Author: newsdesk

  • Audit unearths Rs270,000,000,000 corruption, irregularities under PTI govt in one year

    Audit unearths Rs270,000,000,000 corruption, irregularities under PTI govt in one year

    The first audit report of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government has unveiled irregularities and corruption to the tune of Rs270 billion in 40 departments and ministries.

    According to Dawn, the Auditor General of Pakistan (AGP) has unearthed misappropriation and embezzlement of public funds to the tune of over Rs12 billion, with irregularities of government funds amounting to Rs258bn.

    The AGP’s report covers the fiscal year 2018-19 — the first year of the PTI government — and recommends strict action, including references, to investigation agencies against those responsible. The AGP has finalised its report on audit year 2019-20 and it would be submitted to parliament and the president in a couple of days.

    The report also disclosed that record for a number of entities and accounts was not given to audit teams in violation of rules.

    The audit revealed corruption and fake receipts in ministries and departments to the tune of Rs12.56 billion. It stated that recovery cases of Rs79.59 billion in federal ministries were reported and a record of Rs17.96 billion was not provided to the auditor general by government departments.

    The report further said that Rs8.89 billion in corruption cases had been recorded owing to weak internal controls and cases worth Rs152.20 billion were reported due to poor financial management.

    The AGP recommended that government institutions not be allowed to undertake expenditures unless approved from the parliament and similarly, to not allow supplementary grants to these institutions without the parliament’s approval.

    He recommended that corruption cases be handed over to investigative agencies.

    A government minister while commenting on the audit report said that such irregularities during the period of past governments used to involve up to Rs1,000 billion. Geo quoted Minister for Industries Hammad Azhar as saying the graph had come down by 80 per cent but added that the PTI government needed to improve it further.

  • FAST University expels students over making memes

    FAST University expels students over making memes

    FAST Lahore has reportedly expelled students over making and sharing memes about the university on social media. 

    The university’s administration has also issued a notification demanding an apology from students that posted ‘defamatory memes’ on Facebook. According to the notification, six students were expelled and the academic grades of many other students were downgraded. The notification also directed students to post an apology on their social media accounts.

    Read more – Private school in Lahore comes under fire for covering up harassment

    “Failure to comply with the orders will render the respondent liable for either cancellation of the degree; or blacklisting; or reporting to authorities for trial under cyberbullying and harassment laws; or all of the mentioned punishments,” the notification read.

  • Private school in Lahore comes under fire for covering up harassment

    Private school in Lahore comes under fire for covering up harassment

    The management of Lahore Grammar School (LGS) 1A1 Ghalib Market Branch, including female teachers, has come under fire for covering up harassment and inappropriate behaviour by instructors for years. It is pertinent to mention here that most of the girls studying at the school were minors at the time.

    Such incidents had reportedly been going on for the past four or five years and the victims had been reporting the matter to the admin and their teachers. However, their teachers had been covering up for their colleagues and brushing the matter under the carpet. They resorted to victim-blaming and refused to take any action. Strict and immediate action was only taken after the girls shared their ordeal on social media.

    According to details, students have come forward and shared their experiences of being harassed by three teachers namely Aitezaz Rehman Sheikh, Umer Shareef and Zahid Iqbal Warraich. To make things easier to understand, here’s a breakdown of the details:

    Aitezaz Rehman Sheikh

    Aitezaz Rehman Sheikh, who used to teach politics and served as a MUN coach had been sending obscene pictures and messages to his students. The students accused him of being manipulative and said that he would coerce girls on international trips.

    Aitezaz Rehman Sheikh

    Zahid Iqbal Warraich

    Similarly, Sir Zahid Warraich, who taught Chemistry to A’ and O’ Levels used to inappropriately touch his students and make them uncomfortable during class.

    Umer Shareef

    Sir Umer was reportedly a member of the admin who would make girls uncomfortable with his stares and glances.

    For more stories, click here.

    Following the outrage on social media, the management of LGS 1A1 immediately fired the instructors and barred them from working at any branch of LGS.

    A few students have also accused Omair Rana’s wife Maira Omair Rana for not taking action and “slut-shaming” the girls who came forward to report. One of the students has also accused the actor of exhibiting inappropriate behaviour.

    https://twitter.com/kaalakawaa/status/1277180064841396225?s=20

    LGS is one of the mose prestigious school for girls in Lahore, with several branches across the city. The management of each branch is separate.

  • [GRAPHIC VIDEO] All terrorists, who attacked Pakistan Stock Exchange, killed

    [GRAPHIC VIDEO] All terrorists, who attacked Pakistan Stock Exchange, killed

    Police killed all four assailants who attacked the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) compound in Karachi on Monday morning, police chief Ghulam Nabi Memon confirmed to media.

    Citing Memon, Reuters reported that the gunmen had attacked the compound on I I Chundrigar Road with grenades and guns. “Four attackers have been killed, they had come in a Corolla car,” Nabi said.

    Initial reports said that four attackers entered the building around 10 am and opened fire. A grenade attack was carried out at the entrance.

    At least two civilians were killed in the attack and multiple were injured.

    Police surgeon Dr Qarar Ahmed Abbasi said that five bodies and seven injured including policemen were brought to Dr Ruth Pfau Civil Hospital in Karachi.

    Other reports said that four guards and a policeman were also martyred.

    [GRAPHIC WARNING]

    Police and Rangers’ officials arrived at the scene soon after the attack and killed all four attackers, Sindh Rangers said.

    A clearance operation is underway in the vicinity. Weapons and hand grenades have been recovered from the attackers.

    “An unfortunate incident took place at the Pakistan Stock Exchange,” said PSX director Abid Ali Habib. “They made their way from our parking area and opened fire on everyone.”

    He said that the militants had stormed the Railway Ground parking area and fired outside the PSX ground. They made their way to the main gate of the building and stormed it after trading fire with security guards. 

    Habib said that the firing by militants caused panic among the people in the building.

    The PSX building and surrounding areas were sealed by law enforcement agencies. People inside the PSX building were evacuated from the back door.

    Police said the militants conducted the assault with sophisticated weapons and were carrying a bag filled with explosives. 

    Counter Terrorism Department’s (CTD) Raja Omar Khattab said that police would try to find out details about the car used by the attackers. “CCTV cameras are being monitored by law enforcement agencies to obtain clues.”

    An earlier statement by the PSX said that its compound had been attacked by militants and that the “situation is still unfolding”.

    “There was an attack on the PSX compound earlier today. The situation is still unfolding and management, with the help of security forces, is managing the security and controlling the situation,” tweeted the PSX.

    “We will issue a more detailed statement in due course once the situation is under control and more details are known,” it said in a subsequent tweet.

    For now firing has stopped and reinforcement are in place, it added.

    Meanwhile, Sindh Governor Imran Ismail condemned the attack.

    “Strongly condemn the attack on PSX aimed at tarnishing our relentless war on terror,” he said, vowing to protect Sindh at all costs.

    The banned Baloch Liberation Army (BLA), which was declared a global terrorist group by the United States (US) last year, has reportedly claimed responsibility for the attack.

  • Asim Azhar receives hate for featuring Tiktok star in new song

    Asim Azhar receives hate for featuring Tiktok star in new song

    Asim Azhar’s upcoming song Tum Tum has already created waves before it even released. The reason for this is because Tiktok star Areeka Haq is featuring in the song. Asim’s fans were disappointed with him for including the Tiktoker and sent a lot of hate his way. It is pertinent to mention here that Haq has more than a million fans on Instagram.

    Areeka Haq in a still from the upcoming song
    Asim and Areeka in a still from the song

    Following the backlash on social media, Asim responded by tweeting:

    Meanwhile, several celebrities including Saba Qamar, Yasir Hussain, Hania Aamir and Zara Noor Abbas extended their support to the singer and Tiktok star and requested people to stop spreading unnecessary hate and learn to respect each other.

    “Please be kind towards each other,” asserted Saba. “Learn to support each other. Don’t make these beautiful, young talented people depressed with hate comments and trolls because you have no idea how harsh and unkind it is.”

    Saba Qamar

    Yasir said that Tiktok has more talent than television and that Asim featured Haq because of her talent.

    “We all need to grow up,” remarked Hussain.

    Yasir Hussain

    Zara said that she was proud of Asim for supporting new talent.

    Zara Noor Abbas

    Hania extended her support towards Areeka and wished her all the best.

    • Hania Aamir
    • Hania Aamir

    Asim also shared that Hania came all the way from Islamabad to be part of the song.

    The song touted to be “the biggest collaboration of the year” also features Shamoon Ismail, Talhah Yunus, Talha Anjum, Raamis, Hania Aamir, Mooroo and Asad Siddiqui and is scheduled to release on July 2. Watch the teaser for the song below:

    Asim’s last song Humraah, featured in the Bollywood film Malang was a massive hit garnering more than 4 million views to date.

  • Armeena Khan accuses Shaniera Akram of ‘gaslighting’ her

    Armeena Khan accuses Shaniera Akram of ‘gaslighting’ her

    Despite being at the receiving end of heavy trolling, Armeena Khan has rarely lost her cool, which is why it was odd when the actor sent out a series of tweets against Shaniera Akram.

    The tweets have since then been deleted and it is unclear what prompted Armeena to send those out. In the tweets, Armeena accused Akram of gaslighting her and shared that she is unfollowing her after the latter did the same.

    https://twitter.com/ArmeenaRK/status/1276090790062759938?s=20

    While Armeena did not say what exactly happened, it is likely that Armeena is referring to a debate that sparked between the two when Armeena opened up about her fear of lizards and Shaniera said that they are harmless beings which should be ignored.

    At that time when a media outlet reported that Shaniera and Armeena were involved in a public spat, Armeena said that she loves Shaniera and admires her for her efforts.

    “I love Shaniera and have admired her for her Karachi beach work,” Armeena had said.

    Whatever the case may be, we hope they make up soon.

  • Fahad Mustafa asks PM Imran if voting for him was the right decision

    Fahad Mustafa asks PM Imran if voting for him was the right decision

    After the prices of petrol were drastically increased, actor and game show host Fahad Mustafa tweeted to Prime Minister Imran Khan, asking if he [Fahad] made the right decision about voting for PTI in the 2018 elections.

    “Sir I know running a country is not an easy job but what happened to (Yeh Koi Rocket Science Nahi) you kept telling us that when you were in the opposition. Please tell me if I made the right decision voting you?,” asked Fahad.

    Many people, including celebrities, are criticising the government for raising petrol prices.

    Veena Malik, who vehemently defends PM Khan and his government, also took to Twitter and wrote: “Khan Sahab awaam pooch rahi hai ub thora ghabra lein? (Khan Sahab, people are asking if we can panic a little now).”

  • VIDEO: Zulfi Bukhari’s speech disrupted after disgruntled Tiger Force volunteers turn guns on him

    VIDEO: Zulfi Bukhari’s speech disrupted after disgruntled Tiger Force volunteers turn guns on him

    A protest led by members of Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan’s Tiger Force on Saturday disrupted Special Assistant to the PM (PM) for Overseas Pakistanis Zulfi Bukhari’s speech as disgruntled workers raised slogans against him as well as the ruling party’s leadership, reportedly forcing Bukhari to leave the rostrum.

    The premier’s Corona Relief Tiger Force is part of an ambitious multi-pronged strategy by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government to impose movement restrictions and shut down industries while also ensuring that Pakistan’s poorest citizens — many of whom rely on daily wages to survive — continue to receive adequate supplies of food and other essentials.

    Hundreds of thousands of volunteers from across the country, who signed up for the force, are reportedly discharging their duties as the country continues to fight the COVID-19 pandemic.

    While Saturday’s event organised in Attock seemed to be in violation of social distancing among other government guidelines to curb the spread of the virus, things took an uglier turn as soon as Bukhari took the floor to address the gathering.

    According to reports, the volunteers raised slogans against Bukhari as well as other leaders of the ruling PTI in protest against the force’s focal person, namely Qadri Ahmed, “not being invited to the ceremony despite working hard for over a month”.

    The volunteers were then seen leaving the venue, raising slogans in Ahmed’s favour.

    WATCH VIDEO:

    A member of Bukhari’s staff, however, denied media reports and said that no one left the stage as it was “only a two to four-minute issue between [Adviser to PM on Climate Change] Malik Amin Aslam and the local president.

    “Bukhari ended up completing his speech,” they said.

    PTI Punjab lawmaker Syed Yawer Abbas Bukhari among other local leaders were also present on the occasion.

  • ‘Shameful’: Yet another old tweet comes back to haunt Imran after fuel prices hike

    ‘Shameful’: Yet another old tweet comes back to haunt Imran after fuel prices hike

    With Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan approving a Rs25 hike in petrol price, yet another tweet from the past has come back to haunt the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).

    The premier on Friday approved a summary of recommendations to increase the prices of petroleum products “in view of the rising oil prices trend in the global market”, with a notification issued to announce the new rates.

    The notification stated that the new petrol prices would come into effect immediately.

    Petrol prices, according to the recommendation, were to be bumped up Rs25.58 per litre. Similarly, the per-litre prices of high-speed diesel (HSD), kerosene oil, and light diesel were recommended to be increased Rs21.31, Rs23.50, and Rs17.84, respectively.

    The new per-litre prices of petrol, HSD, kerosene oil, and light diesel, therefore, would respectively be Rs100.10, Rs101.46, Rs59.06, and Rs55.98.

    With the hike drawing a strong reaction from the general public as people expressed frustration over the development that could result in yet another inflation bomb amid the coronavirus outbreak, some took to Twitter to retweet a statement by the premier from back when he sat in the parliament on opposition benches.

    “Absolutely shameful how the govt has dropped a petrol bomb on the poor nation at the start of 2018. Instead of undertaking tax reforms and cracking down on money laundering, the govt continues to burden the masses — this time with a big increase in petroleum products’ prices,” the tweet read.

    “Petrol should be sold at Rs58 per litre, demands @ImranKhanPTI [sic],” another tweet from 2015 by PTI’s official handle read.

    This isn’t the first time an old tweet has come back to bite the PTI government.

    While the same tweets were used to criticise the government after a fuel prices hike in July 2019, a separate tweet from August 2014 read, “All over the world, just on an incident of railway accidents, minister resigns. This is real democracy, says Imran Khan [sic].”

    It had started making rounds last month after the tragic train accident in Sadiqabad, which claimed over 20 lives.

    Prior to this, as PM Imran reached China amid Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan’s (TLP) nationwide protests last year, a 2012 tweet of his, went viral. In the tweet, he had criticised the then premier for traveling abroad as the country “burned”.

    It was aimed at criticising former prime minister Yousaf Raza Gillani, who had traveled to China for the Boao Forum while violence linked to sectarian, ethnic and political tensions continued in different parts of the country.

  • Miner becomes overnight millionaire in Tanzania

    Miner becomes overnight millionaire in Tanzania

    A small-scale miner in Tanzania has become an overnight millionaire after uncovering two of the country’s precious tanzanite stones.

    Saniniu Kuryan Laizer, 52, found the stones having a combined weight of 15kg (33 lb). Laizer sold the stones to the country’s mining ministry and earned £2.4m (Rs 561,000,000)

     “There will be a big party tomorrow,” Laizer, a father of more than 30 children, told the BBC.

    Tanzanite is a very rare stone that is only found in northern Tanzania and is used to make ornaments.

    The precious stone’s appeal lies in its variety of types and colours, including green, red, purple and blue. Its value is determined by rarity – the finer the colour or clarity, the higher the price.

    President of Tanzania John Magufuli called Laizer to congratulate him. “This is the benefit of small-scale miners and this proves that Tanzania is rich,” the president said.