Jamaat-e-Islami Emir Hafiz Naeemur Rehman has said the countrywide movement is gathering momentum, crediting young people for playing a historic role in the cause.

Addressing a public meeting, Hafiz Naeem congratulated party workers for what he termed as a historic nationwide walkout the previous day. He claimed traders in Karachi lay the basis for the strike, while people turned out in places across interior Sindh.

He added that the strike was also successful in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, while business activities remained entirely shut across Malakand Division.

Hafiz Naeem said Jamaat-e-Islami’s movement represented the voice of ordinary people, adding that the rulers had made life increasingly difficult for civilians. He claimed individuals were struggling to afford two meals a day, transportation had become tough and consumers were facing large electrical bills.

He said petroleum duty had pushed fuel prices to record levels, while growing petrol costs had made vital consumables more expensive. According to Hafiz Naeem, every motorcyclist effectively pays 35 percent tax on petrol.

The Jamaat-e-Islami leader stated the people had previously been unaware of the petroleum charge, maintaining that it had no connection with petrol prices. He accused the authorities of burdening the population to finance their own privileges.

Hafiz Naeem said party members had increased awareness among the public and recalled that Jamaat-e-Islami had held a sit-in against independent power producers (IPPs) two years ago, following which relief was offered to customers.

He said the administration had argued at the time that extended load-shedding made agreements with IPPs vital.

Post

According to Hafiz Naeem, payments to power-generating businesses were finally recovered from consumers, including the loans and interest owed to IPPs. He stated that unfair agreements had been negotiated with IPPs since 1994.

Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar visited the Embassy of Nepal in Islamabad on Friday and signed the condolence book opened to express sympathy with the people who lost their lives in the tragic floods and landslides in Nepal.

He extended his heartfelt condolences to the dead families and emphasized Pakistan’s solidarity with the Government and people of Nepal.

“The countries of the region are disproportionately affected by climate change, with dire consequences for lives, livelihoods and infrastructure,” Ishaq Dar said.

He prayed for the departed souls, for the quick recovery of the injured and for the safety of the missing persons.

The Deputy Prime Minister said Pakistan stood ready to give all feasible assistance to overcome the impacts of this natural tragedy and reaffirmed Pakistan’s support to Nepal’s relief and recovery efforts.

Federal Minister for Planning and Development Ahsan Iqbal has proposed dividing Pakistan’s four provinces into three parts each, resulting in a total of 15 provinces across the country.

Iqbal said the existing system was not delivering and called for the formation of a review committee to examine the proposal and initiate a national and political debate on the creation of new provinces.

He said political consensus was essential for the establishment of new provinces, adding that the debate had gained momentum following Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi’s remarks about the system’s failure.

Iqbal stressed that any decision on creating new provinces would require broad political agreement.