Minister for Information and Broadcasting Fawad Chaudhry has said that negotiations have begun between the government and opposition on the issue of electronic voting machines (EVMs), which is a welcoming sign.
The minister said this while briefing the media persons about the decisions taken by the federal cabinet, which met with Prime Minister Imran Khan in the chair on Tuesday.
He said the federal cabinet was briefed about EVMs and the consultation process with parliamentary parties. He said the prime minister directed to take the opposition benches on board on the issue of EVMs. He said the government also intends to convene the joint sitting of the parliament for broader consultations over the issue of EVMs.
The information minister said that granting voting rights to the overseas Pakistanis will be a key point of electoral reforms as they are playing a vital role in the economic development of the country. He said that electoral reforms are imperative for transparent elections and the ruling party members including Babar Awan, Ali Muhammad Khan and others have been directed to discuss the matter of EVMs and overseas Pakistanis’ voting rights with the opposition.
“We welcome the negotiations with the opposition parties in parliament but the negotiations should not be aimed at wasting time and delaying tactics,” he added.
Fawad said the cabinet has approved that only the Central Ruet-e-Hilal Committee is entitled to announce the advent of Ramadan, Eid, or other Islamic calendar days as the entire private moon sighting committees are prohibited under the Constitution. He said this decision has been taken on the recommendations of the Ministry of Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony.
The minister said the meeting also approved the constitution of a cabinet committee to review the obstacles in the way of constructing high-rise buildings in cities. He said the committee will report to the cabinet within two weeks.
Fawad said the cabinet also approved the national action plan regarding human rights and business. The federal cabinet has expanded the Pakistan Online Visa System (POVS), through which the country issues e-visas, Chaudhry said, pointing out that from 50, it is now available to 191 countries. “The aim behind this is to promote tourism and business — and through this, nationals from 191 countries will be able to get Pakistan’s visas, while at home,” the information minister said.
He said the economic indicators presented before the cabinet showed that foreign remittances have gone up by $5.4 billion, revenue collection during the first two months of the fiscal year has increased by Rs858 billion, agriculture, manufacturing, and the services sector have also witnessed an upward trend, and foreign exchange reserves are at a record level, $27.2 billion, while exports went up by $4.6 billion, Chaudhry said. He noted that inflation has increased, but that agricultural income has also gone up alongside.
Chaudhry said the federal cabinet, as a goodwill gesture, has approved humanitarian aid for Indonesia — a country that he said has stood firmly by Pakistan. “This is a gesture of goodwill as they battle coronavirus.” He said the cabinet approved sending a medical team to Indonesia to help curb coronavirus.
Fawad said that Pakistan Muslim League (PML-N) President Shehbaz Sharif would be sentenced to at least 25 years in prison “if hearing of his corruption case is conducted on merit”.
“We hope that a hearing on his [Shehbaz] case would be held on a daily basis… the people of Pakistan want to recover looted wealth from the Sharif family,” he added.
Fawad, while responding to a question regarding reports that Shehbaz and his son Suleman were acquitted by the UK court, termed the reports incorrect. He also referred to the presser of the PM’s aide on accountability Shehzad Akbar, who said earlier in the day that there was no money laundering case registered against the PML-N president in the United Kingdom.
