FROM QAZI SHOAIB KHAN
DNA
ATTOCK (MARCH-20): 15 years student on Monday was crushed to death by train while crossing through the railway line near New Town of Attock Railway Station. Police said, 15 years old Abdul Rafah son of Jahangir Khan coming from school was crossing the railway line near New Town of Attock Railway Station when an train ran over him causing his instant death.
On getting information, Rescue-1122 reached the spot and shifted the dead body to Asfandyar District Headquarter Hospital Attock where his dead body was handed over to its real heirs after completing other legal formalities. Later on, he was laid to rest in the local graveyard amid the tears of his bereaved parents and other people who recited his funeral prayers held in the evening of Monday.
15 years old student crushed to death by train
PM lashes out at PTI over ‘smear campaign’
Says Imran violating the constitution by dragging institutions into his “dirty” politics
Special Correspondent
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Monday censured Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan for brazenly attempting to tarnish the reputation of Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) General AsimMunir.
Taking to Twitter, the Prime Minister said: “PTI’s disgusting smear campaign against Chief of the Army Staff General Asim Munir at the behest of Imran Niazi is deserving of the strongest condemnation.”
The campaign against the COAS was intolerable and the continuation of a conspiracy against the national institutions, according to a PM Office press release.
Throwing yet another brickbat at the PTI chairman, the premier said: “This man Niazi [Imran Khan] is stooping to unprecedented lows in his desperation for power & going to the extent of damaging the country & undermining our armed forces & their leadership.”
The prime minister urged overseas Pakistanis to raise their voice against the “foreign-funded” campaign. He said as the dirty political game was being played through the expatriates, they should not become part of the conspiracy.
Imran Khan was violating the constitution by dragging the institutions and their leadership into his “dirty” politics, the PM added.
The prime minister also instructed the interior minister to strictly deal with those running such a smear campaign against the institutions.
He also warned of strict legal action against those fanning chaos and subversion in the country.
RCCI concerns on closure of Poultry Industry due to high inflation
DNA
Rawalpindi: Poultry sector is under severe pressure due to increase in production cost. Currently sixty percent of poultry farms have been closed resulting in job loss. The government should work on cultivation of soybeans at the local level so that dependence on imports is reduced. These views were expressed by Saqib Rafiq, President of Rawalpindi Chamber of Commerce, while addressing the meeting of the Standing Committee on Poultry in the Chamber house.
He said that the Rawalpindi Chamber had raised the issue of import ban and containers stuck at the port at all levels, and the government should take steps to reduce the cost of production.
RCCI President Saqib Rafique and Chairman Dr. Farhan Farooq presided over the meeting. Issues related to the poultry sector were discussed in the meeting. The committee expressed concerns over the increase in cost of production, non-availability of chicken meat due to inflation and recommended that the government should provide incentives and tax exemptions to promote local machinery/plants for import substitution. Chairman Farhan Farooq welcomed the suggestions from the committee members.
Senior Vice President Muhammad Hamza Sarosh, Vice President Faisal Shehzad, former Presidents Dr. Hassan Saroosh, Raja Amer Iqbal, Malik Shahid Saleem, committee members and members of RCCI were also present in the meeting.
Unknown men stationed at FJC to kill him: Imran Khan
Unknown men stationed at FJC to kill him: Imran Khan
Asks CJP to permit him to attend court hearings via video link
Vows PDM’s bid to pit PTI against army won’t succeed
Says PTI wants polls not anarchy
States ‘Queen of liars’ acts as if she is daughter of Nelson Mandela
DNA
LAHORE: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan came down hard on the cabal of crooks and said that there was a plan to assassinate him at Federal Judicial Complex (FJC), where he arrived to attend a hearing in the Toshakhana case, as some unknown men clad in plain shalwar kameez were stationed there to execute the plot.
Imran Khan stated that he almost walked into a death trap in the Judicial Complex but Almighty Allah saved him in the nick of time.
Addressing the nation here on Monday, PTI Chairman said that the manner in which police resorted to teargas shelling and pelting stones at his convoy he feared that the unknown people present at the Judicial Complex would have killed him.
He said that his colleague quickly came and signaled them to escape the premises because he understood this was a trap.
Imran Khan stated that the purpose of the approximately 20 men was to carry out another attempt on his life in the fashion they did in Wazirabad, as the three to four guards protecting him would have easily been pushed away.
“I passed through all the obstacles to appear before the court on Saturday, because I am a law abiding citizen. However, seeing election results, their aim is to now kill me,” he said.
PTI Chairman called on Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial to take notice, as what happened with him at the FJC. He said that it was a plan and a trap to kill him and everything would be crystal clear as what their plan was when the CJP probed these unknown people.
He went on to say that these thieves were scared of him because it was evident the PTI would easily crush them whenever the polls were held; hence they were hell-bent and used every kind of measure to somehow remove him from the political arena.
He requested CJP Bandial to permit him to attend court hearings via video link, as he was ready to answer for every single case, adding that the accused who attacked him was presented before the court via video link but he was forced to present before the court in person despite death threats.
PTI Chairman further asked the CJP to take notice of the police highhandedness, as they carried out crackdown and raids on the homes of party office-bearers and workers, adding that the PTI only had hope from the judiciary.
Imran Khan said that whenever he came out of the house, his life was under threat and more cases were filed against him. He asked the CJP to see all the cases against him and explain that where he went wrong that even terrorism charges were levelled against him.
The PTI Chairman said what the imported government did to him had never happened in the history of the country. “Their aim is to kill me by spreading chaos when I go out to appear before court. My life is in danger,” he said, adding that democracy was being killed and constitution was being violated.
Imran Khan made it clear that even if he was imprisoned it wouldn’t affect the election results because the thieves badly exposed before the masses now.
“We are collecting all evidence of the kind of violence they inflicted and will send them to international human rights organisations,” he said, adding that the European Union was being approached in this regard as well.
Imran also directed the PTI’s overseas chapters to approach their local politicians and alert them about the “human rights violations” in Pakistan.
He flayed cabal of thieves for calling his party workers terrorists, saying such allegations would spread hatred and divide the nation, adding that PTI was the only federal party which can keep the country united.
Lashing out the PDM, Imran Khan said that these looters were creating polarisation in the society, adding that they were trying to pitch the PTI and armed forces against each other in an attempt to eliminate his party, which he said they cannot defeat in the elections.
“Efforts are being made to make PTI and the army come face to face. PDM is trying hard to incite quarrel between PTI and the army as these people cannot win the elections so they want to eliminate PTI,” he added.
“I want to tell all PTI that no matter what the provocation, we must protest peacefully and within the bounds of the Constitution. Otherwise, we will give these fascists reason for more violence,” he directed his workers and supporters.
“I want to make it clear that this country is mine and so is the army and the crooks would not succeed in their nefarious designs come what may. I have to live and die in Pakistan,” he asserted. Imran said despite death threats he was appearing before courts as he was only concerned about the country and not afraid of death.
Imran Khan said that these crooks had nothing to do with the interest of the state because they had no stake here as they stationed all their looted wealth abroad and would not hesitate to spread anarchy in the country to protect their vested political interest.
PTI Chairman went on to say that his political opponents were not concerned about the country’s issues and conspiring to eliminate him to protect their vested interests.
Coming down hard on Mohsin Naqvi, Imran Khan stated that he was appointed to the post not for holding elections but to banish his party.
He said the imported government was creating hurdles in connection with the environment for the general elections despite the date drawing near, as the authorities were reluctant to allow them to hold jalsa at Minar-e-Pakistan.
Flaying Maryam Nawaz, Imran Khan said the ‘queen of liars’ acts her father is Nelson Mandela.
He said that “Law of the jungle” prevailed in the country, as the ‘queen of liars’ was above the law and dictating the authorities.
Imran Khan said that fascism was on the rise, as police raided Musarat Cheema house and stayed there for two hours and even looted valuables from her homes as they did in his residence in Zaman Park, adding that Hassan Khan Niazi was arrested even after securing bail. He said that Ali Amin Gandapur was attacked while en route to D I Khan and police blamed him like they blamed me for Zille Shah’s brutal killing.
Let us cross our fingers for democracy!!
In the given circumstances we are left with no option but to hope and pray that things do not get out of control. In any such eventuality democracy, no matter what sham, shall be the biggest loser
Comment
Ansar M Bhatti
The recent developments that everybody witnessed in the past few days should not augur well for the future of democracy in Pakistan. Actually there has never been a true democratic system in place here perhaps ever since the inception of this country and the sham democracy that we have been cherising has simply failed to deliver the goods. The Constitution of Pakistan too is unable to provide relief to the hapless ones simply because it has never been followed in letter and spirit. The ‘might is right’ mantra has always ruled supreme. Probably that is why at times both the military and political leadership had to think about introducing the Presidential form of government with this hope that this system might help in improving the governance and turning the huddle into a nation. But all such plans could not work. And they cannot work because we need to change faces as well along with the system.
The government, supported by other stakeholders, is trying its best to get the Punjab and KP elections postponed or delayed and the emerging political scenario suggests as if the government is close to achieving this end. When it comes to holding elections hardly there are any voices that would go against this idea. However there is also a consensus that a political dialogue is a must in order to pave the way for agreement on the issue of elections for which all political forces need to sit together. Even the PTI Chairman hinted at a possible dialogue with the government and sources claim some back channel diplomacy is already in progress spearheaded by the Chairman Senate Sadiq Sanjrani from the government side but on the other hand it also remains a fact that the way the PTI leadership is being treated would make it difficult for the mediators to do any wonders.
Implication of Imran Khan in almost hundred cases and rounding up of the senior PTI leadership are ostensibly not the steps that can lead to any confidence building measures. Talk-talk, fight-fight policy won’t serve anybody’s purpose. When Imran Khan got bail in seven cases within a short span of time it appeared as if the back channel contacts had done the trick but then what happened in Islamabad Judicial Complex and at the Zaman Park while the PTI chief was appearing before the court in Islamabad dashed all hopes of a rapprochement. After that incident things seem to have reached back to square one. Even in this case, efforts for reconciliation must not stop because that is the only way to sort our differences in a democratic manner.
Countries like America and Saudi Arabia have also called upon the stakeholders in Pakistan to reach an agreement to end the ongoing impasse. The former Saudi Ambassador to Pakistan Dr Ali Asseri wrote an article yesterday in which he urged the political and military leadership to find a way out of ongoing economic and political crises.
“With political conflict and economic crisis reinforcing each other, the end result can only be disastrous. Averting this eventuality requires a renewed spirit of reconciliation and restraint by all political players and state institutions,” he wrote in his article.
The delay in the IMF tranche is giving birth to weird conspiracy theories. Just yesterday the Finance Minister Ishaq Dar said that the delay in the IMF agreement was due to some technical reasons and they were in constant touch with the Fund in order to get the tranche through. The IMF perhaps wants some sort of political stability before the staff level agreement. The government on the other hand is dying for this agreement because its political future is at stake. The friendly countries too have declined to help before the staff level agreement. Only China is showing some benevolence by extending small amounts, which of course, are not enough to prop up the sagging economy and fast depleting foreign exchange reserves.
Things are getting worse with each passing day. The PTI has announced a public procession at Minar-e-Pakistan tomorrow. The PTI plans to put up a huge power show provided it is allowed by the Lahore administration to hold this gathering. Disallowing the procession may further aggravate the already charged political situation. In the given circumstances we are left with no option but to hope and pray that things do not get out of control. In any such eventuality democracy, no matter what sham, shall be the biggest loser.
Nazafreen, Sarmad Ali elected President, Secy General of APNS
CENTRELINE again elected as Executive Committee member
Imtinan Shahid elected Senior Vice President, Aslam Kazi Vice President, Shahab Zubairi Finance Secretary, Munir Jilani Joint Secretary
DNA
KARACHI: The Annual Meeting of the APNS General Council held on March 20, 2023 at APNS House, Karachi unanimously elected Nazafreen Saigol Lakhani as President, Imtinan Shahid as Senior Vice President, Muhammad Aslam Kazi as Vice President, Sarmad Ali as Secretary General, S.M. Munir Jilani as Joint Secretary and Shahab Zuberi as Finance Secretary of the Society.
The AGM was held under the chairmanship of Mr. Sarmad Ali, President of the Society. The Council unanimously approved the report of the Executive Committee for the year 2022-2023 as well as the Annual Accounts of the Society for the year 2022.
The General Council attended by 128 members from across the country, formed an Election Commission headed by Dr. Waqar Yousuf Azeemi with Nasir Daad Baloch and Mumtaz Ahmed Phulpoto as members. The Election Commission conducted the election of the Executive Committee for the year 2023-24.
Following dailies and magazines were elected un-opposed to the Executive Committee of the APNS for the next tenure:
Daily Aghaz, Daily Business Recorder, Daily Deyanat, Daily Dawn, Daily Jasarat, Daily Jiddat (Khi), Daily Abtak, Daily Dunya, Daily Jang, Daily Khabrain, Daily Pakistan, Daily Tijarat, Daily Ausaf, Daily Sahafat, Daily Awam (Quetta), Daily Mashriq (Quetta), Daily Mashriq (Peshawar), Daily Wahdat, Daily Kawish (Hyd), Daily Kaleem (Sukkur), Daily Aftab (Multan), Daily Paigham, Daily Business Report, Daily City 42, Daily Pakistan Observer, Daily Halchal (Hyd) and Daily Sayadat, Monthly Dastak, Nawa-i-Waqt, Monthly Naey Ufaq, Monthly Naya Rukh, Monthly CENTRELINE, Fortnightly Ibrat Magazine and Weekly Nikhar were elected on periodical seats.
The new Executive Committee elected Mrs. Zahida Abbasi of Daily Nau Sijj, Karachi on woman – publishers seat. The newly elected Executive Committee appreciated the performance of the Election Commission.
The AGM in a resolution, expressed its profound concern on the state of print media due to the present economic situation which has caused severe financial crisis for newspapers, many of them are at the verge of collapse. In this situation, the media expected support from the government to brave the financial crunch. The AGM urged upon the Federal Government to pay the long outstanding dues of newspaper industry amounting to over Rs.2 billion, increase the quantum of advertisements and allocate a separate share of print media in the advertising budget so that the newspaper industry would be able to survive in the present situation. The AGM reiterated that the Federal Government has not yet implemented the recommendation of 8th Wage Board to increase the government advertising rates in proportion increase in the wages despite various assurances.
Neha Mankani named as U.S. Mission Pakistan’s 2023 “Woman of Courage”
DNA
Islamabad, MAR 20: U.S. Mission Pakistan Deputy Chief of Mission Andrew Schofer named Pakistani midwife Neha Mankani as U.S. Mission Pakistan’s 2023 “Woman of Courage” at an event commemorating Women’s History Month on March 20.
Mankani, an alumna of the U.S. government-funded Fulbright Program, established the Mama Baby Fund in 2019 to support new mothers who could not afford prenatal and postnatal care. In fall 2022, she and her team courageously stepped in to serve pregnant women and babies in need in Sindh Province. She traveled to internally displaced people camps to provide prenatal care and kits to help ensure safe deliveries.
“Neha exemplifies leadership, courage, and strength, and we’re so pleased to see one of our Fulbright Program alumna making such a strong contribution to her country,” Schofer said.
Mankani commented, “In all of the climate-affected communities I have worked in – from the coastal islands of Karachi to displaced flood-affected communities in Sindh and Balochistan – it is very clear that climate change and complex emergencies affect women and children very differently. Imagine all of the vulnerabilities of being pregnant, in labor, or postpartum, having a newborn, and add to that displacement, a struggling health system, food insecurity and being away from your community. The Mama Baby Fund emergency response and our community-based programs are centered around these gaps. Thank you to the U.S. Embassy for this recognition, for its support for flood-affected communities, and for continuing to raise awareness of the continuing humanitarian needs after the floods.”
U.S. Mission Pakistan’s 2023 Woman of Courage award is one of a wide range of efforts by the United States to support women and girls in Pakistan across sectors ranging from education to health to economic empowerment. To learn more about the United States’ partnership with and assistance to Pakistan, visit https://pk.usembassy.gov/ and https://www.usaid.gov/pakistan.
5th VCs Forum concludes with resolve to transform higher education in the Islamic world
Islamabad, MAR 20 /DNA/ – The 5th Vice-Chancellors’ Forum of Universities in the Islamic World concluded in Islamabad on Monday. Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives, Mr. Ahsan Iqbal chaired the closing ceremony.
Over 200 Vice Chancellors, including 40 from 20 different OIC countries, participated in the VC Forum that was jointly organized by Higher Education Commission (HEC), COMSATS University Islamabad (CUI), Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO), Ministry of Federal Education and Professional Training and British Council, Pakistan.
Speaking at the occasion, Mr. Ahsan Iqbal emphasized the need to realign the places of learning with the global explosion of knowledge and information technology. The Minister said that Islamic world had given up on their fundamental heritage which was observation, inquiry, reflection and critical thinking. “This lies at the root of underdevelopment in the Islamic world”, he said.
The Minister outlined a seven-point reform, audit and performance plan that universities in Pakistan would have to follow in future. This includes academic excellence in imparting knowledge, research and innovation, strong academia industry linkages, community service and contribution to society, technology enablement, corporate governance, and above all impact of graduates in society. He also said that this framework will result in formation of a premiere league of universities which will prepare them to advance into top 100 universities of the world.
High Commissioner of UK to Pakistan, Andrew Dalgeish said that UK remains committed to the educational and cultural relationship with Pakistan. He said that a significant partnership between British Council and HEC has resulted in a large number of qualified Pakistanis joining the local skills market. “Pak-UK Education Gateway is one of the key projects that is part of the global partnership programme.”
Chairman HEC Dr. Mukhtar Ahmed said that the VC Forum has resulted into meaningful discussion among higher education fraternity of the Islamic countries. He thanked all the local and international participants for their valuable input and stressed the need for serious efforts on the part of higher learning institutions to keep pace with the rapid developments in higher education sector.
During the ceremony, the Federal Minister formally inaugurated the platform named ‘Ilm-Bank’, proposed by the Chairman HEC. Ilm bank is a virtual bank which is expected to become a knowledge consortium of higher education institutions in the OIC member states. This would enable access to cross border education, training and research opportunities through a centralized platform. It was informed that ICESCO and World Congress of Muslim Philanthropists will work together to chalk out the terms of reference of the Ilm-bank. Dr. Mukhtar Ahmed called on the Federal Minister for Planning and Special Initiatives to allocate resources for giving Pakistan a leadership role in establishing the Ilm-bank. He further added that efforts will be mobilized to convince donor/funding agencies like the Islamic Development Bank as well as other development funds to support the cause of emancipation of higher education in OIC member states.
Prof. Dr. Muhammad T. Afzal, Rector, COMSATS University Islamabad presented the conference recommendations. Salient among these were the need for collaborative approach, prioritizing skills over degrees, embracing new technologies and methodologies, bridging gap between academia and industry, developing clear understanding of benefits and risks of artificial intelligence (AI), promoting gender equity and developing facilities and infrastructure. The participants unanimously called upon governments of the Islamic World to allocate 1% of their national GDP towards higher education to secure the future of the Muslim Ummah in the wake of challenges of Industry 4.0. It was also recommended that Universities in the Islamic World adopt measures for the emancipation of women in higher education and embed the attainment of Sustainable Development Goals in their programs, processes and Systems.
The ceremony concluded on inauguration of the ICESCO Chair for Big Data Analysis and Edge Computing at the Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad. Dr. AlMalik, Director General ICESCO handed over the formalised agreement of the establishment of the Chair to Vice Chancellor QAU, Prof. Dr. Niaz Akhtar in the presence of Chairman HEC and Minister for Planning & Special Initiative and Rector, COMSATS University Islamabad.
DMA assures to address encroachments and other issues of traders
Islamabad, MAR 20 /DNA/ – The encroachment in markets are creating hurdles in smooth growth of business activities and DMA should take the concerned market associations on board to remove all encroachments from the local markets. This was said by Ahsan Zafar Bakhtawari, President, Islamabad Chamber of Commerce & Industry while talking to Yasir Farhad, Director Municipal Administration, CDA during his visit to ICCI.
Ahsan Bakhtawari said that a week schedule in coordination with market associations should be developed to survey the local markets for removal of encroachments. He said that many markets need parking facilities, replacement of old sewerage systems, repair of footpaths, carpeting of roads and revival of out of order streetlights and stressed that the DMA should convey these issues to the Chairman CDA to address them. He assured that ICCI in coordination with market associations would fully cooperate with DMA to address encroachment issues in the markets.
Speaking at the occasion, Yasir Farhad, Director Municipal Administration, CDA he wants to facilitate the traders in promoting trade activities and assured that he would like to work with market associations to address their issues regarding encroachments. He said that ICCI in coordination with market associations should make a weekly plan of visit schedule so that he could visit various markets to see the encroachments and take measures for their removal. He said that DMA has cancelled all licenses for business on green and open areas and said that the business community should cooperate with DMA in promoting fair business practices. He said that an SOP has been developed for board license while the policy for open areas would be finalized soon. He said that Sasta Bazaars are being established in existing markets only for the month of Ramadan to provide daily use items to the consumers. He assured that he would take ICCI and market associations on board to address the encroachments and other issues in markets.
Zafar Bakhtawari, Muhammad Ejaz Abbasi, Khalid Chaudhry and representatives of various markets including Abdul Rehman Siddiqui, Akhtar Abbasi, Raja Imtiaz, Tahir Abbasi, Zahid Qureshi and others also highlighted DMA related issues of their markets and gave useful proposals to address them.
Ex-Saudi envoy Ali Asseri urges political leaders to reconcile differences
DNA
ISLAMABAD, MAR 20: Ali Asseri, the former Saudi ambassador to Pakistan, has appealed to the political leaders in the government and the opposition to reconcile differences in the larger national interest.
In his article published by the Arab News, he argued that current political polarization is ripping the nation when it is facing the most severe economic crisis in history.
“With political conflict and economic crisis reinforcing each other, the end result can only be disastrous. Averting this eventuality requires a renewed spirit of reconciliation and restraint by all political players and state institutions,” he wrote.
During his decade-long tenure (2001-09), Saudi Arabia and Pakistan worked closely in the War on Terror. Ambassador Asseri also played a key role in political reconciliation between the Musharraf regime and the exiled PML-N leadership in the Kingdom. He was recently in Islamabad on a private visit.
In his opinion, no country can economically progress unless its political system is stable. Political stability ensures continuity of economic policy. Unfortunately, the surge of populism has polarized politics and society. This dangerous trend must reverse.
“There is an urgent need for building a bare minimum consensus on the core issues of national agenda pertaining to economy, national security, and foreign policy. This consensus must be built after accommodating differences of opinion among the key stakeholders,” Ambassador Asseri
“Recovering the economy from the current crisis is a necessary choice. Support from trusted friends like Saudi Arabia will follow,” he added.
The former Saudi envoy also argued that all the political stakeholders must agree upon and adhere to some basic Rules of the Game and abide by them. “It is good that the military leadership has finally decided to stay away from politics. Now politicians have a huge responsibility to act maturely, respect each other and work for the greater public good.”
“The political parties need to sit together and develop a code of conduct for regulating political competition and resolving political conflict through compromise in the true spirit of national reconciliation,” he further stated.
Pakistan, he argued, is in dire need of a healing touch. It can count on Saudi Arabia, which wants to invest in the future of Pakistan. But the real momentum for economic recovery and political stability must come from within.
