Pakistan remains in a fix over approving census results ahead of national elections

An official from the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics uses a digital device to collect information from a resident during door-to-door the first ever digital national census in Lahore on March 1, 2023. (AFP/FILE)
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Updated 03 August 2023
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Pakistan remains in a fix over approving census results ahead of national elections

  • Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said earlier this week upcoming general elections would be held on basis of 2023 census results
  • Experts say redistribution of National Assembly seats, fresh delimitation of constituencies could take months, delay polls

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistani government remained hesitant on convening a meeting of the Council of Common Interests (CCI) on Thursday to seek approval of the results of the country's first digital census, with experts saying upcoming general elections could be delayed if the government remains in a limbo over the matter. 

The Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) conducted the country's first digital census in May 2023. PBS forwarded the results to the CCI, a constitutional body comprising the prime minister and chief ministers of all provinces who decide important national matters with consensus. 

The Prime Minister's Office and the chief statistician discussed the population census on Thursday but stopped short of convening the CCI meeting. The CCI only has the prerogative to approve census results. Once the census is approved and published, the law states that elections are to be held on the basis of the published census.

“As per the rules, members are required to be given a ten-day notice for the CCI’s meeting which has not been issued yet,” CCI's focalperson, Syed Mudassir Hussain Shah, told Arab News. 

He said as chairman of the CCI, the prime minister is empowered to call the meeting while the council’s secretariat issues the agenda and facilitates the session. “We haven’t been officially communicated yet to release any meeting agenda,” he disclosed. 

The five-year term of Pakistan's legislature will expire on August 12, with experts believing that if the census is approved days before the assemblies are dissolved, the move would delay general elections across the country. 

Population censuses have a huge impact on elections in Pakistan, with census results serving as the basis of allocation of National Assembly seats among the four provinces of the country and Islamabad, according to Article 51(5) of the constitution.

The controversy began after Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said on August 1 that the upcoming elections would be held on population census 2023. Experts believe if the census results are approved, Pakistan's election regulator would require at least four months to complete the delimitation of constituencies, ultimately leading to a delay in the polls. 

Pakistan's constitution stipulates polls should be held within 60 days after assemblies complete their tenure. However, if the government dissolves assemblies early, then elections would be held within 90 days. 

According to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), national elections would be contested on 266 National Assembly seats with 141 in Punjab, 61 in Sindh, 45 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 16 in Balochistan, and three in Islamabad. This brings the total number of National Assembly seats to 336, out of which 60 seats are reserved for women and 10 for non-Muslims. 

Former ECP secretary Kanwar Dilshad said if the CCI approves fresh census results, Pakistan's election regulator would be constitutionally bound to hold fresh delimitation of constituencies. 

He added that the process could take four to six months. 

“In that case, it is obvious that national elections would face a delay till the completion of the fresh delimitations across Pakistan,” Dilshad told Arab News, adding that the issue of allocating National Assembly seats could be deferred to the next parliament. 

“The seats' allocation on the basis of fresh census data would require a constitutional amendment and that cannot be done in the absence of the National Assembly,” he said, adding that the new legislature after elections could take the matter up for discussion.  

Dilshad said the CCI may constitute a commission to verify census results and develop a consensus among all stakeholders before giving its final approval. “It is a subjective matter, so let’s see how the CCI, if convened, handles it,” he said. 

Rashid Chaudhry, deputy director of programs at the Free and Fair Election Network (FAFEN) in Islamabad, said an interesting situation regarding the redistribution of seats could develop after census results are published. 

“It is mandatory as per the constitution to redistribute the number of the seats among all federating units after every population census through a constitutional amendment," Chaudhry told Arab News. "Which the current legislature cannot do.”

“Political parties will have to develop a consensus over census results and the timing of the next national elections, to avoid any controversy,” he added. 


Pakistan revenue authority launches advanced system to boost tax collection

Updated 9 sec ago
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Pakistan revenue authority launches advanced system to boost tax collection

  • Development comes amid Pakistan’s efforts to prevent tax evasion worth billions of rupees
  • Islamabad has set a challenging tax revenue target of $46.66 billion for the new fiscal year

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s tax regulator has launched an advanced Stock Register system to optimize tax administration and boost revenue collection, it said on Thursday, amid efforts to prevent tax evasion.

The development comes amid Pakistan’s desperate attempts at preventing tax evasion worth billions of rupees and meeting a challenging tax revenue target of Rs13 trillion ($46.66 billion) for the new fiscal year that started July 1, a near 40 percent jump from the last year. 

Pakistan last year came to the brink of a default as the economy shriveled amid political chaos, impact of 2022 floods, and decades of mismanagement. Last-minute loan rollovers from friendly countries as well as a $3 billion bailout from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) saved the nation.

The situation prompted Islamabad to introduce institutional reforms, including the digitization of the FBR, to put the economy back on track as the South Asian country grappled shrinking foreign exchange reserves, high inflation, and staggering public debts.

“This robust digital infrastructure grants tax officers real-time, in-depth access to registered persons’ data, bolstering transparency and securing compliance with Income Tax (IT) and Sales Tax (ST) regulations,” the FBR said on X.

The Stock Register functions as a sophisticated information and reporting system, and empowers tax officers to make precise tax assessments and mitigate the risk of tax evasion, according to the revenue authority.

The FBR said it had also launched the Information Center 2.0 portal to enhance its capacity to strengthen the national exchequer.

“Accessible exclusively through the IRIS tax officers’ platform at FBR field formations, Information Center 2.0 features advanced filters and search functionalities, enabling swift data retrieval to support compliance and precise assessments,” it said.

“This initiative represents a pivotal advancement in tax collection efforts. It fosters robust reporting, minimizes tax evasion & strengthens resource & financial management across the business landscape, ensuring adherence to tax regulations through a centralized data ecosystem.”

Since avoiding default last year, Pakistan has reached an agreement with the IMF for a new $7 billion loan. The South Asian country is currently trying to boost trade and investment to revive its fragile $350 billion economy.


Pakistan increases price of petrol by Rs1.35 per liter till next fortnight

Updated 34 min 58 sec ago
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Pakistan increases price of petrol by Rs1.35 per liter till next fortnight

  • New price of petrol increases from Rs247.03 per liter to Rs248.38 per liter, says Finance Division 
  • Petroleum prices revised based on price variation in the international market, says notification international market, says notification 

ISLAMABAD: Pakistani authorities have increased the price of petrol by Rs1.35 per liter till the next fortnight, the country’s Finance Division said in a notification late Thursday. 

As per the notification, the new price of petrol has been increased from Rs247.03 per liter to Rs248.38 per liter. 

“The Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) has worked out the consumer prices of petroleum products, based on the price variation in the international market,” OGRA said in a statement. 

Meanwhile, the government also increased the price of high speed diesel by Rs3.85 per liter, increasing it from Rs251.29 per liter to Rs255.14 per liter. 

The price of kerosene was slashed by Rs1.48 per liter, decreasing it from Rs163.02 per liter to Rs161.54 per liter, and the price of light diesel oil was slashed by Rs2.61 per liter, bringing it down from Rs150.12 per liter to Rs147.51 per liter. 

Pakistan revises petroleum prices every fortnight. Petrol is mostly used in private transport, small vehicles, rickshaws and two-wheelers in Pakistan while any increase in the price of diesel is considered highly inflationary as it is mostly used to power heavy transport vehicles and particularly adds to the prices of vegetables and other eatables.

However, the negligible decrease in petrol and diesel prices is unlikely to provide much relief to the inflation-stricken Pakistanis.


Middle East burger chain Salt to begin operations in Pakistan ‘soon’

Updated 49 min 43 sec ago
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Middle East burger chain Salt to begin operations in Pakistan ‘soon’

  • ’Salt’ has branches in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, UK and Hungary already 
  • Salt did not mention which Pakistani cities it plans on opening outlets in

ISLAMABAD: International fast food chain “Salt” announced on Wednesday that it will expand its operations into Pakistan, vowing to provide its customers in the South Asian country high quality food “soon.”

Salt is a Middle East fast food chain based in Qatar since 2005 that specializes in burgers containing wagyu beef — a type of high-quality beef that comes from the Wagyu cattle breed native to Japan. The company founded by Qatar-based Ali Ahmed Buhindi has been running branches in Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom and also Hungary. 

“Time to pass the salt, Pakistan! SALT, is coming in hot with all the good vibes and flavors to slide right into your cravings,” the burger joint Salt said in a post on Instagram with a picture titled “coming soon.”

Salt did not mention which Pakistani cities it plans on opening its branches in. 

The burger chain offers a wide range of beef burgers that include brisket, truffle, signature, hook and original sliders. 

Its chicken burgers include Cheetos, pine chicken and crispy chicken sliders flavors. 

International fast food restaurants are quite popular in Pakistan with the likes of McDonald’s, KFC and Hardees operating successfully in multiple cities for decades. 


Pakistan’s national airline attracts $36 million bid from real estate company

Updated 31 October 2024
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Pakistan’s national airline attracts $36 million bid from real estate company

  • Sole bidder Blue World City refuses to match government’s minimum price for Pakistan International Airlines
  • Pakistan plans to sell over 51 percent of its stake in loss-making PIA as envisaged under an IMF deal this year

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s national flag carrier received a Rs10 billion [$36 million] bid from real estate development company Blue World City on Thursday for sixty percent of its stakes during a televised auction, much below the minimum price for the airline set by the government.
Pakistan plans to sell more than 51 percent of its stake in the loss-making Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) as part of economic reforms Islamabad agreed to with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for a critical 37-month $7 billion bailout deal approved in September.
Pakistan’s government had pre-qualified six groups in June, but only real estate development company Blue World City met a Tuesday deadline to submit final documents to participate in the auction.
The state-owned Pakistan Television (PTV) broadcast the bidding process live, with Blue World City as the sole bidder. The bid for $36 million was read out in front of government officials and financial advisers. The government had set a minimum price of Rs85 billion [$305 million] for the airline.
“We have considered your match price option,” Blue World City Chairman Saad Nazir said during the event. “We have decided to stand with the price we have already submitted.”
 Nazir refused to match the government’s offer of Rs85 billion, saying that as per the company’s assessment, “this was the best decision.”
“If the government doesn’t privatize [PIA], we wish the government all the best,” he said.
 Pakistan’s privatization commission has allowed some time for potential bidders to see if any would outmatch Blue World City’s bid.
“The government couldn’t get the fair price of the PIA through the auction due to the single bidder,” Haroon Sharif, a former member of the cabinet committee on privatization, told Arab News.
“There was no competition to purchase stakes of the national carrier.”
The government’s initial plan was to finalize the deal to sell PIA on the country’s Independence Day, Aug. 14, but the plan was delayed following requests from bidders waiting for the airline’s latest audited accounts, aircraft lease agreements and clarity on flights to Europe, which are currently banned.
This auction was delayed to September and October but those also did not materialize.
Sharif said the government should have extended the auction’s deadline to involve more bidders in the process.
“Now it looks like the government is privatizing the PIA in desperation,” he noted.
Official data available with Arab News shows there are 88 commercially operated state-owned enterprises in Pakistan, with collective losses of up to Rs730.258 billion ($2.61 billion) in the fiscal year 2022 (FY22).
In its five-year privatization plan ending in 2029, the government has approved 24 state-owned enterprises for sale, including the PIA.
With a fleet of 34 aircraft comprising 17 Airbus A320s, 12 Boeing B777s and 5 ATRs, the PIA loses traffic to Middle Eastern carriers who have a market share of 60 percent, because of an absence of direct flights to destinations.
The carrier has air service pacts with 87 countries, and landing slots at key destinations such as London Heathrow.
The reorganization plan of the business will separate the aviation-related aspects from non-core components, so freeing the operating subsidiary of a large portion of legacy debt.


Pakistan says IMF cut its inflation forecast for the country for this year to 9.5%

Updated 31 October 2024
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Pakistan says IMF cut its inflation forecast for the country for this year to 9.5%

  • No need for government to introduce mini-year budget, says finance minister
  • Aurangzeb says IMF revised down import projections for Pakistan for current fiscal year

ISLAMABAD: The International Monetary Fund has lowered its inflation forecast for Pakistan for the current year by 3.2% points to 9.5%, the country’s finance minister said on Thursday.

The IMF’s revised projection bring it closer to Pakistan’s own projections, Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb said.

He said there was no need to introduce a mid-year budget, responding to local media reports saying the government needed to revise its budget to stay on track with an ongoing $7 billion, 37-month program with the IMF.

Aurangzeb said the IMF also revised down its import projections for Pakistan in the current fiscal year, which ends in June 2025.

Pakistan has been struggling with boom-and-bust economic cycles for decades, leading to 22 IMF bailouts since 1958. Currently the country is the IMF’s fifth-largest debtor, owing the Fund $6.28 billion as of July 11, according to the lender’s data.

The latest economic crisis has been the most prolonged and has seen Pakistan facing its highest-ever inflation rate, pushing the country to the brink of a sovereign default last year before an IMF bailout. Inflation has since eased.