The site consists of comments on Pakistans current political scene, WEATHER AND WORLD HEADLINES. It will highlight the controversies, the scandals, the political leaders and happenings vis a vis the countries present day politics.
THE LATEST COMMENTS ARE ON THIS PAGE.AFTER THIS TRY PAGES 39 , 38 ,37 and 36. OR CLICK THE NEXT PAGE LINK AT THE BOTTOM OF THE PAGE TO SEE THE PRECEDING PAGE.THERE ARE forty PAGES IN ALL. THE OTHER PAGES CONTAIN COMMENTS ON EVENTS SINCE MAY 1997.THERE ARE LINKS TO INDEXES FOR 2000,1999,1998 AND 1997 AT THE BOTTOM OF EACH PAGE
08JUN--Despite selfsufficiency in wheat the trade deficit during the armies import oriented first year in office is expected to rise by around 20% to almost $1.8billion
The election commission has been declared autonomous in matters financial, updating electoral rolls and conducting elections. Without any permanent income or manpower the election commission will remain dependent on the govt for money, manpower and security
Musharraf aims to abolish ministries of education and health at the federal level to avoid duplication of work and has allowed provinces to approve projects of upto Rs200million which is a small sum these days
MQM worker Dr Arshad Sharif arrested for the murder of Nawaz lawyer Iqbal Raad
A trader died in gujranwala as the traders strike continued with clashes in Peshawar
10Jun—The traders call off strike as the govt makes concessions.NTN holders will now not have to declare stocks and there would be no reopening of the previous years income tax returns and on the spot assessments.The govt in fact assured the traders of peaceful methods and continued talks to resolve the issues
Jun11—traders strike continued partially as calling off the strike was a separate deal between the govt and some traders groups
Jun12—The main traders organization has suspended the traders strike for 15 days pending resolution of problems with the govt
Three bomb blasts in quetta
JUN13--Bussinessman Amin Lakhani released and Said Wazir A PTCL general manager arrested for corruption
Jun14—Two die in a train collision at Jhimpir 130 kms from Karachi
Nab arrests nine senior beaurocrats/politicians for corruption including Rana Nazir PMLn secretary and former Punjab chief secretary Brig® Aslam Hayat Qureshi
Police have arrested Naveed Ahmad Jat a close associate of Lashkar e Jhangvis top duo Riaz Basra and Ijaz Jajji for six sectarian murders
Jun15--In sind 59%speak sindi, 21%urdu, 7%Punjabi and 4%pushto
Jun16—The Pakistan Economic Survey 2000 says that there are 43.9 million nutritionally poor in Pakistan and that income distribution between the rich and poor has worsened
Pakistans second Chinese built nuclear power reactor Chasnupp has started to produce electricity
Jun18--Rs 689 billion Federal budget announced.Wealth tax abolished, some reduction in income taxes. Defence budget goes up to Rs159.6 billion(23%), Taxes/Income Rs 473billion, Development Budget Rs 120 billion, Aid Rs 178.5 billion(expected), Debt payments Rs.306 billion(44%). Debt payments plus defence expenditures leave no resources for anything else. So the govt will have to rely on raising new domestic and foreign resources if it wants todo anything
Prices of diesel products raised by 55-70 paisas per liter
20Jun--Ali Mir Shah, Maulana Wali Razi, and maj gen®Ihsan Ahmed inducted into the sind cabinet
25MAY--In reaction to the law and order situation the Sind governor Azim Daudpota resigned or was kicked out as he seemed to fall into the yawning crevices created by local and provincial politics. He seemed unable to resist ordinary issues such as the decrease in irrigation water supply by a few thousand cusecs and accused the punjab of stealing sinds share of water. Since the water is distributed by the IRSA in which all provinces are represented he was probably seen as a person unable to handle the situation
In implementing a proofless enquiry on cricket bribery the countries cricket establishment banned Salim Malik and Ata ur rehman for life and fined several other cricketers. It is a severe injustice as Salim Malik thru out his career was a rock solid dependable middle order batsmen. The judge holding the enquiry does not have too great a reputation for honesty and seemed to rule on innuendo and personal differences between players
Mohd Mian Soomroo one of the bankers inducted from american banks and who handled the National Bank adroitly is tobe the new Sind governor.Three sind ministers SM Rab, Iftikhar Soomru, and NG Abbasi who were also involved in the controversy over irrigation water also resigned.
May27--11 people were killed in Lahore as crowds stampeded at a circus show
1000 workers fired from CBR, 22000 more tobe releived from govt services!!
Pakistan has achieved a wheat surplus of 1-3 million tons by raising wheat prices to a level which has caused a decrease in usage and difficulties for the impoverished
28MAY--A tax survey has been started amid protests by traders and threats of a two day strike
29May--ANP expels its veteran leader ajmal khattak after he takes an independent stance on military rule
A two day countrywide strike by traders against the tax survey begins
A young man is killed by a govt banks loan recovery team in Arifwala
May31--Traders strike extended till June 1st
June1--Workers set ablaze a textile factory in lahore over differences with mangement
A minister in the balochistan govt Brig Khadim hussain a close friend of pervez musharaf has been declared a loan defaulter
Sugar prices are rising in the local market as the govt allows imports to meet a shortfall in production of over 4 lac tons
June2--Balochistan minister khadim hussein resigns after being declared a loan defaulter
Govt emloyees can now be retired after 25 years of service
The traders -govt standoff.strike continues
11 million people suffer from hypertension in pakistan
June3-- Javed Jaber an advertising tycoon has become minister of information after spending some time as a media advisor
June5--Traders strike extended for another five days
Ajmal Khattak has launched his own party the NAPP
6Jun--prominent bussinessman Abdur Rehman Baiga committed suicide by shooting himself at the offices of the local electricity utility. he was apparently being harassed by officials while facing a cash crunch and declining fortunes in his bussiness ventures
akber S ahmed is being replaced as ambassador to britain after being found ineffective and involved in financial ghuplas
June7--Govt to attempt to reach a consensus on the kalabagh dam as water inflows in dams reach crisis proportions
17MAY-New ID cards are tobe issued from September. Another nawaz era issue it was decided that those registered in the census would be issued new id cards. However several years have already passed since the last census!!. One would suggest that new elections be delayed till computerized updated voter lists based on the last census and new id cards have been issued.Local elections have little meaning without national and provincial elections .Even if local elections are tobe held in December a media campaign to update voter registration should be carried out in any case.
Provinces asked to demarcate constituencies according to new census
Shockwaves have gone thru the traders community as a faisalabad trader died at the hands of CBR officials implementing the musharraf plan to increase tax revenues from traders
May18-Complete traders shutdown in Punjab due to the killing of a trader
Nazir Sabir becomes the first Pakistani to scale mount everest
May19-Sectarian killers killed Maulana Ludhianwi and his driver in Karachi. He was a prominent maulana and active in the khutm nabawat and anti ahmadi groups. Shiite groups regarded him as an opponent too. Protestors burned down several vehicles ,a petrol pump , bank and a newspaper office. Blame for this murder is shared by Shiite terrorists, ahmadi killers and mqms terrorist wing.
Traders began a three day strike from the 19th against a CBR survey and govt methods of coercion/terrorizing traders
20MAY-Amongst mounting tension amongst sunni groups in Karachi the IGP sind aftab nabi was removed and 150 religious students arrested as a consequence of the ludhianwi murder
PTCL chief Nasim Mirza who can at best be termed as a useless,expensive, private sector management experiment has resigned/retired at the end of his second two year term
25APR--Foreign direct investment lower by 64% at $472 million during 1998-99
26APR—Five high court judges/CJ’s Mian Mohd Ajmal(NWFP), Deedar Hussein Shah(sind), Javed Iqbal(balochistan), Hamid Ali Mirza(sind), Abdul Hameed Dogar(sind) have been transferred to the Supreme Court. In their place Sayed Saeed Ashad, Raja Fayyaz Ahmed, and Sardar Mohd Raza Khan become the chief justices of the Sind, Balochistan and NWFP high courts
27APR—TJP leader and aide gunned down in Khanewal.The seraiki belt is a notorious hub for intra sectarian murders
$822 million Japanese debt rescheduled
bara markets in nwfp observed a total shutdown to protest the interior ministries attempts to bring them into the customs net. Some are questioning the honesty of the interior minister who they say will give up the campaign after ???
28APR--Five were killed in quetta in the balochistan drive to clear bunkers and guns from the residences of PMAP leaders
. Trouble is brewing in the musharraf attempt to raise about 100billion in taxes from traders thru the suspect mechanisms of a tax survey
Apr30—As expected the interior minister reached an agreement with bara traders and they have been allowed to sell their current stocks before custom implementation starts
May1—the balochistan districts of chagai, zhob, khuzdar and kalat are the worst affected by drought apart from the thar, thatta and dadu districts in sind, The army has started distribution of food and water
Several ministers and secretaries in the musharraf cabinets are being identified as corrupt which include particularly usman aminuddin, Abdur razzak dawood, javed jabbar and a brigadier in the balochistan cabinet. Musharraf has failed to take any action against known corrupt senior officials of the beaurocracy
May2—Benazir Bhutto accuses the ISI, MI and her appointed presidents of destabilizing her govts. One wonders why she could not appoint presidents better than ishaq and leghari and military intelligence chiefs who would have more confidence in her rather than the rumour mongerers. Governments obviously cannot remain stable unless the primeminister keeps removing unreliable appointees and routinely making decisions quickly and without hesitation
may2—Malik Mohd Aslam(attock) and Khurshid Zaman(bahawalpur) have been appointed as ministers in the Punjab cabinet by the musharraf govt
May4-Nine were killed as the Indians resorted to artillery fire across the LOC at Chakothi 65 kilometeres from muzaffarabad
Gunmen shot dead a doctor and three patients in an apparently sectarian incident which caused rioting in the kharadar area of Karachi.A lawyer was shot dead in toba tek singh where sectarian motives were also suspected
May5—Four bomb blasts took place in Karachi and one in hyderabad
May6—Two more bomb blasts in Karachi
Furnace oil prices raised 10% by the musharraf govt
May9—22 of 26 districts in balochistan have been declared calamity ridden due to drought
May10—Bomb blast in rawalpindi, one killed
former PPP secretary general Ahmed Mukhtar and industrialists lakhani brothers (mcdonalds restaurants) arrested. Nab arrests continue to paint a picture of political victimization and coerscion rather than any serious attempts at recovering national debt or accountability of any sort
Musharraf has ordered complete financial and administrative independence of the Election Commission of Pakistan One hopes that their authority will not be usurped by the army, GHQ, CE, NAB, or the NRB when actual elections are held. Will the CE be able to restrain ghundas, the police or the beaurocracy who are known to interfere in all elections
May12--The Nawaz accountability/victimisation trials have been moved to the Attock Fort which is the headquarters of the countries commandos
Religios worker killed in bahawalpur in another apparently sectarian incident
Religious workers police clash in Lahore
Sher Afghan Malik an unknown has been appointed as Managing Director PIA in place of the controversial Arif Abbasi
The traders are to go on a three day strike against the musharraf govts tax survey from May19
Mqm alleges that human remains recovered from political opponent-- haqiqui household. No such report from the govt or newsmen
nawab Akber Bugti a controversial and active baloch politician has stepped down as head of the Bugti tribes. Reason : The normal way to remove chieftains in balochistan is usually via the gun. He must be attempting to beat the bullet?
May13--In a judgement that ended all hopes that anyone might have had in the independence, honesty or reliability of the judiciary the Supreme Court approved the Oct12 military takeover and allowed musharraf or the army to rule for three years with complete authority to the extent of even changing the constitution.At the end of that he has to organize elections and hand over power to the elected.The chief justice who held politicians in contempt for being frightened of the army himself could not show the courage to give a real honest verdict.The judiciary has thus overstepped the law inits entirety and converted itself into a bequeather of power without rhyme or reason or law. What anybody with such powers could do in five minutes the nutheads of the army needs three years for that. The judiciary obviously lacks the authority for such sweeping orders/judgements and one can only suggest that the judges are in contempt of the constitution as well as even the concept of a judiciary in any sense. They have however moved closer to the belief held by some nawaz loyalists that the power of the ruler in islam cannot be restricted by any law, constitution, judiciary or public perception(IMF exempted).In fact the Islamic ruler can act as both judge and king? One hopes that the army(both judge and king) , judiciary and the intelligentsia(that is supportive of musharraf) will not object to the future attitudes of those who will at least be elected and have a similar contempt for the law and constitutional provisions which come in the way of their decision making. Musharraf and the judiciary have proved Nawaz and Benazir right and the people wrong. Ineffect the army, judiciary and the majority of politicians have a common deeply held contempt for the electorate which does not follow either their orders or their political or economic views
may14--In a laughable and somewhat idiotic comment Lt General Amjad, NAB suggested that even three years are not enough to complete accountability. What sort of generals are these? Why cant such minor tasks be accomplished in three years with such total unquestioned power. Probably those who are afraid of a real fight with the Indians start opening up fronts against the countries undefensible politicians. Maybe being in power is much more interesting than having to fight the Indians??? Cowardly generals really? So anyone willing to bet on whether three years is enough or ten or thirteen.A lot of questions are coming to the fore. Some even suggest that the senior generals or the GHQ generals had differences obviously amongst themselves on how much power to give themselves and how long to stay in power?. Some even suggested that in case anybody was left to question them after three years than another coup or change in general leadership would have tobe effected.
May16--Property taxation rates were raised substantially to unrealistic levels in the Punjab, !% on houses, 2%on shops and 5% on rental property. Katchi abadis and widows exempted
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