Tag: Shehbaz

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Shehbaz vows nationwide drive against smuggling

PM Shehbaz ordered the removal of identified officers from their respective posts and initiated disciplinary proceedings against them…reports Asian Lite News

PM Shehbaz Sharif directed a meeting on Friday, reiterating his resolve to purge the country of smuggling and instructing relevant authorities to accelerate the nationwide drive against the menace, The Express Tribune reported.

During the meeting, the PM commended Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Syed Asim Munir for his steadfast cooperation with the government’s anti-smuggling efforts.

According to the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO), a committee report headed by AD Khawaja was presented during the meeting, which stated that “the committee identified the elements involved in the misuse of Afghan Transit Trade for smuggling and the officers facilitating them,” as per The Express Tribune.

The PM was informed that a list of smugglers, hoarders, and their facilitating officers had been forwarded to law enforcement agencies and provincial governments.

Following this, PM Shehbaz ordered the removal of identified officers from their respective posts and initiated disciplinary proceedings against them.

Further, he urged the law enforcement agencies (LEAs) and intelligence agencies to cooperate with each other to curb the smuggling.

According to The Express Tribune , Shehbaz Sharif urged for strict penalties against smugglers and drug dealers, instructing the law ministry to promptly enact essential legislation for this

Emphasising a zero-tolerance approach towards individuals involved in embezzling public funds and their accomplices, PM Shehbaz emphasised the necessity of creating alternate avenues for income generation and fostering a supportive environment for youth residing in border regions.

He underscored the importance of enhanced and efficient surveillance of the sale and smuggling of Afghan transit trade goods within the nation and called for a third-party audit of the monitoring system.

PM Shehbaz ordered the complete elimination of sugar smuggling and the immediate release of funds to examine the prevalence of drug consumption at the national level.

The meeting was briefed on smuggling, misuse of Afghan Transit Trade, drugs, as well as sugar, wheat, fertiliser, petroleum products, and illegal weapons.

Following consultations with stakeholders, it was revealed that a comprehensive national anti-smuggling strategy was in its final stages and will soon be presented for approval.

Additionally, attendees were briefed on recent law enforcement actions, including a recent raid on a smuggled goods warehouse in Mastung, resulting in the seizure of merchandise valued at over (Pakistani currency) PKR 10 billion.

Prime Minister Shehbaz lauded the swift actions of law enforcement agencies in combating smuggling.

Federal ministers Syed Mohsin Raza Naqvi, Jam Kamal Khan, Ahad Khan Cheema, Rana Tanweer Hussain, Musaddik Malik, Azam Nazeer Tarar, the Chairman of the Federal Board of Revenue, the Attorney General, personnel from law enforcement agencies, and senior officers were also present at the meeting. (ANI)

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Shehbaz wins trust vote amid tensions with judiciary

Raja Pervaiz Ashraf, the NA Speaker, then said that 180 members of the House had stood up in support of the resolution…reports Asian Lite News

Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday, secured a vote of confidence, with 180 members expressing “full confidence” in his ability to rule from the National Assembly, Dawn reported.

The surprising turn of events happened days after Marriyum Aurangzeb, the minister of information, fiercely denied rumours that the premier had chosen to ask Parliament for a vote of confidence. “The National Assembly of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan reposes its full confidence in the leadership of Mian Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif, as the Prime Minister of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan,” the resolution for the trust vote moved by Pakistan Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari stated, as per Dawn.

Raja Pervaiz Ashraf, the NA Speaker, then said that 180 members of the House had stood up in support of the resolution.

According to the NA speaker, had he been present at today’s session, the premier would have received 181 votes in favour of him.

After the motion was approved, Shehbaz Sharif, the prime minister, addressed the House. He expressed gratitude to the legislators for their trust in him and promised to never let them down. He called the 2018 elections “fraud elections” and said that the results were rigged.

He added that the votes will not be counted and that the elections had been rigged in various ways. “And the [former chief justice of Pakistan] Saqib Nisar ruled that the votes will not be recounted,” he stated.

Shehbaz Sharif also bemoaned the lack of an investigation into the rigging claims to date in the National Assembly and requested an investigation.

The premier added, in reference to a Supreme Court decision that prevented the government from enforcing a bill that would have reduced the CJP’s authority after it was passed: “It is not possible that Parliament frames a law and the judiciary issues a stay order on it even before it is enforced,” according to Dawn. (ANI)

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Shehbaz says India and Pak have a lot to gain from trade

On Tuesday, India and Pakistan finalised and signed the annual report of the Permanent Indus Commission for the year which ended on March 31, 2022…reports Asian Lite News

Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has said that Islamabad is looking to forge partnerships for its geo-economics strategy, especially within the region, which apparently includes New Delhi.

He was responding to a question about trade with India in an interview with Turkish media outlet Anadolu Agency ahead of his three-day visit to the country, Dawn reported. However, Sharif arrived in Turkey for the visit on Tuesday.

Shehbaz said that as part of its shift from geo-strategy to geo-economics, Pakistan is looking to forge partnerships, especially within the region, based on connectivity.

“Pakistan and India have a lot to gain from mutually beneficial trade,” he said as quoted by Dawn. “We are cognisant of the economic dividends that can be accrued from a healthy trade activity with India,” the Prime Minister said further.

It is to be noted that after coming to power in Pakistan in early April, Shehbaz Sharif has written a letter to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressing his desire for peaceful ties with India and the resolution of all the outstanding issues.

This comes in the wake of PM Modi’s congratulatory wishes to the then newly elected Pakistani counterpart. Sharif, in his reply, thanked PM Modi for congratulating him and said that his country desires peaceful and cooperative ties with India, reported ARY News.

In his first address to the National Assembly after being sworn in, Sharif had said, “We want good ties with India but durable peace is not possible until the Kashmir dispute is resolved.”

On Tuesday, India and Pakistan finalised and signed the annual report of the Permanent Indus Commission for the year which ended on March 31, 2022.

The Indus Water Treaty has survived the wars between the two countries and the freeze in bilateral relations.

The relations between India and Pakistan have been strained due to Uri, Pathankot and Pulwama terror attacks in Jammu and Kashmir with New Delhi making it clear that talks and terror cannot go together. (ANI)

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Shehbaz seeks Xi’s support on Karachi rail project

Pakistan Prime Minister said that the Karachi Circular Railway (KCR) project would be a “gift for the people of Karachi” and bring great dividends.

Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Monday requested China for support for the planned revival of the Karachi Circular Railway (KCR) project to end the woes of hundreds of thousands of commuters in the metropolis, the media reported.

During an address at the inauguration of a mass transit bus project, he said that KCR would be a “gift for the people of Karachi” and bring great dividends.

“I will take up this opportunity to convey my request to Beijing, NDRC (National Development and Reform Commission) and President Xi Jinping to reconsider (supporting) KCR for Karachi,” he said, adding that the project’s completion would lead to great feelings for China among the people of Karachi and the rest of the country, the Dawn reported.

During his speech, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif expressed gratitude towards China for “strengthening Pakistan’s economy” and supporting it on all international forums.

The Islamabad Metro Bus Service project, which will run on a stretch of 11 km from Peshawar Morr to Islamabad International Airport, is expected to benefit nearly 50,000 commuters every day. The project was supposed to be launched in 2018 but was delayed.

The premier blamed PTI for the delay in the launch of the project and regretted that the route plan for Islamabad was reduced abruptly to cut the cost from Rs 16 billion to Rs 12 billion, which he said, caused immense loss to the project’s materialisation.

PM Shehbaz said that though development funds were available to complete public welfare projects during the PTI’s tenure, what the previous government lacked was the will to serve the masses.

‘CPEC to move faster’

Under the leadership of Shehbaz Sharif, the multi-billion dollar China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project will make faster headways and advances with the multi-faceted development of the flagship scheme of Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), said a senior member of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N).

PML-N senator Mushahid Hussain Sayed said that the CPEC would move forward with new vigour and vitality and in a rejuvenated manner under Shehbaz Sharif.

Talking about the future of collaboration and bilateral relations between Pakistan and China, Sayed highlighted that newly-elected PM Sharif gave pivotal importance to Islamabad’s relationship with China and expressed his desire to take CPEC forward at a fast pace.

“China shares a very old and longstanding relationship with Shehbaz Sharif. When the BRI was launched with CPEC as it centre piece, it was taken forward by then Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and then Chief Minister Shehbaz Sharif,” he said.

Sayed also highlighted Pakistan’s policy to keep China as a top priority in its foreign policy.

“China is number one in terms of foreign policy priority, which the Prime Minister made clear when he listed the list of countries, and his formulation has been warmly welcomed in China. So we have no doubts,” he said.

“China is the only country for which there is across-the-border national consensus, and the entire leadership considers it to be Pakistan’s number one friend,” Sayed added.

He also expressed his confidence that CPEC projects will move forward and play a vital role in further strengthening the relations between the two countries.

“The first phase of CPEC was completed when Nawaz Sharif was the Prime Minister. The second phase is bigger and you will perhaps see acceleration in the field of agriculture, information technology and infrastructure, especially railways,” he said.

“Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had already announced during his visit to Karachi that his government would expand CPEC, so there would be multifaceted development of the flagship project,” he added.

Sayed said that CPEC has brought both countries closer through infrastructure and energy projects, resolving many problems.

“CPEC is the character of a better tomorrow for the people of Pakistan,” Sayed said. (with inputs from Hamza Ameer)

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