Daily Times

Minister for Information and Broadcasting Chaudhry Fawad Hussain Monday took the PPP leadership to task and said their top leaders should have owned the fiasco in the Upper House of parliament during a major legislation.

“Yusuf Raza Gilani is a noble man. Bilawal and Zardari should have resigned on whose instructions senators did not appear in the Upper House on the day of voting for the State Bank of Pakistan (Amendment) Bill],” he said in a tweet.

He said the senior leaders of both the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) were not only perturbed by their leadership’s attitude, but also felt humiliated. The minister welcomed ‘the change’ coming in the two parties.

Meanwhile, talking to the Japanese ambassador to Pakistan Wada Mitsuhiro, who called on him in Islamabad, Fawad said a humanitarian crisis was brewing in Afghanistan and the international community should not leave it alone to cope with the difficult times.

“Peace in Afghanistan is crucial for global peace and the world has to take lead for the purpose,” the minister said.

Situation in Afghanistan, and matters pertaining to mutual interests and cooperation in the media sector, including Japanese technical assistance to the Pakistan Television (PTV) and Radio Pakistan, came under discussion.

Fawad said former Afghan president Ashraf Ghani did not heed the advice of Prime Minister Imran Khan for an inclusive government in his country. He said economies across the world were affected by the coronavirus pandemic, but Pakistan dealt with different waves of the virus in an effective way and also succeeded in stabilizing its economy.

The large manufacturing sector grew by 10 per cent while the construction, textile, and agriculture sectors were progressing, he added.

The spike in energy and commodity prices in the global market, he said, impacted Pakistan as well, but the government launched mega welfare projects like Ehsaas Ration and Health Card to provide relief to the poor people during the pandemic. The country’s current account deficit also increased due to import of different goods, he added. The Japanese ambassador said his country would provide technical assistance to Radio Pakistan and PTV. Japan was already extending cooperation for development of economy, infrastructure and other sectors in Pakistan, he added. Kharian-Rawalpindi Motorway to open new avenues of development:

Chaudhry Fawad Hussain Monday said Kharian-Rawalpindi Motorway to be built under the public-private partnership model would open news avenues of development for Northern and Central Punjab.

In a tweet, he said the people living in 42 National Assembly constituencies will benefit from this project. The minister said that after opening of this motorway distance between Lahore and Islamabad will be reduced by 100km.

Meanwhile, Fawad Hussain said the Parliament should consider constitutional amendment for appointment of new judges.

In a tweet, he said five judges of the Supreme Court were retiring this year. The minister said that if the Parliament could make appointments to the Supreme Court free and transparent, it will be a big achievement.

He urged the political parties to shun their differences and join hands for this important amendment.