ISLAMABAD: Federal Information and Broadcasting Minister Senator Shibli Faraz has appreciated the accountability mechanism of Pakistan army in relation to the Karachi incident, saying that Sindh government should now take action against the police officers, who resorted to a sort of mutiny.
Addressing a press conference after the Federal Cabinet meeting, the information minister said that the military side has done its job and now the Sindh government should set an example with regards to how the police offices resorted to a sort of mutiny and fix the responsibility how it all happened.
“The Sindh government should also check why the FIR was not registered initially by the concerned SHO, which led to resentment and reaction from public and pressure came on the Rangers and they approached high official of police to sort out this issue,” he added.
Commenting on the wheat issues, he informed that the Federal Cabinet has approved wheat support price at the rate of 1,650 rupees per 40 kilogrammes for coming Rabi crop. “We thoroughly discussed the issue of wheat support price and input of cabinet members most of whom were public representatives was taken,” he added
He further said that issue was being debated for quite some time and it was also taken up in the Economic Coordination Committee (ECCC) in its previous meeting.
The federal minister said that both consumers and the farmers would be happy with this price as its objective was to protect the masses from high prices of flour but at the same time give farmers good prices for their produce.
He also criticized the PPP-led Sindh government for the wheat crisis, saying that the provincial government has failed to release any wheat for the consumers. “The wheat shortage in Sindh not only resulted in high prices but also caused transfer of the commodity from Punjab to Sindh which affected the supply chain,” he claimed.
Shibli Faraz added that Prime Minister Imran Khan had the desire that prices of all edibles should not increase so that the commodity is available for the low-income segments at affordable rates.
“Currently, international prices of the wheat are on the higher side but the support price announced by the Sindh was even higher than the international price,” he added.
While discussing the COVID-19 situation, the cabinet after detailed discussion, reiterated that there would be no restrictions on those sectors which are linked with job opportunities and the creation of wealth. “Strict restrictions will be imposed on other sectors to save the lives of the people,” he added.
The information minister said that in the first phase the impact of coronavirus pandemic in Pakistan was far less than other countries, but now its cases were increasing and there was a need to strictly adopt precautionary measures.
