Tag: President Dr Arif Alvi

  • President Alvi approves mini-budget amidst concerns of pushing Pakistanis into deeper poverty

    President Alvi approves mini-budget amidst concerns of pushing Pakistanis into deeper poverty

    President Dr Arif Alvi has given his approval for the Finance (Supplementary) Bill 2023, also known as the mini-budget, under Article 75 of the Constitution, which requires the president to assent to a bill presented to him within 10 days.

    National Assembly had passed the Rs170 billion mini-budget with some modifications, which will have an annual impact of about Rs550 billion.

    The budget’s approval has brought Pakistan closer to an agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) but at the cost of pushing people deeper into the poverty trap.

    The majority of the taxation measures were implemented, although the president had not given his assent when the National Assembly passed the bill.

    Finance Minister Ishaq Dar admitted during his wind-up speech that inflation was unbearable for the people and blamed the maladministration of the previous government of former prime minister Imran Khan.

    Dar also admitted that the news stories about Rs675 billion to Rs700 billion taxes were not untrue and the IMF had demanded those measures, which the government did not accept. Dar added that almost all major issues with the IMF had been sorted out, and Pakistan is now very near to the staff-level agreement.

  • TV channels will be required to air news with sign language interpreters

    TV channels will be required to air news with sign language interpreters

    President Dr Arif Alvi has signed the Access to the Media (Deaf) Persons Act, 2022 into law, under which all private and state-run broadcasters will be required to air news bulletins with sign language interpreters.

    The act will fully come into force six months after the commencement of the bill.

    Once enforced, the government shall not allow broadcasting any news bulletin on the national broadcaster, state or privately run electronic media, private television channels, cable TV, or any other broadcast media without sign language interpreters.

    The bill was moved by Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Senator Saleem Mandviwalla who gave a detailed briefing to the committee regarding the bill.

  • President Alvi to discuss ‘game of audio and videos leaks’ with COAS Munir

    President Alvi to discuss ‘game of audio and videos leaks’ with COAS Munir

    President Dr Arif Alvi has said that he had made it a point to discuss the “game of audio and videos leaks” with Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Asim Munir.

    “I am surprised why this is going on. It should not continue in any sense of morality,” said Dr Alvi during a wide-ranging conversation with journalists, leaders of business community and foreign diplomats at a dinner on Saturday.

    Alvi revealed that former army chief General (retd) Qamar Javed Bajwa and his team helped Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan in the Senate and during the elections as well.

    The president that Khan had no thought of sacking Gen (retd) Bajwa, stating, “No, I don’t think so. That was a rumour.”

    The president said that we should let go of the past and forgive people for the mistakes they had committed earlier, so a new beginning could take place.

    “Let’s make a country that we deserve,” the President said. He rued that institutions had not played their role, even the judiciary, pointing out that the courts had given verdicts allowing a dictator to change the constitution. He referred to the Reko Diq case in which Pakistan had to pay a fine of $7 billion.

    “If you criticise the judiciary, it will reduce the efficacy of the entire judiciary. If you criticise the army, it becomes a matter of disrepute and we don’t want that,” the president said. He, however, added that this principle was often stretched and applied to every situation, due to which one could not say anything against them.

    Discussing Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari’s response to India, Dr Alvi remarked that the minister had done the right thing. He said the world and the global order was based on vested interests. “A good reply was given by Bilawal sahib,” he stated.

  • What is new army chief Asim Munir like? This is what Twitter has to say

    What is new army chief Asim Munir like? This is what Twitter has to say

    Lieutenant General (Lt Gen) Asim Munir has been officially appointed as the new Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) of Pakistan after President Dr Arif Alvi signed the summary on Thursday evening.

    Following the development, the new army chief separately met Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif and President Alvi.

    Lt- Gen Munir entered the service via the Officers Training School (OTS) programme in Mangla, and was commissioned into the Frontier Force Regiment. He has been a close aide of the incumbent COAS General Qamar Javed Bajwa ever since he commanded troops in the Force Command Northern Areas as a brigadier under him.

    He was later appointed Director General Military Intelligence in early 2017, and in October next year was made the ISI chief. However, he was replaced soon by Lt- Gen Faiz Hameed within eight months, reportedly on the insistence of the then Prime Minister, Imran Khan. He was posted as Gujranwala Corps commander for two years, before being moved to the GHQ as Quartermaster General.

    Well, this is the information that we know so far but Twitterati has some interesting details as well.

  • PM Shehbaz, President wish nation on the occasion of Eid-Milad-ul-Nabi

    PM Shehbaz, President wish nation on the occasion of Eid-Milad-ul-Nabi

    The birth anniversary of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) is being celebrated today with religious devotion. On the occasion of Eid-Milad-ul-Nabi, different political leaders have offered warm wishes to the nation.

    Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif congratulated the nation through his official Twitter handle.

    In his message, PM Shehbaz said: “Allah sent our last Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) as a blessing for the believers”.

    President Dr Arif Alvi congratulating the nation, said: “His prophethood made visible the difference between good and evil, the darkness of ignorance was removed, the customs of non-believers were abolished, the name of the lone Creator of the universe was magnified and hearts of the humanity shone with the purity of the oneness of Allah.”

    Foreign Minister (FM) Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, in a tweet, extended his wishes. He said, “By fully following the principles of co-existence, cooperation, and tolerance mentioned by Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), conflicts and tensions in the world can be ended.”

    Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan wished the nation on his Instagram handle.

    Federal Minister for Climate Change Sherry Rehman, on the occasion, urged the nation to, “move forward following the path indicated by the Holy Prophet.”

  • Early appointment of new army chief is not a bad idea, says President Alvi

    Early appointment of new army chief is not a bad idea, says President Alvi

    President Dr Arif Alvi was asked about an early appointment of the next army chief, which is due this November, in a meeting with journalists today.

    “It’s not such a bad idea,” Alvi said in response.

    According to reports, President Alvi said that this matter can be resolved through dialogue.

    President Alvi said that it has been suggested that he “plays his part” after meeting the army, naval, or air chiefs, which he “cannot do”. Elaborating further, Alvi said that as the president of Pakistan, he does not have the constitutional authority to ask parties to have a dialogue.

    He said that a dialogue is possible only when all the stakeholders agree. “The President House can play its role only in this case.”

    Neutrals need to remain neutral 

    “The neutrals need to remain neutral always,” the president said.

    “The elephant in the room has not yet appeared but it has been there for 50 years,” he said, adding that the matter is a ground reality and that it can be solved through dialogue.

    On relations with Shehbaz Sharif

    Alvi said that he has had many meetings with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and this impression is wrong that his relationship with the prime minister is not so good. Since this government took power, the government has sent the president 74 summaries.

    Since the coalition government has come into the office, 69 out of 74 summaries have been signed on the day of receiving them, said Alvi.

    “I held back the summaries regarding NAB amendment Ordinance, electronic voting machines, and the Punjab governor but this was not due to any pressure,” he said.

    On talking with Imran Khan

    When asked, President Alvi said that he didn’t have any communication with PTI Chairman Imran Khan on the matter of EVMs and NAB amendment ordinance and the last time they spoke was when there was an issue regarding the Punjab governor.

  • President plays popular game Wordle, shares score on Twitter, deletes later

    President plays popular game Wordle, shares score on Twitter, deletes later

    President of Pakistan Dr Arif Alvi shared his score in the popular game Wordle on Twitter but seems like he got some backlash for it. He tweeted today (February 3), deleted it hours later.

    President’s son Awab Ali in a tweet wrote, “I know he enjoys puzzles – so it was definitely something he would get hooked onto An internal family competition is a new rage, including a few of his grandkids.”

    President also faced backlash on social media for playing the game.

    Wordle has caught the attention of Pakistani Twitter for a while now. Miftah Ismail is among the many politicians who regularly shares his Wordle score on Twitter.

    More recently, former wife of Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan, Jemima Goldsmith, shared her Wordle score on Twitter but the replies to her tweet were not related to the game.

  • ‘Poor judgment’, President Alvi reacts to promoting own family business

    ‘Poor judgment’, President Alvi reacts to promoting own family business

    President Dr Arif Alvi has regretted the choice of the place where his son Dr Awab Alvi signed the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Bringing Smiles Unites States of America (USA) signatory ceremony. The MoU was signed at the Governor’s House.

    Taking to Twitter Alvi said, “For the signing ceremony of an MOU between Dr Awab [his son] and his friend in my presence, the venue selection was a matter of poor judgment.”

    Taking the president’s side, federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Fawad Chaudhry tweeted, “The President is a very respected person, his honesty and personality is witnessed by everyone who knows him.”

    Earlier today, President Alvi’s son announced about the MoU on social media along with a picture in which Dr Arif Alvi and his wife can be seen standing along with their son.

    Despite Dr Awab’s clarification, an online debate was generated on whether there was a conflict of interest for the president or not.

    When the official website “Alvi Dentals” was checked, the president is still enlisted as a dentist and part of the Alvi Dental team. The website also provides an option to “schedule an appointment” with the president.

  • ‘That’s the spirit’: President Alvi praises Mohammad Rizwan for his performance despite bad health

    ‘That’s the spirit’: President Alvi praises Mohammad Rizwan for his performance despite bad health

    President of Pakistan Dr Arif Alvi has praised Mohammad Rizwan for his outclass performance in the semi-final against Australia despite the fact that he was was not well and admitted in hospital for two days before the match.

    Taking to Twitter, President Alvi wrote: “That’s the spirit. This is symbolic of the emerging ‘Brand Pakistan’. And my friends it is the new Pakistan.”

    Rizwan scored a half-century against Australia in the second semi-final of the T20 World Cup, beating captain Babar Azam. He became the player who scored a thousand runs in the calendar year.

    He also broke the record of England’s Jos Buttler, who had just set it for the most runs by a keeper in a Men’s T20 World Cup. Buttler broke Craig Kieswetter’s record from 2010 in this year’s edition, had scored 269 runs to his name before England crashed out Thursday night in the semi-final.

  • Govt negotiating with Saad Rizvi to end banned TLP’s protest

    Govt negotiating with Saad Rizvi to end banned TLP’s protest

    In a press release by Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP), it is reported that the government is negotiating with the banned outfit head Saad Hussain Rizvi.

    The government delegation includes Minister of Foreign Affairs of Pakistan Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Speaker of the National Assembly of Pakistan Asad Qaiser, and Member of National Assembly (MNA) Ali Muhammad Khan.

    According to the press release, the final decision will be made later today.

    Prior to this, President Dr Arif Alvi reportedly asked for the Ulema’s help in addressing the ongoing chaos in the country due to TLP’s protests.

    In a meeting with a delegation of Ulema of Ahle-e-Sunnat Wal Jamaat, President Alvi stated that the Ulema have always played a significant role in providing moral and religious guidance to people besides standing with the state in difficult times.

    The meeting deliberated upon various options to address the current situation peacefully and emphasised resolving the matter through negotiations.

    At the meeting, the Ulema expressed concern over the reports of violence which have caused harm to the general public.

    The consultative meeting at the President’s House had taken place after a National Security Committee (NSC) meeting in Islamabad, which resolved to guard the sovereignty of the state from all internal and external threats.