PTI’s ‘Naya Pakistan’ invisible in KP budget: Pervaiz

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaaf’s (PTI) ‘Naya Pakistan’ is invisible in the budget in their domain as it does not reflect their proclaimed vision, Minister for Information and Broadcasting and National Heritage Senator Pervaiz Rashid has said.

In a statement on Sunday, he said that the figures had been tampered with and fudged to cover a Rs41 billion shortfall in the budget to make it appear as a balanced budget.The minister said that 71 percent of the total budget would be spent on salaries, leaving merely 29 percent for development that was very little for development in the province.

The PTI should have curtailed its administrative and non-development expenditure to spend the money on the welfare of the common people, Senator Pervaiz Rashid suggested. He said that another contradiction of the PTI appeared by accepting foreign aid from USAID, Britain and Germany against their claims of not going to the United States and their actions of staging protests and road blockades against US/Nato.

“It is not a tax-free budget as tax has been imposed on professionals and other categories,” he added.“So where is the relief for the common man? For the first time in the history of Pakistan, property tax has been extended to the rural areas and villages in this budget of KP,” he said.

“Is this the ‘Naya Pakistan’ vision of the PTI leadership?” The minister questioned.He said that KP had spent only 50 percent of its current budget and the remaining amount was re-appropriated in June in the last month of the financial year to the district of KP chief minister, Nowshera, the district of the Speaker, Swabi, and the district of the finance minister, Dir, which was against the slogans of fairness and transparency of the PTI.

Senator Pervaiz Rashid said that the PTI criticised the PML-N for the Metro Bus Project, terming the Rs40 billion project a ‘Jangla Bus’, but the KP government was planning to spend Rs230 billion on it for a small city like Peshawar. “Is it not a mega scandal in the making?” He asked.

“Where are the claims of Imran Khan to turn every hospital in KP into Shaukat Khanam? Why has the Chamber of Commerce in Peshawar placed on its building a huge banner stating, Save Peshawar? Why are traders, industrialists, doctors and others leaving Peshawar?”

The senator asked many questions from the PTI: why have the salaries of the chief minister, cabinet ministers and others been doubled with 100 percent increase including house rent which was Rs70,000 as compared to the salaries of the government employees which had been increased only by 10 percent?

Why did the PTI government waste most of the financial year as the first development project was initiated in February 2014? “A token amount of Rs200 million had been earmarked for the Urban Transport System, what happened to the Nano Train of Imran Khan? I hope Imran Khan will come up with answers of these questions in his next public gathering,” Parvaiz Rashid said.

Invisible govt least cares about court orders: Hamid Mir

 

ISLAMABAD: Senior anchorperson of Geo Hamid Mir on Friday said that verdicts and orders of the Supreme Court of Pakistan are nothing for the invisible forces that are governing the country.
Addressing an event organised by the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ) at the National Press Club in connection with the ‘Hamid Mir Week’, the Geo anchor said that there are two types of governments that are ruling the country at the same time; one is the government that is visible while the other one is invisible. He said the invisible government wants that it should not be named even if it attacks you. If you name it, you will have to apologise. The invisible government considers itself above the law and the SC orders are not being implemented on it.

Speaking to a large number of audience through a video few black sheep in the media were engaged in defaming journalism.However, the senior journalist, who narrowly survived when attacked by unknown assailants last month in Karachi, told the media persons: “You are being tested even today and your presence here in large numbers shows that bid to split journalists has failed. On 19 April the attack was not only on Hamid Mir but was on the freedom of media. Unity is a must.”

Hamid Mir said that journalists are being harassed and bullied but they will remain united and in no way be deterred from doing their job as they had stood their ground in the past. He said that some unscrupulous people are fanning hatred using the name of religion.

Hamid Mir maintained that the government had not been able to ensure implementation of the Supreme Court order with regard to the Geo and Jang.The ace anchorperson lamented that the government was building the metro bus and motorways but was unable to get implemented the apex court decision on Geo and Jang.

Later, a rally, comprising mostly of media persons was staged from the National Press Club to the Jang Plaza here as a mark of solidarity with Geo and Jang Group’Senior journalists expressed concern over the prevailing situation with regards to the media and feared a campaign had been launched against the free media.

They contended that if the government or the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (Pemra) had not shut down Geo then who had done so, saying it was a matter of grave concern.

Senior journalists while speaking to the rally, charged that the Pemra had not acted with neutrality on Geo issue and they made it clear that Geo would not be allowed to be shut down come what may.

About the unfortunate incidents of torching of Jang van and copies of ‘The News’ and Daily Jang, PFUJ President Afzal Butt pointed out that by resorting to these actions, sacrilege of the Holy Quran verses, Ahadees and sacred names was being committed.

He challenged those, who had issued fatwa against Geo, to now do the same against those, who were setting ablaze copies of newspapers and thus indulging in sacrilege of the divine and sacred content.

Afzal Butt urged owners of media houses to ensure implementation of labour laws and lamented the media houses in Pakistan were like ‘labour camps’.He said if the Jang Group was ready to give all rights to its workers, then a massive campaign would be launched from Khyber to Karachi in support of it.

Noted media persons called on the government to play its mediatory role to resolve the Geo and Jang issue. They also emphasised for reconstitution of the Pemra. They warned against any action against the Jang Group and said that it would render some 50,000 media workers jobless, which they would never let happen.

Speakers said that the electronic media was just a ten-year-old baby and one could not expect it to behave like a 50-year-old mature person. The rally was informed that the PFUJ had formed a committee of senior journalists to thrash out code of conduct, consulting the stakeholders.

They pointed out that in the past, mistakes were made, but no one asked about it, and today, there was a wish to close down a television channel (Geo).Those who spoke on the occasion, included senior journalist Mazhar Abbas, Akbarfarosh Union President Tikka Khan, National Press Club President Shaharyar Khan and anchorperson Kashif Abbasi.