Tag: politics latest

  • PM orders inquiry on wheat import last year

    PM orders inquiry on wheat import last year

    Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has ordered an inquiry committee to investigate the import of wheat last year under caretaker setup despite abundant harvest.

    Shehbaz appointed Secretary Cabinet Division Kamran Ali Afzal as head of the probe body.

    “What led to the import of wheat despite abundant production,” the prime minister inquired.

    Farmers in Punjab have staged protests because the government is not buying wheat crops from them at the agreed-upon rates.

    “All necessary measures should be taken for buying wheat and farmers should be compensated for their hard work soon,” Shehbaz assured.

    Importantly, Shehbaz has removed Federal Secretary National Food Security and Research Division Captain (R) Muhammad Asif from his post on the issue of wheat import during the caretaker government.

    Asif is a Grade 21 officer of the Pakistan Administrative Service. He has been made OSD.

  • ‘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.

  • ‘All that’s left for them now is to murder me – but I’m not afraid to die’, writes Imran Khan

    ‘All that’s left for them now is to murder me – but I’m not afraid to die’, writes Imran Khan

    Former Prime Minister of Pakistan Imran Khan wrote an op-ed for The Telegraph on May 2, blaming the military establishment for oppression, election rigging and trying to upend his political party PTI.

    “The military establishment, under the direct guidance of Gen Asim Munir, the chief of army staff, has tried every tactic to decimate my party’s presence from the political environment of Pakistan,” wrote Khan.

    The former Prime Minister also said that even though the electoral symbol of a cricket bat was taken from PTI “the people came out and voted overwhelmingly for candidates supported by my party, the Pakistan Tehreek e Insaf (PTI).”

    Khan emphasized that PTI supporters were “falsely accused” of attacking military installations on May 9 2023 because it was used “as a pretext for a crackdown” on PTI workers.

    “Military leadership has been subjected to overt criticism at a level unseen before in our history. The government is a laughing stock,” stated Khan.

    He also expressed regret over the “sorry state of judicial affairs” in the country and warned that the country is going on “the same path it trod in 1971, when it lost East Pakistan, now Bangladesh.”

    Naming the COAS General Asim Munir publicly, he wrote:

    “The military establishment has done all they could against me. All that is left for them is to now murder me. I have stated publicly that if anything happens to me or my wife, Gen Asim Munir will be responsible. But I am not afraid because my faith is strong. I would prefer death over slavery.”

  • Foreign Office laments German envoy incident at AJ Conference

    Foreign Office laments German envoy incident at AJ Conference

    Foreign Office Spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch on Thursday expressed regret over the incident faced by German Ambassador Alfred Grannas during an event in Lahore.

    Last week, the German envoy was heckled and booed by pro-Palestine protestors over Germany’s complicity in Israel’s genocide against the people of Gaza.

    In the footage, it could be seen that the activist shouted, “Why your country is brutally abusing the people speaking for the rights of Palestinians,” addressing the German envoy.

    However, Ambassador Grannas, who was visibly taken aback, began shouting while asking the protesters not to shout. He also gestured at the students while waving his left hand in the air, asking them to “go out”.

    Mumtaz also rejected allegations of former advisor to Prime Minister Shehzad Akbar’s claims that he was attacked by the state of Pakistan.

    “We categorically reject the allegations made by Shahzad Akbar against the state of Pakistan, its institutions and agencies. These claims are baseless and politically motivated. As we have said in the past safety and security of Pakistani nationals, wherever they are, are a matter of priority for Pakistan,” said the FO spokesperson during her weekly press briefing.

    She reiterated that Pakistan does not have a policy of targeting citizens abroad. Baloch said several dissidents are living in foreign countries but Pakistan has never engaged against them.

    Even though, “Some of them have (even) maintained links with terrorist entities inside Pakistan,” the spokesperson said.

    On April 29, Akbar served a copy of his legal action to the Pakistan High Commission in London. It names several Pakistan government officials as responsible for the attack.

    Akbar had initiated legal action against the Pakistani government over an acid attack in 2023 that left him “scarred for life”.

  • ECP once again raises concerns over PTI’s intra-party polls

    ECP once again raises concerns over PTI’s intra-party polls

    The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has raised concerns over the recent intra-party polls of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI). The electoral body asked PTI to submit a response in written form.

    The PTI’s political future is at risk as the ECP raised concerns that the party is holding central meetings without intra-party polls.

    The ECP asked how various PTI party organisations are working if the intra-party polls have not been held for five years. It was the opinion of the commission that PTI has no structure and no electoral symbol.

    It also objected to the PTI’s new intra-party elections. After the initial hearing on April 30, they told the PTI to submit its response

  • Punjab main koora tax?

    Punjab main koora tax?

    Express News has reported that the Punjab government has decided to hire local private companies instead of municipal services for waste management of 37 districts in the province.

    The government also intends to put a waste management tax on the public but it is unclear that what kind of tax it’ll be.

    The government plans to start waste management services in the next five to six months.

    Express News reported that there are no private waste management companies in some districts such as Sahiwal so the government has instructed authorities to facilitate private companies.

    In the past, the Punjab government in Lahore had given these contracts to foreign companies which became a burden on the national exchequer due to payments in dollars.

    That is why this time Punjab government intends to hire local companies.

    Rural areas will be provided with better waste management services as well.

  • Maryam’s advice to critics on TikTok videos doesn’t sit well with social media

    Maryam’s advice to critics on TikTok videos doesn’t sit well with social media

    Responding to criticism for regularly posting her daily activities on social media, Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz challenged her political opponents to come out of their “comfort zone” to work for the betterment of the country and let people make videos.

    One X (formerly Twitter) user wrote in a post that “Hum bahir nikaltay hain tou ap police peechay laga daiti hain.”

    Another user wrote on X that Maryam Nawaz gave “interesting” advice to political rivals.

    One social media user wrote on X that “TikTokers ka gham bahot achi tarah samajhti hain Maryam Nawaz”.

    Another user wrote in one post sarcastically that “Tik Toker ban’nay k leye Mehnat Karna parti hai, field main nikalna parta hai”.

    In one of the posts on X it was written that “All govt office holders come out of the air-conditioned rooms but they don’t flaunt branded suits and Gucci shoes and bags. So they go unnoticed.”

    A day earlier, on Wednesday, the chief minister said at an inauguration event in Lahore that people have continuously criticised her for her presence on TikTok and other social media platforms.

    She responded to the criticism, saying, “I also want these people to come out of their comfort zone […] come out of their air-conditioned rooms and do some work, so you would appear on TikTok videos and get eligible for media coverage too. You should also come out to serve the masses, but you have to leave your comfort zone.”

  • Bilawal Bhutto not in favour of privatising PIA

    Bilawal Bhutto not in favour of privatising PIA

    Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has expressed his opposition to the Shehbaz Sharif-led government’s privatisation policy for Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) and Pakistan Steel Mills (PSM).

    The PPP chairman said at a Labour Day event in Karachi that his party will try to convince Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb to revive PIA through a public-private partnership instead of privatising it.

    On the other hand, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) urged the Pakistani government to privatise state-owned enterprises to revive the country’s economy.

    However, the finance minister has laid emphasis many times on the importance of privatising state-owned enterprises, including PIA and PSM, for the betterment of the economy.

    Bilawal Bhutto Zardari also said that it will be an “unconstitutional step” if the federal government privatises PIA.

    Former senator Raza Rabbani further clarified that the government’s agenda of privatisation was “unacceptable” to the PPP.

  • 70 people lost lives in militant attacks in April

    70 people lost lives in militant attacks in April

    Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies (PICSS), an Islamabad-based think-tank, published its monthly security assessment report in which it was revealed that militant attacks claimed 70 lives in April 2024.

    According to the monthly report, Pakistan experienced at least 77 militant attacks during the month of April which resulted in 70 deaths, including 35 civilians and 31 members of security forces.

    Total number of injured people was 67.

    As compared to the previous month, there has been a stark increase in attacks. In March, Pakistan experienced 56 militant attacks.

    This indicates a 38 per cent increase in the number of militant attacks, although there was a nine per cent decline in deaths, with no change in the number of injuries.

  • PTI alleges CJP Isa insincere with judicial ‘interference’ issue

    PTI alleges CJP Isa insincere with judicial ‘interference’ issue

    Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) central information secretary Raoof Hasan, on Wednesday, expressed concern over the conduct of Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Qazi Faez Isa during Supreme Court proceedings on the issue of interference by spy agencies in the judiciary.

    PTI demanded that a full court be constituted to hear the matter on a daily basis, and more importantly, that CJP Isa should disassociate himself from the bench.

    Raoof Hasan was accompanied by the former chief minister of Gilgit-Baltistan Khalid Khursheed and PTI advocate Abuzar Salman Niazi.

    The secretary information remarked that the six judges of Islamabad High Court (IHC) asked the CJP for help but the Chief Justice referred it to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

    He said one should not forget that the PM and operatives of intelligence agencies were among those implicated in the matter.