Pakistan

MQM-P decides not to join federal cabinet

Published

2 years ago

Farwa

MQM-P convener says party is more interested in getting commitments made by coalition partners fulfilled.
Party wants to extend its support to broad-based government from outside.
Refrains from commenting on Akhtar’s remarks expressing displeasure over no mention of commitments by Shehbaz.

ISLAMABAD: Amid consultations over the formation of a new federal cabinet in the Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif-led regime, MQM-P has decided not to be part of it, The News reported.

Instead, the party wants to extend its support to the broad-based government from the outside.

With the decision already conveyed to the prime minister, MQM-P convener Dr Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui said his party had discussed the formation of the new cabinet with the leaders of coalition partners in detail.

He said the MQM-P is more interested in the implementation of the commitments made by the coalition partners for the well-being of Karachi and other areas of the province.

“The commitments are significant, which need to be fulfilled,” Siddiqui said.

However, the politician did not comment on former Karachi mayor Wasim Akhtar’s remarks where he took exception to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif for not mentioning commitments with the MQM-P in his maiden speech as the premier in the National Assembly.

The MQM-P had two slots of the federal cabinet in the ousted government of the PTI. Syed Aminul Haque was IT minister while Senator Farogh Nasim was the law minister, representing the MQM-P in the government.

Sources said the MQM-P was offered two slots in the federal government, Sindh’s governorship and about half a dozen slots in the Sindh cabinet beside municipal charge of three big cities of the province including Karachi mayorship but no decision has yet been taken about assuming these assignments.

PM Shehbaz consults coalition partners over cabinet formation

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif is in consultation with the leaders of the coalition parties over the formation of his cabinet.

However, sources privy to the matter said that PPP is unwilling to be a part of the cabinet, saying that it would support the government from the treasury benches in a better way.

According to the sources, one group within the party favours the idea of joining the cabinet to strengthen the coalition, while the other group is of the view that the party should instead focus on electoral reforms for early election.

However, the final decision will be made as per the top leadership’s will in a few days.

Sources said the PPP was more interested in the constitutional offices of the parliament and it would join the cabinet in the second phase. There is a consensus in the party on taking over the office of the National Assembly speaker with Raja Pervez Ashraf and Syed Naveed Qamar as its candidates.

They claimed that Ashraf was a strong contender, while Maulana Asad Mehmood of the JUI-F, the son of Maulana Fazlur Rehman, could be the deputy speaker.

Business

Price of LPG “slashed” by Rs. 20 per kilogram

Published

7 hours ago

Farwa

Sources claim that LPG rates have been lowered by Rs 20, making the cost per kilogram drop from Rs 280 to Rs 260.

It is noteworthy to remark that the costs of LPG were reduced by Rs 20 per kilogram earlier, resulting in a total reduction of Rs 40 per kilogram within a few weeks.

The price of liquefied petroleum gas for the month of May 2024 was lowered by the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) on April 30.

The LPG tariffs were lowered by Rs 11.88 to Rs 238.46 per kilogram in accordance with the OGRA’s notice. On Wednesday, May 1, 2024, the new rates will go into effect.

In April of last year, the price per kilogram of LPG was Rs 250.34. pricing reduction of Rs 140.18 has resulted in a new pricing for home LPG cylinders set for May 2024 of Rs 2813.85.

The OGRA reported a drop in liquefied petroleum gas pricing in April. The price of LPG is now Rs 250.34 per kg instead of Rs 256.78 due to a reduction of Rs 6.44 per kg.

The price of the household cylinder was fixed at Rs 2954.03 for the month of April, down from Rs 3030.12, a decrease of Rs 76.9.

Business

ADB delegation stops by FBR headquarters

Published

7 hours ago

Farwa

Senior Director ADB Tariq Niazi oversaw the expedition, which also involved Sana Masood, Farzana Noshab, and Senior Public Sector Management Specialist Laisiasa Tora. The meeting included presentations from economists as well, according to an FBR press release.

The officers focused on structural and policy adjustments as they discussed the Domestic Resource Mobilization Program’s implementation at the meeting.

$300 million was given to the Pakistani government by ADB in December 2023 as a result of the hard work and dedication of FBR. Better laws, regulations, and institutional capability for the FBR were established by Sub-Program I.

With the $300 million in funding provided by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to the Government of Pakistan in December 2023, the delegation conveyed satisfaction with the program’s effective launch.

The FBR also underlined how crucial digitization is to recording the economy and boosting productivity in a sustainable way.

In order to promote the Government of Pakistan’s Digital Tax Administration Project, both parties decided to look into measures to improve their cooperation.

Latest News

Off-duty police in Islamabad are prohibited from donning uniforms.

Published

7 hours ago

Farwa

The new directives, according to specifics, were sent via wireless by the federal capital police and state that no officer may wear a uniform when reporting for duty or leaving it.

According to the police official, uniforms will only be worn when on duty; otherwise, two policemen will accompany each other during duty hours and will always be required to carry guns.

A different development was the earlier release of an app by the Islamabad Police with the goal of improving crime prevention and public safety.

Launched on the orders of former Interior Minister Sarfraz Akbar Bugti, the recently released ICT-15 app aims to empower the people of the capital city by giving them the ability to actively engage in the battle against crime and protect their areas.

Residents of Islamabad can now easily download and utilize the ICT-15 app because it is easily accessible on the Google Play Store.

Citizens can report a variety of issues with this easy-to-use application, such as incidents, unlawful behavior, complaints against law enforcement, the presence of undocumented people, or any suspicious criminal activity.

The police promise quick reaction times as soon as information is reported using the app, so assistance will be provided as quickly as feasible.