Tag: PPP

  • ‘We still want immediate elections,’ Maulana Fazl tells the new govt

    ‘We still want immediate elections,’ Maulana Fazl tells the new govt

     Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman has demanded immediate elections.

    Addressing his party workers in Islamabad, Maulana said that the maximum time this new government would be in power for is a year.

    “In this new setup, the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam has its own identity and we are telling them [new government] that we still want immediate elections.”

    READ MORE: Zardari, Nawaz, Maulana have all been ruined by one man: Saleem Safi

    Maulana said that continuing to stay in power unnecessarily is not his party’s stance. The new government, he added, can take some time for electoral reforms but Maulana said that Imran Khan was ousted so that the people of Pakistan could be given their mandate back.

    “Now it is our responsibility to give back the nation what we promised.”

    Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has also been demanding early elections. However, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) said that elections cannot be held before October as it needs four months to complete the process of delimitation of constituencies.

  • PPP to get 11 ministries, PML-N 14 in federal cabinet: Rana Sanaullah

    PPP to get 11 ministries, PML-N 14 in federal cabinet: Rana Sanaullah

    Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) will get 14 ministries, while Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) will get 11 ministries. Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari is all set to become the Foreign Minister of Pakistan. Hina Rabbani Khar will most likely be the Minister of State in the Foreign Ministry.

    PML-N’s Rana Sanaullah told Geo News‘ anchorperson Shahzad Iqbal on “Naya Pakistan” that the Finance Ministry, Interior Ministry, Defence Ministry, Planning Ministry, Ministry of Energy and Information Ministry will remain with PML-N. Commerce Ministry and Communications Ministry will go to PPP and PML-N while MQM and PPP will get Maritime Ministry and Overseas Ministry. Marriyum Aurangzeb will most likely get Information Ministry as per media reports. Rana Sana said that these decisions have been taken after a joint committee of all allied parties finalised the formation of the new cabinet.

    According to The News, Asif Zardari advised Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to give cabinet posts to all coalition partners in the first phase and the PPP would join the cabinet in the second phase. It is expected that the first phase of the cabinet will take oath today (Monday) or tomorrow (Tuesday). In the first phase, 10 to 12 ministers will take the oath.

    Last week, PPP Co-chairman Asif Zardari had hinted that the PPP may not join the federal cabinet.

    “I don’t think we are taking any ministries. We want to first accommodate our friends,” said Zardari, talking about government’s other coalition partners.

    On Friday, PPP’s Raja Pervez Ashraf was elected Speaker of the National Assembly unopposed.

  • Names of PPP MNA, MPA removed from charge sheet in Nazim Jokhio murder case

    Names of PPP MNA, MPA removed from charge sheet in Nazim Jokhio murder case

    The names of 13 accused persons including Pakistan People’s Party MNA Jam Abdul Karim and his brother MPA Jam Owais, were removed from the charge sheet of Nazim Jokhio murder case submitted in the Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) .

    The charge sheet was submitted in the trial court following instructions by the Sindh High Court. The investigation officer had informed the high court that the charge sheet of the case was pending with prosecutor general office for the past couple of months due to its scrutiny.

    The names of others accused excluded from the charge sheet included Mohammad Saleem, Dodo Khan, Mohammad Soomar, Abdul Razzak, Jamal Ahmed, Mohammad Miraj, Mohammad Khan, Mohammad Ishaque, Ahmed Khan, Atta Mohammad and Zahid Ali.

    On November 3 last year, the tortured dead body of Nazim Jokhio was found at the farmhouse of PPP MPA Jam Awais’ in Malir area of Karachi, a day after he filmed a group of foreigners hunting the endangered houbara bustard in his Achar Salaar village in Thatta. According to Nazim Jokhio’s brother, Nazim had broadcast a live stream on social media of a hunting expedition involving foreign guests of PPP MPA Jam Awais, after which Jam Awais called Nazim to the house where he was allegedly murdered.

  • Who is going to be in new PMLN, PPP cabinet?

    Who is going to be in new PMLN, PPP cabinet?

    Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) President Shehbaz Sharif is likely to be get elected as the new Prime Minister of Pakistan today (Monday).

    According to Geo News’ sources, PML-N will have 12 cabinet ministers. The PPP will have seven, and the Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam (JUI-F) will be given four ministries. Meanwhile, Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) will have two, and Awami National Party (ANP), Jamhoori Watan Party and Balochistan Awami Party will have one each.

    It has been reported that the Governor of Punjab will be from PPP and the Governor of Sindh from MQM-P. Similarly, JUI-F has demanded the seat of Governor of Balochistan or Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) from their allies.

    PPP Chairperson Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari could be the next foreign minister.

    PML-N’s Khawaja Asif, Saad Rafique, Khurram Dastgir, Ahsan Iqbal, Marriyum Aurangzeb, Shaista Pervaiz Malik, Rana Sanaullah and Murtaza Javed are likely to join the cabinet. 

  • SBP determined to curb inflation, improve foreign exchange reserves

    SBP determined to curb inflation, improve foreign exchange reserves

    In a recent interview, the Governor of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), Dr. Reza Baqir expressed concern over the continuous deterioration in foreign exchange reserves but remained optimistic that a renewal of loans will be witnessed in the near future, which, coupled with SBP’s initiatives, will enhance market confidence.

    He claimed that the decline in reserves is “clearly alarming, but we are convinced that the central bank’s initiatives will prevent further deterioration”.

    According to data issued by the central bank on April 7, the reserves massively declined by $728 million to $11.32 billion as of April 1.

    The decline, according to SBP, is primarily attributable to debt repayment and government payments linked to the settling of an arbitration judgment.

    In addition to this, the currency even hit new lows in the week, forcing the SBP to intervene by boosting the policy rate, declaring a 100 per cent cash margin on 177 commodities with instant effect, and hiking the markup percentage by 2.5 per cent for borrowing under the Export Finance Scheme (EFS).

    In response to the Monetary Policy Committee’s (MPC) recent rate hike, Baqir stated that the move was made to tackle growing inflation and lessen external pressures. “The foreign exchange market has been under a lot of pressure for more than a month. A number of factors contributed to it: first, there was political uncertainty; second, our reserves were drained due to debt payments”.

    Consequently, the Pakistani rupee ended its devaluation run on April 8, and the KSE-100 Index witnessed positive sentiment, ending the day with an impressive gain of 658 points.

    The SBP Governor also discussed the skyrocketing petrol prices, which remain elevated because of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, adding more pressure on the local currency.

    The central bank made a determined decision after analyzing the statistics to lower inflation, improve foreign exchange reserves, and boost business confidence.

  • 64% Pakistanis believe there is no US conspiracy to overthrow PTI government

    64 per cent Pakistanis believe that there is no US conspiracy to overthrow the PTI government, Gallup survey has revealed. The survey was conducted between April 3 and 4, according to which 64 per cent Pakistanis cited inflation as the main reason behind the fall of the PTI government.

    Those who participated in the survey said that the main reason behind the Opposition’s efforts to remove the government is inflation and lack of relief for the people.

    Only 36 per cent of the participants said that the US was behind the fall of the government.

    Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan has named Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs Donald Lu as the United States (US) representative who had a meeting with Pakistan’s Ambassador in the US, which led to the ‘threatening’ diplomatic cable.

    It is pertinent to mention here that Pakistan is in a state of political chaos as the no-confidence motion against Khan was dismissed abruptly on Sunday. The move came after Suri termed it “unconstitutional”, saying that it was backed by “foreign powers”.

  • MQM’s wishlist: Sindh govt decides to remove PPP’s Murtaza Wahab as Karachi administrator

    MQM’s wishlist: Sindh govt decides to remove PPP’s Murtaza Wahab as Karachi administrator

    The Sindh government has reportedly decided to remove their party member Murtaza Wahab as Karachi administrator following a Pakistan People’s Pakistan (PPP) and Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) deal, states ARY News’ sources.

    The sources further state that the new administrator of Karachi would be nominated in light of the deal between these two parties.

    It has been reported that MQM-P will be part of the Sindh government as two ministers from the provincial cabinet will resign in the next few days.

    The 18-point-agreement between the MQM-P and PPP, known as the ‘Charter of Rights’, was signed on March 30.

    The agreement was signed in the presence of PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and MQM-P’s Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui, while Shehbaz Sharif, Fazlur Rehman, Akhtar Mengal and Khalid Magsi have signed the agreement as guarantor.

  • Opposition leaders claim PM Khan wants an NRO

    Opposition leaders claim PM Khan wants an NRO

    Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairperson Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari said that it is time for Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan to exit honourably.

    “You have played your innings. Show sportsman spirit and leave,” said Bilawal while talking to the media in Parliament House

    “An honourable way to exit is to step down and let the vote of no-confidence motion happen and allow the Leader of the Opposition Shehbaz Sharif to take a vote of confidence.”

    “We will not give any NRO to Imran Khan nor will we withdraw the no-confidence motion,” said Bilawal.

    During the meeting of the Opposition leaders today ahead of the crucial National Assembly (NA) session for a debate on the no-confidence motion, it was shared that the premier has asked for a “safe passage” amid a deepening political crisis, reported Geo News.

    PM Khan has said that if the Opposition doesn’t agree with his suggestion, he is ready to face any situation.

    Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Maryam Nawaz tweeted, “#NoNROforNiazi”.

    PML-N leader Miftah Ismail took to Twitter and asked, “Guess who is pleading for an NRO now?

    PML-N leader Saad Rafique tweeted, “On the one hand, you are asking for face-saving, and on the other hand foreign conspiracy drama, naked abuses, threats of bringing one lakh people cannot go together.”

  • ‘My Urdu is weak at 30, your Urdu is not good even at 70’: Bilawal on PM Khan

    Taking a jibe at Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan, Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) chairperson Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari said that “PM Khan criticises my Urdu, I admit that my Urdu is not good. However, my Urdu is weak at the age of 30 but your [PM Khan] Urdu is not good even at the age of 70,” adding that before you fix my Urdu, teach Urdu to your three children.

    Bilawal addressed a public gathering in Parachinar today (Saturday), where he said that the Opposition has shown that Imran Khan has lost the majority in the house. Therefore, he is no longer the prime minister. “Opposition will consider Imran Khan as the PM if he manages to bring 172 members,” he added.

    He further said that the Opposition has tabled the no-confidence motion against PM Khan since March 8. “The prime minister should show sportsmanship and face us if he is brave enough to do so,” he said.

    While addressing, the PPP chairperson said,” Next elections will be free and fair and no institutions will be made controversial for one person.”

    He further claimed, “Imran Khan violates the Constitution and the democracy. He doesn’t want the rule of law in Pakistan. He rather wants all institutions to work like his Tiger Force.”

    Criticising the PM, Bilawal said: “The PM used to say that he would become the ambassador of Kashmir, but he ended up becoming the lawyer of Kulbhushan Jadhav.”

    “What kind of Riyasat-e-Madina is this which provides relief to the rich and inflation to the poor,” Bilawal posed a question.

    He also alleged that PM Imran has been conspiring and making efforts to turn all institutions — be it the NAB (National Accountability Bureau), be it the ISI (Inter-Service Intelligence), be it our armed forces, be it our police — into his Tiger Force.

  • PM Khan to meet MQM-P today before no-confidence motion

    PM Khan to meet MQM-P today before no-confidence motion

    Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan is expected to meet Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) on Saturday in an effort to appease his government ally ahead of the no-confidence motion, according to Geo News‘ sources.

    MQM-P delegation including Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui, Aamir Khan, Wasim Akhtar and Khawaja Izharul Hasan will leave for the capital today at 4pm.

    As per the news outlet’s sources, the premier had requested a meeting with the MQM-P delegation on Friday but party’s leaders were in Karachi at the time so the meeting was scheduled for today.

    Earlier, it was reported that MQM-P and Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) are working on a draft related to Sindh’s issues. PPP chairperson Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari said that matters have been settled with the key government ally. Similarly, Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman said that MQM-P would announce that they are with the Opposition in a day or two.

    According to Interior Minister Sheikh Rasheed, voting on the no-confidence motion against PM Khan will take place on April 3 or 4.