PML-N made the announcements as they accelerated their efforts to gain momentum in Lahore ahead of the former prime minister's anticipated arrival on 21 October.
In Brief
ECONOMY
Discos to be provided to the private sector by interim in "long-term" concessions
On 4 October, the interim government made the decision to introduce eight hours of gas load-shedding for home consumers during the winter and to transfer electricity distribution businesses to the private sector through "long-term concessions." The interim administration also promised to keep up its fight against money laundering and currency smuggling with the goal of eradicating PKR 1 trillion in yearly tax evasion in Afghan trade. The aforementioned decisions were taken at the sixth meeting of the Apex Committee of the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC), which was presided over by acting Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq Kakar. General Syed Asim Munir, the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), also participated in the nine-hour meeting.
According to an official news statement from the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) on the SIFC meeting, the ministries updated the forum on the concrete steps they had made during the previous month to improve the business and investment climate in the nation. According to the statement, inordinate delays in restructuring or privatizing cash-strapped state-owned businesses (SOEs) were among the primary macroeconomic issues the committee looked at. The committee decided to speed up the privatization process and cut back on ongoing losses to the national exchequer. (Syed Irfan Raza, “Caretakers to give Discos to private sector via ‘long-term’ concessions,” Dawn, 5 October 2023)
POLITICS
On Nawaz’s return: PML-N intensifies the push
On 4 October, the PML-N made the announcements as they accelerated their efforts to gain momentum in Lahore ahead of the former prime minister's anticipated arrival on 21 October. According to President Shehbaz Sharif, the imminent return of PML-N party chief Nawaz Sharif, is not intended to exact revenge but rather to mend the nation's wounds, a point that the party has emphasized numerous times over the past few days in an effort to clear the air. Shehbaz claimed that the former prime minister's only "crime" was to end load-shedding, fight terrorism, build a vast network of roads and motorways, give away free medication to those in need, award scholarships to bright students, and distribute a great deal of laptops. He also said that Nawaz was imprisoned as part of a plot to establish fascism in Pakistan. (Rameez Khan, “PML-N revs up campaign to welcome Nawaz,” The Express Tribune, 5 October 2023)
PAKISTAN ELECTIONS 2023
PR Exclusive Update 16
PPP and JUI-F debate bitterly over election schedule
On 4 October, the once-close allies Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI-F) and Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) have been mired in a severe conflict and have been trading rhetorical punches as they have escalated their arguments regarding the timing of the poll. Inciting the debates, the JUI-F said that the PPP was "running away from elections" under the guise of its argument on timely elections. Maulana Fazlur Rehman's "anxiety" over the possibility of elections was questioned, the PPP responded angrily. In an immediate response to the attack, PPP Information Secretary Faisal Karim Kundi questioned Maulana's reluctance to accept election demands. He claimed that, "unlike those who yield to someone else's instructions to start or end sit-ins," his party made its own political judgments. (Hamza Rao, PPP, JUI-F in bitter spat over poll timing,” The Express Tribune, 5 October 2023)
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“Canadian MP Michael Kram's petition in the House of Commons highlights the urgent need for human rights and fair elections in Pakistan. The international community must unite against the Military Junta. Kudos to Canadian Pakistanis!”
- MNA
“In trying to crush Pakistan's largest and only federal, democratic party, the illegitimate government has only succeeded in spreading hatred among the nation.”
- Rubaisha Amir
“Another drop scene of propaganda from India and other enemies of Pakistan.The incident of firing across the Chaman border from Afghanistan which killed at least two Pakistani, was an act of individual. The Afghan government arrested and handed over the culprit to the Pakistan.”
- Sad
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Ali Tauqeer Sheikh, 'Cost of climate inaction'
Dawn, 5 October 2023
"The absence of the provinces from strategic-level climate decision-making has further trapped the country in climate passivity. This cycle is vicious: the less we prepare our communities to brace for climate action, the more vulnerable our economy becomes. Some initial actions on the ground can help us build credibility, which is the weakest link in the chain. The climate summit in the UAE next month will unleash the revision process of the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) by all countries, including Pakistan. The revisions will be based on the recommendations of the global stocktake that will be presented at the summit."
F.S. Aijazuddin, 'Only time will tell'
Dawn, 5 October 2023
"According to the ECP website, the only election he has ever conducted was in Azad Jammu & Kashmir, where in 2016 as chief secretary AJK “he ensured peaceful, free and fair elections”. (AJK has 2.7 million registered voters; Pakistan has 127m.). The last ‘free and fair’ elections in Pakistan were conducted in 1970, under president Gen Yahya Khan. The CEC at the time was a Bengali, Mr Abdus Sattar. The political maelstrom that followed left Sattar stranded in West Pakistan. Eventually, he returned to Bangladesh, where in time he became its seventh president."
Editorial, 'Reimagining politics'
Dawn, 5 October 2023
"While there is no shortage of political parties in Pakistan, and the prospects of the trio’s new outfit may not be too bright considering the crowded field, it would be worth looking at the factors that drove the three leaders from their old parties. Mr Abbasi was reportedly uncomfortable with the dominant, and unchallenged, role of Maryam Nawaz in the PML-N, while Mr Ismail was unceremoniously moved from his position as finance minister in the PDM government to make way for Ishaq Dar, another Sharif family member. Meanwhile, Mr Khokhar has talked of being uncomfortable with decisions taken in “closed rooms” by parties, hinting at the lack of internal debate."
Husain Haqqani,' Conspiracy theories, slogans, myths'
The News International, 5 October 2023
"There is an old adage, “Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people.” Applying it to Pakistan’s general media discourse, one would be compelled to believe that much of it is conducted by average or small minds. The public has access to little that can be described as serious ideas. Few people question catchphrases that are repeated without examination or evidence. The Oxford Dictionary defines a slogan as “a word or phrase that is easy to remember, used for example by a political party, or in advertising, to attract people’s attention or to suggest an idea.” But Pakistanis seem to embrace slogans without much thought and are swayed by them without asking simple, logical questions."
Editorial, 'Farrukh Javed Abbasi,The Sharif legacy?'
The News International, 5 October 2023
"Nawaz Sharif and his advisers haven’t negotiated with bilateral partners and friendly Middle-Eastern countries since 2015-16 when there was an Iran conflict and low interest rates. Saudis would use dollars to increase their soft power in Pakistan while the Chinese wanted to access our ports, and low interest rates made it easier for them to give out projects and other loans to Pakistan. Commercial banks also had access to cash and with Covid, quantitative easing made borrowing so easy that it became possible for that government to start big projects all over Pakistan."
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“The corporate world should step in to help Pakistan’s farmers.”
- An opinion in Dawn, 'Crop challenges'
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