The Daily PakistanPolitics Oct16-31, 2016

• Oct31-2016--while the PMLq is a doghli party having supported the PMLn candidate in the jhelum bye-election its Moonis Elahi was booked for bringing in a truckload of sticks and flags to islamabad
  
• Oct31-2016--The government suddenly removed the blocking of people entering from KP for the PTI jalsa as people questioned the governments attitude in barricading the motorway, lal haveli and banigala...the government accused a PTI minister of bringing in a bottle of alcohol which he said was honey..they also said that weapons were recovered from his car while the minister escaped back to KP...Imran Khan said that a huge crowd would participate while the government said that an islamabad lockdown would be a crime against the state...several smaller organisation have often blocked islamabad without major governmental opposition
  
• Oct31-2016--In what many point to as the chinese attempts to get a bigger stake in the countries economy...The dubious Abraaj group has decided to sell their 66.4% stake in K-Electric the karachi power utility...while the government has not shown any reaction a few directors say that they have not been consulted...Abraaj says that it has increased power generation by 1000 MW and invested $1 billion and has only recently seen some profits to the tune OF Rs.22 billion last year...so its decision to sell for $1.7 billion seems surprising...it might as they say be cutting and running due to the strategic problems caused by political uncertainty and almost continuous strife...The buyer runs a power utility in Shanghai and has almost 4000 MW of generating capacity...efficiency however is still very low at 30.4% down from around 40%...The chinese who are more hands on operators might find the going tough too
  
• Oct31-2016--latest reports suggest that reports about the governments inability to decide on the new army chief maybe correct...some now suggest that the new rising star maybe the militaries head of analysis Bajwa...a stooping oldish figure... Nawaz Sharif fell for Raheel Shareef because of his pro government analysis...while many point to his being an ahmedi others say that he is a straight sunni...!Hayat and Javed Ramday were thought tobe the earlier heir apparents however the Imran Khan strategies might have changed how the Nawaz Sharif think tank thinks...many have pointed to Nawaz Sharifs almost sidelined status and inability in decision making and his following of dubious analysis...
  
• Oct31-2016--In what seems pretty surprising the interior minister says they have never had any hard talk(tulkhi) despite all the terrorism and reported difference of opinions between Nawaz Sharif and the army chief... Shabaz Sharif never had any problems with the ISI chief...This in the context of the Cyril Almeida report on serious talk between the top officials of the country...he also said that such a meeting never took place...after reported contacts were reported between Mariam safdar and cyril almeida the media reported that the army chief wanted two culprits tobe handed over to the army...one wonders why he took several ministers to meet the army chief at his home when nothing had happened..one can only suggest that a serious meeting to sort out differences was held at the army house because the primeministers house was bugged...???reports from unconfirmed sources suggest that thinks like who would be the next primeminister if Nawaz sharif was asked to stand down by the SC etc...he also suggests that the information minister knew about the report tobe published of the non meeting and did nothing about it...others suggest that the information minister might have been asked to leave office after his terrible handling of the PTI siege...one wonders at the hoopla when such a meeting never took place...many however suggest that the primeminister is to blame and he is scapegoating the information minister...such reports have routinely appeared about differences between the army and the government..others suggest that both the army and the government are quilty of propaganda against each other...many point to the almost brazen pro Raheel Sharif propaganda campaign that almost brought down the government...the army protagonists directly accuse Nawaz Sharif of bad governance while trying to portray Raheel Shareef as an angel from heaven...!while the government campaign is more subdued they also accuse the army of supporting non state actors...if true that is one of the greatest climbdowns by a primeminister who supopsoedly started out as a Taleban stooge...!
  
• Oct30-2016--The PTI seems to have been undone by the extreme manhandling by the PMLn...while Sheikh rashid did put some egg on Nawaz Sharifs pockmarked face Imran Khan was almost house bound...with attempts at blocking all roads to Islamabad the government has done what the PTI wanted...with Imran Khans extremist foe Pervez Rashid out of the way Imran should at least breathe a bit more easily...however he should prepare the local party workers to quickly get into position if the government clampdown continues...at the moment workers donot know where and when to gather...apparently the government blocked the motorway after 900 armed men tried to reach Islamabad...Imran should cancel the gathering if manpower is not available and try at a later date...however many feel that Imran may have to backout if the SC shows some skill in handling the Panamagate issue...Shah Mahmood urged the PMLn to pass the PTI panamagate enquiry bill thru parliament if they wanted the protest stopped...
  
• Oct30-2016--The information minister has been fired so that an investigation into the Cyril almeida report can get underway...the information minister is not usually at a high level internal security meeting...it is also being reported that the defence minister has left the country
  
• Oct30-2016--The Punjab government has cutoff KP from the punjab by blocking the roads with sand and blocking the motorway with containers...reports also of blockages on entering Islamabad from Punjab with bridges blocked with mud...!
  
• Oct30-2016--In what can be termed a freak accident an army colonel died after falling into a ditch at night while walking on the motorway after it had been blocked...
  
• Oct30-2016--five die in a sectarian attack after gunmen fired in a tent of a womens majlis in karachi
  
• Oct29-2016--In what seems tobe the general feeling the PMLn also has agreed that a number of power stations may fall short of completion by 2018...they have therefore decided to tender for another RLNG power plant of 1200MW based on imported fuel...whether it can be completed in two years seems a bit difficult as three years is the normal completion period...given that a six month period would be needed to place the orders...construction and shipment probably more than a year ...that leaves only a few months for installation...at the moment the ministry says they have 2632MW of hydropower and 3960MW of coal plants slated for completion by 2018...only one unit of neelum jhelum is tobe completed this year...and the other units could take upto two years...they suggest that with other forms of energy they will have doubled it to 13207MW which looks like an impossibility at the moment...they also suggest that another 20380MW will be on line by by 2022...with the uncertainty of any mega hydel projects the government should keep in mind that hydel power only maximizes in the summer months...
  
• Oct29-2016--another five alqaeda men killed in lahore in a suspicious puls muqabila...
  
• Oct29-2016--The SC has decided to hear the panama cases with a larger five man bench...justice khilji dropped from earlier bench..the bench can now be considered tobe mildly aggressive...one possibility available to the judiciary is to form an investigative team to interrogate the head of the sharifs panama companies Mariam Safdar...even though both nawaz sharif and his wife claim the mayfair apartments as theirs...!
  
• Oct29-2016--harsh tactics by the PMLn have forced the cancellation of the sheikh rashid rallies in raja bazaar as PTI activists clashed with police at committee chowk and protested in lahore...numerous arrests by police forced PTI workers to gather at bani galla...murree road shutdown..police clashes at banigala and committee chowk...Imran Khan virtually under house arrest...in contrast the PTI allowed a nawaz sharif jalsa in kohat with minor clashes/demos
  
• Oct29-2016--in what seems tobe an overkill all roads leading to Bhabra bazaar were blocked with multiple containers in a haphazard manner...to block a sheikh rashid rally or jalsa...the government which had seized hundreds of containers over the past days had no where to put them after the courts ordered the government not to block any road in islamabad
  
• Oct28-2016--four militants killed in quetta gunbattle as balochistan government demands pre 1958 policing powers
  
• Oct28-2016--pakistan expelled an indian HC official and his family...a havaldar working in the pakistan embassy visa section was expelled after he got documents of indian plans to attack across the LOC...India killed another three pakistanis thru firing across across the LOC and working boundary
  
• Oct28-2016--The governments fright at the PTI shutdown islamabad protest came to light clearly as government supporting IHC judge stopped Imran Khan from blocking entry points to the city or paralysing the city...the judge also stopped the government from blocking roads and asked Imran khan to hold his rally in a corner of the Parade ground...The government has previously not stopped the MWM and other even smaller groups from blocking entry points to various cities...there were scuffles after the government blocked even an indoor PTI gathering...in another first the police warned hotels and guest houses from giving PTI men accommodation...!The PTI oredered a countrywide protest against the government threats and attitude of the police
  
• Oct28-2016--a realtors rally against excessive taxation was stopped by police at koral chowk and than at khanna pul... however the police inefficiency against small crowds was demonstrated by the blockage of all traffic at various places from bahria to faizabad
  
• Oct25-2016--two killed in indians heavy mortar firing along the working boundary with occupied kashmir
  
• Oct25-2016--four militants dead in an attack on a quetta police training center where one trainee was killed...
  
• Oct25-2016--two custom officers killed in mastung as two more of those hurt in a jiwani bazaar attack die
  
• Oct25-2016--The lal masjid has also declared the sharifs tobe devil incarnate and have suggested that they will support the jihad if the barelvis of the PAT stay away...The deobandis are regarded as Nawaz Sharif supporters and have more of a militaristic attitude compared to the pathetic barelvis...both imran khan and the lal masjid have declared Nawaz Sharif tobe a security threat and many analysts regard him as a narendra modi hand maiden...the indians are trying to prop up Nawaz Sharif thru propaganda as suggested also by Imran Khan
  
• Oct25-2016--many have surmised that Nawaz Sharif has previously used the shiites to block the faizabad-zero point road and also allowed them to block many country city entry and exit points..therefore in theory they support such actions as the Imran Khan seige...others have suggested that the threat from the army might be mounting as the army chief decision could be made in early to mid November...that is usually the the time that the army can be easily destabilized...many are suggesting with islamabad blocked the army would avoid a coup or any serious military action...however Imran Khan while praising the militaries actions jokingly against internally weak opponents like the taleban, baloch-irani insurgents, chotu gang, mqm, religious insurgencies...has urged them to help out by eliminating the 'motu gang'..imran khan has also critisized the defence minister for not defending the armed forces and intelligence agencies...however many regard the militaries dealing with indian aggression as pathetically inept...despite knowing that the indians refuse any sort of negotiations on kashmir raheel sharif has been calling for a solution to the kashmir problem from western countries who are generally considered tobe in the indian camp...india as usual has the terrorist card which hardly makes any difference to the situation and is not considered under pakistans control despite government and indian propaganda to the contrary...
  
• Oct25-2016--The imran khan blockade will cutoff all incoming roads to islamabad at entry points while the main jalsa will be on the faizabad-zero point road...the police have also prepared a list of over 400 PTI officials tobe arrested...while the PTI has prepared a 20 man lawyers team to challenge them in the courts...This time the demos will be organized by rawalpindi supporters of the PTI while it will be funded by PTI's lahore branch...the seige will theoretically only be for three days although Nawaz Sharif who was the only one worried by PTI's earlier army supported(five generals supported Imran Khan plus a couple of retired ISI DG's) dharna might be forced out of office theoretically or he might theoretically have to cede the primeministership to Imran Khan(behind the scenes)...many regard Imran Khan's tactics to have slowed down development projects and helped Nawaz Sharif gain control of his party...others say that Imran Khan has literally allowed Nawaz Sharif to win almost electoral contests in the hope that he will be defused and not make an effort and so lose his electoral sense by the time the next elections come around and they can sneak in with the supposed connivance of the PPP who have already been fooled to think that they will win the next elections..Bilawal Bhutto forgetting what happened to his mother has moved the SHC for provision of countrywide security
  
• Oct25-2016--The daily Dawn suggests that the PTI is looking to influence the selection of the army chief as well as get the courts to consider the sharifs as major financial wranglers of the country...The government is trying to suggest that it has righted the finances of the country...the opposition is suggesting that they have doubled the loans and there is no change in any aspect of governance...with electricity load shedding continuing at the same pace and electricity prices skyrocketing...the small power stations coming on line have had no effect...only the first neelum power unit is slated to come online in december and no other major power system has even been inaugurated...there are some power plants supposedly like power units to tunnel four and five in tarbela but they will try to use some extra water being released and there will be no major difference in tarbela's output and will not be completed for two-six years..Dasu has not started and Nawaz Sharif just visited the site...the supposedly 60% of CPEC power plants are nowhere near starting or even completion...The chinese have complained that they cannot fund CPEC and the roads started in the CPEC corridor are apparently funded by other donors and thus are not a part of CPEC...punjab is relying on just distributing green cars to PMLn employees and no other major project is being undertaken in the punjab barring the orange line which the courts are trying to slow down..The WB/ADP/IMF has suggested that CPEC type corridor projects are being undertaken in many countries even in india and china where several corridors are being constructed... however with no associated area development no economic offtakes can be expected barring construction economics...The ADP however suggests that extreme poverty has been reduced to around six per cent in pakistan and that they are funding two of the supposed CPEC roads...No chinese funding of any CPEC road has been announced..others suggest that most of the funding was coming from donors like saudi arabia with china just being a front...
  
• Oct25-2016--A three judge committee of IHC judges denotified controversial administration decisions of the CJ IHC Anwer Kasi who is also the subject of an SJC complaint...the CJ had reappointed a retired official and promoted kith and kin and raised payscales of the khateeb and a clerk irregularly...he is also supposed to have hired his own brother although no mention of that is made by the committee which was formed by an SC judges decision...The courts have for the first time looked at their own illegal decisons after the controversial arsalan ifthikar corruption was overlooked or smothered...The committee said that payscales could not be changed and retired officials could not be rehired while other appointments must be advertised...
  
• Oct24-2016--after backing out of a fight with the belligerent indians Raheel shareef claims that the zarb e arb which was just a cleansing operation after the subjugation of the taleban was a war for peace...in the zarb e arab...north waziristan... was at best an invasion of an empty region after the population was evacuated..the taleban ran for the afghan border while their unprotected weapons/ammunition depots were destroyed
  
• Oct24-2016--Mqm-london leaders locked up for a month after Rangers raid hyderabad offices and demolished three offices...Farook Sattar says he is the only leader left standing
  
• Oct24-2016--two soldiers working with the pakistan coast guards shot dead in Jiwani bazaar
  
• Oct24-2016--police and Imran Khan prepare for the seige of islamabad...police ask for 6800 rubber bullets
  
• Oct24-2016--An SC judge who has been the first CJ of the IHC has resigned from the SC..a few days ago he had recused himself from a case involving a christian women...
  
• Oct23-2016--indians firing across the LOC boundary and have also started to shell across the working boundary after a 14 months lull...
  
• Oct232-2016--A taleban Qatar delegation in islamabad for talks after the pakistanis raided a taleban supporting seminary twice in quetta...afghan government has also met an afghan taleban delegation recently
  
• Oct23-2016--The pakistani currency is so weak that the government now to issue a Rs10 coin after it issued a tiny paisa like Rs5 coin...
  
• Oct23-2016--The mqm-london faced the wrath of the government as the Rangers launched a crackdown and took its three karachi based leaders into custody as well as one who runs hyderabad
  
• Oct22-2016--Nawaz Sharif insists that his government will complete its term...that could be but that government could also be minus nawaz Sharif if the SC shows its integrity and intentions to deal with panamagate in the real sense...it could order the government to replace Nawaz Sharif as primeminister until a decision on the case...such a situation would help both sides...The PMLn would be able to say that it has presented the culprit for judicial review while the PTI could claim victory on having achieved its goal of toppling Nawaz...can our courts really take their job seriously...one doubts that but who knows the weak court might turn the tables on the powerful government...!
  
• Oct22-2016--The SC has ordered the sharifs and their henchmen to appear in court on November1..The court could try to show that it is serious in trying the issue or that it has no locus standii in the matter since there is no evidence to prosecute...it could also ask a lower court to try the sharifs who only have to show that they are not using illegal money ransacked from pakistan...!The court might also turn aggressive and order the arrest of the sharif children and ask imran khan to shut down his protest till it reaches its decision since his protest could affect court proceedings...!
  
• Oct21-2016--The london based mqm started to rebuild by gathering people to offer fateha at their yadgar near azizabad...however Rangers restricted entry to the small crowd and only allowed a few women and some newly formed rabita committee members...PSP's kamal mustafa questioned the loyalty to the country of the sindh governor ishratul ibad...a conniving low lying altaf loyalist he was accused of having a dual nationality...
  
• Oct21-2016--The defence secretary tells a senate committee that the indians maybe preparing for mischief...this after narendra modi expressed appreciation for the israeli methods against the almost unarmed palestinians...the indians apparently have moved an additional corp to the LOC and also moved their SU35's to forward bases...The SU35's are fast attack aircraft...according to the secretary...pakistan is now on high alert and has activated its forward airbases...to retaliate against an indian incursion from the air and ground requires extreme readiness and pakistans reactions have tobe fast and quick...pakistan does not appear have moved any ground troops...but there has been some activity in the air...to retaliate on the ground in a difficult terrain quickly requires fast transports/mounted artillery and reactions...so most of the retaliation to any actual surgical strikes will have to come from the air...pakistans only possible defences are thus short range missiles and probably F-16's in the air ready to retaliate...
  
• Oct21-2016--The IHC dismissed a petition for the elevation of the army chief to field marshal...that there was no process or law under which it could direct either the government or the legislature in the matter...Raheel Shareef has already reached retirement age and said a year ago that he would retire normally...the primeminister generally decides such matters and could either give an extension or even a promotion..however there is some confusion on who would consist of the promotion board in case of a promotion to field marshal which would be an abnormal move and field marshals are usually only promoted in wartime...while raheel shareef has generally been successful he has run into problems with the indians at the end...while he has publically been willing to go to battle he has probably realized that it is not so easy to do so...and a propaganda war is the easiest option
  
• Oct21-2016--The SC initiates proceedings on Panamagate after the government was unable to restrict the opposition to its gerrymandering and delaying tactics after the SC had rejected its request to form a judicial commission...The court has asked the sharif family to attend the hearing and present its case...It is now a straight forward judicial case on whether the sharif family should be declared guilty of hiding funds and declared ineligible to stay in parliament...The need for the sharif's to form a company in panama to just buy two houses in england with suspect resources is questionable...!not long ago even chaudhry Nisar did not know that the sharifs owned two mayfair apartments...the court will have to decide the legality of issues and where the sharifs brought funds from...!both sharif brothers got substantial payments from the panama company despite not even having any shares in the companies...technically the company belongs to mariam safdar who has at the moment disappeared from the scene...khawaja asif says that nawaz sharif has surrendered to the courts both judicial and those of public opinion...The court has suggested that Imrans khans seige of islamabad will be treated seperately and that it will not be politically biased...There has been mild evidence to suggest that the CJ is moving away from the position of backing Nawaz sharif totally...however most judges are still those appointed by the martial law and the current government...very few judges are generally expected to take an independent honest judicial position and question the very basics of why a ruling family has so many eggs outside the country...it is not only the illegality of having funds abroad but the initiation of hidden ownerships thru offshore companies with questionable dealings in fund transfers...while an ordinary bussinessman would not theoretically be considered suspect... when the very rulers and their sons and daughters do so than it becomes almost criminal...
  
• Oct18-2016--Senate says CPEC has the capability of becoming an East India company...
  
• Oct18-2016--PSP says Ishratul Ibad is an anti pakistani imported by altaf hussein and listens to altaf's speeches...Ibad on the other hand says the PSP's mustafa kamal is an unguided missile and altaf husseins used cartridge...
  
• Oct16-2016--The newly appointed mqm-london interim coordination committee held a press briefing at the Rangers controlled Karachi Press Club...consisting mostly of unknowns they tried to suggest that altaf hussain was the only bani of the mqm...however apart from farook sattar and two others who were assassinated by supposedly altaf gangsters there were four bani arkaan of the initial APMSO which was the predecessor of the mqm...a professor hasan arif is the apparent leader of the mqm london and future elections in karachi can certainly be more democratic as there was little or no opposition for the altaf hussain led mqm barring ethnic opposition consisting generally of pukhtuns and the sindhi PPP...the interim coordination committee tried to suggest that there was only one mqm but the PSP and the mqm pakistan are now almost realities...what happened in a recent by election could be a harbinger which will not allow the mqm members to resign and seek reelection due to the uncertain nature of support amongst the mohajirs...obviously with three ethnic mohajir groups there will be some sort of a contest on the mohajir dominated seats...The mqm london committee has quickly tried to seize the upper hand after the foolish british police released their seized funds...it is yet tobe seen whether the mqm can come together or exist in two or three groups...
  
• Oct16-2016--after half a century of failures in making the indians talk on kashmir Nawaz Sharif touring a shiite outpost azerbaijan still wants to hold talks with the indians...the pakistanis seem to have joined the shiite group and their policies are aligned to iran, syria, iraq, lebanon and azerbaijan...while they can get along with the russians and iranians they are really not pakistan's historical allies...The russians are india's military suppliers and the iranians/syrians umbrella...they have little in common with pakistan which has been allied traditionally with the US and saudi groups...with the US trying to woo india and iran and distancing itself from pakistan..it is stuck in the middle...and pakistan is at best a parasite which is now not in the good books of anyone...maybe the pakistanis should develop their own positions and learn to stand on their own two feet...becoming hangers on in another camp when one is distancing itself from its own group does not seem tobe good policy
  
• Oct16-2016--337 lawmakers suspended for not filling assets declarations
  
• Oct16-2016--a petition was filed in the IHC to promote the retiring Raheel Shareef to the position of field martial...such a request can only be considered if the government inits wisdom had either rejected the option after carefully studying raheel shareefs record...however a general can only be promoted to field marshal if he has conducted a widespread war...many think the option was considered but the CPEC/zarb e azb general was found wanting by the promotion committee which could at best be formed of either other army chiefs or other retired generals...such a position does not effect the petitioners in any way and judges in theory should reject the suggestion...the general in the recent past has only been concerned about the CPEC which is not really anything really important apart to some chinese strategists..he has recently expressed concern about the reversal of the zarb e azb...many think that the army in a way were positively inclined to the taleban and their terrorist activities which gave them an importance not possible in normal times...they like the propaganda aspects while the taleban liked the terrorist aspects...one believes that the general should not be worried about CPEC and zarb e azb..because if a problem occurs it will have tobe handled by the government in the context and intensity that it occurs...whether the CPEC is completed today or tommorrow hardly matters and even without CPEC the people can travel as can chinese containers because alternate routes exist...to really develop the pukhtun corridor huge development strategies have tobe followed to create settlements...transfer populations and make them financially viable in those areas...that takes time and effort and cannot be completed on a fast track basis...!!!