Tag: Naya Pakistan

  • ‘Imran’s Naya Pakistan is Gen (r) Musharraf’s Pakistan’

    ‘Imran’s Naya Pakistan is Gen (r) Musharraf’s Pakistan’

    Former president and Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Co-chairperson Asif Ali Zardari has said that Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan is following the footsteps of former military ruler General (r) Pervez Musharraf, adding that the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government has ruined national consensus.

    Speaking to PPP leader Qamar Zaman Kaira on the coronavirus crisis and the evolving political situation in the country, Zardari criticised the government, saying that it wants to curtail constitutional and financial powers of provinces.

    “This government is fighting the opposition instead of fighting coronavirus,” he said.

    Referring to PPP’s past tenure, the former president stated that when he came to power in 2008, the country was a victim of terrorism and division. “We conducted the Swat operation through national consensus and brought peace [throughout the country],” the former president asserted.

    The PPP and the PTI have been trading barbs over the past few weeks. On Tuesday, after being criticised for the second consecutive day by Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi in the Parliament House, PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari had demanded that the foreign minister either withdraw his statement against PPP or resign from his position.

    The minister had spoken at length about PPP’s style of governance and the participation of the province in national decision-making, saying that the former ruling party was focused on only provincial politics rather than thinking of the entire country.

  • SURVEY: Majority unhappy in PTI’s ‘Naya Pakistan’

    SURVEY: Majority unhappy in PTI’s ‘Naya Pakistan’

    At least 66 per cent Pakistanis have expressed dissatisfaction with the performance of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government, revealed a Gallup survey on Sunday.

    According to the survey, 59 per cent believed that the ruling PTI’s performance was worse than that of the previous governments. Further, 62 per cent Pakistanis have opposed the policies of the current government whereas 35 per cent feel that the country is heading in the right direction.

    In the survey, it was said that those who felt the country wasn’t heading in the right direction were only 48 per cent in 2018 — a figure that significantly shot up since the PTI came to power.

    Regarding the perception of the federal government’s performance, only 1 in 3 Pakistanis is satisfied (very or somewhat). Only 32 per cent are satisfied with the performance of the PTI government.

    According to the breakdown, only 16 per cent from Sindh, 13 per cent from Balochistan, 34 per cent from Punjab and 64 per cent from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) were satisfied with the ruling party’s performance.

  • PTI’s new social media laws: Are you in some sort of danger?

    PTI’s new social media laws: Are you in some sort of danger?

    The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government in centre has approved a new set of rules to regulate social media, requiring companies such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and even TikTok, to register themselves and open offices in Pakistan to provide the government data of accounts found guilty of targeting state institutions, spreading fake news and hate speech, engaging in harassment, issuing statements that harm national security or uploading blasphemous content, Geo reported.

    But similar to claims of proponents of internet freedom, who fear that the legal document would be used to keep social media companies in check and curb dissent over the internet, is your freedom over the web really at risk?

    According to reports, the rules and regulations have been included in the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act, 2016, and senior officials in the Ministry of Information Technology have confirmed that the cabinet has already given green light to the legal document.

    Further, IT & Telecommunication Federal Secretary Shoaib Siddiqui confirmed that after the cabinet’s approval, the rules and regulations need not be presented in the parliament for approval.

    According to the law, all global social media platforms and companies would have to register in Pakistan within three months and open offices in Islamabad within the same time period. The law requires digital media companies to appoint a representative in Pakistan to deal with a national coordination authority, which would be responsible to regulate content on social media platforms.

    It further requires the companies to set up data servers in Pakistan within a year and makes it compulsory for them to provide data of accounts found guilty of various crimes — including targeting state institutions, spreading fake news and hate speech, engaging in harassment, issuing statements that harm national security or uploading blasphemous content — to intelligence and law enforcement agencies (LEAs).

    It, however, is safe to say that only time would tell if the government can actually convince any digital media outlets to actually operate under these new regulations.

    Follow this link to give the new set of rules a read.

  • Naya Pakistan: Govt to set up 50,000 shops to sell daily-use items on subsidised rates

    Naya Pakistan: Govt to set up 50,000 shops to sell daily-use items on subsidised rates

    The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government has reportedly decided to provide jobs and daily-use items to people on subsidised rates under which 50,000 new retail shops will be opened.

    Reports quoted sources as saying that Rs25 billion have been allocated for the programme in the first phase, citizens will get loans up to Rs500,000 for opening retail shops and 1,500 such shops will be opened immediately.

    The Utility Stores Corporation (USC) will reportedly supply 60 per cent items to retails shops, while shop owners will get remaining items from the open market. This plan of the government will provide jobs to 50,000 families.

    Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan has also directed to continue the Rs7 billion relief package to Utility Stores till the end of Ramzan. The premier was informed that Utility Stores need up to Rs10 billion funds after which he had directed the ministries concerned to make arrangements for the same.

    Meanwhile, PM Imran has said that his government would announce various measures to reduce the prices of basic food items for the common man.

    He explained that the government departments concerned had also begun doing an in-depth probe into the flour and sugar price hike.

    In a series of tweets, the premier said he was aware of the difficulties being faced by ordinary people, including the salaried class, and had decided to announce a number of measures for giving relief to them come what may.

  • PTI’s Pakistan more corrupt than PML-N’s Pakistan: Transparency International

    PTI’s Pakistan more corrupt than PML-N’s Pakistan: Transparency International

    Transparency International (TI) — a Berlin-based international non-governmental organisation combating global corruption — on Thursday released a new report, according to which, the country under the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government has witnessed more corruption in 2019 than it did in the outgoing year of the former ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N).

    According to TI’s global report on the 2019 Corruption Perception Index (CPI), while Pakistan’s ranking dropped from 117 to 120 in 2019, the CPI score also dropped from 33 to 32.

    Here’s what Twitterati have to say about the report that was to determine if corruption in the country under the PTI government has decreased as Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan’s promised accountability drive continues against opposition lawmakers and government officials.

    PAKISTAN AND CPI:

    Pakistan witnessed slight improvement in the 2018 CPI, scoring a point higher than in 2017 but remaining unchanged in the rankings.

    According to Geo, the country scored 33 out of 100 on the index — one point better than its score of 32 in the previous year. Its ranking, however, remained unchanged at 117 out of 180 countries, same as 2017.

    TI’s annual report on CPI is formulated on the basis of input from 13 international agencies. In the case of Pakistan, however, the assessment of eight agencies is taken into account. These include the World Economic Forum Executive Opinion Survey; the World Bank Country Policy and Institutional Assessment; the World Justice Project Rule of Law Index; the Bertelsmann Stiftung Transformation Index; the Economist Intelligence Unit Country Risk Service; the Global Insight Country Risk Ratings; the IMD World Competitiveness Center World Competitiveness Yearbook Executive Opinion Survey; and the Varieties of Democracy project’s findings.

    Pakistan in the last 10 years (since 2010) has improved its index score from 23 in 2010 to 33 in 2018. In 2016 and 2017, Pakistan maintained the same score, 32, which in 2018 increased to 33. However, never in these last ten years has Pakistan been assessed to have performed negatively as compared to the previous year.

  • Imran criticises himself ‘for not running country right’

    Imran criticises himself ‘for not running country right’

    In what appears to be criticism for his own government, Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan has said the manner in which Pakistan is being run, cannot lead to progress and the country will face severe financial difficulties if steps are not taken to enhance the tax revenue.

    According to The News, the premier on Wednesday took the top hierarchy of the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) into confidence over the proposed reforms plan for converting it into the Pakistan Revenue Authority (PRA) and assured them that no action plan would be implemented without consultations.

    PM Imran urged the officers to speak out and said that people will be eager to pay tax if they are assured that their money will be spent on public welfare instead of lavish lifestyle of rulers.

    He said currently, the government has no money to spend on masses as it inherited record deficit and instructed the FBR officials to take measures to restore the confidence of the business community by addressing its grievances regarding the tax machinery.

    The premier said that the collection of Rs8 trillion tax was not difficult if all stakeholders considered it their national responsibility and the country could not run on the old pattern as his government had inherited the biggest financial deficit and current account deficit.

    “Half of the tax collection in the first year was spent on debt servicing,” he said and added that Pakistan had huge potential in terms of its young population. “If they [the youth] are provided with opportunities, the country can progress on the path of prosperity.”

  • Naya Pakistan: FBR collects Rs580bn, petrol price decreased by Rs4.59

    Naya Pakistan: FBR collects Rs580bn, petrol price decreased by Rs4.59

    In two rare but good developments, the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has collected Rs580 billion within the first two months of the new fiscal year whereas the price of petrol has been slashed by Rs4.59 after successive escalation over the past few months.

    As per the details, FBR collected Rs297.4 billion this month, despite 8-10 non-working days. “So far, FBR’s target for FY2019-20 has been achieved to the extent of 90 per cent. Rs580 billion against the target of Rs644 billion,” the FBR chief was quoted as saying.

    “The positive aspects for the two months of FY2019-20 are that imports during the two months decreased by $1 billion,” he said, adding that the positive effect is taken into account, collection during the past two months is in line with the target.

    Meanwhile, according to a statement issued by the Finance Ministry, the prices of high-speed diesel, kerosene oil and light diesel have been lowered by Rs5.33, Rs4.27 and Rs5.63 per litre, respectively.

    The notification (effective September 1) came amid confusing statements by some cabinet members. The government had earlier issued a notification, stating ‘mistakenly’ that the price of high-speed diesel has been reduced by Rs7.67.

  • Naya Pakistan: ‘Gold Boy’ gangster visits police station to see locked-up friend, gets arrested

    Naya Pakistan: ‘Gold Boy’ gangster visits police station to see locked-up friend, gets arrested

    One of the country’s most notorious gangsters, Zafar Khan Supari, nicknamed ‘Gold Boy’ for flaunting gold jewelry and weapons, has been arrested by the police for “obstructing official work”.

    In the episode, which somewhat proves that Supari has lost the power and respect he once enjoyed owing to his strong political clout, the Gold Boy and his friend were locked up by the R.A. Bazaar police in Rawalpindi.

    According to the details, Supari’s friend and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) activist Asad Numberdar tried to hit a rickshaw with his car near a police picket on Harley Street.

    The rickshaw driver, who was going from Lal Kurti towards Bakr Mandi, asked Numberdar why did he do it, following which the latter lost his temper, cocked a pistol and pointed it at the rickshaw driver identified as Sajjad.

    When the personnel on duty at a police picket saw him pointing a pistol at the distraught man, they jumped into action and overpowered Numberdar, who was later brought to the R.A. Bazaar police station and locked-up there.

    It wasn’t later that notorious gangster Zafar Supari walked into the precinct to meet his friend, however, he too was thrown behind bars on charges of obstructing official work.

    According to The Express Tribune, Supari has also been booked in cases of protecting wanted criminals and proclaimed offenders in his locality, besides posing with illegal firearms on social media.

    Numberdar has served a prison sentence for the murder of Raja Shoaib, a nephew of ex-Punjab Law Minister Raja Basharat. Police will produce both arrestees before a judge to seek their physical remand for further investigation.