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IDEOLOGY OF PAKISTAN MORE SACRED, POWERFUL THAN ‘WICKED INTENT’ OF IMRAN NIAZI: PM Saturday, 20 May, 2023 I 29 Shawwal, 1444
g DIRECTS AUTHORITIES TO ENSURE REDUCTION SAYS PAKISTAN KEEN TO FURTHER BROTHERLY TIES WITH UAE, PARTICULARLY IN PRICES OF ESSENTIAL ITEMS, TRANSPORT IN TRADE AND INVESTMENT FARES FOLLOWING POL PRICE CUT
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Rs 15.00 | Vol XIII No 320 I 8 Pages I Islamabad Edition
ISLAMABAD
STAFF REPORT
RIME Minister Shehbaz Sharif Friday said the ideology of Pakistan was more sacred and powerful than the ‘wicked and selfish intent’ of Imran Niazi. In a tweet on social media platform Twitter, he said he was thinking about the negative effects and consequences of the shameful, tragic and unfortunate incidents of May 9. “The more I think about this dark day, the more my grief and anger grow as we ourselves have become the enemy of the ideology of Pakistan.” After dividing the public, Imran Niazi was busy in ridiculing the state institutions, the prime minister said adding when all his efforts to get the government failed then Imran Niazi attacked the state of Pakistan with his hateful narrative and gangs of rioters. “Maybe he (Imran) did not realize that the ideology of Pakistan is more sacred and powerful than his wicked and selfish intent. With the will of Allah he will face defeat,” he added. PAKISTAN TO FURTHER BROTHERLY TIES WITH UAE: Earlier, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Friday assured that the government would extend every possible support to the investors from the United Arab Emirates. The prime minister, in a meeting with a delegation from the UAE, welcomed their keen interest to invest in the
ports and shipping industry of Pakistan. Sheikh Ahmed Dalmook al Maktoum, a member of the UAE’s ruling family, headed the delegation. Referring to the fraternal ties between the two countries, the prime minister said Pakistan attached great importance to further expanding brotherly ties with the UAE in diverse fields, particularly in trade and investment. Sheikh Ahmed Dalmook al Maktoum said he was visiting Pakistan in less than two months again with the objective to give further momentum to the UAE’s investment in Pakistan. The Private Office of Sheikh Ahmed Dalmook Al Maktoum has a portfolio of privately held group of companies with
‘Firmly opposed’: China pulls out of G20 summit in Indian-occupied Kashmir ISLAMABAD
MIAN ABRAR
a focus on infrastructure, energy and agriculture. Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue Muhammad Ishaq Dar, Minister for Maritime Affairs Syed Faisal Ali Sabzwari, SAPM Dr Jehanzeb Khan, SAPM Syed Tariq Fatemi and senior officials attended the meeting. UAE Ambassador to Pakistan Hammad Obaid Ibrahim Salem Al Zaabi was also present in the meeting. PRICES OF ESSENTIAL ITEMS, TRANSPORT FARES BE REDUCED FOLLOWING POL PRICE CUT: Meanwhile, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif directed relevant authorities to ensure that the benefits of this
decrease are passed on to the general public through lower transport fares and reduced prices of essential items. In this regard, the PM chaired a federal cabinet meeting on Friday wherein he emphasised the need for ministries and district administrations across the country to implement these price reductions. He stressed the need for strict action against profiteers and called for proportional reductions in transportation fares and the prices of consumables, aligning with the 11% decrease in petroleum prices announced by the government. On May 15, the federal government, led by the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM), announced a reduction of Rs12 per litre in petrol prices, bringing it down to Rs270 per litre following a decrease in international oil rates. During the cabinet meeting, PM Shehbaz updated attendees on his recent visit to Iran, expressing Pakistan’s desire to enhance cooperation with its neighboring country across various sectors. One significant development highlighted by the premier was the import of low-cost electricity from Iran, which would contribute to the upliftment of remote areas in Balochistan. The prime minister shared that President Raisi expressed special interest in enhancing bilateral trade and exploring cooperation in other fields. To further discuss these projects, a high-level delegation led by Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto will visit Iran whereas President Raisi is also expected to visit Pakistan.
Suspending ECP’s de-notification, LHC restores 72 PTI MNAs LAHORE
STAFF REPORT
China became the first country on Friday to formally boycott the upcoming G20 Tourism meetings and events being held next week in the disputed territory of Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK). Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin told a press briefing in Chinese capital Beijing that China is opposed to a G20 tourism meeting next week in disputed territory of Jammu and Kashmir and will not attend. “China is firmly opposed to holding any kind of G20 meetings in disputed territory, and will not attend such meetings,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said. Media reports say that Turkiye is likely to follow the Chinese boycott of the G20 moot while others are considering to follow the suit. India, which holds the chair of G20 this year, has organised a series of meetings across the country in the run-up to the summit in New Delhi in September. The Chinese move can be seen in protest to India’s illegal annexation of the Muslim-majority state of IIOJK to illegally create the two federal territories of Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh on August 5, 2019. Ties between New Delhi and Beijing have been strained since a military clash in Ladakh in 2020 in which 24 soldiers were killed. Srinagar, the summer capital of IIOJK, will host a meeting of the tourism working group for G20 members on May 22-24. Pakistan has also opposed India’s decision to hold a G20 meeting in occupied Kashmir. China firmly opposes US’ ‘trade initiative’ with Taiwan island: FM China expressed strong dissatisfaction and firm opposition to the US’ move of reaching a so-called agreement on the first part of “21st century trade initiative” with Taiwan island, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said at Friday’s press briefing. China firmly opposes any form of official interaction between countries that have diplomatic relations with China, and the Taiwan island, including negotiations and signing of any agreement of a sovereign and official nature, Wang said.
Lahore High Court (LHC)’s Justice Shahid Karim on Friday restored 72 MNAs of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf de-notified by the Election Commissioner of Pakistan (ECP) and directed them to appear before the Speaker National Assembly to formally withdraw their resignations. After hearing extensive arguments, Justice Shahid Karim reserved the decision and subsequently announced suspension of the ECP de-notification. The Justice instructed the NA speaker to reconsider the matter after hearing the petitioners once again, taking into account their arguments and concerns. The decision comes as a result of multiple petitions filed by the 72 MNAs, urging the court to nullify the notifications issued by Speaker Pervaiz Ashraf, who accepted their resignations, and subsequently the ECP de-notified them, declaring their seats as vacant. During the court proceedings, Barrister Ali Zafar, the counsel for the petitioners, argued that the resignations had been retracted before their acceptance. He questioned how the speaker could accept the resignations under such circumstances. “Acceptance of resignations without adhering to the legal framework will undermine the rules”, the counsel argued, sug-
gesting it will be “malicious intent” on the part of the speaker. The petitioner’s counsel further highlighted that the speaker failed to individually summon the MNAs to ascertain their voluntary decision to tender resignations. According to the counsel, the speaker had initially promised to call each MNA individually to determine their stance. However, when the time came, he accepted the resignations without following through on this commitment. Barrister Ali Zafar urged the court that the collective resignations of 123 MNAs, including the petitioners, were solely aimed at reaching an agreement with opposition parties to facilitate fresh elections. The objective was to establish a new government with the true mandate of the people of Pakistan and resolve the current impasse, he added. The petitioner argued that the then acting speaker, former
deputy speaker of the National Assembly Qasim Suri, initially accepted the resignations. However, the new speaker, Pervaiz Ashraf, after assuming office, reversed the decision and instructed the secretariat to resubmit the resignations for verification, in accordance with the judgments of superior courts. The speaker subsequently decided to conduct an inquiry and verify each resignation by individually contacting and confirming the willingness of each MNA to resign. However, when the MNAs were called for verification, they did not appear, resulting in the non-acceptance of their resignations. As a result, neither did the MNAs approach the speaker for verification nor did he call them again, leading to the continuation of the status quo. Consequently, the original resignations became irrelevant in the context of the petitioners’ claims.
Trans people can’t get their gender changed, rules Shariat court ISLAMABAD
STAFF REPORT
The Federal Shariat Court (FSC) on Friday pronounced the reserved verdict on the pleas against Transgender Act and ruled that transgender persons cannot get their gender changed, declaring certain sections of the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2018 against Sharia. “Islam provides all human rights to transgender persons,” it added and declared that Sections 2, 3 and 7 of the Transgender Act were un-Islamic. The FSC in its ruling said that transgender persons cannot have themselves called man or woman, adding that the government is bound to provide all rights to transgender persons. The two-member FSC bench, comprising Acting Chief Justice Syed Muhammad Anwar and Justice Khadim Hussain pronounced the verdict. The court had reserved the verdict on May 11 last after the arguments of the parties in the case were completed. The court after pronouncing the verdict disposed of the pleas. The National Assembly had enacted the Transgender Persons (Protection of Right) Act in 2018 to provide legal recognition to transgender persons and ensure that discrimination against transgender persons in various walks of life shall be punishable. In September 2022, the FSC had taken up petitions challenging the legislation — making Jamaat-i-Islami Senator Mushtaq Ahmed and TV anchor Orya Maqbool Jan asparties in them along with transgender persons Almaas Boby and Bubbly Malik. Simultaneously, amendments to the law have also been sought under the Intersex Persons (Protection of Rights) (Amendment) Bill, 2022, which called for the deletion of all those sections deemed against the injunctions of Islam and the Constitution. During the hearing on Friday, the court declared Sections 2(f) (definition of ‘gender identity’) and 2(n)(iii) (definition of ‘Transgender Person’) of the act to be against Sharia. The FSC also ruled Sections 3 (recognition of identity of transgender person) and 7 (right to inherit) of the Transgenders Act 2018 to be against Sharia. In a written order issued later, the court said that it had heard the arguments of the parties and experts at length, and reviewed research and other material provided by the parties. “We have come to the conclusion to first declare that according to Islamic injunctions as laid down in the Quran and Sunnah, the gender of a person is subject to the biological sex of a person, therefore, the gender of a person must conform to the biological sex of a person.” Elaborating on the declaration, the order stated that there were many rulings or “Ahkamat and Ibadaat of Islam which are subject to the biological sex of a person and not the gender of a person”. “Such Ahkamat include the performance of salat, keeping of Som, the performance of Haj, and distribution of inheritance, etc,” it highlighted. “We have noticed that in section 2(n) and of the Impugned Act five different terms; namely (i) intersex, (ii) eunuch, (iii) transgender man, (iv) transgender woman and (v) khawajasira are included in one definition of ‘transgender person’. “Whereas, the terms Intersex, eunuch and khawajasira refer to biological variations in sex characteristics of a person that do not fit into male or female classification, while ‘transgender man’ and ‘transgender woman’, refer to individuals whose self-perceived gender identity differs from the sex they were assigned at birth or from the sex they have biologically,” the court said. It noted that the inclusion of all the different terms in one single term “is the main cause of confusion and conflation about the impugned Act because not only all those persons who fall within the category of any of the five categories of persons used in section 2(n) are different physically but the ruling of Islamic injunctions according to Quran and Sunnah about them are also different on the basis of their biological sex”. The court said that Islamic law and jurisprudence provided intersex persons with all the rights mentioned in the law.
Financial bloodbath: PIA hemorrhages Rs97b in losses in 2022 CONTINUED ON PAGE 03
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NATIONAL FLAG-CARRIER BLED RS8B AND RS83M ON AVERAGE PER MONTH IN LOSSES LAHORE
DANIYAL AHMAD
Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) disclosed their annual earnings report for the year ending 2022 to the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on May 19. The firm concluded the year with a consolidated loss of Rs 97.23 billion and an unconsolidated loss of Rs 88 billion for year-on-year (YoY) increases of 82% and 76%, respectively. Consolidated earnings for 2022 The consolidated earnings report for PIA encompasses earnings from its subsidiary PIA Investments Limited (PIAIL) and its associate company Minhal Incorporated (Minhal), Sharjah. PIAIL, in turn, possesses Roosevelt Hotel Holding Company N.V. (RHC), RHC Operating LLC, Minhal France Sa.r.l., Minhal France B.V., PIA Hotels Limited, PIA Aviation Limited (PAL), Avant Hotels (Private) Limited, and Minhal France S.A. (MFSA) as subsidiaries.
Revenue surged by 103% YoY from Rs 88 billion to Rs 178.5 billion, while the cost of services grew by 86% YoY from Rs 96.5 billion to Rs 179.3 billion. PIA demonstrated operational improvements as the cost of services as a percentage of revenue fell from 109.61% to 100.42%. Gross losses plummeted by a massive 91% YoY from Rs 8.46 billion to Rs 755.8 million. The operational efficiency is reflected in PIA’s gross loss margin (GLM) improving YoY from 10% to -0.42%. Distribution costs rose by 28% YoY from Rs 5.352 billion to Rs 6.83 billion, administrative expenses increased by 29% YoY from Rs 8.9 billion to Rs 11.477 billion, whilst other income fell by 32% YoY from Rs 6.89 billion to Rs 4.68 billion. Operating losses, however, decreased by 17% YoY from Rs 18.42 billion to Rs 15.33 billion, while the operating loss margin (OLM) improved YoY from -21% to -9%. PIA’s interest expense surged by 81%
YoY from Rs 28.5 billion to Rs 51.7 billion. Earnings before taxation came in at a loss of Rs 100.58 billion, a massive 85% YoY increase from last year’s Rs 54.35 billion. PIA’s tax rebate increased by 287% YoY from Rs 867 million to Rs 3.35 billion, while the effective tax rate increased (ETR) from 2% to 3%. Net consolidated losses for the year clocked in at Rs 97.23 billion against last year’s Rs 53.48 billion, representing an 82% YoY increase. The net loss margin (NLM), however, improved YoY from -61% to -54%. Unconsolidated earnings for 2022 The unconsolidated earnings report for PIA encompasses just the earnings of the airline itself. PIA’s revenue increased by a substantial 100% YoY from Rs 86.18 billion to Rs 172 billion, while the cost of services rose by 86% YoY from Rs 94.6 billion to Rs 176.17 billion. Similar to its consolidated earnings, PIA demonstrated relative operational effi-
ciency in its unconsolidated earnings as well, with gross losses decreasing from Rs 8.46 billion to Rs 4.13 billion. Costs as a percentage of revenue improved from 109% to 102%, which is reflected in PIA’s GLM improving from -10% to -2.4%. Distribution costs increased by 20% YoY from Rs 5.1 billion to Rs 6.14 billion, administrative expenses rose by 12% YoY from Rs 5.67 billion to Rs 6.35 billion, while other income decreased by 4% YoY from Rs 6.548 billion to Rs 6.275 billion. Despite the increases in expenditure and reduction in other income, operating losses decreased by 25% YoY from Rs 15 billion to Rs 11.3 billion. This is reflected in PIA’s OLM improving from -17% to -7%. Interest expense increased by a significant 82% YoY from Rs 27.39 billion to Rs 49.9 billion, with earnings before taxation coming in at a loss of Rs 86.5 billion. This represented a 74% YoY increase in its loss before taxation compared to the previous year’s
loss of Rs 49.7 billion. The tax rebate surged by 342% YoY from Rs 337.7 million to Rs 1.49 billion. ETR increased from -1% to -2% Final earnings for the year came in at a loss of Rs 88 billion against the previous year’s Rs 50.1 billion, a substantial 58% YoY increase. What do these numbers mean? Mustafa Mustansir, Director of Research and Business Development at Taurus Securities, reports: “The company has exhibited a marked improvement in its performance.” He adds: “The gross loss margin has decreased and the revenue has doubled impressively.” However, he cautions: “The issue remains with the net income. These losses impose a significant burden on the state.” Mustansir also warns of escalating finance costs: “They have nearly doubled as a result of increased interest rates.” He anticipates: “We may observe an even larger figure in 2023 due to the delay in repricing loans.”