Pakistan’s ruling coalition clinches Senate top slots of chairman, deputy chairman

Pakistan's foreign minister Ishaq Dar (second from right) administers the oath to Senate Chairman, Yousaf Raza Gillani, in Islamabad, Pakistan on April 9, 2024. (@aishachaudhary/X)
Short Url
Updated 09 April 2024
Follow

Pakistan’s ruling coalition clinches Senate top slots of chairman, deputy chairman

  • Ex-premier Yousaf Raza Gillani, Syedal Khan Nasir elected Senate chairman, deputy chairman unopposed respectively
  • Senators affiliated with former prime minister Imran Khan boycotted proceedings of the election in protest

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s ruling coalition on Tuesday secured the top posts in the Senate after its candidates, former prime minister Yousaf Raza Gillani and Syedal Khan Nasir, were elected unopposed as chairman and deputy chairman of the house, respectively.

Pakistani senators are elected for a term of six years and are responsible to discuss laws, provide their technical input and vote on legislations like other public representatives. Half of these senators retire every three years and new ones are elected to replace them.

The ruling coalition, led by the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), joined hands to have Gillani and Nasir elected to the coveted posts on Tuesday. The PPP had nominated Gillani to be the chairman while the PML-N wanted Nasir to hold the post of the deputy chairman.

Both candidates also received support from other political parties and independent candidates.

“It is a unique honor and privilege to be elected as chairman of this august house,” Gillani told the Senate after being sworn in. “I am thankful to Allah Almighty for having been given this opportunity.”

Gillani mentioned the crises the country had been facing, saying: “Pakistan faces an assault of those who seek to divide and polarize us, those who seek to incite hatred, those who seek to replace norms of civility and abuse democracy with demagoguery.”

He said that his party had rejected politics of hate and preferred politics of “reconciliation and of the welfare of people.”

The Senate elections were held earlier this month in Pakistan’s Sindh, Punjab and Balochistan provinces and in the federal capital of Islamabad. The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) delayed polls on eleven Senate seats in the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province ruled by the former prime minister Iman Khan’s loyalists last Tuesday.

Pakistan’s election regulatory body had taken the decision in response to a plea by the opposition, which had called for a postponement after nearly two dozen provincial lawmakers on reserved seats were not administered oath despite a court order.

Members of Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party boycotted the election on Tuesday, saying the exercise was unfair since the Senate was incomplete without the presence of legislators from KP.

At the outset of the proceedings, at least 41 newly elected senators took oath as members of the House amid protests by PTI lawmakers. The ruling coalition managed to bag 19 seats, increasing its tally of total seats to 59 out of 85 in the upper house of parliament.

PTI Senator Falak Naz termed the chairman and deputy chairman Senate’s elections as “unconstitutional,” adding that his party would challenge it in the Supreme Court.

“The Senate is incomplete as our Senators are yet to be elected from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Therefore, this election is totally illegal and unconstitutional,” she told Arab News.

“We will protest against this undemocratic process inside and outside the parliament,” she added.

Political analysts said the Senate election had become controversial after the ECP postponed the polls on the 11 seats from KP.

“This will lead to further political instability in the country. Therefore, better sense should prevail to overcome the political challenges through a meaningful dialogue,” Munizae Jahangir, a political analyst and TV talk-show host, told Arab News.

“Our policymakers should understand that economic stability cannot be achieved without political stability in the country. So, it’s high time these political differences are resolved to focus on inflation and other issues of public importance,” she added.


Pakistan says five killed, no information on missing as search ends in Greece boat tragedy

Updated 19 December 2024
Follow

Pakistan says five killed, no information on missing as search ends in Greece boat tragedy

  • Report in Geo News says at least 40 Pakistanis killed in migrant boat tragedy off Greek island of Gavdos last week
  • Six cases filed against suspects accused of facilitating transport of victims from Punjab to Libya where they boarded boats

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s mission in Greece said on Thursday five Pakistanis had been killed in a migrant boat tragedy off the Greek island of Gavdos last week but it had “no concrete information” on how many of its nationals were missing.

The latest incident of the boat capsizing highlights the perilous journeys many migrants undertake due to conflicts and lack of economic opportunities in their home countries. 

In 2023, hundreds of migrants, including 262 Pakistanis, drowned when an overcrowded vessel capsized and sank in international waters off the southwestern Greek coastal town of Pylos. It was one of the deadliest boat disasters ever recorded in the Mediterranean Sea.

A report in Pakistan’s Geo News on Thursday said at least 40 Pakistanis had been killed in the latest tragedy, quoting the embassy in Athens. 

“So far, we have information of five dead Pakistanis and another 47 who have been rescued. No concrete information of missing persons is with us, and this is the final information available at this time,” an official at Pakistan’s mission in Greece told Arab News over the telephone, declining to be named.

“We are in contact with the authorities who have concluded their special search operation.”

The official added that regular patrolling would continue, and Greek authorities would inform the mission if any new information became available. He declined to comment on the Geo News report and referred Arab News to the foreign office. 

Speaking to Arab News, Foreign Office Spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch said the government had already released death toll figures and had no further information. 

“We cannot comment on people’s statements or claims regarding how many Pakistanis were on board until we receive evidence from the investigation,” she said in response to a question about the Geo News report that 40 Pakistanis were feared dead. “It is difficult to verify the claimed figure, as there was no official record of their travel.”

On Wednesday, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif ordered strict measures to combat human trafficking and demanded a detailed report on human trafficking incidents involving Pakistani citizens this year. 

Separately, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has filed six cases against suspects accused of facilitating the transport of victims from Punjab to Libya, where they were subsequently sent on boats to Greece.

Greece was a favored gateway to the European Union for migrants and refugees from the Middle East, Africa and Asia in 2015-2016, when nearly 1 million people landed on its islands, mostly via inflatable dinghies.

Incidents with migrant boats and shipwrecks off Crete and its tiny neighbor Gavdos, which are relatively isolated in the central Mediterranean, have increased over the past year.


Pakistan calls for transport connectivity, trade corridors between D-8 developing nations

Updated 19 December 2024
Follow

Pakistan calls for transport connectivity, trade corridors between D-8 developing nations

  • PM Sharif is in Cairo to attend Eleventh Summit of D-8 countries, hold bilateral meetings with world leaders on forum’s sidelines
  • Pakistani PM will also and attend a special meeting on the ongoing conflict in the Middle East with a focus on Palestine and Lebanon

ISLAMABAD: Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday called for better transport connectivity and trade corridors between member states from the D-8 developing group of nations to boost regional trade and economic cooperation.

Sharif arrived in Cairo on Wednesday to lead the Pakistan delegation at the Eleventh Summit of D-8 countries, hold bilateral discussions with multiple world leaders on the sidelines of the forum and attend a special meeting on the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, with a focus on Gaza and Lebanon.

The D-8 grouping promotes economic and development cooperation among Bangladesh, Egypt, Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia, Nigeria, Pakistan, and Türkiye. Key areas of cooperation are agriculture, trade, transportation, industry, energy and tourism.

The bloc’s latest summit is themed “Investing in Youth and Supporting SMEs: Shaping Tomorrow’s Economy.”

“Connectivity is a force multiplier and is rightly hailed as a vehicle for peace and prosperity,” Sharif said as he addressed the summit. “We need to explore the possibilities of developing and enhancing transport connectivity among D-8 member states for building efficient intra-trade corridors and reliable supply chains.

In this regard, the Pakistan, Iran and Turkiye corridor is an excellent project for very efficient connectivity.”

The Islamabad-Tehran-Istanbul Road Transport Corridor is a cross-border trade initiative aimed at improving road transport links and providing more efficient movement options for goods between South Asia, the Middle East and Europe.


Pakistan naval chief holds defense cooperation, regional security talks during visit to Oman

Updated 19 December 2024
Follow

Pakistan naval chief holds defense cooperation, regional security talks during visit to Oman

  • Oman is the nearest Arab country to Pakistan, because of which they share a maritime boundary
  • Last week, the Pakistan navy conducted joint naval exercises and drills with the Royal Oman ship ‘Alseeb’

ISLAMABAD: Pakistani naval chief Admiral Naveed Ashraf is on an official visit to Oman to discuss defense cooperation, smuggling and regional maritime security, the military’s media wing said on Thursday.

Oman is the nearest Arab country to Pakistan, because of which they share a maritime boundary. Pakistan shares a unique ‘blood bond’ with Oman, one third of whose population originates from Pakistan’s Balochistan province, while the southwestern port city of Gwadar, which is 200 nautical miles from Oman, was transferred to Pakistan in 1958, before which it had remained gifted to the Sultan of Oman for 175 years.

“During the meetings, the security situation in the Indian Ocean and joint defense cooperation were discussed,” the military’s media wing said after Ashraf had separate meetings with the minister of the Royal Office of the Sultanate of Oman, and the commanders of the Omani Royal Navy and National Defense College.

“Naval Chief highlighted the role of Pakistan Navy in preventing piracy and smuggling,” the statement said. “Pakistan Navy is a strong supporter of promoting maritime security in collaboration with other regional countries.”

Last week, the Pakistan navy conducted joint naval exercises and drills with Royal Oman ship ‘Alseeb.’ The bilateral naval exercise, “Samar Al-Tayeb,” is conducted regularly between the navies of the two nations.


Asian Development Bank approves $7.5 million to boost health care in Pakistan’s northwest

Updated 19 December 2024
Follow

Asian Development Bank approves $7.5 million to boost health care in Pakistan’s northwest

  • Funds will aid in revamping hospitals, improving service delivery, modernizing equipment across secondary health facilities
  • The ADB has committed over $52 billion to Pakistan, one of its founding members, since 1966 in public, private sector loans

ISLAMABAD: The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved $7.5 million to enhance health care systems in Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, Pakistani state media reported on Thursday.

The funds will support the mega project of revamping of Non-Teaching District Headquarters hospitals across the province, the Radio Pakistan broadcaster reported.

“It would also improve service delivery, and modernize equipment across secondary health care facilities,” the report read.

The regional development bank has committed over $52 billion to Pakistan, one of its founding members, since 1966 in public and private sector loans, grants and other forms of financing to promote inclusive economic growth in the country.

On Dec. 14, Pakistan signed a loan agreement with the ADB for the Integrated Social Protection Development Program additional financing amounting to $330 million.


India to play Champions Trophy on neutral ground, not Pakistan

Updated 19 December 2024
Follow

India to play Champions Trophy on neutral ground, not Pakistan

  • In return, Pakistan will also play upcoming ICC tournaments hosted by India in other countries, yet to be decided
  • The agreement will extend to ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2025 hosted by India, ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026

KARACHI: India will play next year’s Champions Trophy matches on neutral ground after refusing to visit tournament host and arch-rival Pakistan, the International Cricket Council said Thursday following weeks of wrangling.
In return, Pakistan will also play upcoming ICC tournaments hosted by India in other countries, yet to be decided.
“India and Pakistan matches hosted by either country at ICC Events during the 2024-2027 rights cycle will be played at a neutral venue, the ICC Board confirmed,” said a statement released by the body.
“This will apply to the upcoming ICC Men’s Champions Trophy 2025 (hosted by Pakistan).”
The agreement will extend to the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2025 hosted by India, and the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 hosted by India and Sri Lanka, the statement added.
The announcement ended a month-long stand-off over the Champions Trophy, after India told the ICC it will not send its team to Pakistan because of security fears and political tension.
Pakistan did, however, play in India during the 2023 ICC World Cup hosted there.