ISLAMABAD: In a significant move, the Senate Standing Committee on Finance and Revenue on Wednesday unanimously approved amendments to the State-Owned Enterprises (Governance and Operations) Ordinance 2024, empowering the government to sack existing directors of the boards of public sector entities without completion of their tenures, starting with power companies. In the proposed changes, future board directors, including government and independent members, would undergo performance evaluations by the board’s nomination committee. Recommendations for removal would be sent to the federal government for approval. The government has already completed the process for inducting fresh private sector members into most of the power distribution companies. Senator…
Author: Hasnain Abid Khanzada
ISLAMABAD: The Senate Standing Committee on Commerce was informed on Wednesday that protocols to export donkey skins and meat to China had been finalised. The commerce ministry officials disclosed this while briefing the committee meeting chaired by Senator Anusha Rahman. It was also briefed on the attached departments of the commerce division to review its performance. The additional secretary in charge of the Commerce Ministry, Ahsan Ali Mangi, informed the committee that the protocol for donkey skins had been finalised, and the ministry was also planning to include donkey meat in the list. He said the ministry has also finalised export protocols…
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan received only about $11.7 billion in foreign loans and grants in the first 11 months (July-May) of outgoing FY24, far behind the annual target of $17.4bn. This is amid major slippages in raising international financial support, although it has met the revised target. According to official data released by the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MEA), the country received about $403 million in foreign assistance in May, up from $237m in April. It said the government could materialise about $7.547bn in foreign economic assistance (FEA) in the first 11 months of the current fiscal year, almost 44 per cent of the annual budget target, amid…
WASHINGTON: After the passage of HR 901 from the House of Representatives, PTI USA is now seeking to turn the non-binding resolution into a piece of legislation that is binding, a senior party official told Dawn. Last week, the lower house of Congress adopted a resolution with an overwhelming majority (368 to 7), demanding a probe into the February 8 elections and condemning widespread human rights violations in Pakistan. The resolution, which was met with chagrin in Islamabad, was rebuked as being ‘interference’ by a counter-resolution, adopted last week by the National Assembly. Atif Khan, a senior PTI USA leader, acknowledged that in its current state,…
TORONTO: An Ontario judge has ruled in favour of the University of Toronto, granting an injunction to clear a pro-Palestinian encampment from its downtown campus. The injunction order also bars the demonstrators from returning to the site. Ontario Superior Court of Justice Markus Koehnen ruled on Tuesday that protesters must take down tents in the area known as King’s College Circle by 6:00pm on Wednesday. The ruling also gives Toronto police the authority to arrest and remove anyone who refuses to comply with the court order. The encampment at U of T is part of a widespread surge of pro-Palestinian demonstrations at…
GENEVA: The UN denounced on Wednesday reports of “unacceptable” abuse and even torture of Palestinian detainees, particularly since the October 7 raid that sparked the crisis in Gaza, demanding an investigation. The United Nations has long raised concerns about conditions for Palestinian detainees in Israeli prisons but warned that the situation appeared to have worsened since the war began. Asked about a recent case where Israel’s military acknowledged its troops had tied a wounded Palestinian to a military vehicle during a raid in the occupied West Bank city of Jenin, UN rights chief Volker Turk said it was “sickening to see such totally unacceptable…
GAZA: Hamas said on Wednesday it has sent new “ideas” to Qatari mediators aimed at ending Israel’s nearly nine-month-old invasion of Gaza. Israel confirmed that it was “evaluating” Hamas’ “comments” on a deal to see its prisoners in the Palestinian territory freed, and would reply. With the death toll from nearly nine months of war mounting and conditions worsening daily for Gazans, both sides are under increased international pressure to agree a ceasefire. Israel says there can be no halt to hostilities until Hamas releases all of its prisoners. Qatar, working with the United States, has been leading the mediation. “We…
WASHINGTON: Joe Biden is “absolutely not” pulling out of the White House race, his spokeswoman said on Wednesday, as pressure mounted on the veteran Democrat following his disastrous debate performance against Donald Trump. The 81-year-old Biden has told a key ally he must convince the public quickly that he can do the job, the New York Times and CNN reported, raising the stakes for Biden’s first post-debate TV interview, scheduled for Friday. “He knows if he has two more events like that, we’re in a different place,” the ally said, discussing the president’s poor showing against his Republican predecessor last week, according to the Times. The White…
JERUSALEM: Israel has approved its biggest land seizure in the occupied West Bank in more than three decades, a move criticised by activists on Wednesday as detrimental to Palestinian peace hopes. The 12.7-square-kilometre of land in the Jordan Valley was officially declared “state property” in June, according to an official declaration revealed by the Peace Now group. “The size of the area designated for declaration is the largest since the (1993) Oslo Accords, and the year 2024 marks a peak in the extent of declarations of state land,” Peace Now said. The Israeli government has seized a total of 23.7 square kilometres…
The UK Conservatives hoped Rishi Sunak would stabilise the party and country when they made him leader following his predecessors’ chaotic tenures. Instead, he has led them to the brink of electoral wipeout. The party’s MPs installed the 44-year-old former financier in October 2022, after Liz Truss’s 49-day premiership imploded when spooked markets moved against her tax-slashing plans. Sunak succeeded to a point in stabilising the country’s economy, but failed to stop bitter Tory infighting or make a dent in the persistent polling lead held by the opposition Labour Party. Buoyed by rare pieces of economic good news, Sunak called the July 4 election in…
