Day: November 3, 2022

ISLAMABAD:Pakistan has called for an immediate end to the decades old United States’ economic embargo on Cuba as it is putting debilitating impacts on the Cubans.

 

Addressing the UN General Assembly on behalf of G77, Pakistan Ambassador and deputy permanent representative to the United Nations Aamir Khan said the limited foreign investment and difficulty of access to development credits translate directly into economic hardship and humanitarian suffering for the people of Cuba.

 

Pakistan envoy expressed deep concern about the widening of the extraterritorial nature of the embargo on Cuba and rejected the United States’ reinforcement of the financial measures it has adopted to tighten the embargo.

ISLAMABAD:Defence Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif has strongly condemned the incident of firing on former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s rally in Wazirabad on Thursday.

 

Taking the floor, he prayed for the early recovery of the injured. He said the rising trend of violent behaviour and intolerance in Pakistan’s politics should also be condemned. The Minister said it is very unfortunate that some of the politicians use aggressive language, which prompts their followers to turn violent toward political opponents.

 

He said the trend to use politics for personal score settling should be avoided to promote tolerance in the society. He said politics is the name of dialogue and resolving issues peacefully. Speaking on the occasion, PTI leader Noor Alam Khan also condemned the attack on Imran Khan and arrest of former Deputy Speaker of Punjab Assembly Dost Muhammad Mazari. He said a thorough probe should be carried out into such incidents.

 

BNP Chief Akhtar Jan Mengal said violence in politics is condemnable. He said violence has no room in a democratic society. Jamaat-e-Islami leader Maulana Abdul Akbar Chitrali said politicians should sit on the dialogue table by setting aside their egos to promote tolerance in the society.

 

Earlier, the House offered fateha for the departed souls of various people, including the brother of Member National Assembly Mussarat Rafique Mahesar. The chair, on the occasion, also condemned the incident of firing on a PTI gathering and prayed for the early recovery of injured. The House has been adjourned due to lack of quorum and it will now meet at 11:00 am tomorrow (Friday).

ISLAMABAD:President Dr Arif Alvi has called upon the universities and educational institutions of the country to conduct market-oriented research to provide indigenous solutions to the indigenous problems being faced by the different sectors of the economy.

 

He added that research and development would help in bringing innovation to the local industry and enhancing the quality and standards of our products and services, which would help in capturing the local and international markets.

 

According to a statement issued here on Thursday, the President made these remarks while addressing the 17th Convocation of the COMSATS University Islamabad. The ceremony was attended by the faculty, graduating students, their parents and others.

 

The President urged the universities and educational institutes to introduce new courses, modify existing ones and divert their academic and material resources toward those subjects, disciplines and occupations which were required by the market. This, he added, would provide the graduates with lucrative jobs, besides providing the industry with pertinent, productive and quality Human Resources to improve the quality of their products and services.

 

The President said that due to the permeation of the internet, knowledge, information training modules and research material were abundantly available to students, however, the importance of teacher-student interaction remained paramount for imparting knowledge.

 

He said students should respect their teachers for equipping them with knowledge and skills, and their parents for their upbringing and for providing them with quality and expensive education. The President appreciated that a large number of female students were graduating, and added that the government, society, and families should ensure their active participation in the economic mainstream.

 

He said the state and society had made great investments in female graduates and they should give back to society by sharing their knowledge and wisdom and serving their country. He urged all the stakeholders to ensure the provision of a harassment-free work environment, safe and secure movement in public spaces, enabling working conditions and respect to provide women security and peace of mind to their family members.

 

The President said the country had suffered dearly in the past due to brain drain and was also suffering now as our highly trained human resources migrated to other countries. He said the nation had produced these quality human resources despite scarce resources and while they contributed to the progress and development of their host countries, the homeland was deprived of the expertise of these skilled human resources.

 

Dr Arif Alvi urged the need to take all steps to stop the brain drain by providing opportunities and enabling environment so as to enable them to contribute to the progress and development of their country. He also advised the students to continuously pray to Allah Almighty for opening their hearts to knowledge and making them more receptive to wisdom, adding that students should improve their communication skills which would generally help them in life, besides helping in their careers.

 

During the ceremony, the Rector of COMSATS University Islamabad, Prof Muhammad Tabassum Afzal, presented the report of the University. He said the university was offering 100-degree programs presently and it was ranked amongst the top universities in the specialized subjects of engineering, technology, computer science and economics. Later, the President also conferred medals upon the top position holders of various disciplines.

 

ISLAMABAD:President Dr Arif Alvi visited the National Defence University (NDU), Islamabad and addressed the participants of National Security and War Course (NSWC) – 23.

According to a statement issued here on Thursday, while speaking on the occasion, the President dilated upon issues concerning national security. He said as a nation we should shield our social and cultural values. The President advised participants to keep themselves abreast with latest developments particularly advancement in IT, AI and communication field.

The use of communication technologies and particularly digital platforms be for betterment of society and not as tools of disinformation/ misinformation or fake propaganda as it has been used in many countries. The President emphasized the students to work hard for a peaceful and prosperous Pakistan. He appreciated the NDU for imparting quality training to future leadership in line with future challenges.

ISLAMABAD:Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and President Dr Arif Alvi have strongly condemned the incident of firing on PTI’s long march in Gujranwala on Thursday.

In a statement, the Prime Minister directed the Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah to immediately seek report about the incident from Chief Secretary and Inspector General Police of Punjab.

In his tweet, President Dr Arif Alvi prayed for the speedy recovery of PTI Chairman Imran Khan and other injured people. The President also expressed condolences to the family of a deceased political worker.

Minister for Information and Broadcasting Marriyum Aurangzeb, in a statement, also condemned the firing incident on PTI long march. She said it is a sensitive matter and speculations should be avoided. She said Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has already sought the primary report from the authorities concerned.

The Information Minister assured that federal government will provide all possible assistance to the provincial government. Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah also condemned the firing incident in Gujranwala and sought the report from authorities concerned.