Islamabad: The Judicial Commission of Pakistan has approved the appointment of 11 additional judges appointed in the Lahore High Court as regular judges of the High Court.

The meeting of the Commission was held in the Supreme Court under the chairmanship of the Chairman/Chief Justice of Pakistan.

According to the sources, the Commission has approved the appointment of 11 of the thirteen judges as regular judges of the High Court.

The objections were raised on the two judges to appoint as regular judges, including Justice Shan Gill and Justice Sohail Nasir.

Among the 11 additional judges who have been accepted as regular judges of the High Court, Justice Shakeel Ahmed, Justice Safdar Saleem Shahid, Justice Ahmad Nadeem Arshad, Justice Tariq Nadeem, Justice Amjad Rafiq, Justice Abid Hussain Chatha, Justice Anwar Hussain, Justice Ali. The names of Zia Bajwa, Justice Sultan Tanveer, Justice Raza Qureshi, and Justice Raheel Kamran are included.

Islamabad: Jean Pierre, Lacroix, United Nations (UN) Under Secretary General Department of Peacekeeping Operations (USG DPO) called on General Qamar Javed Bajwa, Chief of Army Staff (COAS) at GHQ, today.

During the meeting, matters of mutual interests and overall regional security situation were discussed. COAS appreciated the role of the office of Under Secretary in promoting UN core values and their response during crises.

UN dignitary acknowledged Pakistan’s contribution in UN peacekeeping Missions & extraordinary achievements in counter terrorism.

The UN Under Secretary also expressed his grief over the devastation caused by floods in Pakistan due to climate changes and offered sincere condolence to the families of the victims.

Islamabad: Senator Farooq Hamid Naek called for collective efforts to tackle the threat of Climate Change and major debt relief to the counties in need to allow them the fiscal space for the achievement of SDG #13.

Addressing a sideline meeting of the Parliamentary Union of OIC Member States ( PIUC) at the 145 IPU Assembly in kigali, Rwanda, Senator Farooq Hamid Naek has stressed the need for combined steps and collective wisdom to counter the threat of Global Warming. He underlined that the Havoc caused by devastating floods in Pakistan is a “wake-up call” for the world to gear up their contributions towards minimizing the adverse impacts of climate change.

“Pakistan contributes less than 1% of the global greenhouse gases that warm our planet but its geography makes it extremely vulnerable to climate change. Due to which sense of injustice is keenly felt in the country”, he stated.

He thanked the Chair of the meeting as well as the Secretariat of the Parliamentary Union of OIC Member States (PUIC) for allowing the opportunity to present the emergency item proposed by the Parliament of Pakistan for inclusion in the agenda of the 145 IPU Assembly.

Farooq Naek applauded the OIC Member States for extending unflinching support to Pakistan in its difficult times. “The government, parliament and people of Pakistan thank the governments of the OIC Member States for their strong expression of solidarity and continued support towards the relief activities in the flood-hit areas of Pakistan”, he remarked.

In the backdrop of the recent flood, the Parliament of Pakistan has proposed an emergency item for inclusion in the agenda of the 145th IPU Assembly taking place in Rwanda next week. He called for the support of the entire PUIC fraternity towards the emergency item proposed at the 145 IPU Assembly.

“The resolution titled “Creating a Global Fund/Financing facility for climate Vulnerable Countries to Address Loss and Damage Associated with Climate Change” not only highlights the sufferings of Pakistan due to the devastating floods but also calls upon the international community to achieve not only “net zero”, but “net minus”‘ carbon emission by 2050”, he noted.

While addressing the Asian Parliamentary Assembly (APA) coordinating Meeting on the Sideline of the 145th IPU Assembly, Senator Naek called for the creation of a “global fund/financing facility” for climate-vulnerable countries to address damages and losses associated with Climate Change.

While acquitting the participants with the catastrophe caused by the recent flood in Pakistan, Senator Farooq Hamid Naek urged all the APA Member Parliaments to support the emergency item proposed by Pakistan to help us in rehabilitating and rebuilding our material losses, adding that the recent pandemics and climate change have been an eye opener that no nation can survive on its own.

He stressed that the international community should also take cognizance of the limited resources available to many developing states

that are facing climate change disasters, especially without contributing much in terms of CO2. It is high time that major debt relief should be provided to counties in need to allow them the fiscal space for the achievement of SDG #13.

“Parliaments are also responsible towards economic development of people, especially in relation to the fulfilment of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and climate change, requiring effective, accountable, and transparent institutions”, he noted. Naek said that according to the report of the Global Climate Risk Index 2021, Pakistan is among the ten countries most affected by extreme weather events despite its very low carbon footprint.

He underlined that the total damages due to the recent flood in Pakistan are estimated at over $30 billion, almost 10% of Pakistan’s GDP. National efforts are underway to support people affected by the ongoing rains and floods, but international solidarity is crucial to adequately address the impacts, he stressed.

He congratulated APA member states for their commendable efforts to facilitate parliamentary diplomacy and to empower parliamentarians and parliaments to promote peace, sustainable development, prosperity and democracy in Asia.

ISLAMABAD: Former Prime Minister and PTI Chairman Imran Khan on Wednesday came hard at Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Sikandar Sultan Raja by calling him ‘biased’ and PML-N’s ‘family man’.

“Had the foreign funding cases of all parties were heard simultaneously, PTI would be the only party with transparent political fund raising. All other parties are run through illegal funding, I can claim in writing,” Imran told reporters outside the Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Wednesday.

The PTI Chief had appeared before court to seek protective bail in a case registered by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) against him and other party leaders for allegedly submitting false affidavits to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) in connection with a prohibited funding case.

Expressing concerns over CEC’s alleged ‘biasness’, Imran said the head of electoral watchdog was unable to prosecute other parties’ funding cases. “The Lahore High Court (LHC) has ordered [the ECP] to hear foreign funding cases [of all parties] simultaneously, but he [CEC] is not doing so, because he is their [PML-N and PPP’s] family man,” he said.

When asked by a journalist about chances of court rejecting his bails, the PTI Chairman said he was prepared for jail too.

Replying to a question regarding the ‘audio-leaks’ scam, former Prime Minister said he was aware of surveillance but leaking audio calls was a big crime. “Telephone calls [of prime ministers] are being leaked, which could be a national security risk,” he maintained.

Earlier, strict security measures were taken by the security institutions as Imran entered the High Court. Heavy contingents of Rangers and Police were deployed inside and outside the IHC, while the Court room Number 1 was thoroughly checked by Bomb Disposal Squads (BDS) before Imran’s arrival.

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court of Pakistan on Monday adjourned hearing till today (Tuesday), on Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Chairman Imran Khan’s petition regarding National Accountability Bureau (NAB) amendments.

A three-member bench headed by Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial heard the case. At the outset of hearing, Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah remarked that the court had to view whether the amendments in the NAB law were contradicting the basic rights or not.

Justice Shah inquired whether the installments of plea bargain amount had been paid or not before amendments in NAB law in 2018. The section-25 of the NAB law was related to plea bargain, he said, adding that now the accused could demand the return of the amount paid as plea-bargain, as per the fresh amendments in the law.

Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial, heading the bench, inquired that whether the confession of an accused wouldn’t be considered even after plea bargain.

PTI’s Lawyer Khawaja Haris Ahmad argued that now cases were being sent back without giving applications by the accused, adding the amounts submitted in result of plea bargain would also be returned now.

Khawaja Haris said that why an accused should pay the amount of plea bargain when he could get relief through the new law. The lawyer said that after the amendment in section 9A and 5, the accused wouldn’t be asked about the source of making assets. After this, hearing of the case was adjourned till today (Tuesday).

ISLAMABAD: President Dr. Arif Alvi has emphasised the need to promote the habit of self-examination among women for the early detection of breast cancer, adding that Pakistan needed to focus on preventing the incidents of diseases, especially breast cancer, as being a developing country, it was under-equipped and under-resourced to provide curative treatment to the entirety of its population.

President Dr. Arif Alvi expressed these views while addressing the launching ceremony of the Breast Cancer Awareness Campaign 2022, held at Aiwan-e-Sadr on Monday. First Lady of Pakistan, Begum Samina Arif Alvi, Surgeon General of Pakistan, Lt. General Nigar Johar, Country Head of World Health Organization (WHO) on Breast Cancer, Dr. Palitha Mahipala, also addressed the ceremony. Members of the diplomatic and medical community, women and female students were also present on the occasion.

Addressing the occasion, the President said that as Pakistan was lacking in resources, it was under-equipped to provide mammography and screening facilities to its entire women population. He added that breast cancer could be detected at the early stages by inculcating among women the habit of self-examination of their breasts and the surrounding areas for signs of lumps or other unusual symptoms. He said that early diagnosis of breast cancer and proper treatment could help increase the chances of survival among women, adding that chances of cure at early stages were as high as 98%.

President Dr. Arif Alvi highlighted that during the COVID-19 pandemic, Pakistan adopted the necessary precautionary measures and relevant SOPs while keeping businesses and mosques open, which led to the containment of the virus. He said that lessons from the effective management of the pandemic as well as the anti-polio campaign needed to be replicated to overcome other diseases.

The President urged the need to create awareness about women’s health issues through media products and strategic messaging during daily talk shows, dramas and movies. He said that social media platforms, mass messaging applications, and digital media influencers could also help spread the message of awareness among the people. He also appreciated the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority and telecom companies for spreading awareness about breast cancer to millions of people in Pakistan through the call caution audio tones.

The President appreciated the First Lady for her resolve to raise awareness about the prevalence and high mortality rate of breast cancer in Pakistan. He said that her sustained efforts had led to an increase in the diagnosis of first-stage cancer cases in women in different hospitals of the country.

The President highlighted that he had also written letters to Prime Minster, Ministers, parliamentarians, and media to solicit their support in this great cause for women and had asked them to wear and display “pink ribbons” during October to create awareness about the deadly disease.

The President also expressed concern over the high prevalence of malnutrition and stunting in women and children, adding that 38% of children in Pakistan suffered from malnutrition-induced stunting. He regretted that the practice of breastfeeding children was dwindling in the country, which needed to be revitalized to overcome malnutrition in children. He said that as per the guidelines of WHO, children should be specifically breastfed during the first six months after birth, and intake of water and other foods should also be avoided.

He also highlighted the need to create awareness about the rights of differently-abled people, besides empowering them financially by equipping them with marketable skills and employing them in different sectors of the economy.

First Lady of Pakistan, Begum Samina Arif Alvi, while addressing the ceremony highlighted that her four-year sustained and continuous efforts were yielding results and women in the far-flung areas of the country were also becoming aware of the deadliness of breast cancer and the number of early-stage breast cancer cases had almost doubled in different hospitals of the country.

Begum Samina Alvi regretted that almost 100,000 cases of breast cancer were reported in Pakistan and almost 50% of women died every year due to a lack of awareness about its symptoms. She called upon the hospitals to hold free screening camps to detect breast cancer in women at the earliest stages for reducing the high mortality rate in Pakistan.

Begum Samina Alvi highlighted that women had to face social pressures and immense physical and mental stress due to breast cancer. She urged the need to provide moral support to women and called for establishing support groups for breast cancer patients and survivors. She also urged women to not ignore their health as their families and the entire nation depended upon them.

Begum Samina Alvi expressed her grief over the devastation and loss of lives due to climate change-induced floods in the country. She informed that this year, public and private buildings would not be illuminated in “pink” and the amount saved would be donated to flood victims to alleviate their sufferings.

Country Head of WHO, Dr Palitha Mahipala, while addressing the occasion appreciated the efforts of the First Lady for the cause of women in Pakistan. He highlighted that the survival rate of breast cancer patients in high-income countries was almost 80%, which could be replicated in Pakistan through the early detection of breast cancer. He informed that South Asia had one of the highest mortality rates due to breast cancer in the world, adding that self-examination, early detection, clinical examination and early treatment were the best way to cure breast cancer.

Surgeon General of Pakistan, Lt. General Nigar Johar, while addressing the ceremony highlighted that 50% population of the country was at risk of breast cancer. She informed that diagnostic and therapeutic facilities in the country had improved, however, she called upon women to develop the habit of examining their breasts and its surrounding areas once a month for early detection.

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Mian Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif on Monday has allocated the portfolio to his special assistant and senior lawyer Irfan Qadir.

Earlier, Qadir was appointed as Special Assistant to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif with a position equal to that of a federal minister.

Irfan Qadir has been given the portfolio of Special Assistant of the Prime Minister on Accountability & Interior with the status of Federal Minister.

The Cabinet Division has issued a notification in this regard after the approval of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. The copy of the notification has been sent to all the concerned officials. There are currently 29 special assistants in the cabinet of PM Shehbaz.