Tag: Pervaiz Rasheed

  • ‘Lifafa replaces Basket’: Netizens give Pakistani journalists a new name

    ‘Lifafa replaces Basket’: Netizens give Pakistani journalists a new name

    In a 2022 first, another leaked audio conversation between Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Vice President Maryam Nawaz and PML-N Leader Pervaiz Rashid left netizens full of anger and sarcasm.

    While the two politicians could be heard allegedly planning to control independent media, the audio claims that certain journalists received ‘baskets’ from former prime minister Nawaz Sharif.

    Journalists in Pakistan for a long have been associated with the word “Lifafa”, a term used to discredit them for taking a bribe. However, after the leaked audio, Twitterati has given a new name to journalists and started calling them “basket journalists” instead. The term was coined after Maryam said in the alleged audio that two baskets should be sent to journalists.

    Here are a few of the memes doing the rounds calling journalists “basket”.

    As per the leaked audio, Pervaiz Rashid, referring to how criticism was directed towards PML-N on a political talk show on Geo News, said to Maryam Nawaz, “They have a programme called ‘Score Card’ [Report Card], Hassan Nisar is a part of its [panel] he abuses us a lot.”

    Rashid lamented the fact that there was not one single person [journalist/analyst] whom they could call a spokesperson for the party.

    Towards the end of the clip, Maryam allegedly passes instructions that a pair of baskets that former prime minister Nawaz Sharif brought from Azerbaijan should be sent to journalists Nusrat Javeed and Rana Jawad.

  • Pervaiz Rasheed’s Senate nomination papers rejected over unpaid Rs26 lacs in room rent

    Pervaiz Rasheed’s Senate nomination papers rejected over unpaid Rs26 lacs in room rent

    Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) stalwart Pervaiz Rasheed’s nomination papers for the upcoming Senate polls were on Thursday rejected over non-payment of room rent to Punjab House in Islamabad.

    According to reports, the Punjab government has accused the ex-information minister of defaulting on payments over Rs2.6 million (Rs26 lacs) for his stay at the residency for 759 days.

    Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) MPA Zainab Omar had filed an objection against Rasheed through her lawyer Rana Mudassar to the returning officer/provincial election commissioner in Lahore.

    Speaking to media, Rasheed described the move to reject his nomination papers as a vindictive act on behalf of the government. 

    The PML-N leader accused Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan of not tolerating criticism, adding that efforts were being made to keep him out of the parliament. 

    Rasheed accused the government of preparing a fake “demand” against him. “To dispose of this fake demand, I am ready to make the payment,” said the senior PML-N leader.

    The PML-N leader said that he wanted to pay the dues to the Punjab House but its management was not accepting it. “You can close the doors on me, but you can’t stop my voice,” he said, addressing the government.

    “I will appeal against the decision to reject my nomination papers,” he said and alleged that fake cases against PML-N leaders were being made, accusing the government of keeping political opponents at bay.

  • Musharraf’s exit: ‘PML-N was powerless after Raheel Sharif’s recommendation’

    Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Senator Pervaiz Rashid has said that former military ruler General (r) Pervez Musharraf, who was recently sentenced to death in abstentia for treason, “was allowed to go abroad for medical treatment on the recommendation of then army chief Raheel Sharif”, and the government stood “powerless”.

    “We [the PML-N government] didn’t have the power to stop him,” said the former information minister, who was sacked in 2016 following the Dawn Leaks fiasco that revealed the details of a high level civil-military meeting discussing the issue of Pakistan’s banned outfits.

    Speaking to a private media outlet, Rasheed has also claimed that Gen (r) Raheel Sharif wanted an extension in his tenure as the army chief, but the then government of prime minister (PM) Nawaz Sharif refused it.

    However, a former army general rejected Rasheed’s claims that the PML-N had turned down Gen (r) Raheel’s request for an extension in his tenure. “In fact, the PML-N government had offered to give Gen (r) Raheel a promotion by making him a field marshal,” Lt Gen (r) Amjad Shoaib said while speaking to the TV channel.

    He added that Shehbaz Sharif and then interior minister Chaudhry Nisar wanted to give Gen (r) Raheel an extension in his tenure as the army chief. Shoaib said that Raheel had announced 10 months before his retirement that he would not take extension.

    “Raheel Sharif had an offer from Saudi Arabia,” the former military official said.

    In 2015, Saudi Arabia announced that it would form a new Islamic Military Counter Terrorism Coalition force. Gen (r) Raheel Sharif was appointed the alliance’s chief in January 2017, months after his retirement as the army chief.