth quarter of the year 2021. The increase in domestic worker contracts comes as the Saudi labour market continues to expand, mainly due to the launch of several mega projects under the Saudi Vision 2030.

Saudi Arabia is adding several new countries to its list for the recruitment of domestic workers in 2022, according to Alson World, a communication strategies development firm that operates in Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries. The kingdom is keen to have workers from countries that fit into Saudi families, based on epidemics, crime rate, lan-

guage, education, expected recruitment cost, salaries and other criteria.

Recruitment contracts of domestic workers increased to 65,000 in October 2021 and more than 69,000 in November 2021. In December, the ceiling rose to 76,000 contracts, recording a steady increase by the end of 2021.

Based on the November figures, the Philippines and Bangladesh secured 13,000 recruitment contracts, followed by Egypt with more than 9,000 contracts.

The Philippines recorded the same figure in October, while the number from Bangladesh stood at more than 11,000 contracts. Uganda was ranked third with around 10,000 contracts.

Oil rises 1.25pc for eighth straight week on supply concerns ISLAmABAd agencieS

Crude oil prices surged up to 1.25 percent for the eighth consecutive week, hitting the eight-year highs amid supply concerns.

The global oil prices were lifted by mounting worries about supply interjections; all of which can be considered a consequence of accelerated demand as well as the escalating geopolitical conflicts in eastern Europe.

Due to tighter supply, rising demand, and output limitations, oil costs amplified to hit their maximum levels ever since 2014. In the previous seven weeks, the global crude oil prices surged up to 6.34pc, 2.43pc, 2.13pc, 5.27pc,

8.85pc, 2.15pc and 4.13pc, respectively.

During the last week, Brent, the international benchmark for two-thirds of the world’s oil, rose by 1.25 percent to reach $94.44 from $93.27 a barrel. The lowest closing for the week was $90.78 on Tuesday while the highest closing was observed on Friday at $94.44. Brent hit the $95.45 mark before settling lower.

Similarly, the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) reached $93.10 from $92.31, up by 0.86 percent. The lowest closing for the week, $89.36, remained on Tuesday while the highest closing for the week was on Friday at $93.10. WTI breached the $94 mark before settling lower.

The price for Opec Basket surged 0.03 percent from $92.84 to $92.87 a barrel, Arab Light price increased 0.89 percent to reach $91.08 from $90.28 and the price of Russian Sokol increased 2.51 percent to $92.55 from $90.28 a barrel during the last week.

As tensions between Russia and Ukraine grow, so does the risk that it spills over into global commodity markets. Keeping this factor in view, crude oil prices could soar if the Russia-Ukraine crisis escalates.

With much of Europe captivated by the prolonged Russia-Ukraine standoff, speculation that Russian oil might be embargoed from the market added another geopolitical premium to prices. Apart from the Russia-

CmYK

Ukraine issue, Paris-based International Energy Agency (IEA) also rattled energy markets by warning that global oil supplies might be dangerously short of demand. The IEA in a monthly report lifted its forecast for global oil demand in 2022 by 800,000 barrels a day to 3.2 million barrels.

The report estimated there could be a billion barrels shortfall by the end of last year between what the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies – known as Opec+ – were supposed to have pumped versus actual deliveries to the market since the start of 2021.

The oil markets have also been taking comfort from a boost in demand optimism,

as the World Health Organisation (WHO) noted that Omicron cases are levelling off in most parts of the world, which is also good news for the oil industry.

Simultaneously, supply scarcity remains a global worry as the Opec+ is not willing to increase output more than it is supposed to do under the terms of its agreement.

The group began to increase output last year, renewing every month a target of 400,000 barrels per day, as demand and prices recovered after countries began to lift Covid restrictions. Opec+ agreed on a similar increase again earlier this month despite soaring crude prices and geopolitical tensions rattling the markets.

06-07 Comments - 14th February 2022_Layout 1 2/13/2022 10:57 PM Page 1

Monday, 14 February, 2022

06 COMMENT

Reforming debt restructuring framework

Who’s in charge?

PM can’t blame others when he’s in charge

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RIME MINISTER Imran Khan seems to be engaging himself in sniping at the Foreign Minister, even though the choice was his own, and he can change the entire hierarchy which does not follow his orders. The desire to deflect blame from himself means that he has to cast about for others to blame if things go wrong. He has been categorical in saying that Pakistan does not wish to choose between the USA and China, though his saying that some officials had not aligned themselves with Pakistan’s national interest begged the question of why he tolerated their presence in positions of importance even if they were not following the policy he wanted followed. He refused to accept that his government had also done little to being in foreign investment, saying that the CEO of a leading clothing company was given the runaround by the embassy to which he had applied for a visa. Again, the Foreign Office was being blamed, and again the Prime Minister gave no explanation why he had taken no action against the persons responsible.

Mr Khan also refused to take responsibility for the failure of his government to deliver meaningful change, blaming this on his lack of a two-thirds majority. That indicated his wish to amend the Constitution, particularly with respect to the 18th Amendment, which he said granted too many powers to the provinces. This shows a lack of understanding of parliamentary governance, with the bar for amending the Constitution set abnormally high so that the government either would enjoy overwhelming mas support, or would be obliged to seek opposition support if it wanted to amend the Constitution. Treating the opposition with disdain is not contemplated under this system. The purpose of such a large majority is that the government will need opposition cooperation to amend the Constitution, which is supposed to be beyond mere partisan legislation.

The PM now finds himself running out of time before the next election to fulfill his promises. Understandably, he now wishes to prepare a strategy to appeal to the electorate at the next election, but he might find few takers for his pretense that he could do nothing. After all, the whole point of being in office is to take responsibility.

With China and private lenders holding so much debt, the Paris Club mechanism may not work

Dr Omer JaveD

...the financial processes to resolve and restructure these debts are fraying. During the second half of the 20th century, the western world organised restructurings of poor-country debt by using the “Paris Club” framework. This enabled creditor nations to cut deals backed up by institutions such as the IMF and the “London Club” of commercial lenders. Such a western-centric approach no longer works. A startling IMF chart shows why: a decade ago, low-income countries had about $80bn of public external bilateral debt (excluding multilateral and private loans). Two-thirds emanated from Paris Club lenders. Today, these debts top $200bn, and under one-third is lent by the Paris Club. The rest is mostly owed to China…’ – Excerpt from a recent Financial Times (FT) published article ‘Argentina’s IMF deal offers warning on emerging market debt’ by Gillian Tett The above clearly indicates that the framework of debt relief/restructure by bilateral countries of the Paris Club mainly is not of any significant use given the higher proportion of debt owed to China, and private creditors, as against the situation around a decade ago. For instance, a December 2, 2021 An International Monetary Fund (IMF) published article ‘The G20 common framework for debt treatments must be stepped up’ highlights this evolution of composition of debt of low-income countries, from where the ‘IMF chart’ has been referred from in the excerpt above.

As per the article, there is an urgent need to reform the G20 Debt Service Suspension Initiative

Khanewal lynching The lynching could only have been foreseen

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HE lynching of a man in Khanewal by a mob after he was taken out of the local Mian Channu police station showed complete breakdown of law and order and the failure of the justice system. The only thing on display here was not a devotion to the Holy Quran, whose desecration was supposed to be the crime committed, so much as the display of the complete bypassing of the state’s system of criminal justice in favour of mob justice. That the police are not trusted with the custody of someone accused of desecration shows that the police do not enjoy the trust of the citizenry. It is to be noted that the police is distrusted for all offences, being seen as both corrupt and inefficient.

The state has not been very helpful of late, with the way it has been mollycoddling extremist forces like the Tehreek Labbaik Pakistan, as well as the Tehreek Taliban Pakistan. This has merely sent the signal that the way to get things done is to do them oneself. It is unhelpful that the police is apparently willing, as it did in Mian Channu, to act as a silent spectator. Perhaps the Mian Channu police felt that they had succeeded, in avoiding the fate of the Charsadda police station which was burnt down in November by a mob trying to get hold of someone accused of the very crime of desecrating the Quran. However, the Charsadda police did not hand over the accused.

As in December, when a Sri Lankan factory manager was first killed by a mob over a blasphemy accusation in Sialkot, the authorities are busy looking busy doing nothing. The Khanewal police has arrested a large number of people, and both the Prime Minister and Chief Minister have issued statements making bloodcurdling threats against those guilty of the outrage. However, neither has said anything about any measure, as mentioned in the National Action Plan, about tackling extremism, or about creating trust in the criminal justice system. This silence ensures that the Mian Channu incident will most probably not be the last.

A dystopian mirror to ourselves

SarmaD Sattar “At the end of the day we are all human beans…”

A

LL living creatures except man are largely at the mercy of their surroundings. They live under conditions which are not of their making and which are but little changed by their efforts. No conscious purpose nor definite idea of progress is possible among them. They live in a world of nature and are controlled by its conditions, being unable to conquer it or to change their own destiny by their own deliberate actions.

Fast forward…

As many as 2960 major crimes ranging from child sexual abuse, abduction, missing children, and underage child marriages, children were reported in the four provinces, including the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT), Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) and Gilgit Baltistan (GB), in the year 2020. Women, religious minorities, and the transgender community continue to face violence, discrimination and persecution, continues. Media coverage gets impeded by

Arif Nizami (Late) Founding Editor

Yousaf Nizami M. A. Niazi

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Joint Editor

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Group of the Bretton Woods Committee titled ‘Debt Transparency: the essential starting point for successful reform’ aims to ‘(1) to examine the shortcomings of the current regime and (2) to lay out a road map regarding how to effect the needed changes in the international architecture for sovereign finance.’ The same article by Gillian Tett highlighted the policy prescription of this report as follows: ‘The Bretton Woods report argues that one crucial step would be for governments to create a unified, transparent database of their debts. It calls on rating agencies, multilateral banks and investors with environmental and social governance mandates to lobby for this. It also argues that the old Paris Club framework should be overhauled to give China a proper seat at the table. Finally, it calls for private sector lenders to be incorporated into negotiations at a much earlier stage.’

The challenge of debt for developing countries is increasing rapidly given the rising oil prices, increasing import bills significantly in many net-oil-importing developing countries like Pakistan, and monetary tightening increasing the already high burden of debt servicing. It is therefore important that on one hand, rich, advanced countries should provide greater debt relief/moratorium to developing countries, and on the other, the debt restructuring framework is reformed appropriately to allow for providing debt relief/restructuring properly.

The challenge of debt for developing countries is increasing rapidly given the rising oil prices, increasing import bills significantly in many net-oil-importing developing countries like Pakistan, and monetary tightening increasing the already high burden of debt servicing.

Just saying…

Dedicated to the legacy of late Hameed Nizami

Editor Aziz-ud-Din Ahmad

(DSSI), whereby it indicated ‘Recent experiences of Chad, Ethiopia, and Zambia show that the Common Framework for debt treatments beyond the DSSI must be improved. Quick action is needed to build confidence in the framework and provide a road map for helping other countries facing increasing debt vulnerabilities. …The G20 put in place the DSSI to temporarily pause official debt payments to the poorest countries, followed by the Common Framework to help these countries restructure their debt and deal with insolvency and protracted liquidity problems.’

With regard to the shortcomings of the Common Framework, an April 12, 2021 Project Syndicate (PS) published article ‘The G20’s missed opportunity’ pointed out as follows: ‘…the new Framework applies only to low-income countries. Many of these countries do indeed need relief, but so do highly indebted middle-income countries that have been hit hard by the pandemic. …

Moreover, the Framework deals with countries’ debt problems on a case-by-case basis, and thus fails to address the problem of lasting stigmatization of any country that avails itself of relief. …Finally, the Framework lacks a commitment by creditors and debtor countries alike to align newfound fiscal space with globally agreed climate and development goals.’

Hence, it is essential to reform the Common Framework, and some of the initiatives in this regard as pointed out in the same IMF published article are (a) bringing ‘greater clarity on the different steps and timelines in the Common Framework’, (b) introducing ‘a comprehensive and sustained debt service payment standstill for the duration of the negotiation… as well as incentivize faster procedures to get to the actual debt restructuring’, (c) to ‘clarify further how the comparability of treatment will be effectively enforced, including as needed through implementation of the IMF arrears policies, and (d) expanding the Common Framework ‘to other highly-indebted countries that can benefit from creditor coordination’.

A recent report by the Sovereign Debt Working

a climate of fear by both government authorities and militant groups. Pakistan ranks eighth among the ten countries that collectively hold 60 percent of substandard housing across the world. In most Pakistani cities, water is supplied only four to 16 hours per day and to only 50 percent of the populace.

At the same time, there are enduring woes of being trapped in low growth, decline in GDP per capita and slow economic recovery; disrupted food supply chains and rising food inflation coupled with a declining purchasing power; massive unemployment and many more people falling into poverty. Just saying…

We are all citizens of Islamic Republic of Pakistan—aren’t we? Article 260 of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, 1973, straightens out the deal for us — by defining the word ‘citizen’ to ameliorate my sense of insecurity, as “a citizen of Pakistan as defined by law”. Or the citizen that Mr Faisal Vawda claimed to be before the Election Commission of Pakistan. On 9 February, 2022, a threemember bench of the Election Commission of Pakistan, disqualified Mr Vawda perpetually on the footing of not qualifying for being sagacious, righteous, non-profligate, honest and ameen for a member of Majlis-e-Shoora (Parliament) as envisioned in Article 62 (1-f) of the Constitution.

It is a principle of national socialism, stated Hitler, that some things are beyond discussion. “Who dares with his small average brain” to discuss eternal values. These things are to be judged by the centuries, not by the “intellect of small ordinary beings”.

We all know nations that can be identified by the flight of writers from their shores. These are regimes whose fear of unmonitored writing is justified because truth is trouble. It is trouble for the warmonger, the torturer, the corporate thief, the political hack, the justice system, and for a comatose public.

“Some have God’s words; others have songs of comfort for the bereaved If I can pluck up courage here, I would like to speak directly to the dead” I am unable to decide whether its people truly want honesty and transparency or lies and corruption.

I think the majority of our people have chosen dis-

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The writer holds PhD in Economics degree from the University of Barcelona, and previously worked at International Monetary Fund.Prior to this, he did MSc. in Economics from the University of York (United Kingdom), and worked at the Ministry of Economic Affairs & Statistics (Pakistan), among other places. He is author of Springer published book (2016) ‘The economic impact of International Monetary Fund programmes: institutional quality, macroeconomic stabilization and economic growth’.He tweets @omerjaved7

honesty as a way of life. From the richest to the middle class to the poor, we live in hypocrisy, mendicity, and squalor. I think we prefer it this way. It’s almost an automatic reflex.

We do not love the truth in itself. For those of you who tell me this is true, I only know the environment in which I have lived in, which is Pakistan. No, I have not seen people like this anywhere else. Perhaps, this is because telling the truth, being moral or being good, is hard work. And we are not brave enough for that, this is a national character, this is how the world perceives us. We had a better face up to it, rather than hiding in denial. And the truth is, we are cowards as a nation. Perhaps, afraid of truth, afraid of hard work, afraid of consequences.

Each human being has tendencies towards corruption but in Pakistan, we indulge them, exploit them, instead of striving to overcome them. The political parties, scholars, intelligence agencies, and bureaucracy, do not create this culture of dishonesty but perhaps, they extract advantage from it. And nuclear might, and strong armies, and full coffers will not make us strong people.

We still have not faced up to ourselves so when you ask what’s wrong with Pakistan, realize that the sickness is within ourselves, each and every one of us. You students who chose to plagiarize and cheat, the problem lies with you. You men and women who enter into marriage and the false pretences, the problem lies with you.

You who look down on the poor while admiring the rich, the problem lies with you. You who allow religion to give you a sense of false complacency, the problem lies with you. You who transcribe your functions (socalled) “upon direction of the Federal Government” as envisaged in Article 245 of the Constitution, as you please, the problem lies with you. Your gods are flawed beings who you admire and worship, and your own selves. You will criticize and admonish your children, but never spend time with them, explaining what’s right and wrong, because the problem lies with you. You who objectify your children with E-Trons, and Maybachs, the problem lies with you.

We are the problem. Each and every person in Pakistan contributes to this system. The system that we own and disown on our own accord. We are the problem. And each person who says, “not me, I’m honest” is the biggest liar of all. Including myself.

The writer is a lawyer based in Lahore

Email: editorial@pakistantoday.com.pk

06-07 Comments - 14th February 2022_Layout 1 2/13/2022 10:57 PM Page 2

Monday, 14 February, 2022

COMMENT 07 Editor’s mail Send your letters to: Letters to Editor, Pakistan Today, 4-Shaarey Fatima Jinnah, Lahore, Pakistan.

E-mail: letters@pakistantoday.com.pk Letters should be addressed to Pakistan Today exclusively

Mandatory imposition of M-tag on the motorway AFTER the mandatory registration of M-tags for vehicles on the motorway, queues of unregistered vehicles which do not possess M-tags started forming as traffic police did not let the cars through.

According to reports, citizens are facing severe difficulties getting Mtag. Motorway police launched a crackdown on vehicles without M-tags, preventing vehicles without M-tags from entering the motorway. Queues have formed at the M-tag booths making it a hassle for those wanting to arrive at their destinations on time. While talking to the media, passengers said that there are long queues wherever they go, all the booths of the Lahore-Islamabad motorway are full of traffic and it takes 2 to 3 hours to apply for an M-tag. Passengers said, “Many people are in an emergency but are not allowed to pass without M-tag.” However, motorway authorities said that the main purpose of the change is to reduce the time wasted in several kilometre long queues at the toll plazas. It will also help digitize the whole process and make it a lot smoother.

MUHAMMAD AHSAN KAMAL RAwALpiNDi

Stable currency and economic growth

Foreign funding a complex phenomenon It must be watched closely

Dr abDuS Sattar abbaSi

A

N interesting history of foreign funding demands continuous vigilance and probably stringent regulations in certain areas. The current wave of discussions on foreign funding to a political party attracted the attention of the masses.

A penny of foreign funding whether it is political, developmental or academic, is inconceivable without an agenda. On the political front we witnessed both obvious and tacit foreign-funded campaigns and programmes for several political parties. An analysis of international dynamics and our history of relations with other countries clearly indicate that every nation acted in their own interest and played their part in exploiting the sentiments of masses through carefully designed funding programmes.

Almost every political party, whether on the right, left or centre, seems labelled a beneficiary of direct or indirect foreign funding and influence, including those who snatched power without being in any political party. Our partnership with international campaigns inside Afghanistan opened a huge corridor for other countries to openly fund political parties to toe their line which many times seemed appropriate to policymakers of the time but in the long run those proved detrimental. There is hardly any country, maybe except one, in our friendship list that missed any opportunity to damage our sovereignty through their accomplices in the country for their own strategic national interests.

International recognitions, titles, awards and associated prize money all are part of a specific design. In today’s open and global community we certainly cannot put embargoes on such instances. However, we can surely develop a programme to engage with such accomplished personalities and maybe organizations that are being recognized internationally to brief them on greater designs being part of such programmes. Historically we remained judgmental and disassociated with those who stayed little away from the mainstream and we intentionally or unintentionally started creating doubts about

their thoughts and activities.

We need to expand our horizon to accommodate every thought which emerges in our society, we should give due attention, listen to them carefully, try to resolve their concerns to the utmost possibility and publicise all such endeavours for the masses to determine appropriate dimensions.

It is all about acceptance at the grassroot level which provides breeding opportunities to ideas and thoughts. Genuine engagements melted several movements in recent history, so we must let people know about every thought which any faction of the society pursues but this awareness has to be through authentic and mainstream sources, not from purposely built infrastructures for communications with objectives or the kind of sponsored programmes and personalities which pollute even straight realities.

Let the market forces determine the appropriate course of events, but this can only happen when masses and these forces have access to all truths; partial information breeds confusion where actors with malicious intentions find space to implement their agenda. We witnessed several events in the recent past from the Iraq war to the campaign in Afghanistan where those initiated with the help of popular consensus and also terminated due to growing public opinion against these instances.

Now is the time where we cannot survive with narrow views about circumstances, we cannot hide realities from being public, we cannot mould opinions according to our desires, we can only engage with every thought, every viewpoint and every individual to find common ground and to provide appropriate solutions for all stakeholders.

Academic funding in terms of scholarships and projects are never introduced without plans.

Although these programmes are of great value for countries like Pakistan; beneficiaries get access to latest knowledge, technology trends, evolving thoughts and groomed infrastructures, but still we need to understand the deep-rooted agendas in these programmes. On the homepage of the Fulbright program it is clearly mentioned that one of the objectives of the program is mutual understanding between the USA and partner nations, these understandings are tacitly about creating advocates for the USA. We are quite familiar with the role of certain graduates of Russian scholarships. A report on the China Scholarship suggests, “Since the 2010s, U.S. officials have voiced concerns that the Chinese government may attempt to influence or exploit Chinese students on study abroad programs in its quest for foreign technology. Some Chinese student associations at U.S. universities have spoken out about the Chinese government’s efforts to provide unwanted “guidance.” However, in the first half of 2020, the U.S. Department of Justice charged several Chinese students with committing visa fraud and acting as agents of the People’s Republic of China. The extent to which the PRC government may attempt to influence Chinese students, by what means, and how to respond, remain the subjects of debate in the United States.” Although this report is about Chinese students studying in the USA, not about foreign students studying in China, it does highlight a grey area about academic funding.

It is mentioned on the website, “Chevening supports British foreign policy priorities”. Erasmus declares through a website that strengthening European identity is the objective of the programme. I am personally an advocate of sending our students and academicians to developed nations including China through available scholarship programmes to attain latest knowledge, because historically such programmes resulted in the transfer of knowledge from developed to less developed nations. But it doesn’t mean that we remain inattentive to this front. Our relevant bodies, including the HEC, should have a well-designed programme to listen to all beneficiaries of these programmes and help them align their intellectual attainments for the development of Pakistan through strategic interventions.

Influence of the development sector in developing countries through NGOs, big international charities, social movements and other international organizations is not a hidden fact for many of us. But still we cannot undermine the importance of advocacy, lobbying, rehabilitation and development projects for less privileged segments of the society. Environmental protection, education and awareness of rights, rule of law, freedom and inclusion are indeed important aspects for the development of the society.

However, incidences such as DNA sampling through an NGO do shake the trust on projects funded by the NGOs. Government has already initiated several precautionary measures and generally now people are quite aware of the role of NGOs and other such institutions, therefore, it is also important to provide space to those development sector players who really desire to contribute to the economic, cultural and social uplift of the nation.

There is a huge responsibility on political parties to remain transparent in terms of the funding they receive, especially from overseas.

It is probably true of all parties that they collect funds from expatriates on a regular basis, which I think is not unlawful at all. But political parties should remain vigilant to avoid any trap under this cover. It is the responsibility of the state to channelize all funding extended to any party, even being aligned with national policies, as happened frequently in the past, to avoid complications in the future.

Once international donors have direct access to any party in the country, then it becomes difficult even for the state to stop the flow of funds. Hidden funding or open acceptance of foreign support certainly needs strong attention from law enforcement agencies to stop external interventions.

We being a multi-ethnic and multi-sectarian society, conveniently provide opportunities to probably every plotter on this planet to pursue his or her designs. Therefore it is required to promote rule of law, equal opportunity, equitable progress and nationhood, to include every stakeholder of the society to reap the benefits of peaceful and prosperous Pakistan.

The writer is Associate Professor Management Sciences and Head, Center of Islamic Finance, COMSATS University (CUI) Lahore Campus, and can be reached at drabdussattar@cuilahore.edu.pk

A stable currency is very important to achieve real economic growth for any country in the world. It appears that our honourable Prime Minister, Mr Imran Khan does not understand this economic matter in the real sense because he is a cricketer turned politician.

Pakistan Rupee has depreciated about 45% during the last three and a half years since Imran Khan came into power in the August of the year 2018. The exchange rate of Pak Rupee was Rs 120 = 1 US$ in August 2018 which is now Rs. 175= 1 US$. Forty-five percent of the depreciation of its currency is an economic disaster for any country. When a currency is depreciating and has a weaker outlook, the investment stops coming from abroad. A country like ours can’t achieve real economic growth without foreign investment. Secondly, a devaluation tends to cause inflation especially in our country which has huge imports of goods.

Since we have very sizeable imported contents in our consumption, the prices of goods and services increase immediately after devaluation making the life of a common man very difficult. Theoretically, devaluation should result in an increased demand for exports because our exports become cheaper abroad for the foreign buyers but we don’t get any noticeable increase in our exports after devaluation because we don’t have any significant exportable surplus.

On the contrary, we make a loss in a real sense as our exporters are asked by the foreign buyers to reduce the prices of goods in US $ because our exporters get more Rupees of their export proceeds of US Dollars after devaluation. In view of the above, I suggest to the honourable Prime Minister, Finance Minister and Governor of State Bank of Pakistan to take necessary steps stabilise Pak Rupee and stop it from further devaluation.

EJAZ AHMAD MAGOON LAHORE

Heart disease in Pakistan AT present, approximately 2380 deaths worldwide are caused by heart attacks every year. In the coronary heart attack deaths, Pakistan is ranked 18 out of 183 countries of the world according to global health rankings.

In a conference, Dr Naeem Malik, chairman of the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences, said that 47 people die of heart attack every hour in Pakistan. According to cardiologists, the main cause of heart diseases is high blood pressure, smoking, and non-exercise. According to a global report, 17 million deaths occur every year in the world, and 19% of deaths in Pakistan are due to heart attacks, which has reached 29%.

Medical experts should immediately investigate this as part of their research paper, that What are the causes of the spread of the disease, which has been increasing rapidly every year. In Pakistan, The National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases (NICVD) has been gaining worldwide recognition for the establishment of satellite centres in every district of Sindh with all free treatment of heart diseases. NICVD is the first and largest flagship institute of heart diseases in Asia. The government of Pakistan should expand free heart care services overall the country by establishing medical institutions same as NICVD as well as providing information on prevention and treatment of this alarming disease through social awareness campaigns for healthy diet and lifestyle in the public. iMDAD JAMALi KARAcHi

Guns and butter ALL over the world, countries are spending an exorbitant amount of money on national security, while spending on human welfare is declining.

Millions of children are out of school in Pakistan because our government does not spend as many resources on the education sector.

The United States, whose GDP is very high, also ranks low in nonmilitary measures of human security indexes. Military-industrial complexes are lobbying congress to increase defence spending. One case in point is the difficulty that Joe Biden’s government faces in trying to get its “build back better bill” passed. Arms exports to countries with human rights problems e.g Saudi Arabia, UAE is fueling more war and misery in Yemen, Syria, etc.

In Afghanistan, many people are facing food insecurity as the world spends hundreds of thousands of dollars per minute on military preparations. The number of people seeking refuge in developed countries has increased. Recently a stand-off between refugees and police at Poland and Belarus border is a testimony to human suffering. In Pakistan, poverty causes many people to join extremist outfits.

Youth bulge in pakistan may cause havoc if unemployment, inflation, poverty, etcetera is not controlled. Every rupee spent on national security is a rupee not available for children education, human welfare, and other development projects. All over the world the frustration is rising. People want basic facilities and a high standard of living.

HALEEMA SADiA KALLAR SyEDAN

08 WORLD VIEW 14th February 22_Layout 1 2/13/2022 9:13 PM Page 1

Monday, 14 February, 2022

08 WORLD VIEW

How tHe Hindutva project is trying to reconfigure indian MusliM identity – and wHy it will falter IT IS ATTEMPTING TO CREATE A DISJUNCT BETWEEN MUSLIM BELIEF AND THE MUSLIM FAITH

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tion and, now even the individual – the Muslim woman.

It is the consequence of the pursuit of muscular Hindutva in the secular constitutional democracy of India.

For most people, “faith” and “belief” are synonymous terms. However, technically speaking, faith is concerned with knowledge and action, while belief represents a firm conviction. As part of religion, both faith and belief coincide to give meaning to the lives of adherents.

NizamuddiN ahmad Siddiqui

c

oLUMNIST Mukul Kesavan recently noted in The Telegraph that “a Muslim citizen’s default state is a state of culpability”. He is perfectly correct. Hate against Muslim citizens is strikingly evident in India’s social and public spaces. It is not limited just to the politicians’ speeches: it is visible in the everyday life of the citizenry.

A cursory glance shows that almost every facet of a Muslim citizen’s social life has been menaced: food, clothing, family, social interactions, political participa-

CREATING A DISJUNCT: What is happening in India is a deliberate attempt to create a disjunct between Muslim belief and the Muslim faith at the behest of the state. The constant attacks on Muslim citizens participating in the public space is not an attack on the fundamentals of Islam.

Rather, it is an attack on how Islam is understood and practised by its followers in their lives as citizens of India.

This is nothing short of an attempt to prise faith away from its foundational belief – to say that Muslims may believe whatever they want to, but still have to put their faith in what they are asked to say or do.

The Hindutva attack operates at two levels. It pre-

vents the manifestation of the Muslim religious identity in public space. Alongside, it also attempts to co-opt and transform this religious identity into a neo-cultural identity dictated by Hindutva ideals.

As part of this plan, the social manifestation of Muslim belief is intended to be replaced by a more robust, Hindutva faith, projecting all Indian Muslims as forced converts from their imaginary Hindu origins.

The intended effect is to emphasize that no Muslim should feel confident to participate in public spaces merely on account of her personal and community-level attachment to their faith, especially with Allah, the Supreme Being. She should not have the temerity to shout “Allahu Akbar”, even when under siege. She should instead feel proud about her alleged Hindu past, a past that is imagined along Hindutva lines.

FLAWED INTERPRETATION: The Hindutva interpretation of the Muslim faith, its belief-system and the practice of its followers, is deeply flawed. It is as flawed as the strict liberal understanding of the religion – rooted

in individual interpretations of the belief system, and lacking the requirement of collective ideals and identity.

Islam is a religion of praxis: the theory is as important as its practice. It is difficult to dissociate Muslim belief from its social context – the Muslim faith. It is also difficult to re-situate its praxis exclusively in some other collective like nationality or even the cultural rootedness of some other historical identity.

A Muslim individual must carry a Muslim identity in addition to whatever other identity she might choose to adopt – she could be an Indian who is a Muslim, a doctor or a teacher who is a Muslim or a student who is also a Muslim.

The hijab controversy in India truly demonstrates this aspect of the identity debate. When Muslim girls come to college in hijab, they do so believing that they can be several things at the same time – Indians, Muslims and students. However, when Hindutva groups challenge these young women, they do so with the intention of disassociating Muslim faith from Muslim belief, and then to replace it with an identity that is completely alien to these women.

While these Muslim women easily wear the identity of being secular Indians, the push for a muscular rightwing liberal one will face resistance. That was evident from the protests against the anti-Muslim Citizenship Amendment Act. That’s a lesson we must all take home.

Nizamuddin Ahmad Siddiqui is an assistant professor of law, Crescent School of Law, Chennai.

why Biden needs new policy advisers on russia BIDEN HAS CALLED PUTIN A “KILLER,” SHOWING LITTLE REGARD FOR EITHER FACT OR DIPLOMATIC NORMS

RT Scott RitteR

j

oe Biden’s current crop of senior policy aides, led by Secretary of State Antony Blinken and National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, have helped create one of the most significant foreign policy crises in modern history. It’s time for a new slate of advisers.

Despite having served on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee for decades, US President Joe Biden is not an expert on Russia. His Senate experience, which includes providing critical support for NATo expansion, when combined with the leading role he played in managing Ukraine policy under the administration of President Barack obama, have slanted Biden’s world view of Russia, married as it is to the very policies that Moscow is currently challenging. Biden shared a worldview with fellow Senate hawk John McCain, who once quipped that “Russia is a gas station masquerading as a country,” clearly not understanding just how important a gas station is to economies dependent upon fossil fuels for their very survival. Biden has called Putin a “killer,” showing little regard for either fact or diplomatic norms.

But perhaps the most egregious display of the lack of fundamental appreciation Biden has regarding Russia and its role in global geopolitics is comments made by the US president to the press following his June 17, 2021 meeting with Putin in Geneva. He was asked if he had taken away anything from his talks with the Russian president that indicated, as the reporter put it, “that Mr. Putin has decided to move away from his fundamental role as a disrupter, particularly a disrupter of NATo and the United States?” Biden responded with an answer that underscores just how little he understands of Russia, Russian policy, and the geopolitical realities of the present day.

“I think that the last thing he [Putin] wants now is a Cold War. Without quoting him – which I don’t think is appropriate – let me ask a rhetorical question: You got a multi-thousand-mile border with China. China is moving ahead, hellbent on election, as they say, seeking to be the most powerful economy in the world and the largest and the most powerful military in the world.

You’re in a situation where your economy is struggling, you need to move it in a more aggressive way, in terms of growing it. And you – I don’t think he’s looking for a Cold War with the United States,” Biden said.

Less than eight months later, it is the United States that stands accused of pursuing a “Cold War” agenda, one that has brought Beijing and Moscow together in unprecedented fashion, united by the perceived threat posed by the US and its allies. Ina comprehensive joint statement issued following the meeting between Putin and Xi Jinping in Beijing on Friday, Russia and China

called on all states “to protect the United Nations-driven international architecture and the international law-based world order” as opposed to the “rules-based international order” being promulgated by the Biden administration. This is a shot across the bow of the US and its allies, informing them that their continued efforts to breathe relevance into archaic structures imposed on the world in the aftermath of the Second World War will not go unchallenged.

President Biden is facing a new policy debacle, one that has massive geopolitical consequences. The US cannot afford to emerge from the current situation having had its bluff called by both Russia and China; nor can it prevail by going all in, initiating a conflict where neither it nor its allies are positioned to prevail.

As the principal architects of the “rules-based international order” posture that dominates US foreign policy today, neither Biden nor his two principle foreign policy advisers, Blinken and Sullivan, are either ideologically or intellectually capable of changing course, preferring to run the ship of state aground in defense of their so-called “principles.”

All three individuals have had their global vision vis-a-vis the US and Russia shaped by a collective of ersatz Russian experts, led by the likes of Michael McFaul, Anne Applebaum, Susan Glasser, Masha Gessen, Steven Hall, John Sipher, and their ilk – people whose ignorance of the reality of Russia is only surpassed by their singular focus on the person of the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, as the personification of evil.

Any influence such individuals – former diplomats, academics, intellectuals, and spies – have on current policy formulation and implementation, however, is indirect; none of them have a seat in the rarified air of policy formulation and implementation as directed from within the White House.

If the US is to have any hope of being able to emerge from its current policy journey with an outcome that differs from the fate enjoyed by the Titanic, it will need a cohort of genuine Russian experts who have the access necessary to advise the president at a time and place that makes such advice a part of the deliberations that occur before policy is acted on. Any such counsel, if previously offered, was disregarded in favor of the “rules-based international order” focus being marketed

by Biden, Blinken, and Sullivan. At some point, however, Joe Biden as the chief executive must realize he is promulgating failed concepts. While it might be too much of an ask to have him cashier the architects of this policy debacle, the president would do well to raise the stature, so to speak, of the few voices of reason that are part of his inner circle.

For anyone hoping that the US military establishment would rise to the occasion, guess again. There was a time when US general officers were schooled in the art of combined arms warfare as practiced in europe against a Soviet-style enemy; those days are gone.

The current crop of generals, led by Mark Milley, have made a career out of fighting (and losing) low-intensity conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan and, in the process, overseeing the transformation of the US military from a world-class fighting force to a bloated edifice unable to meaningfully project power into anything other than permissive counterinsurgency conflicts. Milley’s “feel” for large-scale conventional conflict is purely theoretical, as reflected in his recent briefing to Congress about his assessment of alleged Russian invasion plans regarding Ukraine.

There was a time when the US military produced the finest Russian Foreign Area officers (FAos) imag-

inable, experts on Russian language and culture who were able to provide sound advice to senior policy makers, military and civilian alike. These officers were well-grounded in the realities of what war with Russia (back then, the Soviet Union) could entail, having served several tours in combat and combat support units that were focused on just that task. The training was more than just academic – these officers went on to serve in utilization tours that put them on the frontline of the Cold War, either at the US Military Liaison Mission in Potsdam, east Germany, where they kept close tabs of the Soviet Group of Forces, Germany, or as military attaches in Moscow or other Warsaw Pact capital cities. The pinnacle of the FAo experience was to be assigned as the defense attache in Moscow. Here, one oversaw intelligence collection in support of national security objectives and provided direct advice to the US ambassador, the joint chiefs of staff, and the White House.

Today, the Russian-eurasian Foreign Area officer program is but a shadow of its former self, producing officers who are more political than military. Alexander Vindman, an Army eurasian FAo who testified during the first impeachment hearings against then-President Donald Trump, is an example. So, too, is Brittany Stewart, the military attache to the US embassy in Kiev who, during a tour of the Donbass region, was photographed wearing a patch bearing the “Ukraine or Death” skull insignia of a Ukrainian brigade. So shallow is the field of available expertise that the current defense attache to Moscow, Rear Admiral Philip Yu, is a China FAo with virtually no experience in US-Russian military affairs.

Contrast this with the defense attache assigned to Moscow during the August 1991 coup, Army Brigadier General Gregory Govan. He had served two tours of duty in Potsdam, and three total tours of duty in Moscow as an attache. When either the US ambassador or senior policy makers in Washington, DC had questions about the Soviet military, they picked up the phone and called a genuine expert. Moreover, Govan was no ideologue – his article on the “Spirit of Torgau” captured his deep appreciation of history and culture which made his advice more powerful.

Defense attaches are but one part of a larger diplomatic presence run out of the US embassy in Moscow that is overseen by the ambassador. During Govan’s tenure, the US ambassador was Jack Matlock, a career diplomat and one of the most experienced and knowledgeable Russian experts in the State Department.

Admiral Yu, by contrast, reports to John Sullivan, a political appointee under Donald Trump with significant government experience, primarily as a lawyer, but no real expertise on Russia. In short, at one of the critical moments in US-Russian history, Washington has a politically appointed lawyer as ambassador, advised by a naval officer whose specialty is China. Recognizing the political role played by ambassadors, the State Department backstops them with career foreign service officers who serve as the Deputy Chief of Mission (DCM). Jack Matlock’s DCM was James Collins, like Matlock a top-level Russian expert. Sullivan’s DCM is Bartle Gorman, whose background is diplomatic security.

With the US embassy in Moscow unable to provide anything more substantive than a current events update, and the Joint Chiefs of Staff, secretary of state, and national security adviser trapped in their own ideological prison, the burden of providing genuine expertise on matters pertaining to Russia falls on the shoulders of

three individuals – Victoria Nuland, the undersecretary for political affairs; eric Green, the special assistant to the president and senior director for Russia and Central Asia on the National Security Council; and William Burns, the director of the Central Intelligence Agency.

While Nuland’s credentials are not to be scoffed at – she has served as a diplomat for more than three decades, during which she acquired solid expertise in european, NATo, and Russian affairs – her role in the 2014 Maidan revolution has limited her utility as someone able to interface with her Russian counterparts effectively and, as such, diminishes her functionality as an adviser. Moreover, Nuland is cut from the same ideological cloth as Antony Blinken and Jake Sullivan. Her utility in terms of being able to guide Joe Biden away from a potential conflict with Russia is, at best, indirect – because she so closely mimics the policy positions of Blinken and Sullivan, her advice is muted. one source of potential policy dissent is eric Green, a career foreign service officer possessing considerable experience in Russian affairs, including as the State Department’s director, office of Russian Affairs, Bureau of european and eurasian Affairs, and the ministercounselor for political affairs at the US embassy in Moscow. Green already has the ear of the president, having sat in on every phone call between Biden and Putin, as well as being present during the June 2021 Geneva Summit. ostensibly Jake Sullivan’s subordinate, Green’s ability to provide advice about potential diplomatic off-ramps regarding the current crisis is real, as is the balance he can provide given the non-political nature of his service history.

The person with the greatest potential to alter the course of the Biden administration’s suicidal Russia policy is, titularly speaking, the least qualified: William Burns, the director of the CIA. However, Burns possesses a resume that is more conducive to back-channel diplomacy than covert operations. Indeed, the title of his 2019 memoir as a diplomat, ‘The Back Channel: A Memoir of American Diplomacy and the Case for Its Renewal’, is self-explanatory in this regard. Biden has already made use of Burns’ service, dispatching the CIA director to Moscow in November 2021 to help dampen down tension between the two nations.

Confronted with a looming policy disaster which threatens to undermine US relations with NATo, europe, and the world at a time when his administration seeks to assert the perception, if not reality, of leadership, it is likely that President Biden will be turning more and more to William Burns to fix the problems created by the incompetence of his secretary of state and national security adviser. Burns may very well find that he is ably backstopped at the National Security Council by eric Green, whose expertise should supplant the ideological approach taken to date by Jake Sullivan.

Whether Joe Biden will avail himself of the expertise of Burns and Green is yet to be seen. one thing is certain – the journey on which the US is being taken on the advice of Blinken and Sullivan can only lead to embarrassment and ruin. Hopefully President Biden is wise enough to recognize this and bring in those who can help find a diplomatic path towards peace.

Scott Ritter is a former US Marine Corps intelligence officer and author of ‘SCORPION KING: America’s Suicidal Embrace of Nuclear Weapons from FDR to Trump.’ He served in the Soviet Union as an inspector implementing the INF Treaty, in General Schwarzkopf’s staff during the Gulf War, and from 19911998 as a UN weapons inspector.

Monday, 14 February, 2022 | LAHORE

NEWS

corporate corner AIou closes admissions for MS/ M.Phil and PhD programs today ISLAMABAD: Allama Iqbal Open University (AIOU) has set February 14 (Monday) as the last day for admission in the programs offered in the spring 2022 semester including PhD, MS/M Phil, M.Sc Hons and BS (face to face programs). Admission forms and prospectuses for these programs are available on the University's website.

Students can apply through online mode only. Admission in BS programs will be given purely on merit basis. It is necessary to pass the entry test to get admission in M.Sc Hons, MS/M.Phil and PhD. Entry tests are scheduled to be held from 17th to 24th February. The first merit list will be displayed on the website on February 25 whereas the fee submission deadline is March 3. The second merit list will be uploaded on March 4 and the last date for fee submission will be March 11. Special care will be taken for transparency. It is pertinent to mention here that admissions in Matric, FA and I.Com will continue till February 22. Students have the facility to apply manually or through online mode in these programs. In case of online application, it will not be necessary to send the printed admission form to the university. pr

PoWer SuSPenSIon SCHeDule According to Islamabad Electric Supply Company (IESCO)’s spokesman, System Maintenance/Development Work is in process. Therefore power supply of below mentioned feeders/areas will be temporary suspended as per given schedule: On 14th February, From 09:00 AM to 02:00 PM, Adhi, Chatta Bakhtawar, Ghauri Garden, Suhdran Road, Khanna-II, Al-Noor Colony-II, Khanna East, Khanna Dak, Azad Shaheed, New Waheedabad, Burma, Dharek, Kohsar Valley. Brahma, Bahtar, Malhwali, Vani, Kharpa, City, Maniwala, Zeeshan Colony, Lakho, Lohi Bhair, Sohdran, G9/2, Police Line, Falcon, Jinnah Camp, Noor Muhammad, Al Noor Colony, Kurry Road, Khurram Colony. Muslim Town, Shahpur, Rahara, PHA-1, Bahria Enclave, Treat Feeders, From 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., Lilla Town, Ahmedabad, Safdar Shaheed, Sanghoi, Nathwala feeders and surroundings will remain off. IESCO management apologizes to its esteemed customers for the power outage. If the work is completed ahead of time, the power supply can be restored even before the scheduled time. pr

CHInA to HelP eStAblISH SeZS In PAKIStAn: SHAuKAt tArIn ISLAMABAD

M

Mian abrar

INISTeR for Finance Shaukat Tarin has said that China will support the establishment of special economic zones (SeZs) in Pakistan.

Speaking at the event chaired by Prime Minister Imran Khan to interact with former ambassadors and representatives of think tanks on Sunday, the finance minister said that China has helped in building infrastructure and connectivity projects under the ChinaPakistan economic Corridor (CPeC) and now they would support the establishment of SeZs, so that trickle-down effects can be fully reaped.

Speaking on the occasion, Foreign Minister Makhdoom Shah Mahmood Qureshi said that the prime minister’s meeting with President XI was marked with great outstanding. The clarity he witnessed over such meetings had not happened in the past which is another

encouraging sign, he added.

The foreign minister further said the leadership of the two countries conveyed clear messages over the core issues. They removed certain concerns over the CPeC projects which were not based upon facts. The spoilers against

CPeC had been playing their negative parts, he added.

On the Afghanistan issue, Pakistan and China shared unanimous views, Qureshi said, adding as there had been close coordination and collaboration between the two countries.

Buzdar says ‘govt is fulfilling promises made with South Punjab’

ICt Police appeals citizen to cooperate with police against kite flying ISLAMABAD: Islamabad police on Sunday appealed citizen to cooperate with police against kite flying and made the life of citizen secure. According to details, Islamabad Police has started a massive campaign against kite flying and selling in the capital. Following the orders of the Inspector General of Police Islamabad Muhammad Ahsan Younas, a Khanna police team headed by SHO arrested two kite dealers namely Abdul Rauf and Abdul Raees and recovered 7000 kites and 700 strings. The Police said that kite flying was a dangerous and can ruin someone's precious life. "Many youngsters had lost their lives by falling from rooftops while flying kites. Police also advised the citizens to avoid kite flying also guide their children to stay away from this harmful play. Parents were asked to keep eye on their children and stopped them from this dangerous practice. “It was the responsibility of the masses to be vigilant and keep eyes around and if anyone involved in this crime, police should be approach and informed” police spokesperson said. He said precious life can be saved through cooperation of masses in this regard. "Islamabad Police is taking every possible step to save the lives and property of its citizens", he added. pr

Punjab CM Sardar Usman Buzdar said on Saturday that the promises made with the people of South Punjab are being fulfilled.

Buzdar while discussing the political situation and development issues of the region with federal Minister Makhdum Khusro Bakhtyar, MNA from Layyah Malik Niaz Ahmad Jakhar and MPAs Shahabuddin and Lala Muhammad Tahir.

The CM also said that the Naya Pakistan Qaumi Sehat Card is providing free treatment facilities to the people of Layyah and Dera Ghazi Khan He said funds of Rs200 billion allocated for South

Punjab had been ring-fenced and the development projects of the region Southern Punjab would be completed from the amount.

The secretaries of the South Punjab Secretariat have been empowered for development and financial matters, he added. The setting up of South Punjab Secretariat in Multan will benefit the people of the entire area, including Layyah.

CM Buzdar said major projects in the region would be completed on a priority basis in a transparent manner. Nishtar Hospital-II in Multan will soon be opened, which will benefit the people of Layyah and

other adjoining areas.

A 200-bed hospital will be established in Layyah. Federal Minister Khusro Bakhtyar lauded the CM’s vision of composite development for South Punjab. MNA Niaz Ahmad Jakhar said the District Development Package would change the destiny of backward areas.

Minister of State Sahibzada Muhammad Mehboob Sultan, MNA Ghulam Bibi Bherwana and MPA Shehbaz Ahmed also called on the chief minister.

Matters regarding ongoing development projects in the constituencies of the leaders came under discussion during the meeting. The chief minister said the government was making serious efforts to solve the people’s problem with the consultation of public representatives.

He went in to state that the nation had expressed complete and unshaken confidence over Prime Minister Imran Khan. He said corrupt elements stood nowhere in comparison to honest leadership.

The chief minister said the opposition’s conspiracies against the government had failed in the past and would meet the same fate in future as well. news desk

Shahid Khaqan Abbasi says ‘PTI MPs waiting for signals to jump ship PML-N leader and former premier Shahid Khaqan Abbasi has claimed that over 22 MNAs belonging to the ruling party were willing to pedal into the folds of the opposition but would not do so as long as the “state” backed the incumbent government — a tacit reference to the “establishment”.

The former premier’s claim has snowballed into controversy and is likely to seed grounds for another searing chapter of a political slugfest as the opposition is already engaged in meetings with the coalition partners in efforts to buttress its force against the government.

The claim elicited a rebuttal from the cabinet ministers as well as Speaker National Assembly Asad Qaiser, challenging the PML-N leadership to reveal the names of PTI members allegedly in contact with the opposition.

Asked what was keeping the lawmakers from making a final decision, Abbasi stated that the lawmakers were waiting for “clear signals” that there will be no pressure on them from the powers that be if they move ahead.

The PML-N leader said that “they do

09

not have specific demands, but they would definitely want a continuation of their politics” – apparently a hint that they might ask for PML-N’s ticket in their respective constituencies in the next general elections.

Abbasi added that they have stated

their ideology: “As long as the state is with the government, they [lawmakers] are with the government.” The leader replied in affirmative when asked if he meant “establishment” when he used the word “state” and if the 22 lawmakers

would jump the ship only when there was no pressure on them from the powers that be.

“Yes,” he said. The request to name the lawmakers met with a smiling emoji and two words: “PTI MNAs.” However, the government has vehemently denied the possibility of defection and rather insisted that the scenario was quite the contrary.

Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Fawad Chaudhry, reacting to Abbasi’s claims, maintained that “the political status of those who will be leaving Prime Minister Imran Khan will be doomed and their stature will eventually become zero in eyes of the public”.

The government’s spokesperson claimed that hardly a single person would leave the party that has ended the hereditary politics of PPP and PML-N in Pakistan. Instead, the minister said, people would join PTI in droves in the upcoming days.

To a question about the government’s coalition partners, the minister had said that every political party took decisions that suited their political interests. news desk

Furthermore, they had agreed over a future roadmap. A meeting of Afghanistan’s immediate neighbours, besides a trilateral meeting of Pakistan, China and Afghanistan would be soon convened to expedite efforts to avert humanitarian crises in Afghanistan.

Minister for Information and Broadcasting Fawad Chaudhry comparing the number of CPeC projects under the incumbent governments with the previous one, said now the number of working groups had been increased to 11, they had completed 7 projects in the last three years besides, a completion of 453kms of roads projects was achieved. A further investment of $3.45 billion had been made.

He further said that 3 new projects had been added, the power generation stood around 3340 MW in 2018 which had now increased to 5864 MW during the last three and half years. Not a single transmission line was added by the previous government, but they had installed 880 kms new transmission lines, he added.

22m families registered for health cards: SAPM Hassan Khawar After inspecting medical facilities under the NPNHC at a private hospital on Saturday, Special Assistant to the CM on Information Hassaan Khawar said it is the biggest health insurance program being rolled out in South Asia. He further revealed that as many as 22 million families have been registered across Punjab under the Naya Pakistan National Health Card (NPNHC) programme which has been started with an estimated cost of Rs400 billion. So far around 64,000 hospital beds have been enlisted for the schemes in 593 hospitals out of which 70% are public hospitals. It is one of its kind social welfare program in the world. PM Imran Khan has fulfilled its promise by providing the same healthcare facilities to rich and poor and proved that better distribution of resources could produce wonders, he added. news desk

Pakistan to send 50,000 tonnes of Indian wheat to Afghanistan on February 22 Pakistan and India have finalised matters to supply wheat and medical aid to Afghanistan to help it fight the ongoing humanitarian crisis. The process of transporting 50,000 tonnes of Indian wheat to Afghanistan via Pakistan will start February 22. Pakistan and India had been engaged in talks over wheat transportation for the last three months, diplomatic sources said. However, the issues were hammered out after long discussions despite India’s dillydallying of the matter, making the differences on the mechanism a base, the publication reported. Pakistan did not accept the Indian condition of using Indian trucks to carry the wheat so the countries agreed to do the transportation in Afghan trucks. India handed over a list of 60 Afghan trucks and their drivers and said that they would start supplying wheat from February 22. The aid will be transported to Jalalabad through Torkham Border, where it would be handed over to World Food Programme. Pakistan has made it clear to India that it was facilitating the transportation only because of the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan therefore it should not be taken as a precedent to sending other items into Afghanistan. news desk

Monday, 14 February, 2022 | LAHORE

10 FOREIGN NEWS

RUSSiA SlAmS U.S. ‘HyStERiA’ AboUt ‘imminEnt invASion’ oF UkRAinE

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MIAn ABRAR

HE Kremlin has said a phone call between Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Joe Biden on Saturday took place against a backdrop of “hysteria” in the West about “absurd” claims of a looming Russian invasion of Ukraine.

In a briefing with reporters, Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov described the call as business-like, and said Biden had asked for the call to take place on Saturday as a result of the rising hysteria.

“Biden predictably mentioned possible tough anti-Russian sanc-

tions in the context of the tense situation around Ukraine, but that was not the focus of his rather lengthy conversation with the Russian leader,” Ushakov said.

Biden and Putin spoke by phone amid escalated tensions along the Ukrainian-Russian borders. Russia has repeatedly denied any plan to attack Ukraine and accused the West of fueling tensions.

Ushakov said Biden laid out a number of considerations to address the array of security demands that Russia made of the West late last year, including a veto on Ukraine ever joining NATO. “I will immediately note that

the Russian president reacted in the spirit that the Russian side would carefully analyze the considerations expressed by Biden and would undoubtedly take them into account,” the Kremlin official said.

“But unfortunately, and this was said, these considerations do not touch upon the central, key elements of Russian initiatives,” he added.

Ushakov said Biden’s ideas largely repeated the ideas set out in the U.S. and NATO counter-proposals to Russia’s security demands that were handed over on January 26.

He said Russia had practically finished drawing up its response to those counterproposals and would announce them soon.

Putin told Biden he thought the West was not putting enough pres-

sure on Ukraine to implement the Minsk peace agreements on the conflict in east Ukraine, Ushakov said.

U.S. President Joe Biden speaks on the phone with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Thurmont, Maryland, U.S., February 12, 2022.

The U.S. president warned that Russia will face “swift and severe costs” if its troops carry out an “invasion.”

“If Russia undertakes a further invasion of Ukraine, the United States together with our allies and partners will respond decisively and impose swift and severe costs on Russia,” Biden told Putin, according to the White House.

While the United States was prepared to engage in diplomacy, “we are equally prepared for other

scenarios,” Biden said.

A senior U.S. official told reporters that the call was “professional and substantive” but produced “no fundamental change” in dynamics.

Putin also had a phone conversation with French President Emmanuel Macron on Saturday.

The Russian leader slammed Western claims about an imminent invasion of Ukraine, calling the idea “provocative speculation” that could lead to a conflict in Ukraine.

Meanwhile, the Russian Defense Ministry said on Saturday that a Russian anti-submarine destroyer chased off a U.S. submarine near the Kuril Islands in the northern Pacific, forcing it to leave the country’s territorial waters.

The ministry said it had summoned the U.S. defense attache in

Moscow over the incident. The U.S. military denied having conducted military operations in Russian territorial waters.

Russia in December sent a draft agreement to NATO and a draft treaty to the U.S. both on security guarantees in Europe for the Western countries to consider.

Moscow has asked Washington to prevent further eastward expansion of NATO and deny NATO membership to Ukraine. Russia has also demanded that the U.S. and NATO not deploy offensive weapons in its neighboring countries.

In a joint statement issued by China and Russia earlier this month, the two countries voiced opposition to further expansion of NATO and urged the bloc to discard Cold-War ideology.

Himalaya yogi ran India’s top stock exchange as puppet master, regulator says AgencIes

Ukraine sees no point closing airspace amid Russia tension: official AgencIes Ukraine sees no point closing its airspace amid the tensions with Moscow, a senior Ukrainian official said on Sunday, after the United States warned that Russia could invade the eastern European nation at any time.Dutch carrier KLM said it would stop flying to Ukraine and Germany’s Lufthansa said it was considering suspending flights. Ukraine’s SkyUp said on Sunday it had to divert one flight after the owner of the leased aircraft barred it from entering Ukrainian airspace. “The most important point is that Ukraine itself sees no point in closing the sky. This is nonsense. And, in my opinion, it somewhat resembles a kind of partial blockade,” said Mykhailo Podolyak, an adviser to Ukrainian president’s chief of staff. “If particular air carriers decide to reconfigure the flight schedule, this certainly has nothing to do with the decisions or policies of our state,” he told Reuters. The United States, its Western allies and other nations have been scaling back or evacuating embassy staff and have advised their citizens not to travel to Ukraine amid the standoff. Washington says the Russian military, which has more than 100,000 troops massed near Ukraine, could invade at any moment.

Moscow denies having any such plan and has described such warnings as “hysteria”. At Kyiv’s Borispil Airport, the largest in Ukraine, there was little sign on Saturday of an exodus. Oksana Yurchenko was travelling back to Australia with her child. “We were visiting our family here in Ukraine. We were planning to stay a bit longer but this situation is a bit scary,” the chef and a beauty salon owner said. Australia has advised its citizens to leave Ukraine and said on Sunday it was evacuating its embassy. Ricky, a Scotsman who lives in Ukraine, said he saw no sign of public anxiety on the streets. “I do not see anyone in fear in Ukraine, everyone is just getting on with their life,” he said at the airport as he waited for a flight to go on holiday. Ukraine’s SkyUp said in a statement that one of its planes, carrying 175 passengers from Portugal, had to land in Moldova on Saturday instead of continuing to Ukraine after the Ireland-based owner of the leased aircraft prevented the aircraft from entering Ukrainian airspace. It did not give further details. KLM, part of Air France, said it would stop flying to Ukraine immediately, news agency ANP reported on Saturday, while Lufthansa said it was considering suspending air traffic to Ukraine but had yet to decide. Two third of the 298 passengers killed when Malaysia Airlines MH17 was shot down over eastern Ukraine in 2014, as it flew from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur, were Dutch citizens.

The former head of India’s largest stock exchange shared confidential information with a yogi and sought his advice on crucial decisions, a probe by the market regulator has found, ahead of the bourse’s much-awaited public listing.

In a case of “bizarre misconduct” that was a “glaring breach” of regulations, Chitra Ramkrishna, the former chief executive of National Stock Exchange (NSE), shared information including the bourse’s financial projections, business plans and board agenda with a purported spiritual guru in the Himalayas, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) said.

“The sharing of financial and business plans of NSE […] is a glaring, if not unimaginable, act that could shake the very foundations of the stock exchange,” SEBI said in an order, imposing penalties on Ramkrishna, the bourse and other top former executives for the lapses.

Ramkrishna, who quit NSE in 2016 citing “personal reasons”, was not immediately reachable for comment.

NSE and SEBI did not respond to requests for comment.

Allegations of corporate governance lapses have dogged NSE for several years. The exchange had planned to go public in 2017 but its listing was derailed by allegations officials had provided some high frequency traders unfair access through co-location servers, which could speed up algorithmic trading.

After a three-year investigation, SEBI fined the exchange over $90 million and barred it from raising money on securities markets for six months. NSE chal-

lenged the order in court and has sought SEBI’s approval to file for a new IPO. However, during that investigation, SEBI found documents showing Ramkrishna’s emails to an unknown person, who she said during questioning was a “spiritual force” she had sought guidance from for 20 years.

Ramkrishna, in her defence, told SEBI that sharing of information with the person who was “spiritual in nature” did not compromise confidentiality or integrity.

The SEBI order however stated that it was “absurd” for Ramkrishna to contend that sharing sensitive information such as dividend pay-out ratios, business plans and the performance appraisals of NSE employees did not cause harm.

The SEBI probe also found the purported guru had substantial influence over the appointment of a midlevel executive, without any capital market experience, directly as an adviser to Ramkrishna with inadequate documentation and a salary higher than most senior NSE officials.

A sea of red in Saudi shops — but don’t mention Valentine’s RIYADH AFP

Red clothing and underwear are displayed in Saudi shopfronts, but the increasingly popular Valentine’s Day promotions are missing one thing: the festival’s name.

While sales surge and Valentine’s gifts become more common among the youthful Saudi population, the word “Valentine’s” is nowhere to be seen.

“Management has asked us to decorate the window display with red lingerie… but without mentioning anywhere Valentine’s Day,” said one salesperson at a Riyadh mall, who did not want to be named as she was not authorised to speak to media.

The displays represent a change in Saudi Arabia, where stick-toting religious police once cracked down on sales of Valentine’s Day paraphernalia and even on people wearing red during the February 14 festival.

Valentine’s Day has vague origins dating back to Roman times when several Christian martyrs were named Valentine. The celebration for lovers, marked widely around the world, was firmly off-limits in the ultraconservative kingdom which would only mark Muslim holidays and its September national day.

But Saudi Arabia has been undergoing social change as it attempts to present a more appealing image and diversify its oil-dependent economy.

It has curbed the feared religious police and given women more freedoms. Among these, they now have the right to drive, and can add colour to their dress beyond the traditional plain black abaya robe. These

US F-22 fighter jets arrive in UAE following Houthi attacks DUBAI ReuteRs

changes, however, have come alongside a crackdown on dissent which has seen clerics and women’s rights activists detained.

A jArring site: “We can now put red clothes on view comfortably and even put them on the window display,” said a saleswoman at Grenada Mall in east Riyadh, who also spoke anonymously.

“There are many customers requesting red lingerie during Valentine’s Day,” she added. “We have discounts during this time, but we don’t call them Valentine’s Day offers.”

Not everyone is comfortable with the underwear being on show, finding it a jarring sight after decades when such items were kept strictly behind closed doors.

“I don’t want to see these things,” said one woman, fully veiled in black except for her eyes. She did not want to give her name.

“They bother me, but there are people who like it and this is their freedom of choice.”

Times are changing, though, and

many in Saudi Arabia — where more than half the population is under the age of 35 — are embracing Valentine’s Day, whether they call it that or not.

“People did not celebrate Valentine’s Day, but now many Saudis do,” said Khuloud, 36, a Saudi saleswoman who did not want to give her last name.

“There is a huge demand on clothes during this time, and customers are often asking for the colour red and profits have also been huge.”

The saleswomen said red lingerie is most in-demand during Valentine’s Day period.

Shops also offered discounts on perfume and makeup, while gift stores put red hearts in their windows, also without mentioning Valentine’s.

One shopper, Reem al-Qahtani, 22, said Saudi society is “gradually” starting to accept Valentine’s Day, even if it remains nameless for now.

“Right now, we celebrate quietly in cafes and restaurants, but we hope that it gains traction in the coming years,” she said.

US F-22 fighter jets arrived at an air base in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Saturday following a spate of unprecedented attacks in Abu Dhabi by Houthi fighters in Yemen, the US Air force said late Saturday. In recent weeks, the Iran-aligned Houthis have waged a string of largely failed strikes on UAE targets that have triggered Emirati and US air defenses and have even seen American troops based there briefly taking shelter. The jets arrived at the UAE base as part of a multifaceted demonstration of US support after a series of attacks throughout January threatened the US and Emirati armed forces stationed at the host installation, the statement said. The US Secretary of Defense ordered the rapid deployment of the fifth-generation aircraft in coordination with Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan of the UAE, said a statement by the United States Air Forces Central. It will join a range of joint, coalition and allied and partner combat air power capabilities already based across the region. The airmen and F-22s are deployed from the 1st Fighter Wing, located at Joint Base LangleyEustis, Virginia, the US Air Force said. Last week the US general overseeing Middle East operations told Reuters the US will help the UAE replenish interceptors it uses to knock down incoming missiles. The recent Houthi attacks have thrown a spotlight on so-far unsuccessful U.N.-led efforts to broker an end to the war in Yemen, which since 2015 has pitted the Houthis against a Saudi Arabianled military coalition that includes the UAE. The conflict has killed tens of thousands of people and caused a humanitarian crisis.

Monday, 14 February, 2022 | LAHORE

SPORTS 11

HBL PSL: PeSHAwAr ZALmi cruSH KArAcHi KingS By 55 runS

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NewS DeSk

eSHAWAR Zalmi defeated Karachi Kings by 55 runs in the 19th match of the Pakistan Super League’s (PSL) seventh edition, as they denied the Babar Azam-led side to break their losing streak in the ongoing tournament.

The Kings are at the bottom of the points table with no points to their credit as they have failed to win a single match. The Sunday loss against Zalmi is their sixth consecutive defeat in PSL 7.

After being invited to bat first, the Zalmi had set a 194-run target at the loss of six wickets, and they defended with ease as Kings managed to score a mere 138 for the loss of same wickets in 20 overs.

Chasing a massive 194-run target, Kings’ lost their aggressive opener Sharjel Khan for 14 runs with 25 runs on the scoreboard.

Babar with Joe Clarke launched a 55-run second wicket partnership, but the required-run-rate continued to mount as Clarke was dismissed

in 13.2 overs.

Only Babar was the leading run-scorer with 59 runs off 46 balls but he absorbed too many dot balls, while no other batter managed to

Theegala clings to one-shot lead over Koepka at Phoenix Open LoS aNGeLeS AFP

Rookie Sahith Theegala closed with a stunning par save to fire a two-under par 69 and seize a onestroke lead after Saturday’s third round of the US PGA Phoenix Open. The 24-year-old American birdied the 17th and blasted an 87-foot shot from greenside rough at the 18th within inches of the cup for a tap-in par to stand on 14-under 199 after 54 holes at TPC Scottsdale. “It’s really good to see that my game when it’s good can keep up with some of the best in the game. It’s really humbling,” Theegala said. “It definitely showed me a lot, that I seem to belong out here.” Four-time major winner Brooks Koepka, the defending champion, closed with a 17foot par putt to shoot 68 and stand one off the lead with a pack of fellow Americans — Tokyo Olympic champion Xander Schauffele, Talor Gooch, Patrick Cantlay and Scottie Scheffler — two adrift on 201.

“I putted beautifully,” Koepka said. “I’m striking it well. I’m pleased. One back, not where I want to be.

I’ve just got to go play good tomorrow.” World number 318 Theegala, an amateur standout at Pepperdine University making only his 24th PGA start, lost a two-stroke lead with a double-bogey at the par-4 second hole after finding a bunker off the tee.

“I made two mistakes in a row. That can’t happen,” he said. “I was like, ‘What are you going to do about it?’ after that. “I caught my groove for a little bit there in the middle of the round. The back nine was a grind for sure. Really happy with the way I fought back. (I’ll) just keep hammering, more of the same.” Koepka and Schauffele traded the lead much of the front nine, Schauffele made birdies at the par5 third and par-4 fourth to grab the lead but Koepka matched him with a 13-foot birdie putt at the fifth and rolled in a 28-foot birdie putt at the sixth, only for Schauffele to equal him with a birdie from just inside five feet to deadlock them at the top on 13under. Schauffele was alone in front after Koepka made bogey at the par-3 seventh and both birdied the par-4 eighth, but Theegala sank his third birdie putt in four holes from four feet at the ninth to close within a stroke at the turn. Schauffele found water off the 11th tee and made a double bogey while Theegala hooked his tee shot way left and made bogey, dropping them level for the lead with Koepka and Cantlay on 12-under. Cantlay reached the green in two at the par-5 13th and two-putted from 26 feet for birdie but Schauffele, Koepka and Theegala followed with birdies at 13 to match him at the top at 13-under. Schauffele found water at the par-5 15th and made bogey to stumble back and at the par-3 16th stadium hole, with thousands of screaming spectators surrounding the layout, Koepka lipped out a five-foot par putt to a chorus of boos. “The crowd was awesome,” Theegala said.

“That was by far the loudest thing I’ve ever heard. It was such a cool opportunity. I just tried to enjoy it.”

Cantlay drove into the water at 17 but rescued par with a nine-foot putt while Koepka drove the 17th green and tapped in for birdie to reclaim a share of the lead. Moments later, Theegala rolled in a 15-foot birdie putt at 17 to seize the outright lead, then hung on with his par save at 18.

play a big knock.

Wahab Riaz and Salman Irshad picked two wickets each. earlier, openers Hazratullah Zazai and Muhammad Haris gave

Peshawar Zalmi a flying start and shared a 97-run partnership in the initial 10 overs. In his debut match in the PSL 7, Haris scored 49 runs off 27 deliveries with three fours

and four sixes. He was bowled by Mohammad Nabi.

Troubled Karachi Kings, who have lost all four of the matches that they have played in the tournament so far, once again displayed poor fielding and dropped many catches.

Hazratullah Zazai smashed his half century off 41 balls with six fours and one six. Qasim Akram dismissed him on 52. Liam Livingstone went to the pavilion after posting just 6 runs.

Shoaib Malik and Ben cutting scored 31 and 26 runs, respectively, for their team.

Karachi Kings’ pace Chris Jordan bagged three wickets, while Muhammad Nabi, Umaid Asif, and Qasim Akram took one wicket each. It is pertinent to mention that Kings dropped at least six catches in the fixture. earlier, former champions Karachi Kings’ skipper Babar Azam won the toss and opted to field first against Zalmi.

Both sides have faced each other 16 times with Karachi win-

ning only 5 of the games, while Peshawar won on 11 occasions.

The Kings have lost all five matches in the first leg of the tournament played in Karachi. Peshawar won 2 of the 5 matches it played at National Stadium with one victory coming against Karachi Kings.

Zalmi, on the other hand, didn’t get enough chances to cheer in the Karachi leg of the tournament and they’re just one place above the 6th placed Karachi Kings on the points table.

With both sides looking to do something for survival in the tournament and keep the campaign going, one can expect them to go all-in on Sunday afternoon.

A defeat would further dent Karachi Kings’ chances to stay among the contenders in the tournament, while Peshawar, having four points from five matches, isn’t looking in a comfortable position either. However, Wahab Riaz has got less to worry about than Babar who was named Kings’ captain right before this season.

Shahid Afridi quits tournament citing ‘unbearable’ back injury NewS DeSk Shahid Afridi on Sunday withdrew from the remainder of the ongoing Pakistan Super League (PSL) 2022 citing a back injury that has deteriorated to an “intolerable” level.

Afridi said he had been carrying his lower-back injury for more than 15 years, adding it was now causing unbearable pain to his entire body.

“I cannot bear it anymore,” Afridi said.

The star-allrounder thanked Gladiators owner Nadeem Omar for his all-out support to him.

“I want to apologise to fans for not being to play the entire PSL and sign off on a good note”.

He hoped to undergo the rehabilita-

tion process and expressed his desire to return to the Kashmir Premier League and other T10 leagues in time to come.

Afridi said his welfare foundation was his “second innings and the most important one” to him.

He urged fans to pray for his health.

“With the grace of God, I will appear in another league [soon],” said the former captain.

In his last game against Islamabad United yesterday, Afridi bowled four overs and got two scalps for 26 runs.

However, he was yet to bat when the team chased down the 205-run target with the loss of five wickets.

It is pertinent to mention here that this was the last PSL season for Afridi as he had announced it last year.

He concluded by stating that “in my

final PSL event, it will be my dream and wish to sign off with another PSL trophy

Mohammad Rizwan tells Mohammad Hasnain to ‘stay strong’ Staff RepoRt Pakistan team’s wicket-keeper batsman Mohammad Rizwan has asked pacer Mohammad Hasnain to stay strong after the fast bowler was ruled out of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) due to his illegal bowling action.

Hasnain was last Friday suspended from bowling after his bowling action was found illegal following an assessment carried out at a biomechanics laboratory in Lahore.

Hasnain was initially reported in Australia during his Big Bash League stint and Cricket Australia an-

nounced the outcomes of the assessment on Friday morning.

The fast bowler was then stopped from playing further in the ongoing season of the PSL and advised to immediately start working to modify his action.

Responding to this, Rizwan termed Hasnain a “star” who made it to the national side through his hard work, determination, and belief.

“The process remains the same. You can do it and will make a huge comeback. Bus Yaqeen rakhna hai bhai (you only have to believe),” the Multan Sultans skipper said.

after tasting success with Peshawar Zalmi in 2017”.

Shoaib Akhtar wonders what’s going on with Karachi Kings Staff RepoRt The Karachi Kings suffered their sixth consecutive defeat in the ongoing season of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) after Peshawar Zalmi outclassed them by 55 runs at Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore on Sunday. After this defeat and despite having a new captain, Babar Azam, who led Pakistan to a T20 World Cup victory against India for the first time in history, former pacer Shoaib Akhtar wondered what was going on with the franchise. Sixth consecutive defeat and a really harsh tournament for Karachi, he stated in a tweet. “What’s going on there?” he asked.

The Kings are at the bottom of the points table with no points to their credit as they have failed to win a single match. The Sunday loss against Zalmi is their sixth consecutive defeat in PSL 7.

After being invited to bat first, the Zalmi had set a 194-run target at the loss of six wickets, and they defended with ease as Kings managed to score a mere 138 for the loss of the same wickets in 20 overs. Chasing a massive 194-run target, the Kings lost their aggressive opener, Sharjeel Khan, for 14 runs with 25 runs on the scoreboard. Babar with Joe Clarke launched a 55-run second-wicket partnership, but the required-runrate continued to mount as Clarke was dismissed in 13.2 overs. Only Babar was the leading runscorer with 59 runs off 46 balls but he absorbed too many dot balls, while no other batter managed to play a big knock.

Monday, 14 February, 2022

Prayer TiMings

NEWS

PAkISTAn To rAISe USe of IrAnIAn SoIl by bAloch TerrorISTS AS IrAnIAn InTerIor MInISTer ArrIveS TodAy ISLAMABAD

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AKISTAN is set to raise the use of Iranian soil by Baloch terrorists to mount terrorist attacks against its security forces in Balochistan as Iran’s Interior Minister Ahmad Vahidi arrives Pakistan today on the invitation of Interior Minister Sheikh Rasheed Ahmed.

A source told Pakistan Today that Islamabad had raised the alleged involvement of Iranian elements in providing refuge and arms to Baloch terrorists. The official said that Pakistan had lodged a

strong protest with Tehran over the recent attacks of Baloch terrorists and the martyrdom of around a dozen personnel of the security forces in these attacks.

The official said that Iranian official would discuss measures to clamp down on the Baloch terrorists who are using Iranian soil to mount attacks against Pakistan.

The interior ministry while detailing the visit shared that Sheikh Rasheed will welcome the visiting dignitary at the Noor Khan Airbase in Islamabad.

“The interior minister of Iran will meet several top government functionaries during his visit to Pakistan,” it said

Asad Umar says ‘notrust bid to fail due to trust deficit within opposition ranks’ Planning Minister Asad Umar has said that opposition parties instead of making a “futile” attempt to bring a no-confidence motion gainst the government of Prime Minister Imran Khan should keep an eye on each other owing to “trust deficit” within their ranks. Umar, while addressing the media in Punjab’s small town Uch Sharif on Sunday, the minister said the parliament had approved a number of bills introduced by the government despite opposition’s protest. He also referred to the SBP Amendment Bill, which was recently bulldozed in the opposition-dominated Senate. “The opposition parties should worry about their own members as they are unable to control them,” he remarked. Umar said the attempts being made by the joint opposition alliance, PDM, to de-seat Prime Minister Imran Khan through a no-trust move in National Assembly was bound to fail like previous such bids. Earlier this week, JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman, who also heads the PDM, announced that constituent parties of the alliance had agreed on bringing a noconfidence motion against the “incompetent” government, adding that the allies of the ruling party would also be approached in this connection. On Saturday, PML-N leader and former premier Shahid Khaqan Abbasi claimed that over 22 MNAs belonging to the ruling party were willing to pedal into the folds of the opposition but would not do so as long as the “state” backed the incumbent government — a tacit reference to the “establishment”. The former premier’s claim has snowballed into controversy and is likely to seed grounds for another searing chapter of a political slugfest as the opposition is already engaged in meetings with the coalition partners in efforts to buttress its force against the government. Speaking about other issues, Umar said that the performance of the ruling PTI was better than the previous governments and PM Imran Khan was “working day and night” for the development of the country. On rising inflation, the minister said the issue was not only limited to Pakistan rather it was a global phenomenon but assured that the government was making all-out efforts to provide relief to the masses. news desk

and added that a meeting with Prime Minister Imran Khan was also scheduled for Monday.

Sheikh Rasheed will also hold delegation-level talks with Ahmad Vahidi and discuss border management and the exchange of prisoners between the two countries.

Mr Vahidi would also make a call on with Prime Minister Imran Khan today while he is also expected to meet Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa.

In October 2021, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi has emphasized enhanced economic integration and re-

gional connectivity for peace and prosperity in the region.

Addressing a joint news conference with his Iranian counterpart Dr Hossein Amir-Abdollahian in Tehran, he said the interests of Pakistan and Iran are allied.

Shah Mahmood Qureshi said both the countries want peace, stability and prosperity in the region and realize that we have an important role to play.

He said history will judge us because Afghanistan is going through a critical period and the people of Afghanistan deserve peace and tranquility. Qureshi said we as neighbours stand by them in these difficult times.

Fazl rules out ‘unconstitutional means’ to dislodge PTI govt Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman on Sunday said the joint opposition will not opt for unconstitutional means to dislodge the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government.

Fazl, who is the chief of the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) as well, said the opposition will not let “anyone bury the system”.

“The initial contact [with political parties] to oust the government

has borne good results and soon the votes [for a no-confidence motion] will be complete,” he added.

Fazl said the modalities to bring a no-confidence vote against the government will be finalised in an upcoming meeting of the opposition parties. “We will not bury the system,” he added.

In a comment about a ban on headscarves in the Indian state of Karnataka, Fazl said the JUI-F will

mark a ‘Hijab Day’ next Friday to express solidarity with the Indian Muslims.

Earlier on Friday, during a press conference, the JUI-F chief stated that the participants of the PDM meeting unanimously decided to bring a no-confidence motion against the “incompetent” government, adding that the allies of the ruling party will also be contacted in this connection. news desk

Top Taliban delegation in Qatar in bid to unlock Afghan aid A Taliban delegation arrived in Doha Sunday in a new bid to convince governments to provide humanitarian aid, six months after the hardline Islamists toppled Afghanistan’s Western-backed regime, officials said.

The delegation, led by Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi, will meet with the EU delegation in Doha, diplomatic missions and officials from Gulf countries, the Taliban’s foreign ministry said on Twitter.

Their arrival in Doha was confirmed by international sources including a spokesman for the British government, and the trip comes as Afghanistan’s aid-starved economy sinks deeper into an unprecedented crisis.

The latest bid to unlock aid follows meetings in Oslo late last month between representatives of the Taliban and governments that heavily bankrolled Afghanistan’s previous government, which imploded in the face of a Taliban military offensive in mid-August.

The Taliban government has yet to gain formal recognition from any country and the UN says that half of Afghanistan’s 38 million people face food shortages.

But while Muttaqi told AFP in an interview early this month that the Taliban are inching closer to international recognition, his delegation is again expected to face demands to improve human — and especially women’s — rights in the Doha talks, set to begin on Monday.

“UK officials continue to engage in pragmatic dia-

logue with the Taliban to fulfil our commitment to help and support the Afghan people,” a British government spokesman in Doha told AFP. “We continue to make clear to the Taliban our serious concerns about human rights — in particular, those of women and girls — and did so most recently on a visit to Kabul by UK officials on February 10 which included a meeting with Mr Muttaqi.”

Taliban officials also met with aid groups and charities in Geneva last week in a bid to secure aid. news desk

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Shaukat Tarin says ‘I’ll go home if PM Imran is not satisfied with finance ministry performance Finance Minister Shaukat Tarin says he will resign if Prime Minister Imran Khan is not satisfied with the performance of the finance ministry.

Shaukat Tarin’s remarks came after his ministry was not included in the top 10 best performing federal ministries. As per the details, after attending a ceremony at the Karachi Chamber of Commerce & Industry (KCCI), Tarin did not take questions when media persons tried to talk to him. Earlier, Tarin told the KCCI members that the government made all-out efforts to control inflation, caused by domestic factors.

“We can’t do anything to check inflationary trends, caused by the imported factors,” he stated. The finance minister said inflation was not worrisome for Pakistan only but even the US, the UK and Germany were concerned about it as hike in the prices of commodities at the global level had caused problems around the world.

“Even US President Biden telephoned Saudi King Salman over the soaring prices of crude oil in the global market,” he added. Tarin attributed the rising inflation in the country towards global trends and said that the government had been taking the hit of Rs2224 billion monthly for not raising taxes on petroleum products despite soaring prices of crude in the international market.

“We have brought down the sales taxes on petroleum products to zero and even reduced petroleum development levy (PDL) to stabilise the domestic oil prices despite surge in the global market,” Tarin pointed out. He said that prices of cooking oil, pulses and coal had also risen to their highest level in the international market and Pakistan was dependent on imports to meet the domestic needs of these products.

Tarin said that inflation could be countered by increasing the income of the middle class. Under the vision of Prime Minister Imran Khan, a huge programme would be kicked off soon to shore up the income of middle class segments of society.

He claimed that the economy was on the right track and Pakistan needed sustainable and inclusive growth to get rid of loans repeatedly from International Monetary Fund (IMF), other donor agencies and countries. “Pakistanis are a resilient nation and can turn around the situation provided they are given level playing field,” he added. He said China had agreed to help Pakistan in various areas of the economy during the recent visit of Prime Minister Imran Khan to the country. China will help in end-to-end agriculture to raise the yield in this sector as well as support in Information Technology (IT) by investing in it, relocation of industrial units in the special economic zones and for job creation for the youth of Pakistan.

“The prime minister asked Chinese leadership to help Pakistan in the industry in order to raise the country’s export to $50 billion in next five years to balance the foreign trade,” he said. Separately, speaking at the inaugural ceremony of ‘Kamyab Jawan Markaz’ at Karachi Chamber of Commerce & Industry (KCCI), the finance minister announced that the government would introduce a special package for small & medium enterprises (SMEs) soon with the likely exemptions from taxes and regulations to them. He spoke about various initiatives of the government to boost the national economy and said that a few sectors like housing, information technology, trade etc need special focus to achieve 5% growth. He said that the government would not leave the low-income group to rely on trickle-down effect from the growth in major sectors but would adopt the bottom-up approach and Kamyab Jawan programme was part of the strategy.

He also announced expanding the scope of Kamyab Pakistan programme to the entire country, which was presently functional in Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa successfully to provide interest-free loans to farmers, low-interest loans for housing, Sehat card etc. news desk

Justice Isa suggests ‘open-to-all’ JCP meetings Supreme Court’s Justice Qazi Faez Isa has suggested that the meetings of the Judicial Commission of Pakistan (JCP) should be open to everyone instead of in-camera ones —as is currently the practice — to ensure transparency in the appointment of the superior judiciary.

“It will be even better for transparency of the proceedings that the meeting of the commission should be open for everyone. The benefit of this would be that speculations would come to an end,” Justice Isa said during the JCP meeting held on January 5 on the appointment of six additional judges of the Peshawar High Court — the minutes of which are available with The Express Tribune.

The judge further said this was important because on several occasions he had noted that the minutes of the meetings were not accurately recorded.

He further said he had written letters to this effect but no response was received.

Justice Isa maintained that the commission’s secretary did not respond to the letters because he had come from the federal government.

“He [commission’s secretary] is an illegal appointee, technically speaking.”

Justice Isa observed that discussions at the commission had been long, tedious, acrimonious, and hung on a vote or two.

He added that he did not think that consultation, in the true sense, was taking place.

“Consultation means I hear you and you hear me. When you say something meaningful or something which I don’t agree [with], I respond. A person may not agree with the particular concern but a person must respect that man.”

The judge observed that it was extremely

disrespectful and discourteous to pretend as if the gentleman had not spoken. “You may express that I don’t agree with you because of this, that and the other [reason].”

Justice Isa requested that audio recordings of the meeting should be available for the members as well as everyone else.

The senior judge also questioned the appointment of a civil servant as the SC registrar on deputation.

“A bureaucrat should know that the judiciary has been separated from the executive now. A member of the executive cannot sit here. He should have not accepted this appointment and I have written several letters on this issue.”

Justice Isa said he needed to see copies of petitions, statements or legal opinions of bar nominees to assess their competence but they were unavailable.

He explained that there were instances where a lawyer did not advance their arguments even if their case was very good. “The court decides the case and passes a very good judgement. The credit of such judgment cannot be given to the council.”

Similarly, in some instances, a lawyer advances very good arguments in a weak case, which was ultimately dismissed.

“However, the lawyer should not be at a disadvantage because of that.” Therefore, the judge stated that the competence of an advocate could not be judged by the verdicts passed in their cases as the judgments reflected the competence of a judge and not of a counsel.

“And if we only have to look at such judgments, we cannot comprehend their [lawyers’] competence but it would reflect the competence of the judge who wrote the judgment.”

The judge said one solution to this issue was that the lawyer’s pleadings be shared with him if he was to assess their professional competence.

Regarding nominees from the cadre, he shared his personal experience when he was the chief justice of the Balochistan High Court.

He recalled that a case of promotion of a judicial officer, who wrote very good judgments, came before him. All his colleagues and advocates informed that the judicial officer did not write the judgments by himself but his stenographer wrote them.

He further noted that a judge might write very good judgments.

However, he added, if the judge took a lot of time and was unable to decide a sufficient number of cases then their competence could not be judged on the basis of their good judgments. news desk

Published by Arif Nizami at Qandeel Printing Press, 4 Queens Road, Lahore, for PT Print (Pvt) Limited. Ph: 042-36300938, 042-36375965. Email: newsroom@pakistantoday.com.pk