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  • Shoaib Akhtar slams PSL6 anthem, claims he could have sung it better

    Shoaib Akhtar has slammed the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) for Pakistan Super League (PSL) 6 anthem Groove Mera, claiming that he could have sung it better.

    The Rawalpindi Express has said that Groove Mera is the “worst anthem” ever.

    “If the 10 worst songs of the PSL are compiled, this song will be number one. Do you have any shame?” questioned the former cricketer.

    In a video posted to his YouTube Channel, Akhtar said that his children are also scared of the song so he uses it to make them sleep.

    “My kids are scared of this song. When they don’t sleep, I tell them I’ll play it for them. That immediately scares them,” he said.

    Akhtar continued: “I failed to understand the lyrics of the song or the song itself. What does groove mean? What is a groove? I am sure even the singers did not know the meaning of the word groove.”

    However, the former bowler said that the singers have nothing to do with the song as they were just doing their job.

    Shoaib also mocked the costumes of the Young Stunners in the song, saying: “What have you done? You hid the clothes of our Chief Selector Mohammad Waseem and dressed the rappers in them.”

    The right-arm bowler said that PCB should make a good song next time instead of taking the criticism to heart.

    “Make a better song next time and if you can’t, let me know I will sing it for you,” he concluded.

    Groove Mera features Naseebo Lal, Aima Baig, and Young Stunners (Talha Yunus & Talha Anjum).

    Earlier in the day, when asked about the people’s response to the song, Lal sang a few lines from the anthem with enthusiasm.

    Naseebo also thanked the producer of the song, Zulfiqar Khan, better known as Xulfi, for bringing something “different and unique to the table.” She also expressed her gratitude to all those who have appreciated her performance, saying that she feels “truly honoured” to be able to sing for the PSL.

    “This was a unique opportunity for my singing career and I thank God for it. When I was first approached, I had no idea about it and thought it would be just another song. However, when it turned out that it was an ‘item’ song for the PSL, I was surprised.” she remarked, adding: “Even though it was catchy and a different genre Xulfi composed the song according to my [singing] style.”

    Meanwhile, in another interview, Lal said: “I never thought it would become so popular and all this success is because of Allah. When the PCB called me, I couldn’t believe it. Because I have never been offered an anthem before.”

    Lal also expressed how she was afraid the song would fail.

    “I was so afraid people wouldn’t like it but they loved it and I am so grateful,” said the singer.

    While Akhtar trashed the song, several celebrities and media personalities including Mehwish Hayat, Meesha Shafi and Fatima Bhutto have praised Groove Mera and supported Lal for her power packed performance.

  • VIDEO: Yasir Hussain, Iqra Aziz’s super-cute scooty ride

    VIDEO: Yasir Hussain, Iqra Aziz’s super-cute scooty ride

    Yasir Hussain and Iqra Aziz never shy away from publicly showing their affection for one another. Yasir recently shared a cute video of himself giving a scooty ride to wife Iqra Aziz.

    “Begum k saath be gham ho k scooty pe ghoomny ka apna hi maza hai,” Yasir captioned the video, adding: “P.s Kuch bhi kehti rahy aawaz nahi aati.”

    However, some users pointed out that the two were being careless by not wearing the helmets.

    Meanwhile, in a recent interview the couple opened up about their relationship dynamics with Iqra revealing that most of Yasir’s jokes at home revolve around her.

    Read more – ‘Shame on you’: Iqra, Yasir indulge in online banter

    “The good thing about Iqra is that she doesn’t mind my jokes, unlike the rest of the nation,” said Yasir in response.

  • Protesting govt employees face authorities’ wrath in Islamabad

    Protesting govt employees face authorities’ wrath in Islamabad

    Protesting government employees on Wednesday faced wrath of authorities in Islamabad as they headed towards the Parliament House on Constitution Avenue.

    According to Geo News, the protesters have reached D Chowk while Islamabad authorities have blocked the way towards the Parliament with containers. Demonstrators have started bypassing the containers because of which the police once again resorted to tear gas shelling to disperse them.

    Because of the tear gas, some police and Rangers personnel also had to retract for a while, reports said.

    The protesters have demanded that the containers be removed or else they will remove it themselves.  

    The federal government employees are demanding a raise in their salaries and had gathered today after their leader Rehman Bajwa and nine others were arrested overnight.

    Following the arrests, the government workers in the federal capital had announced they will march towards the Parliament House from Pakistan Secretariat for their demands and the release of their leaders.

    The police had resorted to tear gas shelling after they made a move towards the parliament. The protesters at one point also encircled Federal Minister for Information Shibli Faraz.

    At another, the protesting employees also closed the doors to the secretariat bringing the government machinery to a halt.

    At least two dozen protesting employees were taken into custody under Section 16 of the Maintenance of Public Order Ordinance (MPO).

    The government employees were protesting against the income disparities between various federal government employees. They have been demanding a 40% increase in their salaries.

    The protesters have received support from government employees over grade 17, who have also demanded an increase in their salaries.

    The All Pakistan Clerks Association and government employees of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), Balochistan, Punjab and Sindh are also supporting the protest.

    Speaking on the matter, Interior Minister Sheikh Rasheed said that the government dealt with the protesters “correctly” and it was the demonstrators who had backtracked on the agreement.

    “We dealt with this correctly we are increasing the salaries of 95% of employees at an average of 40%,” the minister told Geo News when asked about the situation.

    “The matter will be resolved [if] they go back to their initial demands,” said the interior minister.

    Geo also quoted sources as saying that a two-member committee, comprising interior and defence ministers, had been tasked with dealing with the protesters and was in contact with the finance ministry over the raise.

  • Did PM always know about MPAs selling their votes?

    Did PM always know about MPAs selling their votes?

    Prime Minister Imran Khan had claimed in April 2018 that he had a video of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa lawmakers taking money ahead of the Senate election to vote against the party lines, but the video was released after a period of more than two years, only a day ahead of the Supreme Court hearing over the issue.

    The PM had said that he had proof of people selling their votes for money and he could show them the video where they were seen “counting money”.

    But if the PM had the video and knew about the people involved in horse-trading then what took the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) so long to release it and that too a day before the court hearing, Shahzeb Khanzada asked the federal minister for information on his show.

    As per Khanzada, another question that the video poses is the KP law minister, Mahmood Sultan, who stepped down from the post after the video emerged? If the PM had seen the video, as he has claimed multiple times in past, then why was Sultan made the minister in the KP cabinet? And if he didn’t know about it then why did he claim otherwise.

    Information Minister Shibli Faraz said that the PM hadn’t seen the video, but he did know that something like that existed. “He was only aware of its existence,” he said, adding that the PM took the decision to sack the minister involved right away and this should be praised.

    Speaking during the show, Faraz asserted that the PM hadn’t watched the video, but trusted his “strong sources”. Shibli said that the government was trying to end the menace of corruption during the Senate polls and the media should support its cause.

    ‘LEAKED VIDEO’:

    On Tuesday, the video first released by ARY News showed lawmakers belonging to the now ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) counting bundles of cash and then stashing the same in a bag.

    The video showed how, during the critical period, loyalties were switched by PTI’s 20 Khyber Pakhtunkhwa lawmakers, all of whom were reportedly expelled by the party’s central leadership after an investigation. The money was dished out in Feb-March 2018, it was reported.

    It may be noted that the damning video comes at a time when Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan expresses aims to hold Senate elections through open ballot in 2021 in a bid to eliminate horse-trading. Defending his party’s move to hold the elections through open ballot, the premier had last week spoken of bribes paid to buy loyalties, revealing that he himself had been offered some.

    He had further revealed that 20 members of the KP Assembly belonging to the PTI, likely the ones from the video, were paid Rs50 million each during the last Senate polls to vote in favour of certain candidates.

    On February 6, President Dr Arif Alvi signed Elections (Amendment) Ordinance 2021 that will pave way for the organisation of Senate elections through open ballot.

  • Pakistan wants China to ease terms on debt repayment, says report

    Pakistan has approached China with an informal request to ease terms on the repayment of debt on about a dozen power plants set up under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor over the past eight years, Bloomberg reported.

    “The parties have canvassed Beijing’s willingness to stagger debt payments, as opposed to lowering equity returns,” the report said, adding that Pakistan has yet to make a formal offer. The report claimed that “Pakistan will formally make the request…after it concludes deals with those local power producers to reduce electricity tariffs”.

    A spokesperson at China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said they aren’t aware of Pakistan’s plan to seek debt relief.

    “Energy projects have provided Pakistan with a large amount of stable and low-priced electricity, effectively reducing the overall price of electricity in Pakistan,” the spokesperson told Bloomberg. “China-Pakistan energy cooperation has progressed smoothly and brought about real economic and social benefits,” it quoted the official as saying.

    Pakistan’s power division didn’t respond to the US-based business media outlet for comments.

    According to Bloomberg, an enormous build-out of Chinese-financed power plants in Pakistan, which was originally intended to solve its electricity shortages, has resulted in a surplus that Islamabad isn’t able to afford.

    While Chinese financing has helped Pakistan diversify fuel supplies, it has also resulted in a surplus of electricity, which is problematic for the government in Islamabad because it is the sole buyer and pays producers even when they don’t generate. To help tackle the issue, the government has negotiated with power plants, which produce roughly half of its electricity, to lower rates.

    After these negotiations, the government will approach the Chinese government for debt relief, it added.

  • Bilawal accuses PM of only wanting Sindh’s money while ignoring its people

    Bilawal accuses PM of only wanting Sindh’s money while ignoring its people

    Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari launched a vicious verbal assault against Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan, wherein the PPP chairman accused the premier of only wanting Sindh for its resources while ignoring the people.

    “[Imran] neither needs Sindh nor Sindh’s people but he wants Sindh’s islands, gas, coal, tax revenue, the money you give,” Bilawal said, adding that Imran had failed to spend money on Sindh to solve its problems.

    The PPP chairman claimed that Imran had refused to give the province its due Rs160 billion last year, and had projected to deny Rs200 billion this year.

    Speaking to a fired up crowd at the Hyderabad rally of the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM), Bilawal alleged that PM Imran had refused to accept Sindh as a province of the country and therein asked who the province actually belonged to.

    “He can only rob your rights but you, the people of this country will not tolerate him. We will protect our rights and our democracy and make this PM run away,” he added.

    Bilawal told the crowd to think of “how much employment we could have provided to the youth of Hyderabad” with the aforementioned Rs200 billion.

    “This is the same government that promised one crore jobs. I ask the people of Hyderabad whether they have gotten even one job from those one crore jobs,” he said on the occasion.

    “This is not Imran Khan’s money, this is the money of the people of Hyderabad and we will go to Islamabad and take back our right from them,” he added.

    He further stated that none of the provinces, including Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) and Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), belonged to PM Imran.

    Bilawal, terming the ruling party as “puppet, selected and formed as a result of rigging”, said that Imran’s vision for a Naya Pakistan had only resulted in a more “expensive Pakistan”.

    The PPP chief lamented the inflation that had struck the country, wherein food items like wheat and sugar were beyond the people’s purchasing power. “Imran’s tabdeeli (change) has brought so much inflation, unemployment and poverty in the last year that half of Pakistan’s families have food deficiency,” he said.

    In further criticism of the government, he said that the prime minister had once said that he would “commit suicide before going to the IMF (International Monetary Fund)” to ask for a loan.

    On the occasion, he accused the government of giving relief to the rich while bringing pain to the poor. He said that Imran had also promised houses to the people, but so far no results from the affordable housing schemes had been shown.

    He said that the people have been “suffering the burden of an incompetent and corrupt government”.

  • Ex-CM Khattak, NA speaker tried to buy votes, says former MPA from leaked video

    A former member of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Ubaidullah Mayar has admitted to taking Rs10 million in bribe ahead of the Senate elections in 2018 on the “directives of then chief minister Pervaiz Khattak”.

    A day earlier, a video of lawmakers had emerged wherein the MPs were seen taking loads of cash to sell their votes in the election that were held in March 2018.

    In a response to this video, Mayar said the PTI government had paid Rs10 million to all the MPAs and then recorded it on camera secretly. He said the video was shot at the residence of then KP Assembly speaker Asad Qaiser — the custodian of the National Assembly now.

    Khattak and Qaiser paid “us money and asked to vote for their candidates”. “At that time, Pervez Khattak had formed a committee of 17 MPAs and asked us to vote for them, paid us the money, and promised to give us party’s tickets,” he alleged in a conversation with Geo.

    He said that he even went to the [Peshawar] High Court in relation to the matter, adding that he “stands by [his] statement and is “not afraid of anyone.”

    Responding to a question regarding two people from another party who could be seen taking money in the video, Mayar said that “Pervez Khattak had promised to make them ministers if they joined the PTI”, adding that the “promise was later fulfilled”. He said that he was asked to return the money on the suspicion that he did not vote for PTI’s candidate.

    After the allegations of horse-trading, Mayar was expelled from the PTI by party chairman Imran Khan. He had then joined the Pakistan People’s Party.

    QAISER, KHATTAK REJECT ALLEGATIONS:

    In response to the allegation, NA Speaker Asad Qaiser said that the video was not shot at Speaker House in Peshawar.

    In 2019, Imran Khan had told [the party] about several PTI MPAs selling their votes for money, he said, adding that the entire party had decided to take action against the lawmakers involved in the controversy. “Statements like these are only an attempt to divert action from the actual issue,” he said, referring to the statement by Mayar. 

    In a press conference on Wednesday, former CM Khattak also rubbished the claims made by Mayar. He said the house where the dealing took place was not the Speaker House. “It’s a house somewhere in Islamabad and I was not present at the scene,” he said, distancing himself from the controversy.

    ‘LEAKED VIDEO’:

    On Tuesday, the video first released by ARY News showed lawmakers belonging to the now ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) counting bundles of cash and then stashing the same in a bag.

    The video showed how, during the critical period, loyalties were switched by PTI’s 20 Khyber Pakhtunkhwa lawmakers, all of whom were reportedly expelled by the party’s central leadership after an investigation. The money was dished out in Feb-March 2018, it was reported.

    It may be noted that the damning video comes at a time when Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan expresses aims to hold Senate elections through open ballot in 2021 in a bid to eliminate horse-trading. Defending his party’s move to hold the elections through open ballot, the premier had last week spoken of bribes paid to buy loyalties, revealing that he himself had been offered some.

    He had further revealed that 20 members of the KP Assembly belonging to the PTI, likely the ones from the video, were paid Rs50 million each during the last Senate polls to vote in favour of certain candidates.

    On February 6, President Dr Arif Alvi signed Elections (Amendment) Ordinance 2021 that will pave way for the organisation of Senate elections through open ballot.

  • National Bank to close branches in Bangladesh, Afghanistan

    National Bank to close branches in Bangladesh, Afghanistan

    The National Bank of Pakistan has decided to shut down its branches in Bangladesh and Afghanistan due to financial losses.

    According to reports, the NBP officials said that the government will shut down three branches in Bangladesh situated in Sylhet, Chittagong, and Dhaka along with some branches in Afghanistan.

    According to details, the NBP branch in Sylhet has been facing financial losses for the past eight years and that it would be shut down by the end of this year. The State Bank of Pakistan has approved the decision to close the branch down in Sylhet, while the remaining two in Bangladesh will also be closed soon.

    On Monday, the Senate’s Standing Committee of Finance and Revenue directed the National Bank of Pakistan to submit details of non-performing loans.

    Citing non-performing loans as reason, the NBP officials had informed the committee that the bank has closed two branches in Bangladesh and Afghanistan due to continuous losses, while more will be shut down soon.

    The meeting was further informed that 23 branches of the bank were established in various countries.

  • Secretly recorded video shows PTI MPAs receiving loads of cash ahead of 2018 Senate election

    A secretly recorded video exposing horse-trading during 2018 Senate polls has made its way to television channels weeks before the 2021 election on seats of the upper house of the parliament.

    According to ARY News, the video shows lawmakers belonging to the now ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) counting bundles of cash and then stashing the same in a bag.

    The video shows how, during the critical period, loyalties were switched by PTI’s 20 Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) lawmakers, all of whom were expelled by the party’s central leadership after an investigation, the report said.

    Quoting sources, it added that the horse-trading had been carried out between February 20 and March 2, 2018.

    On February 6, President Dr Arif Alvi signed Elections (Amendment) Ordinance 2021 that will pave way for the organisation of Senate elections through open ballot.

    According to the ordinance, changes have been brought to Sections 81, 122 and 185 of the Constitution. The ordinance will come into force “at once” and “extended to the whole of Pakistan.”

    A presidential reference being heard by the Supreme Court (SC) also pertains to the organisation of Senate polls through an open vote.

    It may be noted that the damning video comes at a time when Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan expresses aims to hold Senate elections through open ballot in 2021 so as to eliminate the menace of horse-trading.

    Defending his party’s move to hold the elections through open ballot, the premier had last week spoken of bribes paid to buy loyalties, revealing that he himself had been offered some.

    He had further revealed that 20 members of the KP Assembly belonging to the PTI, likely the ones from the video, were paid Rs50 million each during the last Senate polls to vote in favour of certain candidates.

  • New documents reveal PTI employees were authorised to receive donations

    New documents reveal PTI employees were authorised to receive donations

    In a watershed development in the foreign funding case, a documented list has revealed that Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) employees were authorised to receive donations from within and outside Pakistan.

    The document, available with Dawn, revealed the names of employees that included PTI’s telephone operator Tahir Iqbal, computer operator Muhammad Nauman Afzal, accountant Mohammad Arshad and office helper Mohammad Rafiq.

    The decision to allow the PTI employees to collect the funds was taken at a meeting held on July 1, 2011. It was attended by Saifullah Niazi, the incumbent chief organiser and an aspirant of a PTI Senate ticket; Aamer Mahmud Kiani, present secretary-general and former health minister who was removed from the federal cabinet; Dr Humayun Mohmand, who was recently appointed chairman of the board of directors of PIMS; Sardar Azhar Tariq Khan, the party’s former finance secretary and now Pakistan’s Ambassador to Kyrgyzstan Colonel Yunus Ali Raza among others.

    The foreign funding case pertains to Akbar S Babar’s allegations that foreign donations were illegally received in the front accounts of PTI employees through Hundi, particularly from the Middle East, and siphoned off by the senior party leadership through cheques with no trace or record.

    Babar was a founding member of PTI. He has repeatedly asked the scrutiny committee of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to investigate the private bank accounts of PTI employees which were illegally used as a front to collect donations.

    The committee continues to keep the PTI records and bank statements secret despite ECP orders. The records include 23 PTI bank accounts provided to the ECP by scheduled banks on the instructions of the State Bank of Pakistan. The scrutiny committee is due to meet today (on Tuesday) to decide whether to keep the PTI documents secret or not.

    The election watchdog has passed more than one order against the secrecy of the PTI record.