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Saturday, 4 March, 2023 I 11 Shaban, 1444 Imran Khan done and dusted; declares Maryam Nawaz
Babar Awan warns against another assassination bid on Imran Khan’s life
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President announces aPril 30 for Punjab asseMbly elections ISLAMABAD
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Staff RepoRt
ITHIN hours after the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) wrote a letter to him suggesting possible poll dates, President Dr Arif Alvi announced on Friday that elections in Punjab will be held on April 30. “The president announced the date [for elections in Punjab] after considering dates proposed by the Election Commission of Pakistan. ECP had proposed a poll date between April 30 and May 7, 2023, for holding general elections of the Provincial Assembly of Punjab, and had further suggested holding elections preferably on sunday,” a statement released by the President’s secretariat said. Earlier in the day, the electoral body had written a letter to the president proposing dates between April 30 and May 7 for the elections. “The Election Commission has sent a letter to the president in light of the decision of the supreme Court of Pakistan, in which the dates for holding the elections in Punjab have been suggested between April 30 and May 7, 2023,” an ECP press re-
lease said. It stated that the commission was prepared to fulfil its constitutional and legal duty once the date for elections was selected by the president. The press release further said that the ECP has written a letter to the governor of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, stating that the electoral body was waiting for his response regarding the date for polls in the province. The announcement comes two days after the supreme Court ruled that the elections to the Punjab and KP assemblies should be held within the stipulated period of 90 days. It, however, allowed the ECP to propose a poll date that deviates from the 90-day deadline by the “barest minimum”, in case of any practical difficulty. It also held that President Alvi and the KP governor will fix dates for Punjab and KP assemblies, respectively, in consultation with the ECP. PTI WELCoMES ANNouNCEMENT: In a video message on Twitter, PTI leader Fawad Chaudhry said that his party has welcomed the electoral body’s announcement and called it a “step in the right direction”. “We believe that the ECP took the
right step in light of the sC’s order,” he said, elaborating that the apex court had said in its Wednesday’s order that the president and ECP could go beyond the 90-day period
of holding polls but it had also used the word “bare minimum”. “We congratulate the public. This is a victory for the PTI, the nation and the Constitution”.
Ruling alliance bigwigs meet after president announces Punjab polls date ISLAMABAD: Former president Asif Ali Zardari and chief of Jamiat ulema-eIslam Maulana Fazlur Rehman on Friday called on Prime Minister shehbaz sharif in Islamabad. According to the PM office, the political situation in the country came under discussion during the meeting by the bigwigs of the ruling alliance. sources revealed that the supreme Court’s verdict in the polls delay case and elections in Punjab came under discussion during the meeting. This is the second such meeting in less than 10 days by the political leadership of the country. on February 24, Zardari met shehbaz to discuss the political situation of the country. The meeting was held as President Dr Arif Alvi announced April 30 as the date for holding elections in Punjab, hours after the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) sent the president possible poll dates. The president announced the date after considering the dates proposed by the ECP. The electoral body had proposed a poll date between April 30 to May 7, 2023, for holding general elections of the provincial assembly of Punjab, and had further suggested holding elections preferably on a sunday. The national poll body swung into action just a couple of days after the apex court tried to settle the poll controversy and ordered the president and governor K-P to set dates for provincial assemblies’ elections after consulting with ECP. Staff RepoRt
Dar sticks head in sand g
RulEs ouT IMPosITIoN oF FINANCIAl EMERGENCy As DEBTs PIlE uP ISLAMABAD Shahzad paRacha
PM affirms fraternal ties with Qatar in diverse fields ISLAMABAD Staff RepoRt
Prime Minister shehbaz sharif on Friday affirmed the fraternal relations between Pakistan and Qatar in diverse fields, based on common values and aspirations for future. The prime minister expressed these views in a meeting with Qatar’s ambassador sheikh saoud Bin Abdulrahman bin Faisal Al Thani, who briefed him on various activities undertaken to enhance the brotherly relations between the two countries. shehbaz sharif acknowledged the mutual commitment of both sides to translate the deep-rooted relations into mutually rewarding economic ties. He thanked Qatar for its humanitarian support to people of Pakistan in the aftermath of unprecedented floods in 2022. He stressed the importance of further enhancing bilateral cooperation in all avenues of mutual interest and benefit. Qatari Ambassador thanked the prime minister for his stewardship in furthering the brotherly bilateral relations and assured reciprocity and support from the Qatari side in this regard. Qatar hosts around 250,000 Pakistani diaspora, playing an important role in the development of both the nations. This year marks the 50th Anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Pakistan and Qatar. Both sides are committed to celebrating this anniversary in a befitting manner.
The initial fist-thumping days of Ishaq Dar’s current reign as finance czar are well and truly over as the battered accountant turned economic manager tries to run out the clock and on the consequences of his own actions. At a presser in the federal capital on Friday, Mr Dar ruled out the imposition of financial emergency in the ongoing situation. A number of commentators had predicted that such measures might be possible because of the mounting debt that needs to be repaid by Pakistan to its international lenders – a task becoming more difficult with every passing day because of the rising rate of the dollar. While Friday offered some respite to Mr Dar as the rupee gained by around Rs 6 there was little to celebrate since it came a day after a historic increase of Rs 19 – leaving the rupee at Rs 13 less than its value two days earlier. Perhaps these glum realities
ECP rejects PML-N’s request to remove similar party symbols from ballot paper
are why the finance minister continued to ignore questions about the accumulated debt in the current government’s tenure owing to currency depreciation. Mr Dar claimed that the government of Pakistan will meet the foreign obligations of $5 billion, instead of $7 billion during the current fiscal year. “Ensuring external financing was not a prior action of the International Monetary Fund (IMF)” said Dar. Adding to that the Finance minister said that Pakistan was expecting $1.3 billion in financing from the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China ltd (ICBC) in the coming days. The reliance of China has recently proven to be a temporary tactic when the Chinese also helped beef up Pakistan’s forex reserves to keep the country from defaulting. However, continued pressure is being exerted from the fact that the IMF is still giving Pakistan a hard time. The government will also receive $950 million in one project soon, he said. “I am confident that by June 30 we will take the state Bank’s re-
serves to $10bn and the national reserves near $16bn.” Regarding the Pakistani rupee’s depreciation against the dollar and reports of an artificial price cap, the Finance minister said that “We did not release dollars into the market,” and there was no “question of us intervening or us having any capacity for it considering how low our reserves were”. The state Bank of Pakistan independently decides matters regarding monetary policy as well as exchange rate after it’s autonomy law passed by Parliament in the last government’s tenure, he added. He also revealed that the government was made aware of the illegal movement of $2 billion on an annual basis, from south to Peshawar in vans and a mechanism was being devised to control it. Finance minister also said that “We have never defaulted and we won’t do it now, however we were in a precarious situation and are going through it currently.” he added.
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Abdul Wali Kakar named Baluchistan Governor ISLAMABAD: President Dr Arif Alvi on Friday appointed Malik Abdul Wali Kakar as the governor of Baluchistan. The president made the appointment on the advice of the prime minister in accordance with Articles 48(1) and 101 of the Constitution. Mr Kakar belongs to BNP-Mengal. After the ouster of former prime minister and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman Imran Khan, governors of KPK and Balochistan resigned from their positions. After a long 9 months wait the candidates are chosen for the important position. Earlier, Baluchistan Governor Zahoor Ahmed Agha tendered his resignation from his office. Staff RepoRt
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Dear Readers, owing to the current import curbs, and the subsequent shortage of newsprint, specially our Berliner format, Pakistan Today has been temporarily shifted to an eight-page broadsheet format. The quality of our coverage, however, will remain what it always has been.
Germany warns of consequences for Pakistan’s GsP+ status over blocked imports LAHORE daniyal ahmad
In a letter to Pakistan’s Federal Minister for Economic Affairs, sardar Ayaz sadiq, Ambassador Alfred Grannas of the Federal Republic of Germany expressed his concern that Pakistan’s Generalised system of Preferences Plus (GsP+) status is at risk. He states that the risk arises due to the state Bank of Pakistan (sBP) continuing to block the import of electric vehicles from German companies Mercedes-Benz, BMW, and Audi. What is the GSP+ Programme? The GsP+ programme provides tariff preferences for imports to the European union from developing countries facing vulnerabilities to support poverty eradication, sustainable development, and global economic participation, while reinforcing good governance. Eligible countries, such as Pakistan, can export goods to the Eu market without tariffs on 66% of tariff lines, contingent on demonstrating tangible progress in implementing 27 international conventions related to human and labour rights, environmental protection, climate change, and good governance. The current 10-year GsP+ scheme which Pakistan benefits from is set to expire on December 31 of this year. The Letter’s Contents Grannas highlights in the letter that the sBP’s actions have sparked outrage from Germany, which is Pakistan’s largest trading partner in the Eu by both volume and value. He states that the sBP’s actions are in direct contradiction to Pakistan’s commitment to boosting mutual trade and to the GsP+ status, which provides preferential tariffs to Pakistan for its exports to the European union in exchange for the country’s commitment to implementing 27 international conventions on human rights, labour rights, and environmental protection. Germany has been one of the leading countries in financial assistance for Pakistan, providing aid to those affected by floods last summer. The state Bank’s refusal to open letters of Credit (lCs) for German companies’ electric vehicle imports risks damaging the friendly relations between the two countries, jeopardising Pakistan’s GsP+ status and Germany’s long-standing trade partnership with the country. Ambassador Grannas called for urgent action to resolve the situation and prevent further damage to bilateral relations and Pakistan’s GsP+ status. He urged the Federal Minister for Economic Affairs to intervene and ensure that German companies’ imports of electric vehicles are no longer obstructed, thereby upholding Pakistan’s commitment to boosting mutual trade and protecting the environment. An Escalatory Tale The letter from Grannas to sadiq is the latest in a series of letters penned on behalf of the German automotive companies regarding their discontent with the import restrictions that the sBP has had in place since summer 2022.
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Imran Khan seeks court martial of General (r) Bajwa LAHORE Staff RepoRt
Former premier and Pakistan Tehreek-iInsaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan Friday sparked controversy by calling for trial of former army chief General (retd) Qamar Javed Bajwa for violating the government’s foreign policy and delivering an anti-Russia speech last year. speaking to journalists in lahore on Friday, Imran also accused the country’s establishment of having no understanding of politics and claimed that Bajwa had “stabbed” him in the back by condemning Russia’s invasion of ukraine. The former PM was referring to a speech delivered by Bajwa at the Islamabad security Dialogue in November of
last year. In his speech, Bajwa had criticised Russia’s actions, stating that its invasion of ukraine must be “stopped immediately”. “Despite legitimate security concerns of Russia, its aggression against a smaller country cannot be condoned,” Bajwa had remarked. The former prime minister has been highly critical of former military chief Gen Bajwa ever since he was ousted from power last year, accusing him of being responsible for the country’s current predicament. Imran has claimed that Gen (retd) Bajwa used to call the shots, while he, as the prime minister, was at the receiving end of all the criticism. “He was a super king. He was above everyone. He was controlling NAB [National Accountability
Bureau (NAB)] and no one could be held accountable without Bajwa’s nod.” “I was the punching bag while they [the establishment] had the absolute power. Bajwa took credit of all good things, while we were blamed for everything that went wrong,” he said. “The money laundering case against [Prime Minister] shehbaz sharif could not proceed because Bajwa did not want it to,” he said. Referring to a recent article based on the former army chief’s interview, Imran had said everyone already knew that the former army chief had toppled his government but “I did not expect that he would have admitted to this”. ‘READy To TALK To NEW ARMy ChIEf’ Imran during the media interaction
also stated that he was ready to talk with the current army chief, General syed Asim Munir, for the betterment of the country but only if some officials be removed. However, Khan added that it seemed that Munir considered him an ‘enemy’. “I have no rifts with the establishment. If someone thinks that I will kneel down then it will not happen. No one is willing to talk so what should I do?” he was quoted as saying. speaking about slew of cases against him, Imran dared the government to prove a single corruption charge against him and his wife Bushra Bibi. Imran said that the general elections should be held across the country simultaneously to cut polls expenditure. He also vowed to win all elections
despite “PDM umpires” and added that overseas Pakistanis are also supporting the PTI. Reiterating his claim of life threats to his life, the former premier said that he has recorded a video message regarding the threats to his life which is present in a foreign country. Imran also revealed that he decided against travelling to Islamabad by plane for court hearings as he was informed that the government wanted to arrest him from the airport and take him to Balochistan. “I am facing threat from those who are supposed to protect me,” he alleged. The ex-PM also disclosed that he is still in touch with saudi Crown Prince Muhammad Bin salman despite negative propaganda by the PDM regime.