Official Blog Of Press Information Department

Courtesy:- Ishaq Dar After seven years, Pakistan has staged a successful comeback in the global capital market by selling Eurobonds to the tune of $2 billion — the largest ever bond offering by Pakistan. But some in the country are not fully appreciative of the significance of this and there are misgivings, too, which I will address in this article. Those who follow budgetary proposals are aware that since 2007-08, Pakistan would budget a $500 million foreign inflow on account of the bond issue, which, however, would remain elusive, as economic performance would not justify such issuance. An abortive attempt in 2010-11 was particularly notable. After seven years this effort has finally succeeded. Against a planned size of $500m, the bond has attracted subscription of nearly $7bn, which was 14 times our expected amount. This performance constitutes a vote of confidence in the government’s policies. Throughout the roadshows we were given an unusual reception by global inv...

Courtesy:- S Rahman If the performance evaluation of Nawaz Sharif government is intended, it should be done on the basis of two key yardsticks that of terrorism control and power crisis management though other issues are no less compelling. This criterion is being applied in the light of people’s genuine needs and simple aspirations. They (people’s needs and aspirations) are peaceful living and good living conditions free from painful, lengthy power outages and the concomitant economic instability. To the people’s good luck, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has started working perseveringly on these priorities ever since coming into power following the last May general elections. Taking up the power sector for the time being in this discussion, the good news for the public is that the government is concentrating on implementation and sustainability of the announced projects, specifically the power production projects. On the one hand, the projects of public relief a...

Courtesy:- MALIK MUHAMMAD ASHRAF Sitting governments all over the world, for real or perceived reasons, lack credibility and their performance invariably remains under strict scrutiny by the media, its political opponents and the elements within society who have an irresistible propensity to look askance at every thing done and said by them. Therefore, the widely accepted barometer for judging their claims with regard to performance and good governance is the endorsement of their authenticity by independent national and international entities.

Courtesy:- Zulfiqar Ali Murree is a famous tourist resort of Pakistan. Its natural beauty is well known throughout the world. For Pakistanis going to Murree has become synonymous with escape from the vicissitudes of life. Both in summers & winters a large number of tourists converge on Murree & Mall Road have become synonymous with fun & frolic.  Sadly due to the careless attitude of our countrymen towards cleanliness & waste disposal Murree’s Beauty has been badly marred by the presence of garbage heaps,  solid waste filled drains, & unpicked litter at major tourist hot spots & commercial as well as residential areas. Residents of Murree, shopkeepers & visiting tourists have all contributed to this tale of destruction.  Keeping in view the importance of Murree as a tourist jewel of Pakistan, Government of Punjab has prepared a special Murree Development Plan. Although newly formed Rawalpindi Waste Management Company (RWMC) is officiall...

Courtesy:-  Noman Ashraf The Annual Public Pulse Report for 2014 issued by Gallup Pakistan, maintains that there has been a massive improvement in the ratings for overall performance of the PML(N) government (59%) as compared to the performance of the previous government during last year in the office. Gallup which enjoys the highest credibility for such surveys, claims that economy has recorded positive 48% comparative net performance, Pak-India relations 22%, foreign policy 33%, terrorism control 31%, corruption control 36% and inflation control a positive 20%. 

Courtesy:-  People approve PML-N policies PML-N government’s overall performance during the last 10 months is 55 percent better than the Pakistan Peoples Party’s previous government, Gallup survey report said. The Gallup survey was based on the opinion of general public from urban and rural areas of all the four provinces. It said that economy, Indo-Pak relationship, foreign policy, corruption, terrorism and a policy to overcome the price hike were priorities of the government. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was declared by the pollster as the most popular political leader of country while other leaders such as Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf chairman Imran Khan, PPP Co-Chairman Asif Zardari, Jamiat-e-Ulma e Islam chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman and Awami National Party (ANP) chief Asfandyar Wali Khan were losing their popularity. Gallup survey also claimed that Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif’s performance is better than all the other chief ministers of the provinces.

Courtesy:-  MALIK MUHAMMAD ASHRAF The time to deal with terrorists is now, politicking can wait Despite the skepticism being expressed by the detractors of the government opposed to talks with TTP and the attempts by certain circles to put around stories of rift between the civilian and military leaders in regards to the strategy and the modalities about dealing with the militants, there are strong portents to suggest that all the stakeholders have a unanimity of views in resolving the conflict through dialogue and are supportive of the government’s strategy in this regard. Ever since the parleys with the TTP have recommenced, the prime minister has been regularly interacting with the COAS, ISI chief, heads of the law enforcing agencies and the party leaders to exchange views on the on-going developments and security related issues, with a view to firm up government’s response to TTP demands as well as to evaluate the preparedness of the government agencies to deal with any...

Courtesy:- MALIK MUHAMMAD ASHRAF Contrary to fears about disruption of Afghan elections by the Taliban, election day passed without any major incidents of violence and people came out in great numbers to cast their votes. Reportedly, out of the 12 million registered voters nearly 7 million used their right of franchise which in terms of turn out works out to be 58.3 per; a substantial improvement over 30% turn out in the previous elections and much better than most of the countries where voting is not obligatory, including Pakistan and India. This unprecedented and overwhelming participation of the Afghan people in the elections signifies many things. It reflects their desire to see peace returning to Afghanistan after four-decades of turbulence and turmoil; it confirms their faith in democracy to winch the country out of the present quagmire; it indicates the waning popularity of the Taliban and endorsement of the fact that the people of Afghanistan have a burning desire to wor...

Courtesy:-  MA Malik At the just concluded third Nuclear Security Summit at The Hague, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif while assuring the global community about Pakistan being a responsible nuclear state engaged in promoting objectives of non-proliferation, pleaded for making Pakistan a part of all international export control regimes, especially Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG). Before venturing to unravel why Pakistan is so keen to join the NSG and what benefits it would accrue to her, it would perhaps be pertinent to have cursory glance at the objectives of the NSG and Nuclear Security Summit in preventing nuclear proliferation and promoting nuclear safety.

Courtesy:-  MALIK MUHAMMAD ASHRAF Constitutions embody the will of nations and delineate the contours of the course to be adopted by them to achieve cherished goals. Adherence to the constitution and the laws enacted in consonance with the constitution, provide the foundations on which the edifice of a state is erected and the spirit of harmony and unity nurtured among different segments of the society that acts as a catalyst for peace and progress. Any deviation from the constitution leads to chaos, disunity and emergence of the fissiparous tendencies that undermine the very objectives that a nation sets for itself to achieve, besides threatening its security.