Terroristan - 4th Jan 2018

[RCase]

One cargo sheep doing Jeehard on other sheep in Kachra port. Yahoo!!!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CvFNGfpJCNo

Jeehard had to be waged against containers as the gobermint was using containers to block the peacefool jihadis.

[BajKhedawal]

By the looks of that island nearby it seems to be the honeylicious port of "Gawaar-e-dar". Also one of the vocal sounded like balochee.

Indeed the port got DP'ed

[Kashi]

One cargo sheep doing Jeehard on other sheep in Kachra port. Yahoo!!!

Well that's one way of increasing the usage of Gwadar. Tactical brilliance I would say..

[Falijee]

Naqeebullah's Killer, Rao Anwar Mysteriously Appears At Paki Supreme Court And Is Promptly Arrested

Naqeebullah 'encounter' case: Rao Anwar arrested from Supreme Court
The Express Tribune

ISLAMABAD: Former Malir SSP Rao Anwar, earlier absconding in the Naqeebullah Mehsud ‘encounter’ case, was arrested on Wednesday following his appearance before the top court. Rejecting his protective bail, a three-judge bench headed by CJP Saqib Nisar ordered the constitution of a five-member JIT team to probe the case. Sindh AIG Aftab Pathan will preside over the team. Other members include Zulfiqar Larak, Dr Rizwan, Azad Ahmed Khan and Waliullah.

Rao’s counsel requested the bench to include agency officials in the JIT. The court declined his plea saying, “We are constituting our own JIT.” The bench directed the team to work independently. This court drama , right out of a TV Serial or a Bollywood movie! Makes one wonder who was protecting him all this time, and what kind of a deal has already been reached

The court also ordered IG Allah Dino Khawaja to ensure Anwar’s safety during police custody, “it is your duty to protect him,” the court told Khawaja.

The bench also directed Sindh Police to escort Anwar to Karachi. The court also ordered police to ensure the safety of the former SSP and all JIT members. The court further stated that Sindh police needed no further clearance to escort Anwar to Karachi.

Anwar, seen wearing a surgical mask, reached court earlier today in a white car. Security was beefed up at court premises and police cordoned off the entrance. The bench resumed the suo motu hearing of the case and disposed off the contempt notice against him.“You used to act brave. Where had you been all this time,” the CJP remarked. “You went into hiding. Do you not trust the courts?” Justice Nisar added. So, no less than the CJP is part of this farce !!!

“I am innocent,” the former Malir SSP told the bench. The court then ordered the constitution of a new JIT.

“You aren’t doing anybody a favour by appearing before court,” the CJP remarked. “Your letter to the Supreme Court was not befitting,” he said. The court then ordered Anwar’s bank accounts, passport and CNIC to be unblocked. So, obviously, this was one of the conditions of the "deal". The family has to live and be fed with aloo gosht !

“The people of Pakistan and the legal fraternity are my strength,” the CJP further added. This pompous CJP , a Deep State appointee, has been on some sort of a ego trip, which has also been noticed by the Paki press

Naqeebullah’s father thanked the people for standing by the family while talking to reporters outside the court. He also expressed his gratitude to the judiciary. “Naqeebullah was Pakistan’s son,” he said. The killing of Naqeebullah has triggered a nation wide Pashtun protest, which is not going to go away by the arrest of Rao Anwar !

The CJP also wondered who had provided Anwar help at the airport. AD Khawaja told the court that Anwar had been presented a private airline boarding pass. That area of investigation is out of bounds for the CJP

[Falijee]

Pakis Can Now Breathe A Sigh Of Relief Now From This Pentagon Announcement

No hot pursuits into Pakistan, says Pentagon

WASHINGTON: The US Department of Defence has ruled out hot pursuits into Pakistan to take out terrorists who flee Afghanistan.

The Pentagon official explained that US troops in Afghanistan operated within Afghanistan’s borders only and they had no authority to cross that border.

Col Andrews also said that the US would not resume its security aid to Pakistan until Islamabad addresses Washington’s concerns over alleged terrorist safe havens within its borders.

On Friday, Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, on a private visit to Pennsylvania, had a surprise meeting with US Vice President Mike Pence which focused, almost entirely, on Afghanistan. IMO, it was an empty threat in the first place. All part of the "drama" of the ups and downs in the courting between Massa and Pakistan !

The meeting followed a visit to Washington by Pakistan’s Foreign Secretary Tehmina Janjua who also received similar messages at her meetings at the State Department and the White House. All these high profile meetings indicate that the Pakis are "hurting" and are "looking forward" to Massa's Moolahs and once again "feed on the US Taxpayers trough"

[Peregrine]

One cargo sheep doing Jeehard on other sheep in Kachra port. Yahoo!!!

Well that's one way of increasing the usage of Gwadar. Tactical brilliance I would say..

Kashi Ji :

I trust that you are aware that Transportation and Stevedoring from Gwadar to Karachi is about US$ 15.00 PMT.

As such Gwadar is not going to replace Karachi,

However, if the Pakjab Army is bent upon destroying the Economy of Sind then more Power to them

Cheers

[Falijee]

Is It Even "Kosher" To Talk About This "Haram" Topic In Islamic Pakistan

Special report: Sexual harassment in workplaces in Pakistan

And that too on the eve of Pakiland's Republic Day Tomorrow !!!

[Falijee]

After "Kaaba Head Visit", Now It Is The Turn Of The "Egyptian Grand Mufti" To Visit The "First Islami Atomi Takat"

Egypt Grand Mufti arrives in Pakistan on five-day visit

[Peregrine]

Sikh youth being trained at ISI facilities in Pakistan, says Indian government

NEW DELHI: The Home Ministry has conveyed to a parliamentary panel that Sikh youth are being trained at ISI facilities in Pakistan to carry out terror activities in India, and members of the community who are settled in Canada and other places are also being instigated against the country with false and malicious propaganda.

Top officials of the home ministry, led by the Union Home Secretary, told the Committee on Estimates, headed by senior BJP leader Murli Manohar Joshi, that radicalisation of youth by terrorist groups through the misuse of internet and social media has emerged as a big challenge.

According to the report of the committee - ' Central armed police forces and internal security challenges-evaluation and response mechanism' - which was tabled in Parliament on Monday, there have been some developments on the Sikh militancy front.

The "commanders" of terror groups based in Pakistan are under pressure from ISI to further the Pakistani spy agency's terror plans not only in Punjab but also in other parts of the country, it said.

"Sikh youth are being trained at ISI facilities in Pakistan. Interdictions and interrogations have revealed use of jailed cadres, unemployed youth, criminals and smugglers by Pakistan-based Sikh terror groups for facilitating terror attacks," the report said.

Sikh youth based or settled in Europe, the US and Canada are also being misguided and instigated against India with false and malicious propaganda, but the situation is being watched closely by the central and state agencies and they are taking lawful action as and when required.

On the issue of new challenges which have emerged as a threat to internal security, the ministry, in a note furnished to the committee, voiced concern over radicalisation of youths by the terrorist groups through the misuse of internet and social media.

"The problem is further accentuated by the fact that the terror groups have started using secure social media platforms and proxy servers etc. to avoid detection by intelligence and law enforcement agencies.

"Activities of radicalised people returning from conflict areas and threat of lone wolf attack are also a challenge," it said.

The ministry told the panel that India continues to remain the prime focus of Pakistan-based terrorist outfits, particularly the Lashkar-e-Taiba, Jaish-e-Muhammed (JeM) and a faction of Indian Mujahideen besides groups like SIMI and Al-Unmah.

Separately, there are indications regarding revival of JeM in Pakistan and renewed efforts of the said outfit to cause harm to India. Besides, the IS and al-Qaida in Indian sub-continent have started posing new challenges to the existing security environment.

The ministry also said that violence by Left Wing Extremism (LWE) outfits continues to pose a threat to the internal security scenario in the country.

"Since its formation in September 2004, CPI(Maoist) has emerged as the most potent among the LWE outfits active in the country," the report said.

Cheers

[Peregrine]

Budget deficit to reach 6pc in 2017-18: IMF

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s bud­get deficit for the current fiscal year is likely to reach around 6 per cent of GDP — almost 2pc higher than the 3.9pc budgetary limit — based on varying projections of the government and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

The IMF had put Pakistan’s fiscal deficit for 2016-17 at 6.3pc of GDP — about 0.5pc higher than the official accounts closed at 5.8pc.

“The staff estimates the underlying deficit to have been about 0.5pc of GDP higher (6.3pc) after accounting for one-off asset sales,” IMF said in a detailed report on Pakistan’s economy released on the weekend.

These include the sale of a government-owned printing press to the State Bank of Pakistan, selling a public enterprise (namely LNG-based power project) to a government-owned development fund, and appropriation of funds from dormant public saving schemes accounts as non-tax revenue.

The government has been claiming 5.8pc deficit for 2016-17 against the 3.8pc budgeted target.

The IMF said the fiscal deficit in the first quarter of 2017-18 has already crossed 1.2pc of GDP compared to 1.3pc of GDP in the same period last year, helped by strong growth of over 20pc in revenue collection by the Federal Board of Revenue.

Based on the first quarter performance, the IMF has estimated the fiscal deficit, excluding grants, for the current year at Rs1.956 trillion or 5.5pc of GDP against Rs1.864tr in 2016-17. This is despite the fact that the Fund has projected that the country would contain public sector development programme (PSDP) for the current year at Rs800 billion — almost 0.5pc of GDP or Rs200bn — lower than the budgeted amount of Rs1.001tr.

Adviser to the Prime Minister on Finance, Revenue and Economic Affairs Dr Miftah Ismail, on the other hand, disagreed that despite IMF projections there was any limit on utilisation of funds for development projects that could go well beyond Rs900bn.

That would mean the fiscal deficit would be around 6pc of GDP in case the IMF projections for federal development budget materialise. Also, the IMF has estimated the provincial development budget to be contained at Rs961bn against budget allocations of Rs1.112tr to create an additional space of Rs151bn.

In case the IMF estimates about the federal and provincial budgets come true, the gap only on account of development programme would be around Rs350bn — almost 1pc of GDP.

Mr Ismail has repeatedly said in recent days that he would make sure that the fiscal deficit is contained between 5-5.2pc of GDP at all costs. The IMF said that the fiscal risks also stemmed from continued loss-making in public sector enterprises as privatisation and restructuring of key loss-making entities have been largely on hold.

Meanwhile, financial losses by the state-owned airline and steel mills have continued to accrue, while the accumulation of new payment arrears of power distribution companies (so-called “circular debt”) — which was brought to near zero by the end of 2015-16 — has resumed, reaching Rs193bn (0.5pc of GDP) since July 2016, with an accumulated stock of such arrears of Rs514bn (1.5pc of GDP) by end-December 2017.

The combined accumulated losses by these entities has now exceeded Rs1.2tr (4pc of GDP), which could eventually lead to a sizable demand for budgetary resources. In addition, inter-agency arrears in the gas sector, although still low, have been rising, reflecting limitations in the current cross-subsidisation arrangement between the two publicly-owned gas companies and delays in updating gas tariffs, the IMF said.

Cheers

[Peregrine]

X Posted on the PESW Thread.

Rupee’s fall stokes inflation fears, concerns over total debt payments

KARACHI: Pakistan’s currency lost value against the US dollar yet again as authorities struggle to create a balance in external trade and mounting current account deficit, which is fast eating up foreign exchange reserves and impacting the country’s ability to cover the import bill.

The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) abruptly allowed the rupee to lose 4% against the dollar, with the rupee ending at Rs115 in the inter-bank market on Tuesday. This was the second spell of depreciation in a short span of three months. Earlier, in December 2017, the rupee lost around 5% to become Rs110.64 to the greenback and stayed at the level for the last few months.

Stakeholders, including importers and exporters, largely found it a wise decision to depreciate the rupee in a bit to increase exports and remittances, which should one way or the other play their role in controlling the twin deficits and slow down the decrease in foreign exchange reserves.

At the same time, they foresaw its negative impact on the internal economy. The depreciation would increase the import bill, petrol prices, utility tariffs, cost of doing business and transportation, and convince the central bank to increase key interest rate as a remedy to deal with increased inflation.

Pakistan Business Council (PBC) CEO Ehsan Malik said “overall, it (rupee-dollar parity) is moving in the right direction…it was a wise decision to gradually depreciate the rupee by Rs4-5 against the US dollar each time instead of doing it in one go.”

He said the depreciation was expected as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has been lobbying for it.

He said it would help in increasing exports as happened in the post-December depreciation event. However, it would not significantly slow down imports, he added.

“Rupee devaluation may also result in increased inflation, forcing the central bank to increase the key interest rate by 0.5% to deal with the likely situation,” he said.

Textile bigger beneficiary

Sherman Securities said in its note that the rupee’s depreciation against the greenback would largely benefit textile exports which account for around 60% of the total exports of the country.

“Besides, it would also help oil and gas exploration and production firms, petroleum refineries and some independent power producers to benefit since they are guaranteed returns in US dollars by the government,” the report stated.

The benefit was on full display at the country’s stock market on Tuesday with the textile, oil and exploration sectors, as well has banks taking the KSE-100 Index 1.8% higher.

Cheers

[Peregrine]

Economic and political priorities

In a democratic country, national elections are supposed to provide its leaders and political parties an opportunity for introspection and renewal. Judging by the current distasteful personalised politics and mutual recrimination, it is unlikely that politicians would have time for serious reflection or discourse on national issues. The electronic media too apart from few exceptions remain deeply engaged in mudslinging and point-scoring rather than raising awareness on serious matters affecting national and local conditions.

The list of issues is wide but in our priorities certain areas clearly demand greater focus. The current state of economy is in dire straits and demands far greater attention by the political parties. The country cannot continue to remain dependent on foreign assistance while our taxation system is unable to generate funds that make us self-reliant. People should be asking which political party is better suited for collecting taxes and what has been the personal record of their leaders in paying personal taxes.

The future of public enterprises is an important subject that needs to be debated thoroughly as it has serious implications for the economy. Both the PPP and PTI are opposed to the government’s plan of privatising PIA and the Steel Mills despite the fact that these and other public holdings have been bleeding this country financially for years. Is this opposition based merely on fetching more votes from disgruntled workers and their families or they have any concrete solution to turn these organisations into profit-earning entities? Going by past records, the PPP government in previous tenures failed miserably in addressing government-owned sick industries. Is there a new plan they have in mind? Has the PTI given a serious thought of how it plans to revive these industries if it came into power? Or is it merely to woo voters and ignore the long-term interest of these organisations and of the country?

What should be of immediate concern is the recent IMF report that states that Pakistan’s net international reserves are already in the negative and servicing loans without foreign assistance would not be possible. This postulation is being corroborated by our reputed economists as well. Whereas the government has its own limitations in facing this crisis for there is not much flexibility it can show in formulating the next national budget, as resource allocations are to be equally divided among three major heads. One-third each would be allocated to defence, repayment of loans and for government expenditure. At the monent Terroristan - with Half the Defence Capabilty in terms of Manpower, Retirement Benefits, and Armament etc. AS INDIA must be spending nearly Half as Much as the Indian Defence Budget which is US$ 65 Billion - in no case it can be less than say 40% i.e. US$ 26 Billion. With say US$ 12 Billion in Loans Repayment Terroristan has about US$ Nine Billion to spend on the Government and Welfare of the People. This is the reason for the appalling state of the lack of Education, Health and Welfare of the Aam Abdul, Burqa Bilkis and the Nunna Mujahid!. The country can only come out of this vicious cycle by increasing exports, reducing extraneous expenditures by all government agencies and thereby reducing dependence on foreign loans. There is also a dire need of generating more revenue earnings by better tax collection. Until Pakistan achieves a self-reliant economy it will always be manipulated by foreign powers and independence would remain an illusion.

On the political side, the imbalance between various national institutions should be a high priority subject for all the political parties. It would be unwise on the part of political leaders to pander to certain institutions for a favourable outcome in elections. Because this would further embolden them to interfere in power play as past experience has shown. It is evident the military cannot directly take over the reins of the country as in the past due to the current international and domestic situation. As regards preventing the military from meddling in civilian affairs, it will depend on how strong the civilian institutions are and to what extent they enjoy the confidence of the people.

It will be as much damaging to malign institutions for personal or party gains. Case in point is the current campaign of Nawaz Sharif, notwithstanding he may have genuine grievances against the judiciary and military to air. His campaign to appear as a martyr will go only that far. And his major aim that the political government should be able to exercise powers in accordance with the Constitution has merit. But removing the power imbalance between institutions would require improved performance of the government to gain confidence and support of the people. Nawaz Sharif is fighting his political battle by projecting his person and family as victims, whom he claims have been affected by the alleged collusion among certain institutions. A more strategic approach would have been if he had taken the broader and specific issue that all institutions remain within their defined constitutional boundaries. There seems to be belated realisation as his narrative now includes this message as well.

The present infighting among institutions is undermining the national power, distracting the government from normal functioning and allowing foreign powers to exploit the situation to their advantage.

If we look at the political history of Pakistan one major weakness has been dominant that when institutions or leaders have suffered from an illusion that they have the monopoly of patriotism or wisdom the country has invariably suffered. We have unfortunately been victim of this malaise since the inception of Pakistan. What is needed is that the institutions should look inwards, undertake reforms where necessary and stay within constitutional boundaries! While looking inwards they would realise they have been equally fallible as others. Can any institution honestly claim that it has not grossly strayed from its national and constitutional responsibilities? I would also include bureaucracy for their share of misdeeds. Looking inwards and doing self-correction requires courage and humility that we are generally lacking both individually and at the institution level. Politicians being in public eye are more susceptible to criticism than other institutions and justifiably so. The recent power manipulation in the formation of the Balochistan government is a classic case reflecting the current quality of Pakistani politics. The PTI leadership has been making repeated claims that their party stands for clean and principled politics but the recent drama that unfolded in Balochistan betrayed their role and was no different from other stakeholders.

While one could blame certain institutions for manipulating these changes or criticise outside forces for meddling in Balochistan’s politics the ultimate responsibility rests with the political leadership. But not with the Real Culprits i.e. Army & the ISI! Of course one must not Forget the Religious & Terrorists Leaderships

Cheers

[Falijee]

Not Sure If This Is Sialkoti Statistics

Pakistanis Own an Estimated $150 Billion of Undeclared Foreign Assets

Pakistanis own an estimated $150 billion worth of property/assets in foreign countries. ( Figure pulled out of a hat . No source provided in keeping with Sialkoti made statistics ) The foreign and undeclared assets are a major hurdle in properly documenting the economy.

Pakistan Business Council (PBC) organized a seminar on the topic of “Documenting the Economy, closing the Loopholes, Section 111(4) and Foreign Currency (FCY) Accounts” which was held at a local hotel.

Shabbar Zadi told that an exact figure about total undeclared assets obtained from outside of Pakistan is unavailable. It is estimated that this amount is about $150 billion. Most of this is not in liquid assets and is parked in real estate. He said that the country’s tax laws are discouraging and have loopholes which enable these foreign tax havens. Most of these real estate is most likely owned by politicians and faujis, current and retired. Names such as Nawaz Sharif and family; Dus Percenti, Imran Khan, Musharaf, and Kayani brothers should be on top of the list !

Arif Habib in his speech said that in Pakistan, the rate of return is better than western countries. But the risk is higher as well

An amnesty scheme must be introduced to declare foreign assets. Why would someone want to bring back money in Pakiland

The last amnesty scheme was good but the business community did not come forward to join the tax net. In this scheme, it was expected that about 2 million declarations would be filed but only 10 thousand were filed. He demanded a broad-based amnesty scheme. The economic situation in Pakistan will likely get worse before if gets better . !

[Falijee]

Inside And Outside Of King William IV Bar , In Hampstead, London Where DJinnah, the Founder Of The Islamic Republic Of Pakistan, was a "frequent visitor"
Ayesha Siddiqa
‏Verified account @iamthedrifter
Jinnah’s photo in a Hampstead bar - they said it’s of people who lived here and visited

The Islamic Parties, specially the Jamaat E Islami have never considered DJinnah as a "True Muslim" anyway . Keeper of dogs, eater of pork and ham, drinker of "spirits", married to a "kuffar women" !

[Prem]

Budget deficit to reach 6pc in 2017-18: IMF

ISLAMABAD:

Based on the first quarter performance, the IMF has estimated the fiscal deficit, excluding grants, for the current year at Rs1.956 trillion or 5.5pc of GDP against Rs1.864tr in 2016-17. This is despite the fact that the Fund has projected that the country would contain public sector development programme (PSDP) for the current year at Rs800 billion — almost 0.5pc of GDP or Rs200bn — lower than the budgeted amount of Rs1.001tr.
In case the IMF estimates about the federal and provincial budgets come true, the gap only on account of development programme would be around Rs350bn — almost 1pc of GDP.Meanwhile, financial losses by the state-owned airline and steel mills have continued to accrue, while the accumulation of new payment arrears of power distribution companies (so-called “circular debt”) — which was brought to near zero by the end of 2015-16 — has resumed, reaching Rs193bn (0.5pc of GDP) since July 2016, with an accumulated stock of such arrears of Rs514bn (1.5pc of GDP) by end-December 2017.
The combined accumulated losses by these entities has now exceeded Rs1.2tr (4pc of GDP), which could eventually lead to a sizable demand for budgetary resources. In addition, inter-agency arrears in the gas sector, although still low, have been rising, reflecting limitations in the current cross-subsidisation arrangement between the two publicly-owned gas companies and delays in updating gas tariffs, the IMF said.

Cheers

Pakiappa and Randiaapa Madrassa Meth Math

,1,956 trillion is about 17 Billion $=Paki GBeggingP 310 Billion$
350 Billion Paki Randimbii 3 Billon $ x100= GBP 300 Billion $
193 Bilion Paki Randibbi 1.67 Billion $ x200= GBP334 Billion$
514 billion paki Randibbi 4.57 Billion$ x67= GBP 306 Billion$
1.2 Trillion Paki Randibbi 10.40 Bilion $ x25= GBP260 Billon$....... Correct numbers

[ramana]

From Guardian

https://www.theguardian.com/global-deve ... o-pakistan

...

Some highlights:

• US economic assistance to Pakistan peaked in 1962, at over $2.3bn

• in 2010, military assistance to Pakistan totalled $2.5bn - including $1.2bn in coalition support funds

• US assistance to Pakistan reached its lowest level in the 1990s, after President George H.W. Bush suspended aid flows over Pakistan's emerging nuclear programme

• US military assistance dropped dramatically during and immediately after the Indo-Pakistani wars of 1965 and 1971

• in the 1970s, President Carter suspended all aid to Pakistan (except food aid) in response to Pakistan's decision to construct a uranium enrichment facility

• although US assistance (both economic and military) to Pakistan has fluctuated considerably over the last 60 years, it has risen steadily since 2001

Pakistan has historically been among the top recipients of US aid - since 1948, the US has sent more than £30bn in direct aid to the country. Nearly half of this has been for military assistance. However, since Osama bin Laden was discovered and killed in Abbottabad earlier this year, US president Barack Obama has come under increasing pressure to justify US aid spending in the country.

Although military assistance is currently the only form of US aid to Pakistan to be withheld, Congress has considered other - as yet unsuccessful - bills to also block US economic assistance, and civilian aid to Pakistan will no doubt be up for debate again next year, as the 2012 budget battles get underway.

There is a nice table to downlo as for further analysis in XLS format.

[Kashi]

I trust that you are aware that Transportation and Stevedoring from Gwadar to Karachi is about US$ 15.00 PMT.

As such Gwadar is not going to replace Karachi,

However, if the Pakjab Army is bent upon destroying the Economy of Sind then more Power to them

Cheers

That's why I called it tactical brilliance!!

[Kashi]

Inside And Outside Of King William IV Bar , In Hampstead, London Where DJinnah, the Founder Of The Islamic Republic Of Pakistan, was a "frequent visitor"
Ayesha Siddiqa
‏Verified account @iamthedrifter
Jinnah’s photo in a Hampstead bar - they said it’s of people who lived here and visited

This is the typical RAPE Taqiya for the consumption of the Western audiences and for the RAPEs to tom-tom that how the Paki founder Djinnah was progressive, modern, enlightened and secular and that "strengthening" their hands is the key to "re-aligning" Pakistan with its founder's "ideals", a Pakistan that will be "a close friend and an impeccable ally" of the West.

This falls in the same category as Djinnah's mythical August 11 speech, which no living or unliving Baki has seen or heard, but spare no opportunity to talk about it in front of the Western audiences.

[Falijee]

CPEC "Gawadar Highway" Going Nowhere Due To Bomb Attack By Balochi Fighters

THE ROAD OUT OF GWADAR

Twenty-three billion rupees. This is the cost of ‘Motorway 8’ (M-8), which (ought to) connect the port city of Gwadar in Balochistan with Ratodero, Sindh. Forget the cost; It’s the status of this “motorway” that is intriguing: complete yet incomplete, secure yet insecure.

There is great buzz about the M-8 project in Balochistan — locals who use the road on a daily basis say that it has greatly reduced the time needed to travel from Gwadar to Turbat, and indeed, reduced the time for produce and supplies to be transported between cities.

The Baloch fighters must have decided "not to sabotage" this portion of the Highway, mainly used by local !

A drive on the newly-constructed highway connecting the port city to Ratodero reveals the trials and tribulations of building infrastructure in conflict-ridden areas

Also known as the Gwadar-Ratodero Motorway, the M-8 falls under the purview of the National Highway Authority (NHA). In theory, it is an 893-kilometre-long “motorway” that is supposed to facilitate the movement of people and goods to and from the port city of Gwadar.

The western end of this motorway is actually a junction known as the Karwat ‘zero point’, some 50 kilometres away from Gwadar. From Karwat, the road snakes through rugged terrain, first to Turbat, then to Hoshab and onwards to Khuzdar.

From Khuzdar, the highway takes a turn towards Sindh, to the town of Ratodero — the “eastern end” of the M-8. Ratodero has gained prominence in recent times for being the lynchpin of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). The town is a junction where the CPEC’s western, central and eastern road routes all converge. And it is from here that trade between provinces will originate. In theory and on paper onlee .

Late last year, the Frontier Works Organisation (FWO), who were contracted by the NHA to build the motorway, completed construction of a 200-kilometre-long strip between Gwadar and Hoshab. And although the project is yet to be formally handed over to the NHA, the road is already in use.

The M-8 project is also known as the Gwadar-Ratodero Motorway. The project is divided into two sections; the first from Gwadar to Khuzdar, and the second from Khuzdar to Ratodero. Work on the 200-kilometre-long Gwadar to Hoshab segment began back in 2004 under the regime of General Pervez Musharraf. This track was supposed to have been completed in 2006. It has taken 13 long years for construction to conclude.

“The M-8’s first contractor was a Chinese company named Xinjiang Beixin Road & Bridge Group Co. Ltd," explains Muhammad Musa, NHA’s project director in Kech District. “But they left the project when three Chinese engineers were killed in a car bomb blast in Gwadar during the first week of May, 2004.” No wonder the Chinese are asking for security from the Paki Govt !

The Chinese firm had managed to complete 30 kilometres of the project, from Naleint to Talaar, during their short stint. The construction contract was then awarded to D. Baloch, but for some reason (possibly security-related), they, too, were unable to complete the work.“The M-8 has gone through many contractors but nobody was able to work on it properly,” says Musa, “until the project was awarded to the FWO in June 2014.” Fauji organization ! As a last resort !

But the construction process was marred by violence ever since work started. In July 2015, for example, a press release issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) disclosed that six military personnel and 10 civilian employees of FWO were martyred and 29 severely injured in 136 security-related incidents. Similarly, on May 19, 2017, at least three labourers were gunned down in the Hoshab Bazaar. Despite the violence, work carried on and the highway finally saw the light of day late last year.

“The FWO finished all but a few things by the deadline but they have yet to hand over charge to the NHA,” says Musa. “Work on the [majority of the] first 200 kilometres of the M-8 has now been completed except for work on Bridge Number 3.”

“In Balochistan, there are many roads that can only be seen on paper but, in reality, they don’t exist,” says a well-placed source within the NHA as he alludes to the difficulty of building roads in conflict-ridden areas. “Had it been a local contractor, he would have taken the amount and closed the file, noting the security risk. I doubt if any other contractors could have completed this project, except the FWO.”

As construction started on the M-8, Baloch separatists started attacking convoys of the Frontier Corps. Most attacks in the early days took place near bazaars, towns or populated areas. And as the paramilitary force began conducting widespread raids to hunt down the militants, ordinary residents started moving to Turbat. The operations had their desired impact as insurgents have now fled to the mountainside because of the paramilitary action.

Mustafa claims that although the NHA requested the FWO to install weighing stations or toll plazas to weigh vehicles carrying goods, they did not do it. The NHA even prepared a 25-million-rupee proposal to fund the weighing station, but “the FWO said they were done with major works and could not assign an entire unit and security for just a few stations.” FWO sources maintain, however, that no request was lodged with the FWO for building weighing stations. So to complete the project, FWO resorted to cutting corners !

Perhaps, what’s important going forward is to balance the demands of development with the lives of the Baloch. Balochistan isn’t the only province that has a parallel system of justice which is unrecognised by law. Instead of finding avenues to formally recognise land ownership and to resettle those affected, muffling the people’s voice is counter-productive and alienating. After all, CPEC is for all of us.

[Falijee]

Pakistan "Rope In" Sri Lankan President For Guest Of Honour On Paki Day Parade

Sri Lanka president to be ‘guest of honour’ on Pakistan Day parade
The Express Tribune
Usually, such announcements are made well in advance, not two days before the visit date ! Security situation might be the obvious reason. Plus Sri Lanka has seen some communal fighting recently between the majority Budhists and the minority Mohameddans. This might be a factor in the late announcement !

Sri Lanka’s president Maithripala Sirisena is set to visit Pakistan from March 22 to 24 where he will be the ‘guest of honour’ for the Pakistan Day parade.

The participation of President Sirisena in the parade is a demonstration of the very close ties between the two countries and the respect in which the people and leadership of Pakistan hold the president of Sri Lanka, said an official statement on Wednesday. Two days before visit

[Falijee]

Case registered against Haqqani for ‘harming’ national security

On Wednesday, the FIR was registered in Karachi’s Preedy Police Station on the request of Advocate Maulvi Iqbal Haider. It stated that the former envoy made anti-state remarks during recent interviews with television talks shows in the US.

In February, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) was considering registering a case against Haqqani.

In addition, the FIA had written to the Interpol requesting the issuance of red warrants but the agency had raised certain queries.Meanwhile, commenting in connection with the FIR launched against him, Husain Haqqani said that it was the Inter-Services Intelligence’s (ISI) standard operating procedure to file multiple cases against individuals in different locations to generate media activity. The same tactics have also been used against "Altaf Bhai" of MQM ! He is still doing his "anti-state" activities from Londonistan ! So this tactic is not going to make any difference to the "Good Haqqani" either

[Falijee]

Raheel On Vacation In Pakiland While Boss "Crown Prince MBS" In USA On Business .

Former COAS General (R) Raheel Sharif performed dance with his soldiers of FF Regiment

RAWALPINDI - Former Chief of Army Staff, General Raheel Sharif performed dance on Pashto song with soldiers of his Frontier Force Regiment during a reception.In a video shared on social media, General Raheel can been seen exhibiting moves on a Pashto song with soldiers of his Frontier Force Regiment.

Soldiers can also be seen enjoying dance with their former chief in the video.General Raheel attended a reception recently to pin badge on new Colonel of the regiment.

Chief of the Army Staff (COAS), General Qamar Javed Bajwa last week installed Lieutenant General Ghayur Mahmood as new colonel commandant of the Frontier Force Regiment.Both the Army Chief and former Army Chief, General (retd) Raheel Sharif pinned the badges of rank on Lieutenant General Ghayur Mahmood.It seems that Raheel cannot get "enough of the Paki Fauj environment" in his "exile in Saudia" . Must be feeling homesick there !

[Falijee]

Showbaz Sharif Gets His Blood Test Done In London !

CM Shahbaz Sharif holds diplomatic meeting in London

LONDON – The Chief Minister Punjab, Shehbaz Sharif who is in London these days in connection with his medical check-up held a meeting with Ms. Penny Mordaunt, Secretary of State for International Development of the United Kingdom, in which matters related to ongoing cooperation between Punjab and Department for International Development (DFID) in different fields came under discussions.

Earlier, Punjab CM Shehbaz Sharif had his blood tests taken whose results will be out in a few days. Imran Khan has accused Nawaz Sharif and his extended family for making frivolous excuses like medical check up ( when there are good doctors and good hospitals in Pakistan !) to visit London . This visit falls in that category, unless Shahbaz's cancer scare turns out to be real !

[Peregrine]

X Posted on the Neutering & Defanging Chinese Threat

World can learn from 'frenemies' India, China: Akbaruddin

PTI | Mar 22, 2018, 15:06 IST

WASHINGTON: India and China are "frenemies" which are working with each other despite disagreements and the world can learn from their relationship, India's top diplomat at the UN has said.

"In Hollywood there is a term, which has become quite popular. And that, I think, is called frenemies. That's what we have with China. We engaged with them, we compete with them. In some areas we work with them together and in some areas we agree to disagree and move on," India's Permanent Representative to the UN, Syed Akbaruddin, said here on Tuesday.

Responding to a question after delivering the inaugural Ambassador Howard Schaffer Memorial Lecture at the Georgetown University, the senior Indian diplomat said India has engaged with China on its development initiatives like Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) but opposed it on its Belt and Road initiative.

"Belt and Road Initiative, to me, is not a normal multilateral or plurilateral approach...We are not party to that," he said at the event organised by the Georgetown India Initiative.

India skipped China's high-profile Belt and Road Forum last year due to its sovereignty concerns over the USD 50 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), which passes through PoK.

Touted as Chinese President Xi Jinping's ambitious project, the One Belt One Road initiative focuses on improving connectivity and cooperation among Asian countries, Africa, China and Europe.

Asked about his views on India-Pakistan relationship and Islamabad raising the Kashmir issue on UN platform and seeking a plebiscite, he asserted that Pakistan has no internal support on this.

"Frankly to me, issues of India and Pakistan, the way you framed it are yesterday's problems.
This does not mean that we don't need to address them," he said, responding to a question.

"This does not mean that they are not of a serious nature. But in terms of where we look at ourselves 20 years from now or 25 years from now, we don't see these as issues of a nature which will destabilise us in fundamental ways," Akbaruddin said, adding that in the last one year not a single country joined Pakistan in raising the Kashmir issue at the UN General Assembly.

"How come, other than the 13 times, Pakistan spoke, not one other country spoke. So is this today's issue? It's clear that others are not bothered about. The world has too many other issues to focus on. India and Pakistan need to address these as neighbours," he said.

While China and India are frenemies, he said, others can learn from the relationship between the two countries.

"Perhaps what others can learn from our relationship is that despite a border that is the longest undemarcated border in world, there hasn't been casualties on that border since the last 40 years," he said.

"If our western neighbour can also look at that as a model — we agree to disagree, we try and workout, if it doesn't work, we continue to push out own interest. But the way of trying to resolve it through underhand death that by a thousand cuts is not going to help. We are a billion people. With thousand cuts, you would not reach a billion. So it's best if we reconciled to each other," he said.

Reiterating India's position on the long due expansion of the UN Security Council, he rued that the present structure does not represent the current scenario.

"If you do not provide as an opportunity to be part of the solution there are other ways that we would start finding to be contributing to a solution that may not mean something to everyone's liking. But that will inevitably happen," Akbaruddin said.

Cheers

[Peregrine]

Our army using jihadis to kill minorities, says Pakistani activist

NEW DELHI. A Washington-based Pakistani activist Nadeem Nusrat has claimed that his country’s army is colluding with jihadist groups to carry out ethnic cleansing of minorities in Pakistan, reported ANI.

“In last few decades, Pakistani Army has become radicalized and has been supporting jihadist groups to attack minorities and activists in the country,” said Nusrat, who is the convener of the MQM party in Pakistan.

Nusrat said that Pakistan Army would struggle to justify its existence if relations with India improved in future.

“Pakistan Army’s existence is based on continuous hostility with India. Once you take this away from the equation, it will be difficult for Pakistan Army to justify its existence,” he said.

He added that Pakistan and India would not have good relations if Pakistan Army continued to meddle in politics.

The leader further accused the Army and the country’s intelligence agency, ISI, of fanning and abetting religious extremism and fanaticism by allowing its land to be used for terror activities.

"The Pakistani soil has been used to plan and launch major terror attacks. The providers and facilitators of terror sanctuaries in Pakistan must be held accountable by the UN and all peace-loving nations," he asserted.

In Video: Pakistan-India can't share good relations until its army stops interfering in politics: Nadeem Nusrat

Cheers

[Falijee]

Pakistan Agrees To Lick The Bxlls Of China, But China Is Not Yet Willing To Lick The Bxlls Of China

Pakistan offers zero duty on 6,000 items from China

ISLAMABAD: Without sharing the exact draft of proposed second phase of Pak-China Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with major stakeholders, including the FBR, Pakistan has offered zero duty on almost 6,000 tariff lines out of the total 7,000 that might jeopardise many major industries in Pakistan. Bxlls licking is permissible under the FTA agreement , but Pakis want to ensure that the Chinis do not "eat" the bxlls for breakfast , lunch or dinner knowing their well known world wide penchant for "exotic foods"

The FBR has sternly opposed the revised FTA with China, arguing that Pakistan does not possess exportable surplus so Islamabad’s exports could not get a boost in a big way even if it gets reciprocal incentives from China. The Chinese have many "customers" who are willing to provide said "licking services" . Paki bxlls are not much in demand in Chiniland. !

The government, the top official said, had devised a strategy in the light of impact on domestic industry and China have been asked to liberalise to reduce tariff on 75% tariff lines, reduce sensitive list to 10% while retaining and deepening preferences. . So the Chinese have not taken the Paki bait yet

[Falijee]

Ganja Sharif's Fate To Be Decided By "His Cabinet" Alongwith "800 Other Common Criminals"

Aides to decide if ex-PM’s name should be on ECL or not

ISLAMABAD: The federal cabinet on Wednesday set up a sub-committee to decide whe­ther the names of over 800 people, including former prime minister Nawaz Sharif and his family members, would be placed on Exit Control List (ECL) or not. The cabinet that met with Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi in the chair has assumed the responsibility to decide the ECL cases, instead of the interior ministry. So, at least he has the "corrupt caretaker PM Abbasi" who is supposedly going to "look after his interest" , and not the dreaded "Deep State"

The sub-committee comprises Law Minister Bashir Mehmood Virk, Minister for States and Frontier Regions retired Lt Gen Abdul Qadir Baloch and Adviser to the Prime Minister on Law Barrister Zafarullah. Can these members be "purchased" by offering them BMW's and prime land in "La- whore"

A member of the cabinet, who did not want to be named, told Dawn that the cabinet would decide the fate of over 800 people, including Mr Sharif and his family members, regarding the ECL. So, no "special status" for Ganja . His fate will be "lumped together" with other 800 other comnmon criminals

The meeting also approved the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between China and Pakistan in the field of forestry, an MoU for establishment of Joint Commission on Economic Cooperation bet­ween Pakistan and Tanzania, signing of an agreement for establishment of a joint commission between Pakistan and South Africa, signing of an MoU on cooperation in tourism with Sri Lanka and Pakistan, signing of an MoU between the Foreign Service Academy and Banda­ranaike International Diploma­tic Institute of Sri Lanka, signing of an MoU between Pakistan Gems and Jewellery Develop­ment Company and Gems and Jewellery Research and Training Institute of Sri Lanka, signing of an MoU with Brazil in the field of health, signing of an agreement with China on cooperation in frontier health quarantine and signing of an MoU with Germany for establishment of Pakistan-Germany Renew­able Energy Forum. All these above "functions" will be outsourced to other foreign countries ( including poor nations like Tanzania and Sri Lanka !) due to lack of funds !!!

[Peregrine]

US spending bill gets tough on Pakistan, incorporates Trump's security aid freeze

WASHINGTON: The freeze on security aid to Pakistan, announced by the Donald Trump administration early this year, has been incorporated in the $1.3 trillion spending bill which will fund the federal government for the remainder of fiscal 2018.

Congressional leaders, after weeks of negotiations, last night reached a deal on federal spending till September 30, two days before a deadline to fund the government or risk a shutdown.

The 2,232-page draft bill provides the largest funding increase for the US military in 15 years and makes significant investments in national priorities like infrastructure and border security.

In January, the US had suspended about $2 billion in security aid to Pakistan for failing to clamp down on the Afghan Taliban and the Haqqani Network terror groups and dismantle their safe havens.

According to the legislation, any assistance to Pakistan under the "Foreign Military Financing Programme" may be made available only to support counter-terrorism and counter-insurgency capabilities in Pakistan.

The bill withholds $33 million in financial assistance to Pakistan unless the Secretary of State informs the Congress that Dr Shakil Afridi is released from jail and cleared of all charges relating to the assistance provided to the US in locating al-Qaida chief Osama bin Laden.

In 30 days of the enactment of the Act, the US secretary of state would consult with the Committees on Appropriations on the funds that is anticipated to be subject to the January 2018 policy decision of the Trump Administration to suspend security assistance for Pakistan.

The Congress expects the secretary of state to promptly inform it in the case of any changes to its current policy along with its justification.

For the civilian assistance to Pakistan, the omnibus spending bill asks the Secretary of State to provide a report on the amount of financing and other support, if any, provided by the Pakistan government to schools supported by, affiliated with, or run by the Taliban or any domestic or foreign terrorist organisation in that country.

The Congress would also seek certification from the Defense Secretary and the Secretary of State on issues, including that the Pakistan government was cooperating with the US in counter-terrorism efforts against the Haqqani Network, the Quetta Shura Taliban, the Lashkar e-Tayyiba, the Jaish-e-Mohammed, the Al Qaeda and other domestic and foreign terrorist organisations.

Also, that they were taking steps to end support for such groups and prevent them from basing and operating in Pakistan and carrying out cross border attacks into neighboring countries.

They also need to certify that Pakistan is not supporting terrorist activities against the US or coalition forces in Afghanistan, and Pakistan's military and intelligence agencies are not intervening extra-judicially into political and judicial processes.

The defence secretary and the secretary of state also need to certify that Pakistan is dismantling improvised explosive device (IED) networks and interdicting precursor chemicals used in the manufacture of IEDs; preventing the proliferation of nuclear-related material and expertise; and implementing policies to protect judicial independence and due process of law.

However, as is in all such cases, there is provision of national interest waiver; but this needs to be on a case-by-case basis with proper explanation to the Congress, the bill says.

Republican leaders had said that the House of Representatives plans to vote today, which would soon be followed by the Senate.

The White House said yesterday that the President has agreed to the bill.

Cheers

[Falijee]

One Of Those Farticle Article You Read Which Assumes That "Pakistan Is Just Another Normal Nation"

Hurdles in Pakistan’s Quest for Reaching Space
By Ahyousha Khan
Research Associate at Islamabad based think-tank Strategic Vision Institute (Pakistan needs more of these "strategic thinkers" to boost the Awaami morale )

Space exploration is an expensive national objective for the state to pursue. In addition, if a state is a developing country facing much pressing traditional and non-traditional threats, ( allusion to "terrorism" ) space exploration has a tendency to end up an optional objective. (a) Lot of buzz words (b) Wonder if farticle was publicized in vernacular press (c) timing of the publishing co-incides with the Republic Day "celebrations" tomorrow

Every state has a right to prioritize which ever national objective it wants to achieve first. When it has issues like poverty, corruption, unemployment and terrorism etc. at hand, aiming for the space becomes a herculean task. Same happened in case of Pakistan. Now here, Pakistan wants to insert itself as a "member of normal nations club"

However, a question arises that in the age of globalization, telecommunication and information technology is it plausible for a state to achieve its national objectives without investing into space technology? Space technology is becoming an essential as dependency on modern technology is increasing. Developing state cannot stand with developed nations of the world without investing into space technology. Space satellites are becoming a necessary technology to not only ensure state’s progress in information technology but they are vital for military interests of state as well. Space satellites are dual use technologies that are equally effective for military usage. These satellites enable the states in intelligence gathering, navigation and military communication, high resolution imagery and most importantly in developing early warning systems. With the help of early warning systems, states could detect the flight paths of incoming ballistic and cruise missile from enemy as well. Reads like the first chapter of the book on Space Technology 101. Pakistan, if it wants to join the ranks of nations, ( USA, Russia, China,and which also includes arch rival "Hindu India",) in investing in Space Technology, and want to "beat" UAE (aka Dubai and Abu Dhabi ) and become - like the first Islami Atomi Takat - the " First Muslim Nation" to send a man to Mars. One suggestion would be to have someone of the caliber of Photo- Chor A.Q. Khan - a space scientist- who can "steal" this technology, beg a couple of billions from Saudia and do the = = for this nation !

Though Pakistan is a developing state but it never shied away from pursuing ambitious technological pursuits. Pakistan’s space program “Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (SUPARCO)” established in 1961, is an example that as a nation importance of space exploration is not lost on state. Pakistan was the first country among its regional neighbors to pursue space program. However, these glittering generalities are part of the past that Pakistan witnessed regarding space satellites. Currently Pakistan is lagging in space program. In this day and age Pakistan has yet to launch remote sensing satellite in space which is essential in monitoring, recording change and in intelligence gathering as well. Lots of PR language and buzz words !

Contrary to Pakistan its neighbor India which initiated its space program 8 years later, is now a record holder of sending more than 100 commercial and national satellites in one go. Furthermore, India has so far launched more than 100 satellites and establishes its network of satellites not only for commercial purposes but for military purposes as well. At the moment, India is using its 13 satellites for military purposes including Cartosat 1 and 2, Risat 1 and 2 and GSAT-7 or INSAT-4F for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance over enemy areas. The keen desire to do an = = is all reflected here

The fact that India is also a developing country where the population is increasing and resources are becoming scarce by the day, is thought compelling. It is evident that by being mindful of military and economic benefits of space exploration India never gave up on its progress in arena of space technology. Significant contribution to India’s space program came from the development of strategic ties with the US and consequently its accession to MTCR and Wassenaar Arrangement. It’s beyond any reasonable doubt that India’s space program achieved its glorious heights after making strategic ties with the US. While India was developing Space and other needed technology, Pakistan was busy " cultivating" OBL, building madarasahs, helping in 9/11, building the first Islami nuclear bum and applying the "Principles Of Jihad" to wrest Kashmir and do a Ghazwa E Hind on India

Another concerning matter is smart spending of budget when it comes to technological innovation. This concern should be considered as the need of the hour for Pakistan. Lamentably, it is evident from the political history of Pakistan that the leadership in its particular residency was more concerned with spending on items that helped their political cause rather than for the matters of national interest. Lamenting the "corrupt political leaders" that Pakiland has been cursed with , but not a mention of the "super corrupt Paki Fauj" that has virtually taken over the country for the last 60+ years

Therefore, along with economic resources, public support and technical innovations to develop a space program at its full potential is mandatory. A democratic government should show staunch political resolve in favor of space exploration. This will not only enable Pakistan to have an eye in the sky but it can put money in state reserves by providing commercial services to international/national actors and take nation to glorious technological highlights. Moreover such initiatives are essential for making Pakistan self-sufficient state and will endorse the political resolve to alleviate unemployment by creating jobs in the new avenues for the generations to come. ( Good conclusion !)

[rsingh]

^^^^
Nothing new Saar, it was reported in Bojitive news dhaga on 12th Jan 2018Maleha Lodi at UN today: Bakistan sacrificed its prosperity for pollution free world.

0n the midnight of Jan 30 1959, Bakistan took a conscious decision of not pursuing space technology. It is true that space technology brought progress and prosperity. But the price paid by humanity exceeds those benefits. we are not like India who goes on throwing things in space recklessly and thus polluting South Asia . We are a responsible World Muslim Aitmi power. International carbon trading exchange based in Sialkot estimated that actually world owes Bakistan 100 billion USD in Carbon credits. I call upon this world body to do the right thing and restrain India, for the shake of our future generations.

[Falijee]

"PML- N Senior Leader"- Chaudry Nisar - Tries To Protect His Image As "A Decent, Honest, Objective And Unbiased Politico" , But Threatens That He Will Quit If Maryam Is Made Leader Of Party And Insists It Is Nothing To Do With Maryam Being A Woman

Will quit PML-N if Maryam is made its leader: Chaudhry Nisar

Pakistan Muslim League- Nawaz (PML-N) senior leader Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan said on Monday that he will not remain a part of of the party if Maryam Nawaz becomes its leader, Express News reported.“She [Maryam] is not the party leader but if she is given the mantle I will quit,” he added.

Of late Ganja and his clique have become leery of this dual citizenship holding Pakjabi , as he rightly suspects that Nisar is a fifth columnist - the eyes and ears of the fauj - in Ganja's inner circle. Nisar brother is a Big Honcho in the Paki Fauj !

While referring to certain quarters in the PML-N who denounced him for opposing ousted prime minister Nawaz Sharif’s challenging the Supreme Court’s verdict in the Panama Papers case, Nisar said: “When nothing could be found against me they began to question my friendship with Imran Khan,” he said. There are rumours in Ganja's besieged party that this opportunistic politician may jump ship and join PTI, so that once again he may be able to "sup at the power table".

He also said, “My relationship with Imran goes all the way back to school.”The former interior minister went on to say that he told Sharif that he could (not !) engage in personal attacks on Imran. Both Nisar and Immy graduated from Aitchison College, La-Whore !

He, however, said that he would always criticise the PTI when it comes to politics.He underscored that he did not need a political party’s ticket to contest elections. “I don’t need anyone’s ticket to contest elections.”“I’ve never applied for a ticket throughout my political career,” he insisted. All graduates of Aitchison appear to have "giant size egos"

On March 16, Nisar sought a public explanation from the government over its decision to ignore anti-corruption watchdog’s recommendations regarding placing the name of ex-PM Sharif on the Exit Control List. After this many have since wondered where Nisar' loyalties lie. In the PML family or in the Fauji family .

Responding to a query in the National Assembly, he said during his tenure as interior minister for the first time the ECL policy was reshaped.“Prior to my tenure names were placed on the ECL even after a brawl between a couple. Now matters of the ECL are decided by a committee set up in the Ministry of Interior,” he stated on the floor of the house,” he. Hard to keep a lid down on this Pakjabi super sized ego, where "blowing your own horn" is second nature !

"Stalwart Ch. Nisar" Appears To Be Burning His Bridges ( With The Sharif Clan ) And His Waging A Running Media War Against Nawaz & Co.

Maryam's sharp tongue steering PML-N into a dead end, Nisar warns Nawaz

He can "warn" Ganja. ! His brother is a Major-General in the Paki Fauj

[Falijee]

Malay On Line Paper Prescribes Certain "Bitter Medicines" To Ummah Nation Pakistan For "Sick Pakistan Rupee"

What next for Pakistan after second currency devaluation?

ISLAMABAD, March 22 — Pakistan has allowed the rupee to weaken twice in a space of four months as it attempts to mend its deteriorating finances before elections due in July.But loosening the grip on managed-float operated currency hasn’t prevented the country’s current and trade deficits from widening, while US dollar reserves have slumped to the lowest in almost three years, prompting analysts to ask what next.“If reserves keep going down and there’s no mechanism to finance deficits then you’re left with only one option — devaluation,” said Salman Shah, a former Pakistani finance minister. “They couldn’t support the rupee at the level it was and the central bank’s ability to intervene in the market has vanished.”The government has few policy options as it struggles to fix South Asia’s second-largest economy ( What ! Bangladesh has not yet overtaken them !) . Here’s what to expect: The Official Doctor ( Govt of Pakistan) still insists that the patient ( Rupee) is healthy, although all the domestic and foreign doctors ( economists ) insist that the patient ( Rupee) is in the ICU and unless drastic measures ( IMF loans, Saudi gifting, further devaluation ) are not taken ASAP , the "rupee will likely die" with terrible consequences

Rate hike ( "Desi Medicine" - does not "cost much" !)
Devaluation increases the risks of inflation accelerating above February’s 3.8 per cent rate, which could force retailers to pass on costs. The central bank may raise borrowing costs by 25 basis points at its next review, according to brokerages including EFG Hermes, Foundation Securities Pvt and Topline Securities Ltd.( "desi medicine" prescribed by "phoren doctors")

Another devaluation? ("same phoren medicine" prescribed for same "earlier disease")
The central bank has been running down its reserves to defend the currency, which has been largely pegged against the dollar. With its holdings now lower than Bangladesh’s, Pakistan could completely abandon that peg and allow the rupee to free float, according to Gareth Leather, a senior Asia economist at Capital Economics Ltd.

“Given the large current-account deficit, the rupee would almost certainly fall sharply against the US dollar,” Leather wrote in a note Tuesday. However, with external debt — almost all of which is in US dollars — estimated at about US$75 billion (RM293.6 billion), or 30 per cent of GDP, “the authorities will want to avoid this option.” High dosage may save the patient (rupee) but may have terrible side effects for the whole body ( For the Aam Abduls and the entire society ! Second opinion for this treatment is necessary )

Do nothing ( May be the right strategy if patient cannot afford or unwilling to undergo foreign ( IMF prescribed !) treatment )

The government may allow the reserves, currently at US$12.1 billion, to deplete as it faces a US$2.5 billion debt repayment by June, Miftah Ismail, the country’s de-facto finance minister told Bloomberg this week. He denied that Pakistan would look to raise additional foreign-currency debt after a US$2.5 billion bond sale in November. Kicking the can down the road will push the problem to the next administration.“We suspect that Pakistan will continue to run down its FX reserves in the run-up to the elections to counter any depreciation pressure,” Nicholas Yap, a Hong Kong-based credit desk analyst at Nomura International (HK) Ltd, ( some "phoren doctor" would prefer this !) wrote in a note yesterday.

IMF bailout? ( Most common phoren treatment that [/u][/b]used to be recommended specially by US based Doctors, but currently not in vogue due to long term side effects !)
The International Monetary Fund has urged Pakistan for years to ease its grip on the rupee. So, the recent devaluations have stoked speculation that the government may be preparing for its 13th bailout request in three decades. For now, ministers have denied they will go back to the IMF so soon after completing a US$6.6 billion loan programme in 2016.If Islamabad ultimately does tap the IMF, it would wait for elections to conclude to limit the political fallout, said Asad Sayeed, director at the Karachi-based Collective for Social Science Research consultancy. This treatment requires that the patient forgo food luxuries like Nihari, biryani for quite a number of years and other social hardships like living without water, education or without jobs and paying an exorbitant price for cars etc !

Amnesty scheme ( If a rich uncle or aunt can send lots of money to Pakiland from abroad for domestic medicine then there are good hopes for the patient!)

The government is expected to announce a policy to attract money stashed by Pakistanis abroad this month, a plan made more attractive by a weak rupee. An amnesty scheme with a flat tax of between 2 per cent and 3 per cent on top of a currency drop of 10 per cent against the dollar should be enough of an incentive, Khurram Schehzad, chief commercial officer at Karachi-based JS Global Capital Ltd wrote in a note on Tuesday. — Bloomberg. All the rich uncles and aunts that the patient has abroad, are selfish in nature, and do not trust that the money sent will be used for the medicines needed and therefore are likely to ignore the pleas !

In My own personal opinion, Pakistan will be forced to seek the advice of "foreign doctors" to make the patient ( rupee ) recover. There is no other alternative

[Falijee]

Crypto Bible Retweeted
Zia Ur Rehman
‏Verified account @zalmayzia
Mar 21

I slam still alive : very five years


Who s Who Of The Islam Brigade. Plotting Joint Strategy For Next General Election This Year. Cry Of "Islam In Danger" To Be Revived Once Again !

[Falijee]

Tarek Fateh Blast Pakistan In His Speech At The UN HCR In Geneva !

How Switzerland banned Occupied Balochistan’s Mehran Marri while allowing China and Pakistan to push their agenda

"Switzerland is a party to enabling Human Rights violations taking place in Balochistan ... They arrested Baloch UN representative Mehran Marri while welcoming the governments of Pakistan and China to commit genocide in Balochistan."My speech at the UNHRC session on 'Pakistan's violation of Human Rights in Sindh and Balochistan'.Please share with your friends and family who might not know of the slow-motion Genocide unfolding in the occupied land of the Baloch.

Must listen to his 8 minute speech to the UNHRC in Geneva condemning Pakistan and China !

[Peregrine]

TERRORISTAN LIQUID FOREIGN EXCHANGE RESERVES IN BILLION US DOLLARS

AAA : TERRORISTAN DOUBLE ACCOUNTING & FUDGING

16 MAR 2018 : STATE BANK OF TERRORISTAN : 11.9440 - COMMERCIAL BANKS 06.1350 - TOTAL18.0790

BBB : TERRORISTAN REAL POSITION

16 MAR 2018 : STATE BANK OF TERRORISTAN : 11.9440 - COMMERCIAL BANKS 00.3350 - TOTAL 12.2790

State Bank of Pakistan has taken a Loan of US$ 5.8000 Billions from the Commrercial Banks

Cheers

[Peregrine]

Offshore assets now easier to hide with amended wealth statement form

ISLAMABAD: In a move that may undermine the drive against tax evasion, amendments in the wealth statement form that the government introduced over a year ago has reduced the disclosure requirements for those taxpayers who own offshore assets.

The government has separated the disclosure requirements for assets held inside and outside Pakistan, making the disclosure rather more discretionary in case of offshore assets.

The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) made the changes in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities, commonly known as the Wealth Statement, in December 2016 that it reaffirmed in the version it issued six months ago for tax year 2017.

At least one business family that has been named in the Panama Papers could escape the law, as it mentioned the assets in more general terms in the wealth statement without giving the exact description of the offshore assets, said sources in FBR.

All individual taxpayers are required to file the Wealth Statement along with Return of Income for each tax year. In this regard, a form has been prescribed for that in Chapter XIX of the Income Tax Rules, 2002. The changes have been made in this form.

Old form

Under the old, now amended, form, a taxpayer was required to declare his assets outside Pakistan under each category and provide complete particulars and description of each asset. The taxpayer had to explicitly state the nature of immovable and moveable property and asset outside Pakistan including minute details like type of property and complete address.

In the serial number 15 of the form, the taxpayer had to declare its total assets inside and outside Pakistan.

This would have made difficult for people to keep their assets hidden after global drive against money laundering and tax evasion, supported by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)

The Supreme Court is currently hearing a case on the offshore assets of Pakistanis and possibility to retrieve and bring them back.

New form

Now the tax authorities have changed the prescribed form. In serial number 15, the disclosure requirement of the total assets has now been restricted to “Total Assets inside Pakistan. A new serial number 16 has been inserted with narration “Assets held outside Pakistan”

This would allow the taxpayers to only mention the foreign assets in lump sum, without giving details of nature of the property, asset and their locations, said the sources. The taxpayer would not be required to identify the asset.

When contacted, a senior FBR officer agreed that the discretion in full disclosure of offshore asset including particulars may be misused by the taxpayer. But he said that this would not limit the FBR’s authority to ask the source of income, if the asset is highlighted in a third party report like OECD.

The FBR’s decision to reduce the disclosure requirements for assets held outside Pakistan is by design, which benefits those people who have hidden their assets abroad, said Dr Ikram ul Haq, advocate Supreme Court of Pakistan.

Haq suggested that disclosure requirements for assets inside and outside Pakistan should be the same aimed at eliminating the discretion of the wealth statement filer.

In case of the old pre-defined format which was enforced through FBR’s Iris system, the statement filing was impossible without providing the full identification of the asset.

But the FBR official said that there was view that a taxpayer should disclose only those assets that are created by using sources of income generated in Pakistan.

After changes in the statement, if a taxpayer declares an asset or a liability outside Pakistan without any identification and FBR subsequently receives information from a third party, like from OECD, it will not be able to determine whether the asset is declared in the Wealth Statement or not, said the sources.

This small change in the wealth statement has provided an escape door to those Pakistanis who illegally transferred assets abroad and could have been subject to scrutiny.

Under the multilateral exchange of information agreement signed with the OECD, there was hope of receiving information about the tax evaders. This single amendment would allow the taxpayers to make a claim that they have declared their offshore assets but at the same time the FBR would not be in the clear picture about the nature and individual value of each asset, said the sources.

This change has been done to protect tax evaders against charge of non-declaration of assets held outside Pakistan while still not disclosing any details whatsoever of such assets, the sources added. With this type of declaration, no agency would be able to proceed due to absence of necessary identification, particulars and details of such assets, they added.

Cheers

[Peregrine]

Cheers

[Falijee]

China To The Rescue Of Pakiland. Once Again !

In a milestone step in space technology, Pakistan acquires communication Satellite

*ISLAMABAD: *Pakistan has taken a leap forward in the space technology by acquiring communication satellite PakSat Multi Satellite (PakSat-MM1).
Pakistan has secured a geostationary orbital slot along with previous frequency resources ensuring a continuous and expanding foothold in the extraterrestrial world.

The Pakistan Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (Suparco) inked a deal with China Great Wall Industry Cooperation (CGWIC) to acquire communication satellite PakSat Multi Satellite (PakSat-MM1).PakSat MM-1 is believed to prove to be another major asset to initiate and expand various communication services including Direct to Home (DTH).

It will help Beijing and Islamabad to strengthen their bilateral ties not only through the ‘One Belt One Road’ initiative and but also by enhancing cooperation and capacity in the field of science and technology. ( Gifting under CPEC ? China helping in Pakiland's = = quest ? Chini satellite for Chini purposes , but painted a Paki flag on it ? ) The signing ceremony was held at the Planning Commission of Pakistan and was attended by the federal Minister for Planning, Development and Reforms Ahsan Iqbal, Chinese ambassador Yao Jing among other senior officials. Timing is interesting. One day before March 23- THE BIG DAY. Will sure find a mention in the speech

On February 28, the communication satellite PakSat-MM1 arrived at Pakistan’s geostationary orbital location of 38.2 East.The satellite will be a valuable addition to our geo-stationary fleet, the Suparco spokesperson said. “The project has paved the way for new communication service which will significantly aid in the socio-economic development of the country” the spokesperson added.Meanwhile, Suparco will collaborate in a business venture with CGWIC on cost and revenue sharing basis via a commercial contract.
Previously, the successful implementation of Pakistan’s first communication Satellite (Paksat-1R) programme laid the foundation for further collaboration between the two countries. It does not require a rocket scientist to conclude that it is a Chini spy satellite over Pakiland, to keep an eye on Balochistan and other parts of Pakiland for the purpose of "protecting Chini interest" there

PS: This announcement, in hindsight explains the recent farticle article by a Paki Ayesha from an Isloo Think Tank - thinking out loud on the advantages of Space Technology . Made indigenously from A to Z as in the above write up

[Falijee]

PEREGRINE-JI :
Rupee falling to record low levels be damned !
Political stability be damned !
Pakistan has send a satellite into space !
PAKISTAN PIANDABAD
NERO FIDDLES WHILE ROME BURNS

[anupmisra]

Pakistan "Rope In" Sri Lankan President For Guest Of Honour On Paki Day Parade

Sri Lanka president to be ‘guest of honour’ on Pakistan Day parade
The Express Tribune
Usually, such announcements are made well in advance, not two days before the visit date ! Security situation might be the obvious reason. Plus Sri Lanka has seen some communal fighting recently between the majority Budhists and the minority Mohameddans. This might be a factor in the late announcement !

Sri Lanka’s president Maithripala Sirisena is set to visit Pakistan from March 22 to 24 where he will be the ‘guest of honour’ for the Pakistan Day parade.

The participation of President Sirisena in the parade is a demonstration of the very close ties between the two countries and the respect in which the people and leadership of Pakistan hold the president of Sri Lanka, said an official statement on Wednesday. Two days before visit

Makes sense. A nation no one wants to travel to invites the president of a nation not many invite. Match made in heaven.