LAHORE – Education Minister Punjab, Dr. Murad Raas, has said that the provincial government would have no option but to extend the closure of educational institutes in Punjab if the ongoing Coronavirus related situation does not ameliorate.

While addressing a ceremony in Lahore, Dr. Murad noted that the provincial government is against shutting down educational institutes but it is the most viable option under current circumstances.

On Monday, Federal Educational Minister, Shafqat Mahmood, revealed that the Inter Provincial Education Ministers Conference (IPEMC) will be held on 4 January 2021 to deliberate on the reopening of educational institutions.

Last month, IPEMC, in light of the recommendations of NCOC, had announced to shut down educational institutes from 23 November 2020 to 10 January 2021 after the Coronavirus situation deteriorated all over the country.

DNA

ISLAMABAD, DEC 29 –  Pakistan has envisaged renewed “Engage Africa Policy” to strengthen its ties with all African countries and has decided to increase its diplomatic missions in the countries in addition to open the Pakistan’s Embassy in Djibouti owing to growing economic and political importance of the African region.

The exchange of parliamentary delegations would steer the agenda for enhanced economic, political and defence cooperation not only between the Pakistan and Djibouti but also with other African countries.  Pakistan eyes vibrant interactions to share the experiences in public sector reforms, technical cooperation, infrastructure development and private investment with the African countries.

These views were expressed by Chairman Senate Muhammad Sadiq Sanjrani in a meeting with Mohamed Ali Houmed  Acting Chairman of the African Union Parliament and President Djibouti National Parliament here at Parliament House on Tuesday.  President of Djibouti National Parliament Mohamed Ali Houmed is leading a 12-member delegation to Pakistan on the invitation of Chairman Senate Muhammad Sadiq Sanjrani.

Chairman Senate appreciated the visit of President of National Assembly of Djibouti to Pakistan during this testing time of COVID-19 and expressed the hope that his visit would strengthen the existing foundation of strong brotherly relations between Pakistan and Djibouti and would open new vistas of diplomatic, parliamentary and economic cooperation with the African region.  Chairman Senate further appreciated the role of Djibouti to foster peace and stability among African nations and sought support to Pakistan to become observer member in Inter Governmental Development Authority (IGAD).  Chairman Senate apprised the visiting delegation that there is vibrant Pakistan and Djibouti Friendship Group in Senate of Pakistan and two sides can work together to devise plan for increased Parliamentary relations and organizational linkages for mutual benefits of the Parliaments.  Chairman Senate lauded the visionary role of President Djibouti Ismail Omar Guelleh for modernization and development of Djibouti.  He apprised that trade between Pakistan and landlocked Ethiopia takes place through Djibouti and Pakistan needs special treatment for expeditious delivery of goods to Ethiopia.  He emphasized to devise special package for Pakistani investors and entrepreneurs to invest and extend quality services for Djibouti International Free Trade Zone (DIFTZ) as it has been attracting investments from China, Italy, France, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and other countries.

Chairman Senate expressed the need to build closer meteorological cooperation between Pakistan and Djibouti to monitor and track the movement of locust infestation in Red Sea, Arabian Sea and Horn of Africa.  He informed that Pakistan has been providing training facilities to Djibouti in the fields of diplomacy, banking and railways. Sadiq Sanjrani assured continuous provision of technical expertise in fields like Information Technology (IT), Education, Banking, Diplomacy and showed keen interest to build sports linkages especially between football teams of Pakistan and Djibouti.  He said that Pakistan is ready to provide technical and medical assistance to Djibouti to control COVID-19 pandemic.  Chairman Senate thanked the participation of Djiboutian Navy in AMAN exercise held from 8-12 February, 2019 along Pakistani coast in Arabian Sea.

He said that Pakistan enjoys great respect among the comity of African nations due to its constructive role as an important player of “UN Peacekeeping Operations” in Africa. Based on our earlier contributions towards development of peace in Africa, Pakistan has ample opportunities to build military to military cooperation with African countries. Such defense cooperation would create huge market for Pakistan’s defense production.  Chairman Senate apprised about the recent volatile situation in IOJ&K following the unconstitutional, illegal and unilateral actions of India to alter its disputed status, which was in contravention of the international laws and United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolutions which has become a grave humanitarian crisis.  He urged the importance of resolving the conflict in a peaceful manner and in accordance with the aspirations of the Kashmiri people by implementation of relevant UN resolutions.  He also apprised about the impending health emergency in the wake of the spread of Covid-19 which is hampering dissemination of information, supply of medicines and other essentials items to fight the pandemic. He stressed the need for a unified call from international community for lifting these restrictions.

Both the sides interacted on delegation level.  Chairman Senate Sadiq Sanjrani led the Pakistan delegation during the meeting which also included Senators Sajjad Hussain Turi, Mirza Muhammad Afridi, Dr. Ghous Muhammad Khan Niazi, Kuhda Babar, Naseeb Ullah Bazai and Secretary Senate Muhammad Qasim Samad Khan.  Speaking on the occasion Chairman Senate reiterated that African countries are socially and politically very close to Pakistan and we are ready to take measures for enhancing the trade ties between the two sides.  He said that Djibouti and other African countries should explore the prospects for investment in Gwadar which is developing as a trade hub not only for this region but would also facilitate the trade towards the African countries.  He said that Djibouti being centrally located in the African region should cooperate for promoting the trade through the channel.

The head of visiting delegation Mohamed Ali Houmed agreed with the views of Chairman Senate and said that visit of Pakistan despite difficult traveling conditions due to COVID-19, shows the importance of this country for us.  He said that people of both the countries are already very close and there is a need to establish parliamentary and trade relations on solid grounds.  He said that with the opportunities for the training of the parliamentarians and parliamentary staff from African countries in Pakistan would further strengthen these relations.  He said that we are looking forward to benefit from economic opportunities being offered by the development of Gwadar as a regional port.  He said that through this cooperation, trade volume between this region and African countries may increase many fold.  He said that the Kashmir issue must be resolved according to the aspirations of the Kashmiri people.  The head of the delegation invited Chairman Senate to visit Djibouti to further the agenda of mutual cooperation.

The 12-member parliamentary delegation of Djibouti led by President of National Parliament of Djibouti Mohamed Ali Houmed held meeting with Foreign Affairs Committee of the Senate at Parliament House Islamabad and discussed matters of mutual significance and bilateral importance.  Welcoming the delegation, Chairman of the Committee Senator Mushahid Hussain Sayed observed that both the countries are intertwined in social, political and cultural similarities. He said Pakistan and Djibouti are Muslim countries and their strategic locations enhance political importance in international arena. He said that Pakistan values its relations with Djibouti and other African countries and desires to expand mutual collaboration with a renewed zeal under Engage Africa Policy.  “Pakistan has adopted a balance policy towards East and the West and so is being done by Djibouti which brings both the countries more close”, Senator Mushahid stated. He said visit of the parliamentary delegation from a friendly country of African region would augur well for both sides. We need follow more robust approach to build strong multifaceted cooperation. He said that Pakistan believes in peace and has played active role in promoting regional peace security. He, however, pointed towards the atrocities inflicted upon the innocent people of Indian Occupied Kashmir (IOK) and said that Pakistan wants resolution of the long standing issues in accordance with UN resolutions and international laws. He said that Pakistan and Djibouti share a special bond of friendship and have historically enjoyed cordial relations with Djibouti. The meeting was also attended by Senators Seemi Ezdi, Nuzhat Sadiq, Sitara Ayaz, Javed Abbasi, Mian Atiq Sheikh, Asif Kirmani, Mirza Muhammad Afridi.

Leader of the Parliamentary delegation thanked Senator Mushahid for his sentiments and warm welcome. He termed the visit highly important. He underscored the need for enhanced parliamentary cooperation. He emphasized the need for enhanced institutional linkages and cooperation to benefit from expertise in various sectors.  The delegation later on visited Senate Museum and Senate Hall.

DNA

ISLAMABAD, DEC 29 – Health is a fundamental right of people, the provision of which is the responsibility of the government. Global research over decades has shown that tobacco consumption, in any form, is hazardous for the health of individuals. It leads to various non-communicable diseases (NCDs) among its users, including cancer of different organs of the body.

According to a report by the Pakistan Health Research Council, tobacco causes a burden on Rs192 billion due to NCDs and loss of productivity. WHO stresses the need to reduce tobacco consumption through multiple strategies, of which higher taxes on tobacco products is proven to be the most effective. Talking on this issue, Malik Imran, Country Representative, Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, said that in 2019, the Federal Cabinet in its meeting held on 28 May 2019 approved the proposed Health Levy Bill and motioned it further to be included in Finance bill 2019-20. In this bill, the Health levy on cigarettes at the rate of Rs10 per pack of 20 cigarettes and Rs1 on 250 ml of sugary drinks was proposed. He added that due to this delay, Pakistan has lost more than Rs50 billion and is continuously losing large revenues which could have been utilized for various schemes of public welfare by the government, including Ehsaas Program or Universal Health coverage.

Anis Bilal, Team Lead Human Development Foundation said that health levy was only a measure to mitigate the health burden caused by non-essential products such as sugary drinks and tobacco products. Raising the prices makes these products inaccessible for children and also help generate revenue as well. Health levy on sugary drinks and cigarettes would have generated Rs. 55 billion in revenue which could be used for healthcare infrastructure. He further stated that FBR has failed to implement the Health Levy bill which has cost the national exchequer a hefty amount. This new stream of revenues will help the government for sustaining its health program initiatives. He stated that the tobacco control activists anticipate that the government will take instant notice of the delay in implementation of the health levy bill and ensure necessary steps to finally implement the bill.

DNA

Islamabad, DEC 29 –  50 journalists were killed worldwide in 2020, according to a report of abusive treatment and violence against journalists, published Monday by Reporters Without Borders (RSF). While the number of journalists killed in countries at war continues to fall, more are being murdered in countries, not at war.
The report highlighted murders in Mexico, India and Pakistan.

“RSF tallied 50 cases of journalists killed in connection with their work from January 1 to December 15, 2020, a number similar to 2019 (when 53 journalists were killed), although fewer journalists have been in the field this year because of the Covid-19 pandemic,” the report said. More journalists are being killed in countries considered to be “at peace.” In 2016, 58% of media fatalities took place in war zones.

Now only 32% of the fatalities are in war-torn countries such as Syria or Yemen or in countries with low or medium-intensity conflicts such as Afghanistan and Iraq. In other words, 68% (more than two thirds) of the fatalities are in countries “at peace,” above all Mexico (with eight journalists killed), India (four), the Philippines (three) and Honduras (three). 84% of those killed this year were “deliberately targeted” for their work, RSF said in its annual report, compared to 63% in 2019. “For several years now, Reporters Without Borders has noted that investigative journalists are really in the crosshairs of states, or cartels,” said Pauline Ades-Mevel, RSF editor-in-chief.

DNA

LAHORE, DEC 29 – A single bench of Lahore High Court (LHC) comprising Justice Shahid Karim has summoned Commissioner Inland Revenue on December 30^th on allegations of harassing a taxpayer.

The accused has also been alleged to closing down business of applicant while ignoring orders of Appellate Tribunal Inland Revenue (ATIR) to reopen business. .

According to details Commissioner Inland Revenue demanded extra tax from a leading textile mill owner and unilaterally suspended his sales tax registration upon refusal hitting the business activity.

The owner of the mill moved ATIR through Qamar Abbas Advocate which granted a stay order for two months in favour of the applicant but the FBR official ignored the orders of the tribunal after which the petitioner moved the LHC to redress his grievance.

In his arguments before the court, lawyer of the petitioner said that FBR has taken an illegal, unjustified and unilateral decision by suspending sales tax registration without hearing the taxpayer.

After hearing the arguments, the LHC summoned Commissioner Inland Revenue on December 30th to explain his actions.