ISLAMABAD: Local body elections in the capital have been postponed, with the Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Wednesday directing the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to complete fresh delimitation of constituencies and issue a new schedule in 65 days.
A hearing was held today on petitions related to local body elections in Islamabad at the request of PML-N, PPP and PTI.
The parties had sought a delay in the polls, making a case for revised delimitation after the government increased the number of union councils from 50 to 101.
The ECP had notified polls on July 31 in 50 union councils of the capital.
The hearing was conducted by IHC Chief Justice Athar Minallah.
When it began, the chief justice asked the ECP what their decision is regarding the local government elections in Islamabad.
“The ECP has given a clear position on local body elections under the government notification,” the officials told the court.
The chief justice inquired: “In how many days will the election be held?”
“Elections can be held in 60 to 65 days,” the Election Commission officials said.
Justice Minallah then proceeded to review some complaints received regarding the polls.
He directed the Election Commission to not transfer votes from one ward to another.
The ECP officials said that first a new delimitation process will take place over 60 days and then a schedule for local body elections will be announced.
They requested the court to order the federal government to cooperate in local body elections. “Governments obstruct local elections,” they complained.
“The court should order the federal government to fulfil constitutional obligations of local body elections,” they pleaded.
Justice Minallah noted that the parties’ requests to delay elections have been “rendered ineffective”.
The Election Commission should announce the election schedule after fresh delimitation in 65 days, the court ruled.
KABUL: An earthquake of magnitude 6.1 killed at least 950 people in Afghanistan early on Wednesday, officials said, adding that at least 610 of people were injured and the toll is likely to rise as information trickles in from remote mountain villages.
The quake struck about 44 km (27 miles) from the city of Khost, near the Pakistani border, the US Geological Survey (USGC) reported.
“Strong and long jolts,” a resident of the Afghan capital, Kabul, posted on the website of the European Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC).
“It was strong,” said a resident of the northwestern Pakistani city of Peshawar.
Helicopters were deployed in the rescue effort to reach the injured and fly in medical supplies and food, said an interior ministry official, Salahuddin Ayubi.
“The death toll is likely to rise as some of the villages are in remote areas in the mountains and it will take some time to collect details.”
Wednesday’s quake was the deadliest since 2002. It struck about 44 km (27 miles) from the southeastern city of Khost, near the border with Pakistan, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGC) said.
Earlier, according to reports, most of the confirmed deaths were in the eastern province of Paktika, where 255 people were killed and more than 200 injured, Ayubi added. In the province of Khost, 25 were dead and 90 had been taken to hospital.
Haibatullah Akhundzada, the supreme leader of the ruling Taliban, offered his condolences in a statement.
Mounting a rescue operation could prove a major test for the Taliban, who took over the country in August and have been cut off from much international assistance because of sanctions.
Shaking was felt by about 119 million people in Pakistan, Afghanistan and India, the EMSC said on Twitter, but there were no immediate reports of damage or casualties in Pakistan.
The EMSC put the earthquake’s magnitude at 6.1, though the USGC said it was 5.9.
Adding to the challenge for Afghan authorities is recent flooding in many regions, which the disaster agency said had killed 11, injured 50 and blocked stretches of highway.
The disaster comes as Afghanistan grapples with a severe economic crisis since the Taliban took over, as US-led international forces withdrew following two decades of war.
In response to the Taliban takeover, many nations imposed sanctions on Afghanistan’s banking sector and cut billions of dollars worth of development aid.
Humanitarian aid has continued, however, with international agencies, such as the United Nations, operating.
The UN’s office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) said Afghanistan had asked humanitarian agencies to help with rescue efforts, and teams were being despatched to the quake-hit area.
A spokesman of Afghanistan’s foreign ministry said it would welcome international help. Neighbouring Pakistan said it was working to extend assistance.
Large parts of South Asia are seismically active because a tectonic plate known as the Indian plate is pushing north into the Eurasian plate. read more
In 2015, an earthquake struck the remote Afghan northeast, killing several hundred people in Afghanistan and nearby northern Pakistan.
In January, an earthquake struck western Afghanistan, killing more than 20 people.
The foreign ministry of Pakistan and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif have expressed condolences over the lives lost in the earthquake.
The Prime Minister said that that “relevant authorities are working to support Afghanistan in this time of need.
Meanwhile, the foreign ministry said in a statement that the government and people of Pakistan extend their “deepest condolences and sympathies over the loss of precious lives and damage to property caused by the tragic earthquake in Paktika province of Afghanistan.”
“The people of Pakistan stand in strong solidarity with their Afghan brethren in this difficult time. We have no doubt that the brotherly Afghan people will overcome the effects of this natural calamity with their characteristic resilience,” the statement read.
LAHORE: Punjab province has decided to declare an “emergency” amid a rapid increase of reported cases of sexual abuse against women and children.
Talking to media, Punjab Home Minister Atta Tarar said that an increase in such incidents was a serious issue for society and government officials.
“Four to five cases of rape are being reported daily in Punjab due to which the government is considering special measures to deal with cases of sexual harassment, abuse and coercion,” the minister said
To deal with increasing rape cases and sexual assaults, the administration has declared an emergency,” he stated.
The minister said that civil society, women’s rights organisations, teachers, and attorneys would be consulted in the matter. Besides this, he urged parents to teach their children about the importance of safety.
Tarar stated that the accused in a number of cases had been detained, the government had launched an anti-rape campaign, and students would be warned about harassment in schools.
The home minister stated that now is the time for parents to learn how to protect their children. He stated that the government will raise the number of DNA samples on a fast-track basis.
“A system on abuse will be implemented in two weeks, reducing the incidents,” he added.
Pakistan has been suffering and battling a gender violence epidemic and violence against women cuts across classes in the country.
Pakistan ranks 153 out of 156 countries, just above Iraq, Yemen and Afghanistan, according to the Global Gender Gap Index 2021 rankings.
An article published in International Forum for Rights and Security (IFFRAS) said Pakistan reported as many as 14,456 women during the last four years, while Punjab reported the highest number in this regard.
Besides this, women’s harassment in the workplace, domestic violence against women and other discriminatory activities against women have also been rampant.
“The 5,048 cases of workplace harassment of women and violence against women reported in the country during 2018 followed by 4,751 cases in 2019; 4,276 cases in 2020 and 2,078 cases in 2021”, the Human Rights Ministry document said.
IFFRAS said overlapping legal systems punctured with loopholes and a deeply engrained patriarchy in the society combine to ensure women survivors of violence are improbable to get justice as per the opinion of human rights activists, lawyers and survivors.
“The whole process from the moment a crime is committed against a woman to registering it with the police — and then the court procedure — is structured in such a way that justice remains elusive,” Nayab Gohar Jan, a prominent rights activist stated in May.
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan will continue to enjoy Generalized System of Preferences plus (GSP +) status of the European Union (EU) till 2022, after which the EU will announce new criteria to qualify for the scheme.
The European Union Monitoring Mission has landed in Islamabad for ten days (June 20-30, 2022) to discuss the development and progress of the scheme.
A detailed briefing will be give to the Federal Cabinet on Tuesday (today) on GSP+ related unresolved issues and prospects for a new GSP scheme starting from next year.
Last year, the EU on extending the GSP plus status for Pakistan, added six new Conventions along with expressing its concerns about situation of human rights, press freedom, death penalty and child labour related issues.
Minister for Commerce, Syed Naveed Qamar, who recently visited a few EU member countries’ capitals to muster support for a new scheme, will also brief the Cabinet on his efforts and observation made by the EU countries on incomplete Conventions.
The EU Monitoring Mission will discuss the developments and progress made on implementation of 27 International Conventions concerning GSP+ since 2020 onwards in separate meetings with the relevant stakeholders reflecting the four charters, i.e., human rights, labour rights, environment and good governance.
In view of the immense significance of the Monitoring Mission’s visit for continuation of GSP+ unilateral concessions utilized by Pakistan, it was decided in the meeting of the Treaty Implementation Cell (TIC) on June 14, 2022 that the stakeholders concerned may firm up a solid narrative for presentation to the Monitoring Mission.
To move forward with the objective of seeking an extension to the GSP plus the Attorney General for Pakistan, the Convener of TIC, held a meeting on Monday which was attended by all concerned officials including a senior representative of National Accountability Bureau (NAB).
For new GSP Scheme (2024 -34), the European Commission published the legislation for GSP scheme (2024- 34) on September 22, 2021.
The new proposed scheme aims to improve key features of the scheme to better respond to the evolving needs and challenges of GSP countries, as well as, reinforce the scheme’s social, labour, environmental and climate dimension. It will be in place for ten years. There is an expansion in the list of International Conventions from 27 to 32 that beneficiary countries will have to ratify and implement.
The five new Conventions include the following: (i) two new instruments on human rights on the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) and the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict (OP-CRC-AC) ;(ii) two new instruments on labour rights including ILO Convention No. 81 on Labour Inspection and ILO Convention No. 144 on Tripartite Consultation; (iii) One new instrument on governance on the UN Convention Against Trans-national Organized Crime; and (iv) one new instrument on climate change on the Paris Agreement on Climate Change (2015), replacing the Kyoto Protocol (1997).
In connection to (iii) strengthening and streamlining of the monitoring and compliance mechanism includes increased transparency and involvement of civil society, rapid response mechanism for urgent withdrawal of preferences procedure for systemic violations and expansion of the monitoring cycle from 2 to 3 years. The scheme also provides for transitional arrangements for current GSP Plus beneficiaries, who will have to fulfil the new requirements.
GSP + incentive provides many Pakistani export-oriented products including garments, bed linen, terry towels, hosiery, leather, sports & surgical goods, etc., duty free access in the EU market. As a result of this arrangement, Pakistan’s exports to EU increased from $ 6.094 billion in 2013-14 to $ 7.965 billion in 2018-19. However, due to Covid-19 crisis the bilateral trade register decline in the last two years. In financial year, 2020-21 bilateral trade stood at $ 10.883 billion with Pakistan’s exports to EU amounting to $ 6.9186 billion, with imports from EU estimated at $ 3.9644 billion and trade balance at $ 2.9542 billion in favour of Pakistan.
The EU and Pakistan have set up a Sub-Group on Trade to promote the development of two-way trade. The Sub-Group on Trade set up under the auspices of the EU-Pakistan Joint Commission is the forum for discussions on trade policy and developments more broadly and also aims to tackle individual market access issues which hamper trade between the two parties.
ISLAMABAD: Esther Perez Ruiz, Resident Chief of International Monetary Fund (IMF) revealed that important breakthrough was achieved on the budget of fiscal year 2022-23.
“Discussions between the Fund staff and Pakistan on policies to strengthen macro-economic stability in the coming year continue to strengthen macro-economic stability in the coming year continue with Pakistan”, Ruiz said in a statement.
She said that progress was achieved in talks with Pakistan for the revival of the $6 billion loan facility stalled since months due to policy breaches by the previous government.
The latest development comes a day after Federal Minister for Revenue and Finance Miftah Ismail had indicated the revival of the agreement with IMF within a day or two.
“I am very hopeful that the IMF programme will be revived soon,” Miftah Ismail said while talking to media.
Following the downward trend of the Pakistani rupee against the US dollar, the breakthrough with the lender is of utmost importance to steer the country out of the ongoing economic crisis.
To meet the conditions of the IMF, the government had to take some tough measures, such as banning the import of certain items and removing subsidies that resulted in an unprecedented hike in POL [petrol, oil, lubricants].
The IMF will now share a draft Memorandum of Economic and Financial Policies (MEFP) on coming Friday or Monday.
In the next few days, the IMF and SBP will work out modalities on monetary targets, including further tightening of monetary policy, net international reserves and net domestic assets.
The Federal Government has fulfilled the demands of the IMF and accepted to slap Rs1,200 tax on salary earner of Rs50,000 to Rs100,000.
“The government made all-out efforts to convince the IMF but failed to do so. The FBR target has been proposed to be increased from Rs7,004 billion to Rs7,442 billion for the next fiscal. The expenditure target was revised downwards, so the revenue surplus of Rs152 billion would be achieved,” the report said.
The sources said the petroleum levy has also been readjusted as the levy of Rs5 per litre will be imposed. This would be gradually increased up to Rs30 per litre instead of Rs50 per litre. The petroleum levy target has been slashed down from Rs750 billion to Rs550 billion.
The government has also agreed to impose 1% poverty tax on firms earning Rs150 million, 2% on those earning Rs200m, 3% on over Rs250m and 4% on Rs300m above, according to a Daily Dawn report, which was only 2% on those earning Rs300m and above.
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has summoned the federal cabinet meeting to be held today (Tuesday) in Islamabad to discuss economic and political situation in the country.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will preside over the federal cabinet meeting to be held at the Prime Minister’s office. The cabinet will discuss a seven-point agenda during the meeting.
The Cabinet will discuss the prices of medicines as part of the agenda of the cabinet meeting while it will also ratify the decisions of the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC).
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz on Monday decided in principle to provide flour, ghee, cooking oil, pulses, rice and sugar at a low price to the poor segment of society for the next financial year.
Presiding over a high-level meeting on utility stores in Islamabad on Monday, he said the poor segment of society is in dire need of relief at this time, and the government will take all measures in this regard.
The Prime Minister also approved the expansion of utility stores network in Karachi. He asked the authorities concerned to present a comprehensive plan to increase the number of utility stores in Karachi within two weeks.
Shehbaz Sharif directed to make the subsidy system transparent and digital. He asked to create a comprehensive system by combining various types of subsidies.
He appreciated the initiatives of utility stores in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan. He also appreciated the provision of targeted subsidy with the help of digital system.
The meeting was briefed on the progress made on subsidy on utility stores, targeted subsidy to the poor, expansion of number of utility stores across the country and provision of low price flour in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
The meeting was informed that the Utility Store Corporation is currently operating 3822 stores directly and 1380 franchises in the country. It was apprised that more than 300 new stores will be set up in Balochistan, Sindh, Kashmir, Gilgit-Baltistan and Punjab by 30th of the next month.
The meeting was briefed that under the relief package of Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif, 113 million deserving people have been benefited so far. They have been given targeted subsidy of 60 rupees per kg on flour, 21 rupees on sugar, 250 rupees on ghee and 15-20 rupees on pulses and rice. The subsidy mechanism is digital whereas NADRA and the Ministry of Poverty Alleviation are linked to the data.
The meeting was further informed that supply of low price flour is being ensured at 942 utility stores in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. On the special directive of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, 1000 new selling points and 200 mobile stores are also being added.
In Balochistan, subsidized supply of essential commodities is being ensured not only utility stores but mobile stores have also been set up to ensure the supply to remote areas.
LAHORE: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) dissident leader Aleem Khan has accumulated more assets than the incumbent Punjab Chief Minister Hamza Shehbaz and former CM Usman Buzdar, according to the asset details of the provincial assembly members.
The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has released asset details of the Punjab Assembly members.
According to the list, Punjab Chief Minister Hamza owns assets worth Rs410.43 million, while his predecessor Buzdar is in possession of assets amounting to Rs50.80 million. But dissident PTI leader and ex-MPA Aleem Khan (who has been de-seated on May 20, 2022 after the ruling of the election commission on PTI rebel members) has declared assets worth more than Rs1.70 billion.
Chief Minister Hamza has declared assets worth Rs410.43 million which also included 11 residential houses worth Rs130.64 million. He has three agricultural lands worth Rs30.97 million. He also declared himself in debt of Rs90.71 million.
CM Hamza’s first wife Mehrun Nisa owns assets worth Rs5 million. His second wife Rabia Hamza possesses wealth worth Rs30.74 million.
Former Punjab chief minister Buzdar has declared assets worth Rs50.80 million.
Aleem Khan’s declared assets are worth more than Rs1.70 billion.
Former provincial minister Murad Raas owns assets worth Rs380 million. Whereas Mian Mehmoodur Rashid is in possession of assets worth more than Rs180 million.
LAHORE: Punjab Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE) on Monday registered cases against the former Punjab chief minister Usman Buzdar along with his brothers for transferring 900 kanals of land illegally in Dera Ghazi Khan.
As per details, two cases have been registered against the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader. The cases have been filed on the inquiry report of Deputy Commissioner of DG Khan.
As per sources, Usman Buzdar’s brothers have also been included in the cases. While it was also revealed that the provisions of transferring government land through forgery have been included in the cases.
The allegation includes forging a fake letter to transfer 900 kanals of government land in Tonsa. While investigations regarding the matter have been commenced.
