M WAQAR.....
"A man's ethical behavior should be based effectually on sympathy, education, and social ties; no religious basis is necessary.Man would indeed be in a poor way if he had to be restrained by fear of punishment and hope of reward after death."
--Albert Einstein !!!
NEWS,ARTICLES,EDITORIALS,MUSIC... Ze chi pe mayeen yum da agha pukhtunistan de.....(Liberal,Progressive,Secular World.)''Secularism is not against religion; it is the message of humanity.''
تل ده وی پثتونستآن
جمعرات کے روز دو بج کر اٹھاون منٹ پر ایک صحافی احمد نورانی نے ایک رپورٹ شائع کی جس میں انہوں نے جرنل (ر) عاصم سلیم باجوہ کی فیملی کے بارے میں کافی تہلکہ خیز انکشافات کئے عاصم سلیم باجوہ ڈی جی آئی ایس پی آر اور کمانڈر سدرن کمانڈ جیسے اہم فوجی عہدوں پر فائز رہے جب کہ اب وہ وزیر اعظم کے خصوصی مشیر برائے اطلاعات و نشریات اور سی پیک اتھارٹی کے سربراہ ہیں۔
احمد نورانی نے یہ انکشاف کیا ہے کہ عاصم سلیم باجوہ کے بھائیوں اہلیہ اور بچوں کی چار ممالک جن میں امریکہ کینیڈا یو اے ای اور پاکستان شامل ہیں میں 99 کمپنیاں 130 کے قاریب فعال فرینچائز ریسٹورنٹس اور 13 کمرشل جائیدادیں ہیں جن میں سے امریکہ میں دو شاپنگ مال بھی شامل ہیں۔
اس میں قابلِ غور بات یہ ہے کہ یہ کوئی سورسز کی انفارمیشن نہیں ہے بلکہ آفیشل ڈاکومنٹس نکلوا کر ان کی بنیاد پر رپورٹ شائع کی گئی ہے احمد نورانی کی رپورٹ کا بنیادی نقطہ یہ ہے کہ ایک نارمل بیک گراونڈ رکھنے والی فیملی اچانک اتنی امیر ترین کیسے ہو گئی کہ اس نے امریکہ جیسے ملک میں کروڑوں کی انویسٹمنٹس شروع کر دیں بقول احمد نورانی ان انویسٹمنٹس کا اُتار چڑھاؤ جرنل (ر) عاصم سلیم باجوہ کے عہدوں کے ساتھ منسلک رہا انویسٹمنٹ کا آغاز تب ہوا جب عاصم سلیم باجوہ جرنل مشرف کے اسٹاف آفیسر کے طور پر ان کے ساتھ تھے یہ انویسٹمنٹ بعض جگہوں پر ریسٹورنٹ فرنچائز کی صورت میں تھی جبکہ بعض جگہوں پر کمرشل پراپرٹیز خریدی گئیں جن میں سے ایک پراپرٹی کی ویلیو 5 ملین ڈالرز ہے اور ایک کی ویلیو 1.2 ملین ڈالرز ہے جس پر بعد میں شاپنگ سینٹر بنا تو اس کی ویلیو پانچ ملین ڈالرز سے بھی تجاوز کر گئی
رپورٹ کے مطابق عاصم باجوہ کے بیٹوں نے باجکو گروپ میں 2015ء میں شمولیت اختیار کی اور پاکستان اور امریکہ میں مزید نئی کمپنیوں کی بنیاد اس وقت رکھی جب ان کے والد آئی ایس پی آر کے سربراہ تھے اور پھر بعد میں کمانڈر سدرن کمانڈ بلوچستان بن گئے تھے عاصم سلیم باجوہ کے بیٹے نے انویسٹمنٹ ان سیکٹرز میں کی جو کسی نہ کسی طرح ان کے والد کی ذمہ داریوں سے مطابقت رکھتے تھے جیسا کہ جب بلوچستان میں عاصم سلیم باجوہ کمانڈر سدرن کمانڈ تھے تو بلوچستان میں ان کے بیٹے کے نام سے منسوب ایک کمپنی نظر آتی ہے اور باجوہ صاحب اسی عہدے پر فائز تھے جب ان کے بیٹے نے امریکہ میں دو گھر بھی خریدے۔
عاصم سلیم باجوہ نے اس رپورٹ کو محض شر انگیز اور جھوٹ کا پلندہ قرار دیا ہے اور ان کے بیٹے نے اسے بھارتی خفیہ ایجنسی راء کی سی پیک کو بد نام کرنے کے لیے سازش قرار دیا ہے جبکہ عاصم سلیم باجوہ کے بھائیوں کے کہنا ہے باجوہ صاحب کا ان کے بزنس سے کوئی تعلق نہیں لیکن محترمہ فرخ زیبا جو کہ عاصم سلیم باجوہ کی اہلیہ ہیں 2007ء میں ایک آپریٹنگ ایگریمنٹ کے تحت باجکو گلوبل مینجمنٹ میں برابر کی مالک ہیں۔
باجکو کمپنی کے پریذیڈنٹ عبدالمالک باجوہ نے اس بات کی نشاندہی تو کی ہے کہ عاصم سلیم باجوہ اور ان کے صاحبزادوں کا کمپنی سے کوئی تعلق نہیں لیکن ان کی اہلیہ کا ذکر نہیں ہوا۔
اس بیان سے یہ بات واضح ہوتی ہے کہ کچھ تو ہے جس کی پردہ داری ہے کیونکہ احمد نورانی بھی باجکو کمپنی کو عاصم سلیم باجوہ سے نہیں بلکہ ان کی اہلیہ سے منسوب ہونے کا انکشاف کر رہے ہیں جبکہ باجوہ صاحب نے اپنے بیان میں یہ واضح طور پر کہا تھا کہ ان کا اور ان کی اہلیہ کا پاکستان سے باہر کوئی بزنس کیپیٹل نہیں ہے۔
احمد نورانی نے یہ الزام بھی لگایا ہے کہ پاکستان میں کاروباری کمپنیوں کے نظام کی نگرانی کرنے والے ادارے سیکورٹی اینڈ ایکسچینج کمیشن پاکستان نے اپنی آفیشل ویب سائٹ سے عاصم سلیم باجوہ کے بیٹوں کی ملکیتی کمپنیوں کا ڈیٹا غائب کرنا شروع کر دیا ہے ان کا دعویٰ ہے کہ سیکیورٹی اینڈ ایکسچینج کمیشن پاکستان کی ویب سائٹ پر اس کاروباری ڈیٹا میں کی جانے والی تبدیلیوں کے مکمل شواہد انکے پاس موجود ہیں صحافی احمد نورانی نے بی بی سی سے بات کرتے ہوئے دعوی کیا کہ اس ادارے کی ویب سائٹ سے عاصم باجوہ کے بیٹوں کی ملکیت کے بارے میں معلومات اتوار یکم اگست 2020ء کو ہٹائی گئی تھیں جس دن عید کی چھٹی تھی اور تمام دفاتر بند تھے انھوں نے دعوی کیا کہ پورے ادارے کو یہ بات معلوم ہے اور میرے پاس تمام ڈیجیٹل شواہد موجود ہیں۔
باجوہ فیملی کے علاوہ ابھی تک کسی نے بھی وثوق کے ساتھ اس رپورٹ کی تردید یا تائید نہیں کی لیکن جس فیملی پر الزامات لگائے گئے ہوں ان کا محض ٹویٹ کر کے خود کو بے قصور ثابت کرنا کافی نہیں ہے اور جہاں تک بات پاکستانی میڈیا کی ہے تو وہ بھی خاموش ہے اور میڈیا کی خاموشی اس بات کو مزید مشکوک بنا رہی ہے۔
اگر تو باجوہ صاحب واقعی بے گناہ ہیں تو انہیں منی ٹرائل دے کر اپنے اوپر لگائے گئے الزامات کو غلط ثابت کرنے میں کوئی دقت نہیں ہونی چاہیے لیکن اگر وہ ایسا نہیں کرتے تو لوگ ان کی خاموشی کو اعترافِ جرم سمجھنے لگ جائیں گے کیونکہ احمد نورانی نے یہ انکشاف بھی کیا ہے کہ 2002ء تک سلیم باجوہ ان کے بھائیوں بیٹوں اور اہلیہ کا مکمل مالکیت کا کاروبار دنیا میں کسی جگہ نہیں تھا اور جیسے جیسے انہوں نے بڑے عہدے سنبھالے ان کا کاروبار پھلنے پھولنے اور چمکنے لگا بلکہ اس سے بھی سادہ الفاظ میں کہیں تو کاروبار کو چار چاند لگ گئے۔
اب یہ تو وقت ہی ثابت کرے گا کہ اس رپورٹ میں کتنی صداقت ہے کیونکہ ہو سکتا ہے کہ احمد نورانی نے محض اپنے فالوورز میں اضافہ کرنے اور اس گمنام ویب سائٹ کو دنیا والوں کی مرکزِ نگاہ بنانے کے لیے اس طرح کے تہلکہ خیز انکشافات کئے ہوں ہاں البتہ اگر یہ بات سچ ثابت ہوئی تو پوری پاکستانی قوم پر اس صحافی کا یہ احسان ہو گا اور پاکستانی جب بھی پاپا جونز پیزا کھائیں گے تو انہیں بل ادا کرنے کی بالکل ضرورت نہیں ہو گی کیونکہ یہ خوش ذائقہ پیزا انہی کے ادا کردہ ٹیکس کے پیسوں سے بنا ہو گا.
The day before my father disappeared, he told me he was worried. He was reluctant to let me take the train to Karachi. The railways are not safe, he had said to me and that he had a bad feeling. We reached a compromise that he would call me every hour to check on me.
I remember wondering how he thought a phone call would save me if the train really had crashed and burned.
I realize now that it was one of the small gestures that parents make when they don’t know what else to do. I recognize it because now all I want is to do the same for him. Call him on the hour to make sure he is okay.
My father, Idris Khattak, a devoted human rights defender and the most selfless man I know, was forcibly disappeared on 13 November, 2019. I have not heard from him. No one has any idea where he could be. We don’t even know who took him.
In Pakistan, enforced disappearances have been used as a tool to muzzle dissent and criticism of the state. People are just abducted by the very institutions that are supposed to protect them and placed outside the law. There is no arrest warrant, no record, no investigation – as if the person never existed.
My father reported on them regularly, gathering first-hand information for human rights organizations like Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch. The irony is lost on no one.
I had boarded the train, and almost forgotten about my father’s promise of calling me. When I reached Lahore after nearly 5 hours, I glanced at my phone to see no missed calls from him. Puzzled, I called him. He answered to say he was very busy and that he would be staying with his friends for a few days. He also added, strangely, that his phone was almost out of battery and he had left his charger at home.
I tried not to make much of it.
When I did not hear from him for the next few days, I started to panic. I would call his dead phone incessantly.
When I did not hear from him for the next few days, I started to panic. I would call his dead phone incessantly. I spoke to my aunt, who assured me he was fine and said that she had just spoken to him. I was confused but I believed her. My uncle asked me if I could stay on in Karachi for a few days. I sensed a restrained urgency in his tone as I laughed and asked him who would take my exams if I decided to stay back.
It was only on my way back to Islamabad on the train where I got a text message from my friend telling me he was sorry that my father had been abducted. I stared at the phone. How could someone joke about something like that?
I suppose in that moment, you let outrage overcome the sinking feeling that your worst fear might be coming true, to survive.
I moved to an open door on the coach, my hands shaking and heart racing. I cried all the way until the next station. I had no idea who to call or if I even wanted to confirm the news. When I had eventually gathered myself, I asked him how he knew what had happened to Papa. He sent me a screenshot of a news article.
My family had been trying to protect me. Papa had been missing for five days already before I found out the horrible truth that he had, after years of reporting on enforced disappearances, been disappeared himself.
When someone you love gets taken away from you, it catches you by surprise on some days and on others, it is all you can think of. I believed Papa would be home in three days. Days turned into weeks. Weeks turned into months. Like so many others who have been taken away from their families, you never lose count of the days. You hope every morning when you wake up that that that is the day where you finally stop counting. I look at pictures of Papa, and only dream of him walking into the room to be with us again. Like thousands of other families in Pakistan.
There is so much anger to hold on to. At the indifference from the police to the swings and roundabouts of the courtroom. My father is not a casefile. He is a human being who cannot be wiped away like an inconvenient streak of dirt. He is a person, with people who are looking for him. We deserve answers, and he deserves the protection of the law.
It is also easy to sink into hopelessness. But then I think of what he would do in a situation like this for someone else. He would be brave, and that strength is something that no one will ever be able to disappear.
The alarming uptick in blasphemy accusations across Pakistan underscores the urgency with which the
draconian laws that enable abuse and risk lives must be repealed, Amnesty International said today.
The broad, vague and coercive nature of the blasphemy laws violate the rights to freedom of religion and belief and of opinion and expression. They have been used to target some of the most marginalized people in society, including children, individuals with mental disabilities, members of religious minorities, and poorer people.
However, recent incidents in Pakistan indicate that the snare is widening to include artists, human rights defenders, and journalists as well.
Pakistani authorities need no more evidence to see how dangerous the blasphemy laws are.
“Pakistani authorities need no more evidence to see how dangerous the blasphemy laws are – they are abused to make false accusations that can, and have, led to unlawful killings and even whole communities being attacked and their homes burnt,” said David Griffiths, Director of the Office of the Secretary General of Amnesty International.
Dangerous accusations
On 13 August 2020, police filed a case against actor Saba Qamar and singer Bilal Saeed for shooting a music video in a mosque. The clip was released online and led to large protests in Lahore on 14 August 2020 during which the leaders of religious party Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) promised “vengeance” against the artists.
Both Qamar and Saeed have published statements apologizing on their respective social media accounts, but their lives continue to be at risk.
Threats for a tweet
Police also filed a case against journalist and human rights defender Marvi Sirmed under the blasphemy laws for a tweet she posted on 22 August 2020. Alongside this, she has also had a separate complaint registered against her with the Federal Investigative Agency under the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act – another piece of legislation that has been criticized for endangering freedom of expression online.
“Sirmed has previously been subjected to severe vitriol online and a blasphemy accusation will only embolden trolls in the cyberspace. A threat to her physical safety cannot be discounted,” said David Griffiths.
“The threat of violence to her life and safety is paramount. There are more than enough precedents for how accusations can bolster vigilantes to take matters into their own hands. Pakistani authorities must immediately provide Sirmed with adequate protection.”
Deadly consequences
On 29 July 2020, a man with mental disabilities was fatally shot in the Peshawar High Court. Tahir Ahmad Naseem, 54 had been charged with blasphemy and was being presented in court for his trial. He was shot at least six times.
Photos of him being lauded by police and lawyers alike surfaced online, chillingly reminiscent of the way bodyguard Mumtaz Qadri was celebrated after he killed his employer – and the person he was supposed to protect – governor Salmaan Taseer, for defending Asia Bibi.
“The fear and violence that often follows a blasphemy accusation makes it easy to forget that the people of Pakistan do not have to be beholden to vigilantes who flagrantly abuse these laws. By ignoring the longstanding call to repeal the blasphemy laws, Pakistani authorities continue to create a permissive environment for brutality. But it does not have to be this way," said David Griffiths.
The Muslim who regained custody of a 14-year-old Christian girl he had kidnapped threatened to kill her and her family unless she gave court statements that she had married him and converted to Islam of her own free will, the girl told Morning Star News.
Maira Shahbaz, who escaped from Nakash Tariq five days ago, told Morning Star News by telephone that he had raped her and filmed her naked in order to blackmail her into giving the court statements. The Lahore High Court on Aug. 4 ordered her return to Tariq after dismissing documents proving she was a minor and evidence of a fake marriage certificate because she testified that, “she’s 18 years old, recited the Kalma Tayyaba to prove she had embraced Islam without any duress, and married Nakash Tariq by choice.”
Tariq and accomplices kidnapped Maira, of Medina Town, Faisalabad, on April 28, according to family members.
“Nakash and two other men took me to an unknown place at gunpoint, where Nakash repeatedly raped me,” Maira told Morning Star News. “He also videotaped me naked and threatened that he would kill me and my family and also upload the video on social media if I told anyone what he had done to me.”
She said she had been forced to sign blank papers and denied that she had willfully become a Muslim.
“I was coerced into making those statements in the courtrooms,” she said. “They threatened to kill us all.”
When her family challenged the underage marriage, a judge had sent Maira to a women’s shelter on July 28 before the Aug. 4 verdict returning her to Tariq.
Maira contracted false marriage with the already married Tariq on Oct. 25, 2019. A family attorney asserted that the cleric whose name was listed on the marriage certificate denied involvement in the sham marriage.
Maira’s attorney, Sumera Shafique, said she had applied for police protection for the girl at the Lahore High Court’s Rawalpindi Bench because Tariq posed a serious threat to her life.
“The judge has ordered the regional police officer to ensure Maira’s security and also probe the video used to blackmail her,” she told Morning Star News. “I have also filed a suit for cancellation of her marriage and forced conversion in the family court.”
She said that Tariq had filed a kidnapping case in Faisalabad against Maira’s mother and other relatives alleging that they had forcibly taken away his “lawfully wedded wife” from his home.
“The family is in hiding due to the case registered by Nakash,” she said. “I was told that the accused is searching for the girl to stop her from revealing the truth, which is why we decided to appear before the Rawalpindi bench of the LHC as a security precaution.”
She said Maira will appear before the Regional Police Officer on Friday (Aug. 28) to record her statement.
Earlier this month, while ruling on a petition filed by Tariq seeking custody of Maira, a Lahore High Court bench presided by Justice Shahid Mahmood Abbasi stated, “The statement of Maria [sic] Shahbaz as well as her general appearance unambiguously show that she is a grown-up young lady who seems to have attained the age of puberty and who acknowledges Nakash Tariq as her lawfully wedded husband.”
The verdict acknowledged that the judge dismissed evidence her family’s attorney provided that the minor could not have contracted marriage without the consent of her guardian and that the marriage certificate was fake.
“As far as proof of marriage is concerned, the other formalities can be ignored and simple acknowledgement of husband and wife regarding their Nikah [marriage] is sufficient to prove the same,” the verdict states. “In such circumstances, the mandatory requirement of presence of two witnesses can be ignored.”
Regarding authenticity of the marriage certificate, the verdict stated, “Only the family court would be in a better position to resolve the controversy between the parties regarding genuineness or otherwise of ‘Nikah Nama.’”
In February the forced conversion to Islam and marriage of another 14-year-old Christian girl was validated in a court ruling in Pakistan. The High Court in Sindh Province on Feb. 3 dismissed a petition to have the marriage and forced conversion of Huma Younus overturned, ruling that both were valid since a girl under sharia (Islamic law) can marry after her first menstrual cycle.
Huma, a Catholic, was taken from her home in Karachi’s Zia Colony on Oct. 10, 2019 while her parents were away and was forced to marry the man who abducted her.
‘Forced Conversions Must Stop’
National Council of Churches in Pakistan (NCCP) President Azad Marshall said that Maira’s case and similar incidents called for immediate steps to ensure that minors from minority communities are not forced into false marriages and conversions.
“Forced conversion and marriages of children belonging to the minority communities is a major issue facing our communities,” said Marshall, who is senior most bishop of the Church of Pakistan.
Pakistan’s senate has introduced a bill calling for seven years of prison and a fine of 100,000 rupees (US$590) for those found guilty of forced conversion. The bill also proposes 10 years in prison and a fine of 100,000 rupees for forcing someone to change religion for marriage.
Marshall said enforcement would be key.
“Legislations are made by parliament, but unfortunately we have witnessed that their implementation is lacking,” he told Morning Star News. “The bill for protection of minority rights is a step in the right direction, and we hope that the government will not only ensure its approval but also make sure that the law enforcement agencies implement it in letter and spirit.”
Under the Protection of the Rights of Religious Minorities Bill, the state would take measures to curb forced conversion of minority communities and would also support victims. Marriage of a minor arranged after changing her/his religion would be considered “coerced” and be declared void.
In a bid to further strengthen protections for minority communities in the 96-percent Muslim country, the draft proposes three years of prison time and a fine of 50,000 rupees (US$295) in case of hate speech or maltreatment of a member of a non-Muslim community. It also bans discriminatory chapters in textbooks.
Those found guilty of discriminating against anyone on the basis of religion would be jailed for one year in addition to a fine of 25,000 rupees (US$147). The bill also protects religious symbols of non-Muslim Pakistanis, proposing a seven-year sentence and a fine of 50,000 rupees in such a case. All of these sentences would be non-bailable.
The senate chairman has forwarded the bill to the relevant standing committee for consideration.
Pakistan ranked fifth on Christian support organization Open Doors 2020 World Watch list of the 50 countries where it is most difficult to be a Christian, and on Nov. 28, 2018, the United States added Pakistan to its blacklist of countries that violate religious freedom.
The financial institutions and banks of China are showing reluctance in investing in the China-Pakistan economic corridor (CPEC), the flagship component of China's massive BRI infrastructure project due to instable political climate in the Islamic republic.
Pakistan's Foreign Minister, Shah Mehmood Qureshi, discussed this issue with Chinese authorities during his visit to China last week.
For China, CPEC is a geopolitical game-changer - the biggest success of Chinese expansionism, and for Pakistan it is a life-time opportunity and its last chance for economic modernisation.
For the last six months, the multi-billion dollar project has been both a source of interest and concern even as there has been a global debate over its potential and problems.Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia has turned off the oil tap for Pakistan. Riyadh has halted the provision of "oil on loan" for Islamabad. In 2018, Pakistan had borrowed $6.2 billion in loan from Saudi Arabia out of this $3 billion was debt relief in the form of cash and the remaining $3.2 billion was the worth of oil Riyadh had decided to provide Islamabad annually.The provision expired two months ago and Saudi Arabia hasn't renewed it, instead, it has forced Pakistan to pay $1 billion from the cash loan it had secured.
The dream project of Pakistan govt has been in news always for wrong reasons.
In May this year, a committee looking into the losses in Pakistan's power sector has dug out a $625 scam.
The money trail leads to China and it involves two Chinese power producers Huaneng Shandong Ruyi energy (HSR) and Port Qasim Electric Power Company Limited.Both companies are connected to CPEC power projects. The allegations against them are of violation of standard procedure and malpractices. Both Chinese plants showed excess set-up costs for extra profits. They were earning annual profits of up to 50 to 70 per cent. The cost was borne by the consumers of Pakistan.On the other hand, Most of the CPEC workers based in Pakistan belong to the Chinese military in one way or the other. They are trained in martial arts and weapon handling.
That’s why they get involved in clashes with Pakistani locals and thrash them now and then.
Last year there were reports of trafficking of Pakistani women to China, who were lured with fake marriages.
Media reports raised concerns of trafficking of Pakistani women to China. Since the CPEC project started in 2013, large number of Chinese are entering Pakistan to work on various projects.
The CPEC is the flagship component of China's massive BRI infrastructure project, both of which were announced in 2015. The BRI has been heavily criticised as being a veil for Chinese colonial expansion, leaving less developed countries with huge amounts of debts, thereby allowing Beijing to exert its influence over them.
https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/chinese-banks-looking-to-curtail-investments-in-cpec-due-to-instability-in-pakistan-323485
They are now calling me General Papa Johnny. Do you know why? Because I, retired Lt Gen. Asim Saleem Bajwa, committed a sin by introducing this poor Pakistani nation to heavenly pepperoni pizzas. Blame me, best hang me, but you can’t deny my great service to the country. Yes, it is personal and it is about my pizza valour.
Retiring as lieutenant-general of the ‘Number 1’ military in the world, I saw many ups and downs but none like what I am facing now. I know that you’ve heard about my secret global economic escapades in the last few days — 99 companies, 133 pizza joints, some 13 commercial properties in the US including two shopping malls — don’t we all love malls. To all those complaining I say: Mehnat kar dost, hasad na kar (work hard my friend, don’t be jealous). Truth be told, it is no mean achievement to build an empire like mine in a poor country like Pakistan.
My cars and pizzas
Those who say that other countries have armies and the Pakistan army has a country are deeply conflicted. We are the only rich men stuck in a poor country. Why don’t you see our misery? You think it all came easy? I climbed my way up by kneading dough, that too yeast-free. Have a heart and imagine my struggle.
My bank balance, my properties, my corner plots, my pizza restaurants, even my swanky Toyota ZX 2016 are all in the greater national interest of Pakistan. If hypocrisy had a face it would be mine, but you still want me to give you my money trail. You call it corruption? Do remember the 101 of our national narrative: the only corrupt in this great nation are the politicians, those of civilian variety, not like me. Repeat it a hundred times, better yet, hang it by your bedside.
If you don’t know me then you don’t need to know more than you know already. Apologies, but trying to hold me accountable for my retirement benefits won’t change anything.
Thorough professional
This brings me to the other part of my life in which I act as a politician. Though my friends tell me that my bad luck began when I joined Prime Minister Imran Khan, because everything he touches turns to trash.
I am now special assistant to the prime minister on information. That is due to my previous excellent work as director-general (DG) of Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR). Those who came after me couldn’t match my charm. While those before had no idea how to run ISPR.
At ISPR, Pakistan’s information revolution began with me, I was the real deal. The digital troll armies, the hashtags, the branding of then army chief Gen. Raheel Sharif — I was the game-changer then and I am here now. You’d all remember my famous hashtag #ThankYouRaheelSharif, it was in honour of my boss. When Raheel slept I trended ‘thanks’, when he walked I trended ‘thanks’, when he prayed I trended ‘thanks’. The face of my boss was on trucks, car bonnets, and banners in the streets. My biggest achievement? I was the first to bring any Pakistani army chief’s face on abaniyan — such is my power in making military men great. My stint as DG ended soon, otherwise, Sharif underwear was next on the cards.
Making Bajwas great again
I understand the pain of the people too.
I made hit songs such as Bada Dushman Bana Phirta Jo Bachon Se Ladta Hai, right after the Taliban killed 140 children in the Peshawar army school in December 2014. On the massacre’s first anniversary, I came up with Mujhe Dushman Ki Bachon Ko Parhana Hai. I gave special tuitions to the children of the dushman, and it was with that tuition fee that I built my multimillion empire. Just like that, I finished terrorism in Pakistan. No one seems to remember that.
When I left ISPR, I took with me my 3 million Twitter followers. I never handed over the official account to your favourite incoming DG Asif Ghafoor. Why should have I thrown away my hard work? Don’t judge me, it was all in the greater good of the nation.
My purpose is to serve. I did so as commander of the 111-Brigade, a brigade notorious for helping military coups — yet, I myself did no such thing. I was known as the dharna innovator in 2014, because many think I was helping Imran Khan put up a DJ show in Islamabad’s D Chowk.
These are the qualities that have left even senior Bajwa with no option but to trust me. People like to call me Chota Bajwa, but big or small, together we both can both make Bajwas great again!
As you know, I am a man of talents. I am also chairman of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). I trust myself and there is no reason for the Chinese not to trust me. That is why I insist anyone who as much says a word about my corruption is liable of high treason. You question Bajwa, you question your existence. You question Bajwa over business with the United States and not China, you are an agent and conspirator of the dushman.
پاکستان پیپلز پارٹی کے چیئرمین بلاول بھٹو زرداری نے گلگت بلتستان کی صورتحال پر شدید تشویش کا اظہار کیا ہے، جہاں شدید سیلاب اور طوفانی بارشوں کے بعد ضلع دیامر میں ٹاٹا پانی اور لال پری کے علاقوں کے قریب شاہراہ قراقرم بلاک ہو گئی ہے۔ طوفانی بارش نے وہاں کھڑی فصلوں اور باغات کو بھی تباہ کردیا ہے۔ اپنے جاری کردہ پریس بیان میں پی پی پی چیئرمین نے کہا کہ گلگت بلتستان میں مواصلات کی خرابی کے باعث میڈیا کو نقصانات رپورٹ کرنے میں بھی دشواری کا سامنا ہے۔ انہوں نے وفاقی حکومت پر زور دیا ہے کہ وہ مذکورہ علاقے میں عوام اور بنیادی انفراسٹرکچر کو بچانے کے لئے این ڈی ایم اے سمیت دیگر امدادی و بحالی کے اداروں کو فعال بنائے۔
بلاول بھٹو زرداری نے نشاندہی کی کہ شاہراہ قراقرم پر بنائی گئی سرنگ میں دراڑیں پڑ گئی ہیں اور اگر اس کی بروقت مرمت نہ کی گئی تو وہ منہدم ہو سکتی۔ انہوں نے کہا کہ سیلاب اور اس کے نتیجے میں لینڈ سلائیڈنگ کے نتیجے میں چلاس سمیت گلگت بلتستان کے دیگر علاقوں میں جانی نقصان ہوا ہے، جن میں سیاح بھی شامل ہیں، جبکہ دیامیر اور دیگر اضلاع میں کھڑی فصلیں اور باغات زیرِ آب آگئے ہیں۔ پی پی پی چیئرمین نے وفاقی حکومت کے ساتھ ساتھ حکومتِ گلگت بلتستان پر بھی زور دیا کہ وہ شہریوں کی امداد کے لئے تمام ممکن وسائل بروئے کار لائیں۔ انہوں نے متنبہ کیا کہ ان کی جماعت حکومت کو شہریوں کو درپیش مشکلات سے صرفِ نظر کرنے کی اجازت نہیں دے گی۔
بلاول بھٹو زرداری نے گلگت بلتستان میں پاکستان پیپلز پارٹی کے رہنماؤں و کارکنان کو بھی ہدایت دیں کہ وہ ہر ضلع میں شدید بارشوں، سیلاب اور لینڈ سلائیڈنگ کے متاثرین کی ہر ممکن امداد کے لیئے اپنا کردار ادا کریں۔
