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PM REAFFIRMS PAKISTAN’S DESIRE TO STRENGTHEN BILATERAL TIES WITH US Saturday, 26 August, 2023 I 8 Safar, 1445
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ISLAMABAD STAFF REPORT
ARETAKER Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq has reaffirmed Pakistan’s desire to further strengthen bilateral cooperation with the United States in key areas including trade and investment, energy, security, and climate change. Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq was talking to US Ambassador Donald Blome who called on him at Prime Minister’s House in Islamabad on Friday. The Prime Minister appreciated the United States’ role in helping Pakistan to stabilize its economy and reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to continue the reform agenda for achieving sustainable growth. Noting the role that the US private sector has traditionally played in supporting Pakistan’s economic growth, he hoped that that more US companies would explore the invest-
ment opportunities, particularly to tap the vast potential for investment in Pakistan’s information technology sector. On the occasion, the US Ambassador congratulated the Prime Minister on assuming the office and reaffirmed the United States’ desire for supporting Pakistan’s economic and development agenda. Lauding the important contributions of the Pakistani-American community towards strengthening ties between the two countries, the Prime Minister called for increasing peopleto-people contacts between the two countries. The Prime Minister said Pakistan and the US enjoyed longstanding and broad-based relations, rooted in mutual respect, common interests and shared values. He expressed satisfaction on the current positive trajectory of bilateral ties. Anwaarul Haq Kakar emphasized that the caretaker Government’s main responsibility is to assist the Election Commission of Pakistan in the electoral process and provide constitutional continuity during the period of demo-
cratic transition. ‘US wants free and fair polls in Pakistan’ During the meeting United States Ambassador to Pakistan Donald Blome conveyed Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq Kakar that the US wanted free and fair elections in Pakistan, amid speculations that the elections might get delayed and political parties may not get a level-playing field. During the meeting, the US ambassador also said that the US wanted Pakistan to ensure protection of religious minorities in the wake of Jaranwala incident, in which hundreds of Muslim men vandalised dozens of Christian homes and torched churches in a Christian neighbourhood on the pretext of blasphemy. The US envoy also encouraged the interim premier Kakar to continue partnership with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on economic recovery – a statement suggesting that Pakistan should steadfast to abiding the IMF programme conditions. Ambassador Blome called on the caretaker premier at PM House in Islamabad just a day after the US envoy met the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) and reaffirmed US’ support for free and fair elections in Pakistan. In response to US stance on holding free and fair elections, the interim premier “emphasised that the caretaker government’s main responsibility is to assist the ECP in the electoral process and provide constitutional continuity during the period of democratic transition.” In a post on X, the US embassy also shared that the US envoy was delighted to meet with caretaker PM Kakar and he “reaffirmed steadfast commitment to US-Pakistan relationship, support for free and fair elections, desire to work with and through US Pakistan Green Alliance to build for the future.”
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Soaring electricity bills, heavy taxes spark countrywide protests RAWALPINDI/ KARACHI/SWAT STAFF REPORT
The Traders’ associations and general public and on Friday initiated largescale protests against soaring electricity bills and heavy taxes, with major demonstrations being held in Karachi as well as other parts of the country. The protest in Karachi, which was also supported by Jamaat-e-Islami (JI), demanded a reduction in the ever-increasing electricity prices and additional taxes imposed through power bills. Speaking on the occasion, trade leaders and representatives of Jamaate-Islami expressed their concerns. “We reject the excessive charges being collected by K-Electric in our electricity bills,” stated a trade leader, saying that JI always takes a stand on the problems of the masses. “We are witnessing a situation where people are forced to starve and struggling to make ends meet while KE is sending electricity bills amounting to thousands and even in lacs,” he added. Addressing the protesters, JI’s Karachi Amir Hafiz Naeemur Rehman, warned that if the government continues to burden the public, the situation could further deteriorate. “Our struggle is against the white-collar mafia in KE,”
he affirmed, underscoring the commitment to represent the people’s interests. He said that when KE was being privatised, Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) and Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) were in power. “We were told that electricity would become cheap but the opposite happened,” he added. Naeem said that people would rise and agitation would further rise if the government continued to protect the KE’s injustices. “If even a single trader is arrested, we will fill the jails. The government should realise that when traders take to the streets, it signifies the onset of an economic crisis,” cautioned Atiq Mir, Chairman of All Karachi Tajir Ittehad. He said that a movement has started in Karachi, urging everyone to join it. He further said that currently, no other political party was taking a stand with them apart from JI. In Rawalpindi, a demonstration took place against additional electricity charges, with citizens chanting slogans against Islamabad Electric Supply Company. Similar protests erupted in Azad Jammu Kashmir, where traders set electricity bills on fire and raised slogans against the government and administration.
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