THE Federal Cabinet, at its meeting in Islamabad on Tuesday with Prime Minister Imran Khan in the chair, adopted proactive approach on several issues of core interest to the people of Pakistan and the Muslim world.
It decided to send aid to Palestine to help the country deal with the Covid-19 pandemic and the medical emergency situation created by Israeli air strikes that have been ongoing for more than a week.
It also unfolded a plan to kick-start discussion on the use of electronic voting machines (EVMs) in elections, vowed to increase allocations for agriculture sector for the next three years and took stock of the recent successful visit of the Prime Minister to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) and latest developments vis-à-vis Rawalpindi Ring Road (R3).
Minister for Information and Broadcasting Fawad Chaudhry, while briefing newspersons about proceedings of the cabinet, legitimately claimed that Prime Minister Imran Khan provided leadership to the Muslim Ummah from day one on the Palestine issue as the country was in a leading role in efforts aimed at highlighting the cause and plight of Palestinians and seeking an end to the ongoing bloodshed in Gaza at the hands of Israeli forces.
The Prime Minister himself spoke to the Palestinian President Mamoud Abbas while Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi is actively in touch with his counterparts from other OIC member countries and would form part of a delegation to participate in the UN General Assembly debate on Israeli aggression.
However, there is greater urgency for provision of medical aid in view of ruthless bombing by the Jewish State resulting in hundreds of casualties and injuries.
It is not possible to get the true picture of the Covid-19 related complications in the conflict zone but one can understand the situation in an area under continued blockade and there is, therefore, dire need to dispatch medical aid for Gaza.
Previously, Edhi Foundation had expressed its intention to deliver medical aid and reports from across the country indicated people were eager to contribute for the noble cause.
We hope that in coordination with the relevant UN agencies a modus operandi would be finalized at the soonest for prompt delivery of the medical supplies to the area.
As for EVMs, there is definitely a need for comprehensive reforms before holding of next general election so that the perennial grievances of electoral frauds and riggings are taken care of.
It augurs well that the Government has decided to invite parliamentary leaders and parliamentary reporters for a briefing session on the use of EVMs.
However, in view of the reservations being expressed by the opposition parties on different aspects of the use of EVMs, the Government should adopt an open-ended policy on the issue.
It would be counter-productive to finalize a plan without proper input from all stakeholders and that too on an issue that has become very sensitive for understandable reasons.
As has repeatedly been pointed out by neutral analysts, the move about use of EVMs should have come from the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) and not from the Government.
As the project involves expenditure worth over 100 billion rupees, there is need for extreme care so that the tax-payers’ money is not wasted on an experiment that creates more controversies than addressing the complaints of rigging.
The Prime Minister definitely deserves appreciation for steadfastly pursuing the policy of transparency and accountability even if it involved reputation and popularity of the Government.
He did so in the case of sugar and wheat scandals and has once again demonstrated his commitment to zero tolerance to corruption and misuse of power by ordering a comprehensive inquiry in the R3 project.
It is widely believed that re-alignment was done to benefit some private housing societies and that too at an additional cost of Rs. 23 billion to the provincial exchequer.
It is also a foregone conclusion that Rs. 2.3 billion was wrongly distributed on account of land acquisition and its recovery should be the priority.
The issue is now in the court of Anti-Corruption Punjab and the NAB and it will take some time to pinpoint those behind the scam but mere inquiry is not enough and revival of this project of far-reaching importance should be the top priority of the provincial government.
The latest reports that KSA has agreed to revive the oil facility on deferred payment is yet another manifestation of the success of the PM’s recent visit and talks with Saudi leadership.
The Prime Minister has done well by holding a follow-up meeting on the visit that should lead to practical steps by the two countries on different aspects of understanding reached during the visit, especially increased manpower export to the Kingdom.
