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PR No. 208 Federal Minister for Minorities Shahbaz Bhatti said the present democratic government has restored the 1973 constitution to its original shape, given by Zulfikar Ali Bhutto after signing by President Asif Ali Zardari.
Paying rich tribute to Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and Mohtarama Benazir Bhutto, he said the PPP under the dynamic leadership of President Asif Ali Zardari was accomplishing their vision and mission aimed at the well-being of the masses and betterment of motherland.
PR No. 209 Advisor to Prime Minister for Information Technology, Sardar Muhammad Latif Khan Khosa has said that equal opportunities will be provided to encourage investment in the Information Technology and Telecom sector in order to create maximum job avenues for the Pakistani youth. The Advisor was talking to a delegation of Zong which called on him headed by Chief Executive Officer, Qian Li here on Wednesday. The Advisor lauded a huge investment made by Zong in Pakistan and termed it a success story, which has not only provided a better service to the people but also created job opportunities for them. The Advisor urged the mobile operating companies to introduce such low-priced packages which can play a role for character building of the future generation instead of subverting them. He said China is our brotherly country which always extended support to us in the need our hour. We are a flexible and brave nation and always came out of crises what ever it faced. We will also steer out of the energy crisis as all the nation has united for the purpose. The Advisor assured the delegation to extend all possible help to address their grievances and expressed hope that Zong will invest more in Pakistan aimed at creating more job opportunities for our talented youth. **CA/Ahmad**
PR No. 210 The Senate Committee on Rules of Procedures & Privileges, met at the Parliament House under the Chairmanship of Senator Syed Tahir Hussain Mashhadi to consider the Privilege Motion, moved by Senator Dr. Muhammad Ismail on the alleged non-responsive attitude of Commandant, Frontier Corps, after unauthorized arrest of his security guard and driver by F.C. in District Turbat on 31st March, 2010 and Privilege Motion moved by Senator Muhammad Saleh Shah on the irresponsible attitude of Political Agent, South Waziristan Agency. At the very outset the Committee took a strong exception to the non-attendance of Chief Secretary and Home Secretary, Balochistan and decided to postponed further discussion till the next meeting and directed the Chief Secretary and Home Secretary, Balochistan to attend the next meeting. The Committee also considered the Privilege Motion moved by Senator Muhammad Saleh Shah on the irresponsible attitude of Political Agent, South Waziristan Agency. The Chairman apprised the Committee about the background of the matter and termed the behavior of the Political Agent as unsatisfactory towards the Parliamentarians. The Committee took strong notice of absence of the Additional Chief Secretary, Governor House, FATA, however, appreciated the attendance of the Minister for SAFRON. The mover while apprising the Committee about the Privilege motion said that as a public representative, he has to see the Administrative official for the redressal of public grievances, further whenever he visited his office, the Khassadar and guards present at check post misbehaved with him despite knowing his status. Minister for SAFRON and Secretary, FATA submitted their unconditional apology on behalf of the Political Agent and ensured that special directions shall be passed to avoid such incidents in future. The Committee appreciated the dignity and grace shown by the Minister for SAFRON and Secretary, FATA. The Committee showed its displeasure over the written statement submitted by the Political Agent, South Waziristan. The meeting was attended, among others, by Senators, Dr. Muhammad Ismail Buledi, Salahuddin Dogar, Abbas Khan, besides senior officers and officials of Ministries of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affair and Interior as well as Government of FATA and Balochistan. The Minister for SAFRON and Minister of State for Interior also attended the meeting. **RAQ/Ahmad**
PR No. 211
The Chairman Senate, Mr.
Farooq H. Naek applauded the work done by He was speaking at the concluding session of the ERRA International Conference as chief guest, here today. “This great disaster has brought to the fore the bravery, unity and resilience of our nation and commitment of the international community, donor agencies and friendly countries at the face of such a great calamity”, Chairman Senate added. Farooq H. Naek also emphasized the need of more collaboration and closer coordination among the international community in case of natural calamities and disasters such as earthquakes, floods, wars and terrorism. He also stressed upon the donor agencies, government departments and international community to learn from experiences in reconstruction and rehabilitation of communities after disasters.
Farooq H. Naek underscored the need for building the
capacities of all the stakeholders to minimize the quantum of losses in
the face of disasters. Farooq H. Naek highlighted the need of creating awareness among the people at large through media for timely rescue and pre-planning to reduce the loss of life and property in natural and man-made calamities. He underlined the role of media as a neutral observer, watchdog and also the supporter for the national effort in a disaster situation. Chairman Senate congratulated ERRA, international community and Pakistani nation for quick response in recovery, reconstruction & rehabilitation effort and termed it as unparalleled in modern history. Earlier the conference was given a comprehensive overview of ERRA’s aims and objectives and progress made in reconstruction and rehabilitation of earthquake victims. Chairman ERRA, Mr. Saleem Muhammad Altaf admired the efforts of ERRA in reconstruction and rehabilitation work and for arranging such a successful international conference. He also gave away shields to the Chairman Senate, Mr. Farooq H. Naek, Turkish Ambassador to Pakistan, and UNDP Country Representative.
PR No. 212 The Cabinet meeting under the Chairmanship of the Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani was held in the Prime Minister’s Secretariat here today. The Minister for Water and Power briefed the Cabinet on the deliberations of the Energy Summit convened under the direction of the Prime Minister and informed that sub-committees constituted in this regard would submit their reports to the Prime Minister, who will share the decisions with the nation in a press conference tomorrow. The Cabinet appreciated the initiative of the Prime Minister for convening the Energy Summit in which all the four Chief Ministers and other stakeholders participated and presented their point of view. It may be recalled that the Prime Minister had directed the Energy Summit to evolve consensus on national strategy to overcome energy shortages in the country. The Cabinet also took note of the mushroom growth of unplanned inhabitations in the country and asked the provincial governments and CDA to ensure proper town planning. In this regard the Cabinet decided to sensitize the people through organizing seminars on town planning before formally initiating action against illegal and ill planned inhabitations. In pursuance of the directions of the Supreme Court of Pakistan in suo moto case No.10 of 2007, the cabinet also approved Amendment in Islamabad Capital Territory Zoning Regulations 1992. These amendments relate to specific changes in the land use of Zone-4. The Cabinet accorded approval, in principle, to a similar plan of Zone-3 subject to clearance by Cabinet Committee comprising Ministers for Interior, Housing and Works and Law & Justice. The CDA was directed to give wide publicity for information of land owners and general public through print and electronic media on land use of its territory. The Cabinet also directed CDA to ensure that no constructions are made in the CDA territory against the law and regulations. The Cabinet approved signing of the SAARC Agreement on Trade In Services during the 16th SAARC Summit scheduled to be held in Thimphu, Bhutan on April 28-29, 2010. The cabinet ratified the decisions of the ECC meeting held on 30th March 2010. In order to update the laws relating to intellectual property management, the cabinet granted approval to the draft amendment bill “Intellectual Property Rights Organization of Pakistan Bill, 2010,” which shall be laid before the Parliament. The draft law proposes amendments in 15 sections of IPO Ordinance while two new sections have also been added. The cabinet granted approval, in principle, to start negotiations for MoU between National Language Authority and Academy of the Persian Language & Literature of the Islamic Republic of Iran. The MoU envisages joint training programmes, joint research, seminars and exchange of delegations. The cabinet also granted approval for signing of MoU between the Governments of Pakistan and Tunisia for closer cooperation between Trade Development Authority of Pakistan and Trade Promotion Organization of Tunisia. The cabinet further approved signing of Financial and Technical Cooperation Agreements 2007-2008 between Pakistan and Germany. The negotiations were held in November 2008 and resulted in financial assistance of Euro 64 million by Germany for the projects in health, energy, education and communication. The cabinet approved, in principle, to start negotiations in respect of framework agreement between the Government of Pakistan and Republic of Korea for a loan of US$180 million. The soft loan shall be utilized for funding development projects in health, environment, renewable energy, vocational training, water & sanitation, irrigation and infrastructure sectors. In order to address the issue of credit data on borrowers to be used by the financial institutions for the purposes of credit assessment, scoring, and risk management, the cabinet granted, in principle, approval for legislating draft “Credit Bureau Act, 2010.” The draft bill will be prepared in consultation with Ministry of Law & Justice. The database about borrowers will enable the financial institutions to know about the financial standing of their prospective customers and enable them to make prudent decisions. The cabinet accorded its Ex-post facto approval for the proposed “State Bank of Pakistan (Amendment) Bill 2010.” The proposed amendment in State Bank Act 1956 will update the law and conform it to best international practices. The law will become more conducive to challenging global economic and regulatory environment and modern functioning of the Central Bank. The amendment proposes to replace Fiscal Policies Co-ordination Board with Monetary Policy Committee with statutory status. Lending to the Government has been restricted. Similarly, emergent functions pertaining to open market and credit operations and international reserves have been elaborated and clarified by substitution of the existing sections. The draft bill is already being discussed in the Parliament. The cabinet approved a proposal to renegotiate the Pakistan-Czech Republic Bilateral Investment Promotion and Protection Treaty. By renegotiating the bilateral investment treaty, the investors’ confidence will be further enhanced. **DO/Ahmad**
PR No. 213 Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani was scheduled to inaugurate Gandhara Exhibition ‘Pakistan - Where Civilizations Meet’, at Museum Guimet today. However, due to postponement of his visit to Paris, the Exhibition was jointly inaugurated by French Minster of Culture and Communication, Mr. Fredric Mitterrand and Director General UNESCO Irina Bokova, says a press release received here from Paris today. The French Minister speaking on the occasion praised the civilization heritage of Pakistan and said that French explorers and archaeologists have been involved in the region for almost two centuries. He paid glowing tributes to the people and leadership of Pakistan for facing the challenges of extremism and terrorism. The Minister dedicated the inaugural ceremony to the Prime Minister of Pakistan and the victims of recent terrorist attacks in Peshawar. Ambassador Shafkat Saeed while regretting the absence of Prime Minster Gilani on the occasion read out the extracts of his statement. The Ambassador thanked the dedicated team of Musee Guimet for organizing the exhibition and also expressed his gratitude for the support received by the French government for making this event a success. The Ambassador hoped that the exhibition will serve as a cultural bridge between Pakistan and France and will open the doors for future collaboration in the fields of arts, music and culture. The exhibition was attended by a large number of French dignitaries including former ministers, diplomats, media representatives etc. The exhibition will continue till 17 August, 2010
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