Tag: Chief Minister

  • Punjab govt to launch digital school on wheels

    Punjab govt to launch digital school on wheels

    Chief Minister of Punjab Maryam Nawaz has announced the initiation of the Digital School on Wheels project in Punjab during a meeting with delegations from IT companies. Under the initiative, 1000 teachers from government schools will receive free digital courses.

    A delegation from Google for Education also expressed interest in supporting Punjab’s first official autism school project. Google for Education is said to offer free certification courses for 15,000 university students.

    CM Punjab asserted that a positive societal change cannot occur without reconstructing the education system. The government is committed to enhancing the system by addressing its shortcomings.

  • Maryam Nawaz’s govt stabbed our back after holding negotiations over bill, say journalist leaders

    Maryam Nawaz’s govt stabbed our back after holding negotiations over bill, say journalist leaders

    The Punjab Assembly on Monday approved the highly controversial Defamation Bill 2024 amidst immense opposition from journalists, human rights organisations and political opponents.

    The government considers the bill, aimed at stopping ‘fake news’, necessary while journalist leaders and opposition leaders labelled it “draconian” and a “black law”.

    Earlier in the day, representatives of media bodies met Punjab Information Minister Azma Bokhari and requested her to defer the controversial bill for a few days.

    However, the government decided to bulldoze the bill through Punjab Assembly despite strong opposition.

    Journalist leaders were of the view that the government stabbed them in the back after holding negotiations over the bill.

    Meanwhile, the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) has also expressed grave concern over the defamation bill, saying that it aims to uphold “parallel judicial structures” for defamation cases which goes against the very spirit of the Constitution.

    HRCP remarked that implementation of this bill would be a huge blow to freedom of speech and dissent in our society because there would be no due process or fair trials.

    “This is not a democratic bill. There is no compromise on press freedom,” stated Lahore Press Club President Arshad Ansari.

    He slammed the PML-N-led provincial government for passing the controversial bill and remarked, “You have cheated us. You have trapped us.”

  • ‘Wife owns properties not only in Dubai but in UK as well,’ reveals Mohsin Naqvi

    ‘Wife owns properties not only in Dubai but in UK as well,’ reveals Mohsin Naqvi

    Federal Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi has said on Thursday that he and his wife declared their properties a decade ago. Naqvi, a media baron who became Punjab’s caretaker Chief Minister and now also holds the coveted position of Chairman, Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), stressed that there is nothing new in the “Dubai unlocked” project. 

    Naqvi revealed that his wife not only owns properties in Dubai but also in the United Kingdom (UK).

    He gave a detailed response to the Dubai leaks in a press conference in Lahore after the leaked property records named several prominent personalities in Pakistan, including government officials, politicians, military generals, and other individuals.

    He also said that it is necessary for the national media to report about major developments, but portraying that someone owned property with illegal means is wrong.
    The former caretaker chief minister of Punjab also stated that he was not in any official position 10 to 12 years ago, but he had properties at that time as well.

  • ‘Mujhay easy na laina’, Gandapur slams federal govt for not paying KP dues

    ‘Mujhay easy na laina’, Gandapur slams federal govt for not paying KP dues

    Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s (KP) Chief Minister Ali Amin Khan Gandapur criticized the federal Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N)-led government on Thursday, threatening that people from his province will march towards Islamabad if the Centre does not pay KP’s dues. 

    While speaking at an event in Peshawar, Gandapur said that “They [centre] are making a mistake by denying the rights of the province.” 

    The chief executive of the province said that he will protest against the federal government, and the people of KP will stand by him.

    “Clear the dues of my province as soon as possible, otherwise no body will even thank you,” he told the Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif-led government in Islamabad.

    “I will ask the federal government not to take me easy.”

    The KP chief minister believes that his province deserves its fair share, as the province shares its sources with the country.

  • Sher Afzal Marwat will be new PAC chairman, announces Gohar Khan

    Sher Afzal Marwat will be new PAC chairman, announces Gohar Khan

    Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan has announced the name of party leader Sher Afzal Marwat as the new chairman of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), putting an end to internal conflicts within the party.

    The PTI chairman told journalists in Rawalpindi that “All disputes are over [now] as the party has picked Marwat for the slot.”

    Last week, opposition leader in parliament and PTI member Omar Ayub Khan said that Sher Afzal Marwat should be the chairman of PAC, as PTI’s founder Imran Khan had suggested his name.

    Earlier, PTI senior leader Sardar Latif Khosa announced the name of Hamid Khan as the new chairman of the PAC.

    PTI formed a committee of three party members on Tuesday, including chief minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Ali Amin Gandapur, Shibli Faraz, and Omar Ayub, to hold a dialogue with the military establishment.

  • Appeal against Maryam Nawaz for wearing police uniform not heard

    Appeal against Maryam Nawaz for wearing police uniform not heard

    A sessions court in Lahore has not proceeded with a request to file a case against Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz for wearing a police uniform.

    The hearing was adjourned till tomorrow as Additional Sessions Judge Muzaffar Nawaz was on leave.

    The court has sought a front desk report from the petitioner.

    Lawyer Waqar Shah had filed a request to register a case against Maryam Nawaz, arguing that the Chief Minister has violated the rules by wearing a police uniform.

    Lawyer Aftab Bajwa has also filed a plea against the CM for similar reasons.

  • Iran ready to share tech expertise with Islamabad, says Iranian President Raisi

    Iran ready to share tech expertise with Islamabad, says Iranian President Raisi

    After visiting Lahore and Karachi, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi said that Tehran is ready to share its strengths in industry, science, and technology with Pakistan. He made the remarks during his three-day official visit to Pakistan.

    While speaking at a ceremony in Karachi’s Chief Minister House, he pointed out that despite challenges, Iran made progress in these fields and was prepared to share this knowledge with Pakistan.

    “I am here with a message of peace and prosperity for the Pakistani nation from the people of Iran and its leadership,” he said, adding, “The governments on both sides are willing to remove all obstacles to expanding trade between the two countries and in this regard, several options were discussed [in his recent meetings Pakistani leadership].”

    The Iranian President also said that the trade partnership will make the relationship between the two countries stronger, stressing that no power on earth “can affect the historical ties between the two countries.”

  • More than 50 arrested in crackdown against kite flyers following orders from Maryam Nawaz

    More than 50 arrested in crackdown against kite flyers following orders from Maryam Nawaz

    Chief Minister Punjab Maryam Nawaz ordered a crackdown against people making, selling and buying metal strings in kite flying.

    After the order, local police have arrested more than 40 accused in the crackdown against the kite flyers in Hafizabad, Vehari and Khushab.

    According to the police, kites, spinning wheels and metal strings were recovered from the possession of the accused.

    Meanwhile, 13 suspects were arrested after recovering 30,000 kites from kite-making factories in Faisalabad, and six kite-making machines and 5,000 spinning wheels were seized.

  • Teacher arguing with Maryam Nawaz not fired, Geo Fact-Check reveals

    Teacher arguing with Maryam Nawaz not fired, Geo Fact-Check reveals

    Following Chief Minister Punjab Maryam Nawaz’s visit to an all-girls’ high school in Lahore, social media had a large number of posts claiming that one of the school teachers was dismissed after posing questions regarding Nawaz’s male security members.

    Geo FactCheck, however, deemed the claims as false.

    Samina Shahid, the public school teacher who went viral, was contacted by Geo Fact Check and she confirmed that she has not been sacked.

    Her claims were also verified through other government personnel.

    “The [social media posts] are false. There is no truth to them,” Geo Fact Check quotes Shahid who spoke to the team over the phone on March 15, “I am speaking to you right now sitting in my office.”

    Additionally, the chief executive officer of Lahore’s district education authority, Pervaiz Akhtar, also confirmed that no teacher was fired following the visit.

    Azma Zahid Bokhari, the information minister in Punjab, stated likewise.

    “No action against any teaching or non-teaching staff has been taken by school administration after the visit of the chief minister Punjab to the government pilot girls high school Lahore,” Bokhari told Geo Fact Check via messages.

  • Maryam Nawaz announces first public cancer hospital in Punjab

    Maryam Nawaz announces first public cancer hospital in Punjab

    Chief Minister of Punjab, Maryam Nawaz, has announced plans to build the first government cancer hospital in Punjab. The hospital will be built near Valencia town in Lahore, as per SAMMA. 

    The newly-elected chief minister visited the potential site for the hospital and received a briefing about the project. The CM also approved the construction of a hotel building for the attendants of cancer patients.

    Maryam Nawaz said that cancer patients will get free treatment in the hospital.

    The Punjab chief minister also announced that the government will provide the best medical professionals and state-of-the art equipment to treat cancer patients.

    She declared that screening for diseases will start in the province, adding that when she vacates her office after five years, she wants a state-of-the-art hospital in every city. She also announced free medicines in all emergency departments of government hospitals starting today. The Rescue 1122 service has been asked to launch a motorway ambulance service.