Tag: Ishaq Dar

  • PML-N wants Ishaq Dar as interim PM, PPP disagrees

    PML-N wants Ishaq Dar as interim PM, PPP disagrees

    PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif wants to see his loyalist Ishaq Dar as the interim prime minister, multiple media reports have said. On the other hand, the second largest party in the ruling coalition, Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), has as yet not agreed on Dar’s nomination.

    According to sources within the PPP, a “man from the Sharif family” is not suitable for the caretaker setup, Dawn has reported.

    On Sunday, PML-N initiated efforts to take all stakeholders on board, including the military establishment, and assuage the concerns of the PPP leadership.

    Both the major political parties, PML-N and PPP, in the ruling alliance agree that the caretaker prime minister should be a politician. The ruling party will announce a name for caretaker prime minister after consulting all the stakeholders.

    On the other hand, PPP Information Secretary and Special Assistant to the Prime Minister, Faisal Karim Kundi, said no meeting was held between the two parties on Sunday.
    In a statement to ARY News, the PPP denied agreeing on Ishaq Dar becoming the caretaker prime minister, stating that no such agreement had been reached between the two parties.

  • Ishaq Dar, Khwaja Asif in the committee formed by PM to hold consultations for caretaker setup

    Ishaq Dar, Khwaja Asif in the committee formed by PM to hold consultations for caretaker setup

    Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has formed a five-member committee of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) to hold consultations with allies on the upcoming caretaker setup in the country, Geo News has reported

    The provincial assemblies of Sindh and Baluchistan will also be dissolved next month, in August, along with the National Assembly.

    Ishaq Dar, Ahsan Iqbal, Khawaja Saad Rafiq, Sardar Ayaz Sadiq and Khawaja Muhammad Asif are members of the committee tasked with consulting with allies on the upcoming caretaker setup.

    According to sources in PML-N, the panel will start its work right away. PM Shehbaz has also advised other parties to form such panels, as it will be helpful in the matter of caretaker setup.

    According to multiple sources, one of the major parties in the ruling alliance wants the caretaker PM of its choice.

    Interestingly, the government is not consulting political forces outside the parliament.

    Earlier, the vice president (VC) of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), Shah Mehmood Qureshi, had complained that PTI has not been kept in the loop in the matter of the caretaker setup.

  • Here are the revised diesel and petrol prices effective July 16, 2023

    Here are the revised diesel and petrol prices effective July 16, 2023

    Finance Minister Ishaq Dar announced on Saturday that the prices of petrol and diesel will be reduced in the upcoming fortnightly review.

    During a televised address, the minister said that petrol prices will be reduced by Rs9 per litre, while diesel prices will see a decrease of Rs7 per litre. These adjustments were made due to changes in the international market over the past 15 days, with one petroleum product’s price increasing and the other decreasing.

    Following these revisions, the new price for petrol will be Rs253 per litre, and high-speed diesel (HSD) will be priced at Rs253.50 per litre. Minister Dar clarified that the petroleum development levy (PDL), which was previously raised to Rs60 per litre in response to the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) request, will remain unchanged.

    The new prices will take effect on July 16, Sunday. Minister Dar also highlighted that the local currency has strengthened against the US dollar in the last 15 days, following Pakistan’s successful negotiation of a $3 billion Stand-By Arrangement (SBA) with the IMF.

    Here are the new diesel and petrol prices effective from tomorrow (July 16, 2023):

    Petroleum Product Previous Price Reduction Revised Price
    Petrol Rs263 per litre Rs9 per litre Rs254 per litre
    Diesel Rs260.50 per litre Rs7 per litre Rs253.50 per litre
  • Journalist removed from PTV panel after questioning PM Shehbaz

    Journalist removed from PTV panel after questioning PM Shehbaz

    President of Lahore Press Club, Azam Chaudhry, was dismissed by state-run PTV after questioning Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on the “diminishing space for freedom of speech” and the increased restrictions over media in Pakistan during a press conference in the provincial capital. 

    Chaudhry posed a two-part question to the prime minister, addressing both widespread media restrictions in the country as well as the interim government’s plan to continue executing the current economic policy. He inquired about the end of media restrictions, specifically, when would journalists be granted the freedom to speak and write without constraint. 

    In response, Prime Minister Shehbaz expressed his disapproval of curbs on media freedom but deflected responsibility to Federal Minister for Information & Broadcasting Marriyum Aurangzeb. Aurangzeb, while acknowledging the need to distinguish between politics and the authority of the state, emphasized that the two should be treated separately.

    In a conversation with The Current, Chaudhry revealed that he was reportedly told by PTV right after the conference that he would not be invited back to his regularly scheduled program Ba-khaber, of which he is one of the pioneer journalists since 2022. 

    He also shared that he was informed earlier in the day that PTV would be doing a panel program after the press conference with two other journalists, Sajjad Mir and Salman Ghani. However, after his questions to PM Shehbaz, he was taken off-air and told that he was no longer with PTV.

    Many news platforms have reported that Azam Chaudhry lost his contract with the state channel; he asserts that he never claimed to be an employee of PTV. He was working as a freelance journalist, with an ‘approval letter’ stating he would be paid PKR 18,000 per program appearance (for Ba-khaber), for three programs per week. 

    According to Chaudhry, the moment the press conference concluded, PTV verbally conveyed to him that he would not be invited back to present on Ba-khaber, so he could take his leave. 

    Speaking to The Current, Chaudhry chuckled at how well-punctuated his point at the press conference became after his dismissal. “I talked about freedom of expression at the press conference, and I was off-aired right after – it proves my initial point [of ongoing media restrictions]”. 

    Ironically enough, Finance Minister Ishaq Dar was reportedly discussing his government’s media-friendly policy at the very same press conference, chiding the previous Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government for only inviting “chosen journalists” to media interactions. According to the Tribune, however, leading journalists from prominent English dailies were excluded from this particular press conference.

    Marriyum Aurangzeb tweeted earlier that the story is “completely false and baseless”. She reiterated Dar’s point of the previous PTI government being declared a ‘Press Freedom Predator’ by Reporters Without Borders, and only allowing selected reporters and journalists to its press conferences. 

    In conversation with the Express Tribune, Chaudhry said journalists in Pakistan were operating in a “very suffocating environment”, where they were not allowed to express themselves freely. 

    “I was not fired on establishment’s orders, I was fired by this government, but in the larger scheme of things, people would blame them.” he said, adding that this tenure also “exposes Pakistan People’s Party and their claims of being upholders of democratic principles”.

  • Nawaz Sharif will be our next candidate for PM: Ishaq Dar

    Nawaz Sharif will be our next candidate for PM: Ishaq Dar

    Financial Minister Ishaq Dar has said on Monday that Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) head, Nawaz Sharif, will be the party’s next candidate for Prime Minister in the upcoming general elections.

    While speaking on Geo News’ programme Aaj Shahzaib Khanzada Kay Sath, Dar said that Nawaz Sharif is in London for medical treatment and will return to his home country after the completion of the same.

    He also said that now there is no hurdle for former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to participate in the upcoming elections after parliament recently passed an amended election law that limits the disqualification period to a maximum of five years.

    Dar gave his statement a day after Nawaz said that inflation will be wiped out in the country if the PML-N won the upcoming elections, adding that his party will resolve all the problems in the country.

    Nawaz Sharif and his daughter Maryam Nawaz arrived in the United Arab Emirates for Eid, and held meetings with Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) top leaders, including Asif Ali Zardari and Bilawal Bhutto.

  • PM Shehbaz appreciates ‘efforts and hard work of Ishaq Dar’ for securing IMF deal

    PM Shehbaz appreciates ‘efforts and hard work of Ishaq Dar’ for securing IMF deal

    Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif has appreciated efforts of Finance Minister Ishaq Dar and his team at the Ministry of Finance to secure a deal with The International Monetary Fund (IMF).

    “Alhamdulillah, I am pleased to announce that Pakistan has reached a Staff-Level Agreement with the IMF on a nine-month US$3 billion Stand-By Arrangement,” the pm wrote in a tweet posted on Friday after news of the deal being finalised came through.

    Talking about the economic implications of the staff-level agreement between Pakistan and IMF, Sharif wrote, “This arrangement will help strengthen Pakistan’s foreign exchange reserves, enable Pakistan to achieve economic stability, and put the country on the path of sustainable economic growth, Insha’Allah.”

    “I would like to appreciate the efforts and hard work of Finance Minister @MIshaqDar50 and his team at the Ministry of Finance for achieving this outcome. I would also like to thank MD IMF @KGeorgieva and her team at the IMF for their cooperation and collaboration, especially during the course of last week.”

    PM Shehbaz Sharif along with Ishaq Dar will address a news conference regarding the staff level agreement with IMF in Lahore today at 4pm.

  • ‘Tax rate Australia walay aur facilities Afghanistan wali’, Twitter is angry over income tax increase

    ‘Tax rate Australia walay aur facilities Afghanistan wali’, Twitter is angry over income tax increase

    On Friday, Minister of Finance Ishaq Dar announced fiscal adjustments for the upcoming fiscal year (FY24), part of which is a notable 2.5% additional income tax individuals within the salaried class who earn a monthly income exceeding Rs200,000.

    The present government is being criticised for adjustments that will increase the tax burden specifically on the salaried class.

    The decision to impose additional income tax on the salaried class, while leaving powerful sectors like real estate and agriculture relatively untouched, has left many Pakistanis angry. Many are using memes to express their frustration.

    Have a look at the twitter reactions:

  • Government mulling handing over Karachi Ports to UAE

    Government mulling handing over Karachi Ports to UAE

    In a last-ditch attempt to raise much needed foreign exchange, Pakistan’s government is planning to finalise a deal to hand over Karachi’s port terminals to the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

    This move may constitute the first intergovernmental transaction under the Intergovernmental Commercial Transactions Act, a law which was enacted last year in 2022. This law is aimed at selling state assets on a fast-track basis to raise funds.

    Last year, Pakistan’s coalition government created the effective-immediately bill to raise emergency funds.

    Finance Minister Ishaq Dar chaired the meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Inter-Governmental Commercial Transactions on Monday. A decision was made to set up a committee that would negotiate a commercial agreement between the Karachi Port Trust (KPT) and the UAE government, as reported by The Express Tribune.

    The negotiation committee constituted to finalise a framework agreement will be headed by the Minister for Maritime Affairs, Faisal Sabzwari. Committee members include the additional secretaries of Finance and Foreign Affairs, the special assistant to PM Jehanzeb Khan, the Chairman of the Karachi Port Terminal (KPT), and the general managers of the KPT.

    The UAE government had shown interest in acquiring the Karachi port terminals that were under the administrative control of Pakistan International Containers Terminals (PICT) last year. However, for now, PICT will maintain operational control over the ports.

    The Ministry of Maritime Affairs (MoMa) released the following statement, as reported by Dawn: “KPT was of the view that they couldn’t operate the terminal due to lack of time and resources and interface with the clients/shipping lines and the timeframe for bidding had lapsed and the events have created an unforeseeable situation where the time limits laid down for open or other methods of procurement cannot be met.”

    The MoMA said and went on to report that “the (KPT) has, therefore, recommended that in the given circumstance only PICT is in a position to provide management services to keep the terminal operational”.

    According to The Express Tribune, sources indicate that the government needs to be extra careful when finalising a deal with the UAE, considering it is the first transaction of its kind and the outgoing operator is posing some challenges.

    Pakistan’s IMF loan of $6.5 billion was signed in 2019 and is set to terminate on June 30. Its termination date drawing closer has sent panic through the Pakistani government. Already suffering one of the worst economic crises Pakistan has faced, the threat of the country defaulting looms ominously near.

    Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif held a meeting with the ambassadors the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, the European Union, Japan, China, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. Sharif wants to rouse support for the revival of Pakistan’s stalled deal with the IMF.

    The prime minister stressed that the government was keen to get at least the $ 1.2 billion IMF loan tranche out of the remaining $2.6 billion, which is attached with the completion of the pending 9th review of the program, according to sources at The Week.

  • Budget 2023-24: Silent Budget, Fading Democracy

    Amidst endless political turmoil, with inflation standing at 38 per cent in May and the country teetering on the brink of default, Finance Minister Ishaq Dar presented the budget for the fiscal year 2023-24 on Friday. There was no Opposition present in parliament to suggest amendments. The budget was presented without the chaos we usually witness during budget speeches.

    Whatever semblance of Opposition we have, did criticise the coalition government for presenting a budget that appeases the International Monetary Fund (IMF). However, the chances of an IMF bailout appear slim, and if the bailout does not materialise, the threat of default is significant.

    In the next fiscal year, external payments of 25 billion dollars are required, which cannot be arranged without the IMF, as no international organisation will provide funds without the IMF’s involvement.

    It is also pertinent to mention here that no target from the previous budget was achieved. The growth target was set at 5 per cent, but it remained at 0.28 per cent, an abysmally low rate. The inflation target was set at 11.5 per cent, but it remained at 29 per cent, an astonishingly high rate.

    Budget deficit exceeded the target by Rs2.2 trillion, and the upcoming fiscal year has a tax target of Rs9.2 trillion, out of which 80 per cent, or Rs7.3 trillion, will be spent on paying interests alone.

    Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has rejected the budget, claiming that it offers no relief for the poor. Maybe if they had stayed in parliament and expressed criticism on the floor of the House, their objections could have had a stronger impact and they could have had a significant influence on shaping the budget. PTI’s criticism from outside parliament, without any actual impact, highlights the crucial role of the Opposition’s presence in such situations.

    A functioning democracy relies on the active participation of the Opposition to ensure the budget serves the interests of all citizens. The current scenario calls for a commitment to democratic values and for an Opposition that can help to effectively shape policies. The presence of Opposition in parliament is not just a symbol of a healthy democracy, it is a prerequisite for balanced decision-making, inclusive policies, and a stronger, more prosperous Pakistan.

  • Budget 2023-24 prioritises promoting economic growth, says Ishaq Dar

    Budget 2023-24 prioritises promoting economic growth, says Ishaq Dar

    Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue, Ishaq Dar, delivered a comprehensive assessment of the FY2023-24 budget during a post-budget press conference in Islamabad. He highlighted the distinctive nature of this budget compared to previous traditional budgets, emphasising its focus on fostering economic growth.

    Dar shared that the coalition government is committed to addressing the concerns of traders before finalising the federal budget in parliament. In order to accomplish this, he announced the formation of two committees to address business-related issues and technical matters.

    These committees, customary within the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR), will be established by the FBR chairman by Monday. Their purpose is to ensure comprehensive consideration of any overlooked aspects and provide a platform for individuals to voice genuine reservations.

    The finance minister refuted claims of introducing new taxes this year and emphasised the government’s efforts to provide substantial relief. He defended the allocation of Rs950 billion and Rs200 billion from the Public and Private Partnership mode, considering it a notable achievement. Dar reiterated the budget’s departure from traditional approaches, with a strong emphasis on fostering progress and economic growth.

    Dar expressed the government’s determination to rectify past economic losses by promoting employment opportunities, curbing inflation, and generating more jobs. Consequently, he anticipated a decrease in the policy interest rate.

    Read more: Govt allocates only Rs97 billion for education in budget 2023-24

    The minister projected inflation to be around 21 per cent in the upcoming fiscal year (2023-24), while estimating government expenditure at Rs14,040 billion.

    Addressing the power sector, Dar allocated over Rs1900 billion exclusively for its development. He stressed the importance of implementing necessary reforms to improve this sector. He also clarified that no new subsidies would be introduced in the renewable energy sector, despite its prominence in the budget.

    Furthermore, the minister addressed rumors regarding the withdrawal of edible oil, refuting such claims and affirming that no such action had been taken.