Qatar- Video showing hidden chair in Imam Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhab Mosque incorrect: Awqaf
(MENAFN- The Peninsula) Doha: Ministry of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs denied the existence of a hidden prayer chair in the Imam Muhammad bin Abdulwahhab Mosque as shown in a video, which was circulating on social media.
The ministry confirmed, on their official account on Twitter, that "the video circulating showing an innovative hidden prayer chair, backrest and a box in Imam Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhab Mosque is incorrect"
The graphic 3D video shared on twitter shows an innovative idea of a chair and a backrest hidden in the floor of a mosque, which can be retrieved when necessary. It also shows a hidden box where people can store their mobile and other things.
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Governor Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta yesterday, signed into law, N395 billion 2020 budget, which was recently passed by the House of Assembly.
The governor, during the signing ceremony, said the state government would consolidate on ongoing projects in the education and road sectors of the economy.
Okowa said the budget was the first time N30 billion was allocated to the education sector, adding that adequate budgetary provisions have been made for roads and other projects.
He noted that his administration would continue to work within realisable budget circles with a view to ensuring high budget performance, saying the state would ensure revenue matches with expenditure in its implementation.
Okowa said his administration would execute projects with positive impact on the lives of the people and reaffirmed the government’s commitment to the development of Warri and Uvwie axis because of its value to the state’s economy.
The governor also said the storm water drainage project in the areas, which is expected to commence in January 2020, would cost more than N17 billion.
Okowa said his administration had resolved to build more technical colleges across the state to boost vocational education.
The governor while appreciating the speaker and Assembly members for painstakingly going through the rigorous process of passing the bill, especially at committee levels of defence, said the slight increment in the budget was aimed at boosting infrastructure development.
Presenting the budget to the governor, Speaker Sheriff Oborowori said the recurrent expenditure was N172 billion, while capital expenditure was N223 billion.
He added that the budget showed an increased of N6.2 billion compared to what was earlier presented by the governor.


Weeks after National Crime Records Data (NCRD) stating that crimes against women were on peak in Bangalore city, the Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) has rubbished these allegations. He has said asked the people not to believe the reports of NCRD and the media. He has also said that the NCRD counts the cases filed under immoral traffic prevention act as crimes against women, which was why the number was so high. He has also said that the maximum number of rape cases recorded in the city were not more than 15. Further he said, most of the rape cases were eloped cases and mentioned that he didn't have the exact data.
Taking on NCRD and mentioning that its statistics cannot be relied upon, the DCP has stressed that police would hereafter file its own statistics on crimes against women.
Chief Minister of Karnataka State Siddaramaiah said the Metro service on Peenya-Hesar
Nara Chandra Babu Naidu the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh introduces the first e-C
Bharatiya Janata Party has been leading in Lucknow, Saharanpur, Moradabad, where BJP
Chief Minister of Karnataka Siddaramaiah has slammed Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS)


Lahore: Advisor on Health Kh Salman Rafique has said that monitoring and evaluation system of primary healthcare centers has been introduced in the Health Department. He said that 172 monitoring and evaluation assistants have been recruited and posted throughout the province. He said that these officials will monitor and evaluate basic health units and rural health centers and submit reports to Health Department.
He said this while addressing a ceremony of distribution of tablet computers among 172 monitoring and evaluation assistants at the office of Punjab Information Technology Board (PITB) at Arfa Kareem Tower today. Chairman PITB Dr. Umar Saif, Director General PITB Aamir Chaudhry, Director Policy and Strategic Unit (PSPU) of Health Department Ali Bahadur Qazi and other officers were present on the occasion. Kh. Salman Rafiq said that these officials have been recruited on merit and all work has been completed under the supervision of PSPU whereas training and monitoring modules have been prepared with the cooperation of PITB.
Director Policy and Strategic Unit (PSPU) of Health Department Ali Bahadur Qazi told that with a new system, these officials will be responsible of provision and availability of medical equipments, medicines, attendance of doctors, paramedics, monitoring and evaluation of performance at basic health units and rural health centers and they will send reports on the prescribed form to the Health Department regularly.
Kh Salman Rafique said that the aim of monitoring and evaluation system is to ensure provision of basic health facilities to the people and identify such problems which can create hindrances. He said that government has also assigned responsibilities to officers of Health Department in this regard.
Kh Salman Rafique said that Chief Minister Health Road Map is being implemented speedily for the development of health delivery system and making it vibrant. He said that reforms are also being introduced. Kh. Salman Rafique said that the data to be sent by monitoring and evaluation assistants will be analyzed completely and their reports and proposals will be included in policy making. He said that motorcycles will also be provided to these officials soon.


New Delhi, Nov 25 (IANS) A massive fire that broke out in the Bhagirath Palace market in old Delhi has been brought under control, said the fire officials on Friday, adding that the cooling process was still underway.
According to Delhi Fire Service (DFS) Director Atul Garg, a call regarding fire at a shop was received around 9.20 p.m. on Thursday.
'The fire was in the shop no 1868, near Gurudwara, in the Bhagirath Palace Market. So far 40 fire tenders have been rushed to the site and no causality has been reported,' he said.
'Fire is under control and a cooling operation is going on. Now 22 fire tenders are working for cooling operations,' said Garg.
The fire subsequently spread to other shops, and around 50 shops were caught in the blaze and fire personnel are trying to control the fire from spreading further.
The narrow lanes of the locality were causing hindrances to the fire trucks to reach the incident site, said the fire official.
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(MENAFN) The United States has welcomed the visit of Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu to Egypt, the first such visit in over a decade. Cavusoglu was invited by his Egyptian counterpart Sameh Shoukry.
National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan expressed his support for the visit on Twitter, calling it "an important step towards a more stable and prosperous region."
Diplomatic relations between Turkey and Egypt have been strained since Egypt's 2013 military coup, which overthrew the late President Mohammed Morsi. Since then, diplomatic relations between the two countries have been maintained at the level of charges d'affaires on both sides.
The visit of Cavusoglu to Egypt signals a potential thawing of relations between the two countries. It remains to be seen whether the visit will result in any concrete agreements or initiatives between Turkey and Egypt.
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Enugu State House of Assembly on Tuesday passed the state’s 2021 appropriation bill of N169.8 billion.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that passage of the 2021 budget followed the presentation and adoption of a report by the House Committee Chairman on Finance and Appropriation, Mr Ezenta Ezeani during plenary.
Ezeani said that the budget estimate took full cognisance of the yearnings, aspirations and prayers of residents of the state.
NAN reports that Gov. Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi had on Dec. 9 presented the 2021 budget proposal of N169.8billion to the State Assembly.
Ugwuanyi had told the legislators that the 2021 budget estimate was 13 per cent higher than the 2020 revised budget of N169.5 billion.
The governor said that the 2021 budget estimate was made up of N101.1 billion capital expenditure which represented 60 per cent of the estimated budget size.
He said that the recurrent expenditure stood at N68.1 billion representing 40 per cent of the estimated budget size.
The governor said that the budget estimate had a recurrent revenue of N110.08 billion and recurrent expenditure of N68.7 billion.
Ugwuanyi said that the economic and social sectors received N61.9 billion and N24.7 billion respectively.
He said that the figures represented 61 per cent and 24 per cent respectively of the total capital expenditure of the budget.
The chairman, however, said that the committee did not alter the capital or recurrent expenditures of the budget as presented by the governor.
He said that the 2021 budget estimate was referred to the various standing committees of the assembly for budgetary defence by Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) of the state government.
Ezeani said that the report was later considered clause by clause at the Committee of the Whole before it was subsequently passed.
Responding, the Speaker, Chief Edward Ubosi, said the document was critically examined by the legislators to ensure that it would benefit residents of the state.
Ubosi said the budget would be transmitted to the state governor for his assent and urged the various MDAs to ensure its full implementation when signed into law. (NAN)


Union minister of road transport and highways Nitin Gadkari on Friday said that the pandemic had not affected the road construction projects. Gadkari who was speaking on Day 4 of Hindustan Times Leadership Summit 2020 said that the capacity of the construction equipment manufacturers has increased by 80%, which is almost double. The minister highlighted that improving the equation between the contractors and builders during these difficult times was one of the major initiatives. He also said that the electronic toll collection system, FASTag will also be made mandatory in next 2-3 months. Further, Gadkari also noted that road accidents and deaths have reduced by 20%.


(MENAFN- Nam News Network)
VIENTIANE, Aug 5 (NNN-KPL) – Lao Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Saleumxay Kommasith, and Philippine Secretary of Foreign Affairs, Enrique Manalo, agreed to work together to enhance ties and broaden cooperation between the two countries.
Manalo and his delegation arrived here on Thursday, for an official visit to Laos, in response to an invitation from Kommasith, Lao News Agency reported.
The two co-chaired the second meeting of the Laos-Philippines Joint Commission for Bilateral Cooperation.
The two parties discussed bilateral cooperation in various areas, including politics, defence, security, economy, trade and investment, energy, technology, etc.
Both sides noted that, the friendship and cooperation between the two countries have been strengthened constantly over the past 68 years, as this is reflected in the regular exchange of visits between high-ranking officials of the two countries.
The two sides agreed to maintain high-level contacts and exchanges of visits, and further promote trade and investment by encouraging their companies to explore business opportunities in areas of potential.
They pledged to offer mutual support in the regional and international arenas and discussed regional and international issues of mutual interest.– NNN-KPL
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Minister for Communications, Ursula Owusu has blamed the media for the Covid-19 Application virtual concert controversies.
According to her, the media likes feeding on negative news.
She noted that if there is 99% good in something and 1% negative the media will choose to focus on that.
Ursula Owusu also cited the case of food distribution during the lockdown period of which she said benefited a lot of vulnerable people but the media sometimes choose to focus on the negative aspect of it.
In her view, there are many ways music could be used to make an impact that is why the Ministry opted for a virtual concert on a day that everybody was home.
The virtual concert which was held on Easter Monday to launched the Covid-19 Application came under heavy criticism.
Critics of the concert believe the virtual event was a waste of money and time. They said the energy put into the event could have been channelled into more profitable things that will help prevent the spread of the virus.
They also argue that the Ministry of Information press briefings could have been used for the said purpose.
The app was aimed at helping health authorities track Covid-19 cases in the country.


By Laman Ismayilova
OperaFirst International Caspian Classical Music Festival has
started in Astrakhan, Russia, Azernews reports, citing Trend Life .
The music festival brings together soloists from Azerbaijan,
Russia, Iran, Turkmenistan, and Kazakhstan.
The festival program includes the Days of the Caspian countries,
where the guests can dive into the different cultures.
The Day of Azerbaijan became one of the most memorable events
for the festival visitors.
Chairman of the Azerbaijani Composers' Union, holder of UNESCO
Artist of the World title, People's Artist Frangiz Alizada took
part in the event.
Saida Tahizada (piano), Rena Rahimova (viola), Umida Abbasova
(violin), and Nazrin Asanli (violin), Emin Huseynov (violin), Orxan
Huseynov (cello) captivated the audience with works by Azerbaijani
Music pieces by Gara Garayev, Fikrat Amirov, Oktay Zulfugarov,
and Frangiz Alizada were warmly welcomed by the listeners.
The festival's final concert will take place on September 11 at
the Cathedral Square of the Astrakhan Kremlin, where Azerbaijani
opera singer Azar Zada will share the same stage with other opera
Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
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ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Special Assistant on Health Dr Zafar Mirza has informed that the Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP) has allowed local production of the raw material of Chloroquine to tackle the coronavirus.
The SAPM Dr Zafar Mirza said that the DRAP has also permitted clinical trials of plasma therapy for the treatment of coronaviurs.
He informed that the DRAP has given several permissions related to the treatment of the coronavirus which also included the clinical trials of the country made ventilators.
Pakistan Engineering Council (PEC) has manufactured the ventilators which are being tested before its use.
Dr Zafar Mirza also informed that the health ministry has also permitted more than 50 companies to manufacture hand sanitizers for a period of three months for the prevention of the coronavirus.
He added that the companies having licenses from the ministry will manufacture hand sanitizers under the guidelines of the World Health Organization (WHO).


The move follows a survey conducted among consumers that showed that the majority believe that the fishing industry has a vital role to play in feeding a growing world population.
The survey has been conducted for the European fishing industry organisation Europêche, which is concerned that the sector is not receiving fair assistance from the European authorities compared to other food producing sectors.
The survey showed that 71 per cent of those questions felt that the fishing industry has a vital role to, play, but it also showed that 84 per cent believed that governments should do more to support the sector.
Speaking during the European Seafood Expo in Brussels, Javier Garat, the president of Europêche said that despite contributing €71.3 billion to the European economy just 1.7 per cent of the EU’s budget in 2014 for sustainable growth in natural resources was allocated to the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund.
This compared to 97.5 per cent that was allocated to European Agriculture.
He said that the fisheries sector received just €1 billion compared to €57 billion for the agriculture sector.
“There is not a level playing field, particularly when 71 per cent of people believe the industry plays a vital role,” said Mr Garat.
He added that the industry has to make good use of the money it does receive to improve the image of the industry among consumers and also to work more closely with scientists to improve the industry in the market.
“There has been a lack of good management in the past and the EU Fisheries Fund is important in improving the image and working with the scientists,” said Mr Garat.
Kathryn Stack, the Europêche managing director said: “The survey clearly shows that Europeans recognise the importance of the fishing industry both to their daily diets but also as part of feeding a growing world population
“Fishing is a heavily regulated industry and the fishermen we represent have made huge strides in recent years, not only to comply with the new European regulations but secure the sustainability of fishing practices and in turn, their livelihoods.”
Mr Garat added that one of the problems with the image of the sector was that the industry was over-fishing the oceans and this image had been made worse by some campaign groups.
He said the true picture was that the fish stock around the world were largely health and improving and the industry worked closely with environmental organisations to ensure the sustainability of the stocks.
He said that there are a lot of stocks that are fully exploited – meaning that they were being fished sustainably – and some stocks that were under exploited, which meant that they could be fished more.
He added that the stocks that were over exploited were now falling and the industry was working to ensure they are managed sustainably.
He said the survey showed that more than half of those questioned believed fish stocks are in serious decline but Mr Garat said that this was a serious misconception.
“The consumers need information to be able to correct these ideas,” said Mr Garat.
“It is not just a question of economic support it is also a question of information.”


An Iraq War veteran who had said the government was forcing him to watch Islamic State videos pulled a gun from his checked bag and opened fire Friday at Fort Lauderdale’s international airport, killing five people and injuring six, reports the Washington . . .
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Srinagar: The “Peoples Alliance for Gupkar Declaration” on Saturday announced National Conference’s Dr Farooq Abdullah as its president and PDP chief, Mehbooba Mufti as Vice -president.
The decision was taken in a two-hour-long meeting of top leaders of the alliance held Mehbooba Mufti’s Gupkar residence.
Talking to the media persons, Sajad Lone, who has been appointed as spokesperson of the group, announced the duo’s elevation adding that CPI-M President, M Y Tarigami has been appointed as convener of PAGD while Hassnain Masoodi will be its coordinator.
He further informed that during the meeting, it was decided the flag of erstwhile Jammu and Kashmir State will be the symbol of the group.
Lone added that the next meeting of the group will be held in Jammu within two weeks. He added that the group has decided to come up with a document on “lies being spread against people of Jammu and Kashmir”.
He added the “white paper will be the tribute to the people of Jammu and Kashmir”.
“The whitepaper will compare the reality and false propaganda on the ground,” he added. Lone also said that the group is going to hold a convention on 17 November.
Meanwhile, Farooq while talking to the media persons said that it is being propagated that the group formed by the leaders was “anti-national”.
“The group is not anti-national, but anti-BJP,” he said.
He said the BJP has tried to “divide people and are making attempts to break the federal structure of the country, but it won’t succeed”.
“It is not a religious fight but the fight for the identity of the nation,” he said.(KNO)


Rash of thefts reported in boro
A series of vehicle breakins were reported in Jenkintown Sept. 17, according to Jenkintown police.
Victims in the 200 block of Rodman Avenue reported their vehicles had been entered and rummaged through between 6 and 11:33 a.m., police said. Authorities said that loose change, candy and sunglasses valued at $400 were reported missing from these vehicles, police said.
Victims in the 200 block of Runnymede Avenue also reported thefts from their vehicles between 5:20 a.m. and 2:50 p.m., police said. Money was reported missing from these vehicles, police said.
A couple from the 400 block of Maple Avenue reported their vehicles, which were parked in their driveway, were rummaged through and that a total of $10 in change was taken from the vehicles, police said.
Also, a couple from the 400 block of Vernon Road reported that their vehicles, which were also parked the driveway, had been entered and that loose change, a portable power inverter, valued at $70, and digital projector, valued at $500 were missing, police said.


Story | Jul 6, 2015 | 11:05 PM
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Story | Jul 7, 2015 | 7:25 AMHaving lost their latest war against President Barack Obama's health care overhaul, Republicans must decide how to wage battles that could fan the issue for the 2016 elections.
Story | Jul 6, 2015 | 3:00 AM
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Story | Jul 2, 2015 | 3:02 PM
Centene has jumped into the mix of managed-care companies scrambling to bulk up as the health care overhaul changes their business with a $6.3-billion bid for fellow insurer Health Net. The deal announced Thursday gives St. Louis-based Centene a chance...


PM Imran Khan asks people to declare ‘benami’ accounts, assets till June 30
ISLAMABAD (92 News) – Prime Minister Imran Khan has appealed to the people to declare their ‘benami’ accounts and assets till June 30.
In a special message on Monday, he urged the nation to benefit from the Amnesty Scheme and bring the people out of poverty to secure the future of their children.
He said that the government has the information, which the previous governments did not have. “We have to change ourselves if we want to become a great nation,” he said.
The prime minister said that annually Rs 4,000 is spent on tax and Rs 2,000 billion on the installments of loans. “Pakistanis pay lowest tax across the world. Pakistan is among the countries that give highest donations.”
He warned that no opportunity would be given after June 30.
Prime Minister Imran Khan said that the nation can collect Rs 10,000 per year.


(MENAFN- Trend News Agency) BAKU, Azerbaijan, December 8. International
Automobile Federation (FIA) President Mohammed Ben Sulayem has
drawn attention with his heartfelt speech at the final meeting of
the FIA General Assembly held at the Heydar Aliyev Center in Baku,
He said that he fell down in the hotel room where he was staying
in Baku and was unable to attend the latest FIA meetings due to
"I would like to thank the Azerbaijan Automobile Federation team
and Motor Sports Federation President Anar Alakbarov for the urgent
medical support provided to me in Baku due to an unforeseen
circumstance concerning my health. I was immediately hospitalized
as a result of the team's support, and every moment was taken under
full control of doctors and AAF team," Sulayem emphasized.
The FIA president has already been discharged from the hospital
where he was admitted last night and has been attending meetings of
the FIA General Assembly since this morning.
Stay up to date with more news on Trend News Agency's
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The entire population of France could be vaccinated by the end of August, according to the country’s health minister.
Olivier Verán made the bold prediction in a televised interview on Thursday evening.
Speaking during the evening news show LE 20H on the TF1 broadcasting network, Verán said that he now expects “probably 1.3 to 1.4 million” people in France to be vaccinated against the deadly coronavirus by the end of the month — a significant increase from the government’s initial goal of 1 million vaccinations.
Verán added that the number of people vaccinated in the country would subsequently rise to “4 million at the end of February, 9 million in March, 20 million at the end of April, 30 million at the end of May, 43 million at the end of June, 57 million at the end of July, and 70 million, that is to say the entire French population, by the end of August.”
“People aged 75 and over who are impatient to be vaccinated will be vaccinated before the end of March,” he added.
The minister is confident that the country can achieve its goal, but doing so would require that “all the vaccines that we have ordered are validated by the European and world health authorities.”
According to BFMTV.com, the minister sounded “much more cautious” earlier in the day before the Senate Law Committee, when he mentioned the target of “15 million people vaccinated before the summer,” or “a large part of the population who are at increased risk.”
Earlier this month, NPR reported that government officials in France were being fiercely criticized for the slow rollout of the COVID-19 vaccine.
As of Thursday, more than 3 million people have been infected with the virus in the country, which has the second-highest number of fatalities in the European Union: 72,138 virus-related deaths, according to data compiled by the Johns Hopkins University.


New Delhi: First COVID-19 case was, on Wednesday, detected in the Lutyens' area of the national capital. Sources suggest that the person who has tested positive for the virus is a resident of an area that is close to a place of worship in the Bengali market. It was also said that the Delhi police is present on spot and that the Bengali market area has been sealed.
It has further been said that NDMC (New Delhi Municipal Council) has ordered to immediately sanitise Bengali Market area under the containment plan to prevent the spread of the fast-spreading virus. Delhi Police had also decided to immediately cordon off the area to prevent movement of people.
Sources also said that two persons working in Bengali Market were found to febrile and living in unhygienic conditions and a further field test revealed that 35 people were living in Bengali pastry shop without maintaining social distancing.
A notice ordered by the government of NCT of Delhi said that the NDMC team along with the Delhi police team held an inspection in the Bengali market area 'as a fallout of detection of three positive cases'.
The order also said that the teams and the police screened around 328 houses and two markets covering around 2000 people.
The Union Health Ministry, on Wednesday, confirmed that the total coronavirus cases in India have now risen to 5274 - out of which, 4714 cases are currently active.
The Health Ministry also said that in India, 32 people lost their lives to the deadly virus since Tuesday. The Tablighi Jamaat religious congregation that was held in Delhi’s Nizamuddin area last month is now seen as arguably the biggest vector for the rise in positive cases across India.
India has till now conducted 121,271 tests for the Covid-19 virus, Indian Council of Medical Research chief R Gangakhedkar said on Wednesday.
According to the last ministry data, 410 people have recovered from the illness so far.


Entities who are benefited from gambling firms in Kenya will push to stop the government’s 35 percent tax hike.
The operators from Kenya are worried that the measure to increase betting taxes to 50 percent could be reintroduced in the future.
The lawmakers will repeat the vote that would force betting operators to pay a 50 percent tax of gross profits in Kenya.
The government is expected to place a 28 percent tax on lottery tickets in India and has raised unrest among local operators.
Betting companies expressed their opposition to the measure that the government of Kenya set to raise taxes in all categories to 50 percent.


DON’T SHIFT ATTENTION, HH ADVISED
By ADRIAN MWANZA
THE pronouncement by President Hakainde Hichilema to set up Corruption Fast Track Courts was just cosmetic and aimed at shifting people’s attention from real issues, New Congress Party (NCP) president, Peter Chanda has said.
Mr Chanda in an interview said that the President was trying to ensure that people’s expectations were diverted by saying the previous government was corrupt.
He said the fast track corruption court was not what people wanted but that they ushered in the new government because they wanted an improvement in the economy and creation of more jobs. ‘’For me I feel it is just a cosmetic promise aimed at hoodwinking people from what they were promised when they were in opposition,’’ he said.
He said that the ruling party promised people
to fix the economy in the first 200 days in office and that his party was closely watching and ensuring that they stuck to their campaign promises. Mr Chanda said that the previous government had scored a number of successes and that they left US$3 billion in the reserves and that what was needed was for the new administration to improve on that and not what was not important.
Meanwhile the UPND Alliance said Zambians needed to step up and assist President Hichilema swiftly recover all stolen public assets now and into the future.


LAHORE – Punjab Governor Ch Sarwar said on Tuesday that the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) was not wary of the yet another All Parties Conference (APC) convened by the opposition and it would complete its constitutional term.
During a meeting with PTI leader Nadeem Afzal Chan at the Governor’s House here, he said the opposition parties were bent upon politics of confrontation which was against the spirit of democracy, adding that the opposition had an axe to grind. The governor said the opposition parties were averse to grant right to vote to the overseas Pakistanis, adding that the opposition must abandon its strategy of creating hurdles in the passage of the legislation to recognize services of the overseas Pakistanis to the country.
Sarwar said the government had nothing to do with cases against opposition leaders in the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) and National Accountability Bureau (NAB) as all institutions were independent.
He said the cases against the opposition leadership were instituted during the past regimes, adding that Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government believed in fair accountability.
“Corruption must be eradicated for the stability of Pakistan and the government will support accountability institutions to root out corruption for good”, he said.
He said the government would complete its constitutional term, and there was no chance of general elections before 2023.
Ch Sarwar said Prime Minister Imran Khan’s decision to refuse airbases to the US had been taken in line with the national interests, adding that people of Pakistan stood by Prime Minister Imran Khan.
He said the government had achieved many milestones on the economic front and everyone was acknowledging the economic development and stability of Pakistan except the opposition.


SBS has cancelled the new dramas’ production presentations which were scheduled on 23 and 24, due to the aftermath of the Sewol ferry accident.
22 was for the new weekend drama ‘Feel-Good Day’, and 24 was for the new Wed-Thurs drama ‘You’re All Surrounded’.
They have already delayed the event once, but according to SBS, things are still too though to make progress, and they will continue to discuss about the event and the premiere.
Reporter: Jawon Lee
Courtesy of SBS


Abbas Raises Al Aqsa Mosque Issues in New York
(MENAFN- Qatar News Agency) Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas raised the pitch on Al-Aqsa Mosque violations in an interview broadcast by Palestine Television.
Speaking to the channel Abbas said, "The entire world should be aware of the violations happening in Al Aqsa Mosque and the dangerous consequences that can only lead to disaster." He stressed Israel wants to turn the issue from political to religious.
In meetings held here on the side-lines of the 70th session of the U.N. General Assembly, the Palestinian premier apprised top officials, representing international bodies, of three major points on Al-Aqsa Mosque issue.
He told the channel that he informed the officials three points that need immediate attention. First, the current situation. Second, urging international officials he met to put pressure on Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to implement agreements signed with Palestine and lastly to start a dialogue for peace. He said Palestine is ready for talks if Israel stops settlement activities and the release of fourth batch pre-Oslo agreement prisoners.
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(MENAFN - Kuwait News Agency (KUNA))
KUWAIT - His Highness the Prime Minister Sheikh Sabah Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah, received at Bayan Palace Prime Minister of the Government of National Unity of Libya, Abdul Hamid Mohammed Dbeibeh.
KUWAIT - Kuwait's Constitutional Court, chaired by justice Mohammad bin Naji, rejected in a ruling all challenges against the recently held parliamentary election, which took place on 5th December.
KUWAIT - Spokesman for the Kuwaiti Ministry of Health Dr. Abdullah Al-Sanad announced that 1,517 new coronavirus (Covid-19) infections, 1,325 recoveries and six deaths were recorded over the past 24 hours.
KUWAIT - Newly-fitted gas turbines at Subiya Power Plant will raise electricity provided to the country by 932 megawatts, the Minister of Electricity and Water said.
CAIRO - Egyptian President Abdelfattah Al-Sisi warned that "all options" are considered in order to preserve Egypt's water rights.
WASHINGTON - US Secretary of State Antony Blinken declared a plan, in cooperation with the Congress, to revive US development and economic aid to the Palestinians.
BRUSSELS - The European Union stressed its support to global efforts to deal with health challenges caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. (end) ibi
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Making terrariums helps seniors recapture youth
BERRYVILLE — It’s a miniature garden, with soil and plants and perhaps steppingstones and statues and bees and butterflies and bugs, or at least their likenesses.
At Clarke County’s Active Living…
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(MENAFN- Arab Times) Police have arrested two Asians - one was wanted by law and the other for violating residence law - reports Al-Watan Arabic daily.
The daily added the suspects were arrested by a police patrol in Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh while they were on their way home. Security sources said the men were riding in a taxi and when they saw the police car, they looked nervous prompting the securitymen to order the taxi driver to pull over and check the IDs of the two men. They have been handed over to the authorities.
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ISLAMABAD (June 19, 2021): Vice President Pakistan Peoples Party Senator Sherry Rehman has said that the Election Commission of Pakistan has raised objections to 45 of the 72 government amendments.
In a statement, she said there was concern over the lack of trust between parliament and the constitutional body.
Sherry Rehman said the ECP had raised objections to 45 of the 72 government amendments and the governing body of ECP has declared your amendments unconstitutional and illegal.
The PPP leader said that the gap between institutions and mistrust could have a serious impact on the country, adding that the government should take seriously the objections of the ECP and the opposition.
Sherry Rehman said that the government is not paying any attention to this very important and serious issue.
The PPP leader further said that the government’s amendments only reflect the desire to win the 2023 elections.


(MENAFN- Tribal News Network) Two young sisters tragically lost their lives in South Waziristan's Tunda Dara area as an explosive device detonated, causing a devastating explosion.
Upon arrival at the scene, it was discovered that the daughters of a local resident named Jinan Khan had suffered grave injuries. Despite immediate efforts by the locals to transport them for medical help, the sisters sadly succumbed to their wounds.
The girls, aged approximately 8 and 15 years old, were immediately attended to by concerned locals who sought to transport them to a hospital for urgent medical assistance. Sadly, despite their best efforts, the injuries proved fatal, and both sisters tragically succumbed to their wounds.
Also Read: target killing in north waziristan claims two lives, including prominent figure
Jinan Khan, the girls' father, is a shepherd and engages in livestock-related activities, according to local sources.
It is important to note that a day prior to this incident, another bomb blast occurred in South Waziristan, resulting in the loss of two lives and leaving three individuals injured. The deceased have been identified as Malik Dawood and Khun Jan, while the injured parties are Abid, Junaid, and Shahid, as confirmed by the police.
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About 200,000 people ignored the interstate travel ban and managed to bypass police roadblocks during Hari Raya, causing new Covid-19 clusters among family members.
In a press conference yesterday (30 May), Defence Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob said that some people had travelled back to their hometowns during Hari Raya, causing several Hari Raya clusters and deaths within families.
“We can deceive the police but we cannot deceive Covid-19 which is everywhere,” he said.
“Many people were angry that they could not travel for Hari Raya and we were informed that 200,000 people managed to go through police roadblocks.”
“As a result, after Hari Raya, there were many clusters and also cases of deaths.”
Ismail Sabri reminded the public why the government had to put these restrictions in place, saying that the Ministry of Health (KKM) predicted what would happen if the interstate and inter-district travel bans were lifted.
“The Health Director-General said that if we allow people to return to their hometowns, daily cases could reach 13,000 to 15,000 a day,” he said.
“Now many are sad after Hari Raya when their families become victims.”
Meanwhile, Ismail Sabri urged the public to be honest when applying for travel permits, which will only be given for emergencies, deaths or terminal illnesses among family members.
“I just ask the people to be honest when applying for permission to travel. I understand that many cases have to be rejected because they were suspicious, but there are also those that really want to visit seriously ill parents,” he said.
He added that it was unfortunate that there were cases involving people who only obtained permission to travel after their family members had died because the police had to be extra careful when examining their applications.
What do you guys think of this?


Reactive Vs. Proactive
Last updated 6/22/2020 at 12:10pm
One of the things we hopefully will learn as a nation from the COVID-19 pandemic and racial inequality that have dominated recent headlines is that it is less costly in terms of money, health and happiness to be proactive instead of reactive.
The countries in which COVID-19 has had the least impact in terms of deaths and financial well-being are those that already had plans in place to deal with a pandemic. As we have noted before, countries such as South Korea, Japan and Germany, which COVID-19 hit weeks earlier than it did the U.S., have fared much better than we have. These countries...


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Residents at “every eligible care home” in England have been offered the coronavirus vaccine, England’s National Health Service (NHS) said Monday.
Residents at more than 10,000 care homes have been offered vaccines, an achievement UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson described as a “crucial milestone.”
The UK is vaccinating its citizens at one of the fastest rates in the world, partly due to a decision to extend the length of time between people getting the first and second doses.
More than 8.9 million people across the UK have received a first dose, and 491,053 people have had a second, according to the most recent government data.
Nearly 600,000 doses were administered in the UK on Saturday, marking the highest daily record for the country’s vaccination program.


Home Minister Imran Abdulla has stated that five police officers have tested positive for COVID-19 and that over 170 officers who had been in contact with the positive officers have been placed in quarantine.
In an interview given to a local TV channel Raajje TV, Minister Imran said having to place such a large number of frontline officers in quarantine will be a considerable challenge. He acknowledged that some, including police officers, must work in the frontlines in order to manage the current crisis despite the risks it pose.
Minister Imran further stated that security measures have been further strengthened and discussions are ongoing on the steps to be taken to ensure the safety of police officers.
Accommodation arrangements have been made for the police to stay at their workplace.


PESHAWAR: Advisor Information and Public Relation KP Ajmal Khan Wazir has advised the Chief Minister Sindh to stay apolitical in the current pandemic situation.
“Prime Minister Imran Khan takes suggestions of the Chief Minister Sindh Murad Ali shah in every meeting” he added.
He regretted that false news making rounds on media that 1100 pilgrims from Iran were missing has no ground. He said that pilgrims from Iran had quarantined at Darazinda, Dera ismail khan and Duranpur quarantine centres and their tests came out negative except one being under treatment.
Talking to media in the Information Cell Civil Secretariat Peshawar, the advisor said that under Ihsaas program, the distribution of relief funds to the public in a transparent manner was underway adding that in 2nd phase Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Relief Package of RS 6000 would also be distributed among deserving.
Ajmal Wazir said that besides ihsaas program KP government would also disburse an additional RS 12000 to one lakh deserving families from zakat fund. He said the distribution of relief was totally transparent “if anyone tries to hinder or disrupt the distribution of aid, there will be severe action against them” Ajmal added.
He said that despite the pandemic situation, the promises made to the tribal people were being fulfilled. Chief Minister Mahmood Khan has approved to integrate 3,244 Khasadars from South Waziristan while provincial government is bringing ordinance for the remaining Khasadars, after which the remaining Khasadars will also become part of the regular police force.
The Chief Minister has also approved 196 children of police martyrs to be recruited as a ASI in the police. Ajmal Wazir said that the capacity of Corona Testing in the province would be increased to five thousand.
He said that So far the total number of cases in the province is 744 while the number of treated and recovered persons from Corona has been 145 and 34 people have died.
He said in the last 24 hours, 47 new Corona cases have been reported in the province.
He said that Chief Minister Mahmood Khan himself was monitoring all arrangements regarding the corona pandamic.
“Paramedic staff, police and army who are fighting on front line against the corona virus and they our our heroes and the whole nation will always remember them as a maseeha” ajmal Wazir added. He said that people from all walks of life, business community, religious scholars were standing with the provincial government against the pandamic impact of corona.


Two hundred three more people,who were displaced during last year's Muzaffarnagar riots, will get compensation after the Uttar Pradesh government accepted their claims on the recommendation of district authorities.
These 203 people had been demanding compensation since last year, District Magistrate NP Singh said, adding, they will now be eligible for the same.
The state government had already provided compensation to 768 families of Rs. 5 lakh each.
The decision comes after the Supreme Court directed the state government to reconsider the claims of remaining people who were displaced from their villages during the riots.
These people belonged to riot-affected villages such as Lank, Bahawadi, Lisadh, Bhaju, and Hasanpur in the district.


September 25, 2020: Prime Minister Imran Khan has assured the businessmen and investors that the government is committed to remove all difficulties and hurdles in the way of business activities on priority basis.
Talking to a delegation of the country’s well known investors and business personalities in Islamabad, he said the development of construction sector would not only help promote business activities and create job opportunities but would also strengthen economy and boost wealth creation.
He expressed satisfaction over the interest shown by investors in the projects, including the Ravi River Front Urban Development and Bundle Island. He said the interest of local investors in the two important development projects initiated by the government is a good omen.
Expressing their views about the business-oriented environment in the country, the investors and business personalities said it was due to the present government’s efforts that there was not only an ease of doing business in the country but the business community was also encouraged by the better policies.


KARACHI: Sindh Information Minister Sharjeel Inam Memon Friday said that 28 people were taken into custody for forcing people to shut restaurants across the province.
Addressing a press conference alongside provincial ministers, Sharjeel added that some miscreants want anarchy in the county. “The government has arrested some people involved in the riots,” he said, adding that law enforcement agencies are doing their job while political dialogues are also being held to resolve the matter.
The provincial minister further added that the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) will initiate an investigation against all those who will pass negative comments on social media to ignite hatred.
Accusing the PTI of being involved in the incident, he said that people who were protesting at Sohrab Goth were seen carrying Afghanistan’s flags during the riots today. “A person contesting election on PTI’s ticket is the brother of the person who is carrying Afghanistan’s flag,” Sharjeel said, sharing the pictures with the journalists.
Speaking on the occasion, provincial energy minister Imtiaz Sheikh contacted ANP’s Shahi Syed and Riaz Chandio of Jiay Sindh Mahaz, seeking their support to control the situation.
“Everyone is requested to remain peaceful and not take the law into their own hands,” Sheikh said, adding Sindh is the land of Sufis who always teach love.
“We are in contact with the government and no injustice will be meted out to anyone.”
Unknown men set a car on fire at the city’s Al-Asif Square today during protests over the killing of a youth during a quarrel at a restaurant in Hyderabad.
In a statement, Chief Minister Sindh Murad Ali Shah said the government has ordered authorities to take action against the suspects involved in damaging properties during the Karachi riots.
“The district administration and police should ensure that activities in the city continue as per routine. Mischief and negligence on the part of the administration will not be tolerated,” he said.
In response to the reports of streets being closed amid the protests, the chief minister said that he has directed the administration to ensure that nothing of the sort happens.
“The government has spoken to all relevant stakeholders and all of them have distanced themselves from these acts,” the chief minister said, referring to political forces.


Felony convictions in Baltimore dropped soon after Marilyn Mosby took over last year as the city’s top prosecutor, and the lower rate has persisted at a time of increased violent crime, reports the Wall Street Journal. Under Mosby, Baltimore has posted quarterly felony conviction rates that have been lower than those under her predecessor, Gregg Bernstein, who served from 2011 . . .
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Story | Apr 2, 2009WASHINGTON - The number of people filing new jobless claims jumped unexpectedly last week, while those continuing to receive benefits hit a 10th straight record-high. Both figures show the labor market remains weak and is unlikely to recover anytime soon.


TPCC chief Revanth Reddy today alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was trying to shut down the historic National Herald English daily as he was scared that the newspaper would expose all the irregularities being committed by the BJP government.
He made these remarks while addressing party activists protesting in front of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) office in Basheer Bagh.
The protest was held against the "harassment" of party leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi by the ED.
Reddy said that the Gandhi family did not take a singe penny from National Herald, and that the ED had itself said in the past that no irregularity had taken place in the financial transactions of the daily and had closed the case against the Congress leaders.
He said the issuance of the notices to the Gandhis in a closed case was part of a conspiracy by Narendra Modi, and that Modi had reopened the case originally filed in 2008 as he was scared that the Congress would come to power after the next general elections.
Claiming that the Gandhi family had sacrificed everything for the unity and integrity of the country, Reddy said that power was not permanent for any leader, and that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah were behaving in a cruel manner.


Maldives Police Services has said discussions are imminent with the relevant authorities of the government to address the issue of parking and the arduousness of traffic violations.
There had been heavy criticism toward the Police and the government due to issuing parking violation stickers.
With regard to the issue the Police said that they have been working 24 hours to make the roads safe and secure place for everyone and urged everyone to honour the traffic rules and regulations.
The Police said that they have been discussing with the relevant government authorities to address the issue of parking and traffic violations and seeking a viable solution for the matter.
The Police further said that when schools are reopened there will be a colossal change in Male’ traffic and with that their role will also be adjusted, especially in schools’ areas their roles will be greater.
Whereas the issue of parking violation stickers has escalated, the Commissioner of Police has revealed Friday that 36,963 vehicles have been fined for parking violations last year.


2,500 remaining detainees to face charges.
Ethiopia has released 9,800 people detained under its ongoing state of emergency which was introduced to curb violent anti-government demonstrations in the country's Oromia and Amhara regions.
About 12,500 people were arrested as part of the state of emergency, which was declared on 9 October. The government plans to charge some 2,500 of these on accustation of destabilising the country.
The arrests relate to demonstrations by two of the nation’s largest ethnic groups, the Oromo and Amhara, whose members had been protesting sustained marginalisation since late 2015.
The mass release comes amid growing concerns for the health of those detained and follows pressure from the United Nations, the international community and human rights groups.
Under the emergency legislation, which included curfews and a social media ban, the government sent the detainees to "rehabilitation centres", without charge.
Announcing their release, government spokesperson Zadig Abraha said the nearly 10,000 detainees had received "lots of trainings that were meant to give them lessons so that they won't be part of the destructive trend that we have seen in the past."


The Delhi Lieutenant Governor Tejendra Khanna has come down hard on the Delhi Police and asked Police commissioner BK Gupta to
increase police presence on the roads to ensure that incidents like the Dhaula Kuan gangrape are not repeated.
Khanna, apparently unhappy with the notoriety that Delhi has earned due to the increasing number of crimes against women, is believed to have asked Gupta to make the city safer for women.
“The LG has also asked the police department to identify areas where women from Northeastern states live and increase number of police control rooms (PCR) vans in those areas. The LG has also asked the police commissioner to ensure that these PCR vans also have women officers,” said a senior officer in the LG office.
“The LG has asked the BPOs to ensure that women staff travelling in office cabs are dropped at the doorstep of their houses,” the officer said.


Pakistan is calling for UN aid after monsoon rains caused flooding in the province of Sindh, killing at least 200 people and prompting fears of another major disaster.
Almost five million people have been affected as torrential rain submerged more than 20,000 villages.
President Asif Ali Zardari asked for the help of the UN and other international organisations over the weekend as further heavy rains were forecast for the next three days. Sindh was among the worst hit region in last year’s floods, which killed about 2,000 people and made 11 million homeless.
The UN, which has described the situation


41 Turkish soldiers, 116 FSA militants killed in Afrin Operation
(MENAFN- Kuwait News Agency (KUNA)) ANKARA, March 2 (KUNA) -- Turkish Defense Minister Nurettin Canikli said Friday 41 Turkish troops have been killed since the start of Operation Olive Branch in Syriaآ's northwestern Afrin town.
Addressing a National Defense University graduation ceremony in Istanbul, Canikli said also 116 fighters of the Free Syrian Army (FSA) have also been killed in the operation.
The Turkish defense minister estimated the total figure of YPG/PKK-Daesh militants killed in Operation Olive Branch at 2,295.
In addition, 95 percent of residential areas on a 615 square-kilometer land have been retaken, he added.
Turkey and FSA launched the military operation on January 20 to establish security and stability along Turkey's borders. (end) rs.mt
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President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih on Sunday met with the council members of Feevah Island in the Shaviyani Atoll. Discussions at the meeting held at the President’s Office focused on the developmental plans and pertinent needs of the island’s residents.
The council members stated that President Solih and his administration had, over the past four years, spearheaded the most significant social and economic development the island had ever seen and extended their gratitude to the President on behalf of their constituents. They told the President that he had been the only leader to have ever pledged to develop the island and stood steadfast in ensuring those pledges were delivered—several infrastructure projects initiated by the administration have so far been completed.
Sunday’s meeting was the first time the local council of Feevah Island had the opportunity to meet a sitting President to discuss their needs since the establishment of local councils under the Decentralisation Act.
Speaking at the meeting, the President extended his appreciation for the commitment and support of the council members toward the administration’s developmental agenda. Some of the topics the council members discussed with the President include the need for coastal protection and developing a designated swimming area. The President assured the council members that the administration would seek ways to address their concerns.


A new KPMG report has found that 66 percent of government leaders said the demands of the COVID-19 pandemic have prompted them to advance their focus on digital modernization and 57 percent said they raised their IT budgets in response to the health crisis.
KPMG said it performed two surveys between August and September of last year and polled 85 government leaders from federal, state, Department of Defense civilian and military agencies for the first survey.
The study showed that 78 percent of government executives said the pandemic has increased their awareness of the need to modernize how their agencies deliver services to citizens, while 70 percent said they have become more aware of the need to advance IT transformation.
“COVID-19 has magnified the need for government agencies to transform their models for delivery of services. Citizens are demanding digital access to government services and government leaders are recognizing the importance of transforming,” said Lorna Stark, national leader for government and public sector at KPMG.
The professional services firm found that 57 percent of government officials said the health crisis has increased their awareness of the need to upskill and train agency workers and only 39 percent of respondents said their employees have the skills to adopt emerging technologies.
“A technology-only focus on modernization will only take governments so far. Equal emphasis needs to be placed on ensuring that the government workers have the skills and tools to provide the innovative services today’s constituents expect,” Stark said.
The survey also revealed that 79 percent of government executives said the age of their IT systems has a negative impact on their mission and 72 percent of respondents said obsolete IT systems hamper their agencies’ ability to respond to evolving demands.
For the second survey, KPMG polled more than 1,000 U.S. citizens about their government experiences and found that 70 percent of respondents said they would like agencies to deliver online services.


According to a recent earnings call, GameStop is pretty excited about E3 2015.
During the earnings call, GameStop COO Tony Bartel explained that E3 will feature “a lot of gameplay,” and said that GameStop is “excited to have others see what we’ve seen already.”
There’s going to be a lot of gameplay at E3, and we’re excited to see that. We’re excited to have others see what we’ve seen already, which is fantastic innovation amongst these games.
He also mentioned that E3 will show off some virtual reality devices, and said that he believes they are things that “a lot of people spend a lot of time on.”
I think the other thing that’s going to take a lot of space and time at E3 is virtual reality. I think that’s going to be something that a lot of people spend a lot of time on.
What virtual reality devices do you hope to see at E3?


Yinka Kolawole in Osogbo
The Osun State Governor, Adegboyega Oyetola, thursday launched the federal government Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) scheme in the state, which will ensure more than 15,000 beneficiaries across the state get N20, 000 each.
This is part of efforts to mitigate the economic effects of the coronavirus pandemic in the state.
Oyetola, while launching the scheme, disclosed that the federal government had approved the payment of cumulative four-month stipend of N20,000 to 15,562 beneficiaries across the state.
He added that the N20,000, which covers payment for the months of January, February, March and April, will be paid to each of the beneficiaries through Direct Cash Transfer, as it has been done in few other states of the federation.
Oyetola said the federal government initiative would complement efforts taken by the state government to cushion the effects of the state-wide lockdown imposed to curb the spread of COVID-19, noting that the government had yesterday distributed over 6,000 bags of rice to the needy across the state.
He said the lockdown had impacted the finances of many income earners and had consequently expanded the population of the vulnerable group in the state.
While appealing for more institutional supports for the state in the battle against the pandemic, Oyetola commended the President Muhammadu Buhari for the prompt response and intervention targeted at the vulnerable group in the state.


President Hakainde Hichilema has waged war on corruption and warned that the government will not spare any expense to ensure that perpetrators are made to account for their impropriety.
Speaking during the opening of parliament Mr. Hichilema said that his administration abhors corruption and that his government has a zero-tolerance policy on corruption in all its forms.
He explained that there will be no sacred cows in the fight and that the government will introduce specialised fast-track stolen assets recovery mechanisms and courts for corruption and economic crimes.
“We will also enact legislation on ethics and integrity for improved transparency and accountability.
“We will increase the benefits of being honest and the cost of being corrupt and to enhance transparency and accountability in our national affairs, we will review the policy and legal framework for oversight institutions to enable them to effectively fight corruption and economic crimes,” he stated.
He also told parliament that the government will increase funding and enhance the operational independence of oversight institutions.
Mr. Hichilema explained that the government will also enact legislation on ethics and integrity for improved transparency and accountability hence the government will depoliticise appointments and promotions and improve leadership and management competences.
He also disclosed that the government will implement changes in management programs in the public service to ensure an optimal service delivery system.
“In addition, we will reform the service commissions to enhance their independence and professionalism.
“We want the commissions to protect the public service from unwarranted political interference, in line with their mandate and we will ensure that the merit principle is strictly adhered to in appointments and placements.
Picture: Times of Zambia


Algeria, Saudi Arabia Discuss Enhancing Cooperation
(MENAFN- Saudi Press Agency)
Algiers, Jumada I 15, 1439, Feb 1, 2018, SPA -- Algerian Minister of Justice: Hafez Seals Tayeb Louh received here today the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia's Ambassador to Algeria Dr. Sami Abdullah Al-Saleh.
During the meeting, they discussed developing cooperation between the Kingdom and Algeria, especially in the legal and judicial fields.
22:55 LOCAL TIME 19:55 GMT
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This was said by Speaker Jacob Mudenda, pictured, in the National Assembly on Wednesday while responding to a proposal by Zanu PF MP for Bulilima West Dingumuzi Phuthi to resuscitate the suspended Transport and infrastructural Development parliamentary portfolio committee to visit affected areas on behalf of Parliament.
Mudenda said the request was beyond the August house’s control as the committee — that was chaired by Chegutu West MP (Zanu PF) Dexter Nduna — was recently suspended pending the appointment of a new chairperson.
“Your request is something that is beyond us because the Standing Rules and Orders Committee has come up with two groups that will represent Parliament,” Mudenda said.
Mudenda informed the house that from the two groups, one group will go to Manicaland and the other one to Masvingo on Monday.
“We will be representing Parliament on its own and we also thought of sending committees to those areas, then we decided that the committee that is representing the whole Parliament will be those who will be going to represent Parliament to express their condolences, and to also make their contributions on behalf of the entire Parliament,” he said.


CHOLERA Tightens its grip
Sixty-eight new cases of cholera were reported in Limpopo yesterday.
This brings to 2348 the total number of cases that have been reported since the outbreak of the disease on November 15 last year.
Department of Health and Social Development spokesman Phuti Seloba said yesterday that there were 126 new cases on Friday.
He said they were concerned at the rate at which the disease was spreading in the province.
The disease has also spread to Mpumalanga and other provinces. It was first diagnosed when sick people from Zimbabwe crossed into Musina to seek treatment.
According to Seloba, the Capricorn district was the hardest hit, with 26 of the latest cases being reported there. Sekhukhune and Vhembe districts were second after recording 17 cases each. Mopani dealt with six cases, while Waterberg had two cases at the weekend.
Seloba said they were continuing with the campaign to educate communities to ensure that people know what measures to take to deal with the disease.
"Among other things, we have resorted to an infotainment kind of approach in which communities will watch a drama about people suffering from the disease.
"We believe this will help conscientise communities about the dangers of the disease," he said.
Meanwhile, Leah Matlala of the department of water affairs in Limpopo said yesterday that the latest results of water samples taken from the Tubatse River came out negative.
The river initially tested positive to cholera two weeks ago. Matlala, however, warned communities not to be complacent.
She said further tests would be carried out to determine the areas in which the river was cholera infested.


KARACHI Nov 06,2021
Sindh information minister Saeed Ghani has said that sugar and wheat thieves are standing to the right and left of Prime Minister Imran Khan and it is because of them that the government was standing.
Speaking at a press conference provincial information Minister Saeed Ghani said that if the Sugar Commission Inquiry report had been against the PPP, everyone would have been in jails till then.
Saeed Ghani said that it was not the Sindh government but the people on Imran Khan’s right and left who were responsible for the rise in sugar prices.
The people are being punished for the incompetence of the government.
Provincial Minister Saeed Ghani further said that in the past the MQM had left the PPP government and they would continue to play tricks in the present government but would work on the same salary.


Afghanistan- 2 Afghan generals suspended over graft charges
(MENAFN- Pajhwok Afghan News) KABUL wok): Two generals of the Ministry of Defense (MoD) have been suspended and referred to the Attorney General Office (AGO) over corruption, a source said on Sunday.
A MoD official, who wished to go unnamed, told Pajhwok Afghan News that the individuals included Afghan National Army (ANA) requirement general commander Maj. Gen. Ibrahim Ahmadzai and 203th Thunder =Military Corps 4th brigade commander Brig. Gen. Abdul Matin Hussiankhel.
The two generals had been recognized and accused of corruption by the CID and introduced to the AGO for further investigation, the official said.
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Crypto prices fall as India announces bill banning private cryptocurrencies
(MENAFN- NewsBytes) Prices of nearly all cryptocurrencies plummeted by 15% or more just hours after the Indian government announced that it will introduce a cryptocurrency bill in the Parliament's winter session. Once passed, the bill will ban all private cryptocurrencies with 'certain exceptions' and facilitate the creation of an official digital currency issued by the Reserve Bank of India. Here are more details.
Context Why does this story matter?
If the new cryptocurrency bill gets passed, India may not lift the ban as it had done earlier. The country had long been mulling a ban on the unregulated cryptocurrency market. It also debated the digitization of the Rupee . In his first public remarks on crypto last week, Prime Minister Narendra Modi asked democratic nations to ensure cryptocurrencies do not 'spoil our youth.'
Market Bitcoin value dropped by nearly 17%
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Twatasha ward Candidate calls for teamwork
By ALICE NACHILEMBE
PF Twatasha ward Candidate Elias Njamba has urged all candidates to focus and work together as a team even as the elections are drawing near.
Mr Njamba said that the people need to choose the people who will take care of their needs and challenges in their areas.
He said that people will only vote for a party and the candidate who are organized and visionary in what they are doing.
Mr Njamba said that he understands the people’s challenges in Twatasha hence he will ensure that Twatasha will never be same.
“ I think the community need to have access the people they want to put into power so that it will be easy to communicate they problems and aim that man who is very accessible and social,” he said.
He said PF has done a lot in terms of development and empowerment to the youths and the women and they want to continue with the same agenda.
He said that he was going to do the needful and represent the people in his area.
Mr Njamba said that his emphasis is on the need to represent the people and not just drink bottled water in the council chamber and flip pages but he is an action oriented person.


House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi said Thursday she has concerns about how the Obama administration’s rollout of its health care exchanges is going, and said she wants to see some answers “soon.”
The California Democrat said she is happy with the rollout in her state, which is running its own exchange and which she said is going well, but said the administration got overloaded with requests on the federal exchange.
“I hope that we would have some answers soon and the answer would be, ‘OK, we’ve found the glitch’ or whatever it is,” Mrs. Pelosi told reporters.
The federal exchanges have suffered from overload and critics of Obamacare say it’s a preview of what the program will be for most Americans when it’s up and running.
Mrs. Pelosi said she is focused on all of the benefits she said the bill will bring to those who had lacked insurance.
But she said the federal exchange “is something that has to be improved.”


Dozens of employees with the New York Police Department have reportedly tested positive for the coronavirus.
A senior law enforcement official told NBC Monday 100 sworn officers have been infected with the virus. Twenty-nine civilian employees have also tested positive. In all, more than 2,400 NYPD employees called in sick — more than double the department's daily average. The official said the call ins haven't really affected public safety.
The official said the number of infected employees is expected to rise "given the nature of the virus."
As of Tuesday, Johns Hopkins University reported more than 46,000 confirmed coronavirus cases in the U.S. New York has quickly become the epicenter of the outbreak in the country, with thousands of infections and dozens of deaths.


India will have to spend a lot of money at the first phase of vaccine distribution programme, The government might feel the scarcity of money but on the other hand they are getting help from the COVAX global vaccine-sharing scheme, according to estimates by the GAVI vaccines alliance.
We all know that India has such a large population and the number of cases in India is also on peak. According to the population it is estimated that the government will have to spend millions over this programme.
The government have decided that they will inoculate around 300 million people in next six months. This decision taken by the government is seems very much difficult to fulfil.
If India got 190-250 million shots of the vaccine under the COVAX facility – a best case scenario – then the government would need to line up about $1.4 billion to make up for the shortfall.
There is a fund known as COVID-19 Tools (ACT) Accelerator, which was set up in the month April is also helping in the distribution of the vaccine in poor and middle income countries. As of now the government have not said that what would be exact cost of the whole programme but taking care of the population of India we can say that the cost would be very high.
The senior health ministry official stated that there is no force to those people who do not want to take the Covid-19 Vaccination, it totally depends on one’s own choice and will that whether they want this or not. It is not mandatory that all the population will have to take the vaccine.
The process of vaccine distribution is mainly based on voluntary basis. Whatever decision the people will take the government has said that they will support the general public.
Although the government has said that the people can make their own choice but also they do want to cover as much as possible. A large population of our country should take this vaccine.
Also read: French President tests Covid Positive


(MENAFN- Kuwait News Agency (KUNA)) ADEN, Sept 26 (KUNA) -- Chairman of the Presidential Leadership Council, President Dr. Rashad Muhammad Al-Alimi said late Sunday that the roads of Taiz and other governorates will be opened sooner or later by peace or by the overwhelming popular will.
According to the Yemen News Agency (SABA), Al-Alimi indicated -- in his speech on the occasion of the 60th National Day of the 26th September Revolution -- that the revolution was not directed only against the backward regime, but was for the sake of life and dignity.
Al-Alimi added, 'The (UN) truce, then, was not the goal, but rather a response to the calls of our people and alleviating their suffering.. but I assure you that the roads of Taiz and other governorates will be opened sooner or later by peace or by the overwhelming popular will.'
Choosing peace did not mean foregoing national principles, the tenets of the republic, or the solution for peace made available by the GCC initiative, the outcome of national dialogue conferewnce, and the UNSC 2216, he said.
He stressed that the Yemen leadership and government had stuck to commitments of the truce via opening the Sana airport and allowing the flow of 50 vesselswith oil products through the Hodeidah port, measures which were met by disdain and refusal to cooperate on part of the Houthi militias that still prevented the opening of Taiz roads and withheld salary from ports employees. (end)
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(MENAFN- Trend News Agency)
Over 15 million children in the United States have tested
positive for COVID-19 since the onset of the pandemic, according to
the latest report by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and
the Children's Hospital Association, trend reports citing xinhua .
About 114,000 of these cases have been added in the past 4
A total of 28,600 child COVID-19 cases were reported in the
latest week ending Dec. 1, said the report, adding that reported
cases are likely a substantial undercount of COVID-19 cases among
There is a need to collect more age-specific data to assess the
severity of illness related to new variants as well as potential
longer-term effects, said the report.
'It is important to recognize there are immediate effects of the
pandemic on children's health, but importantly we need to identify
and address the long-lasting impacts on the physical, mental, and
social well-being of this generation of children and youth,' said
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Trade attaches of EU member countries including France, Finland, Germany, Britain, Sweden, Denmark, Austria and Italy visited Bursa Industrialists’ and Businessmen’s Association (BUSIAD).
Pastorelli said that they aimed to see the course of economy and how problems were overcome during their visits to several cities.
They saw that Turkey has fulfilled legal obligations in EU adjustment process to a great extent, Pastorelli emphasized.
Pastorelli said that they would explain this in their countries.
However, Pastorelli stated, putting into practice the laws that had been passed was more important. He said that the government had promised to implement the laws.
Pastorelli said that there were two important incidents on Turkey’s road to EU, including the progress report to be unveiled in October and the final report to be announced in December.
They expected both reports to further improve relations with Turkey, Pastorelli added.


(MENAFN- Trend News Agency)
BAKU, Azerbaijan, November 24 . The
process of updating the newspaper websites in Azerbaijan, which is
an integral part of the multidimensional converge plan has been
completed, said Chief Executive of Azerbaijan's Media Development
Agency Ahmad Ismayilov at the presentation of the E-Kiosk platform,
He noted that since the second half of 2021, the Media
Development Agency has implemented a new mechanism of newspaper
support that should lead to qualitative changes.
'It has been a while since we implemented a new
mechanism of state support, and now we can reflect on the first
results. The fundamental changes and modernization are reflected in
all the newspapers and their websites of the same name. This
includes 6 daily and 10 weekly newspapers that are supported by the
agency. Some newspapers have already switched from the traditional
A3 format to the new B2 format. Most of the newspapers are
published in full color,' he said.
Ismayilov noted that there are print media that have
fully changed their design.
'Azerbaijan's Media Development Agency put forward the
development of newspaper websites as an obligation in the general
support package and allocated one-time funds for this while
continuing to provide monthly support,' he added.
He said that most of the newspaper websites were
either newly created or significantly updated. As a result,
newspaper websites not only keep up with the online media but also
differ from the meaningful content point of view.
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New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to attend the Upper House (Rajya Sabha) of the Parliament on Thursday after repeated demands from a united Opposition which has been protesting against government’s demonetisation move.
The Parliament, which is currently going through its winter session, has not been able to commence any business and witnessed massive uproar and agitation against demonetisation move.
The single demand from a united opposition has been that they wanted PM Modi to address the issue of demonetisation in Rajya Sabha even though the government was ready to discuss all issues related to demonetisation.
Meanwhile, the government targeted the opposition saying that it was simply running from the main issue and was overlooking the people of the country who are in support of demonetisation.
Opposition has been lashing out at the government over note ban issue saying that it has caused a lot of inconvenience to the people and has also affected small-scale business in the country.


KARACHI: Sindh Excise and Taxation Department has collected Rs5.44 billion during the first month of current fiscal year 2020/2021, a statement said on Monday.
Provincial Minister for Excise & Taxation and Narcotics Control and Parliamentary Affairs Mukesh Kumar Chawla in the statement said that the department had collected a total of Rs 5.442 billion in the current financial year 2020-2021 during the month of July.
He further said that Rs.878.709 million was collected under motor vehicle tax, Rs.4141.677 million under infrastructure tax and Rs.67.807 million under professional tax.
He said that Rs 2.861 million was collected in cotton fee, Rs 34.827 million in property tax and Rs 0.022 million in entertainment duty.
He said that the overall situation of collection of taxes was better. However, he directed the officers to work harder and improve the tax collection situation.
Provincial Minister Mukesh Kumar Chawla also requested the people, being law abiding citizens, they were supposed to deposit their taxes on time.


A delegation of the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI) led by its President Shekhar Golchha held separate meetings with Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba and Finance Minister Janardhan Sharma at Singhadurbar today. During the meetings, Golchha congratulated both the prime minister and finance minister for their appointments on behalf of the federation.
The FNCCI delegation requested both PM Deuba and Minister Sharma to prioritise the private sector during the COVID-19 vaccination drive so as to revive the industries and businesses that have been hit by the impact of the coronavirus.
The delegation also requested the government to effectively implement the programmes that have been included for the revival of the private sector in the budget for the next fiscal year. It also urged the government to introduce a stimulus package for the small and medium enterprises of the country.
On the occasion, the FNCCI delegation also requested the government to resolve the issues related to trunk and dedicated electricity lines that have been going on for a long time as early as possible.
The private sector body also apprised the finance minister that most of their suggestions had been included in the budget for the next fiscal year and that the federation has also provided recommendations for the Monetary Policy. The delegation mentioned that it was hopeful that the government would include the recommendations that it had provided for the Monetary Policy.


A White House adviser said Thursday that one in five cases of COVID-19 have been detected in Florida in the past two weeks.
Jeff Ziants, the Biden administration’s coronavirus response coordinator, said the Sunshine State accounts for about 20 percent of the new confirmed cases for the entire country.
“For the second week in a row, one in all cases occur in Florida alone — and within communities, these cases are primarily among unvaccinated people,” Ziants said at a press briefing.
Meanwhile, about 40 percent of new infections this week came from just three states — Florida, Texas and Missouri, Ziants said.
Currently, about 47 percent of people in Florida have been fully vaccinated against the virus – less than the national average of about 49 percent, According to the Mayo Clinic.
Meanwhile, Texas and Missouri only have about 43 percent and 40 percent of their populations fully vaccinated, the data shows.
In New York, more than 56 percent of its population is fully immunized against the virus.
“The states with the significantly highest case rates are actually seeing their vaccine vaccination rates increase,” Ziants said, adding that Florida had a higher vaccination rate last week than the national average.
Florida has had one of the most relaxed approaches to the coronavirus pandemic.
It was one of the last states to impose a coronavirus lockdown at the start of the pandemic – then began reopening in the first week of May 2020, when it Withdrew his stay-at-home order.
Texas also had one of the fastest reopenings, with the state lifting restrictions for the first time on May 1, 2020 – while Missouri began lifting its lockdown the following month.
New York began lifting its COVID-19 restrictions in mid-June last year, after Cuomo ended the state’s stay-at-home order.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Thursday that the seven-day average of new cases in the US was 53 percent higher than the previous week — the delta version comprised about 83 percent of infections nationwide.
“It is clear that we are experiencing what many other countries are experiencing – an increase in the number of cases driven by the more transmissible delta variant,” Ziants said.
But Ziants insisted that the vaccines provided adequate protection against the variant.
“The good news is that current scientific evidence suggests that our current vaccines are working as they did in clinical trials, even against the delta variant,” he said.


Syrian activists say 50 civilians killed in gov't shelling in Boukamal
(MENAFN- Kuwait News Agency (KUNA)) AMMAN, Nov 12 (KUNA) -- Around 50 people have been killed in the eastern Syrian city of Boukamal near the border with Iraq in an ongoing offensive by Syrian government forces and Iranian-backed Iraqi militias, a Syrian human rights body reported on Sunday. The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) said that heavy aerial bombardments continue to target the Syrian city of Boukamal on the Euphrates River, resulting in the deaths of 50 civilians in the last 36 hours, including 20 children.
Meanwhile, SOHR also reported that Syrian government forces now hold full control over the city of Boukamal, as the so-called Islamic State (IS) has evacuated its last urban stronghold in Syria. (end) tk.nam
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More than 4,000 workers have been sacked by the Kaduna State Government, the Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Jafaru Sani, has disclosed.
Sani who made this known on Tuesday said the affected workers were from the state’s local service commission.
He said that while 3,000 of the affected workers were retired, the others were laid off.
He explained that the action was necessary to renew public service in the state and also cut down overhead cost.
He however said that the affected workers would be paid their retirement benefits and other entitlements.
Said he: “It is a known fact that the local government areas were overburdened by redundant and unproductive staff who are contributing nothing to the development of the councils.
“Because of the over-bloated staff, the LGAs are doing nothing other than paying salaries and end up becoming more or less a poverty alleviation centre, where people just go to collect money and go home.
“To ensure development at the local levels therefore, we have to do what is right by downsizing the redundant staff to free some funds that would be injected in developmental projects.
“With the disengagement, the supporting members of staff at the 23 local government areas are now 6,732, excluding primary school teachers and primary health care workers.”
It would be recalled that the state government has threatened to sack no fewer than 1,780 teachers for failing a test by the government to ascertain their competence.
The development has since brought about a confrontation between the state government and the organized labour which warned against the sack.


General Secretary of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP), lawyer Justin Kodua, has asked Ghanaians to trust in the government since it has what it takes to restore confidence in the Ghanaian economy.
The lawyer says when there are challenges, the confidence people have in the government will go down and when there are opportunities available for people, the confidence will go high.
He was responding to recent surveys which revealed that respondents no longer have confidence in the government since they believe the country was heading in the wrong direction.
The chief scribe assured Ghanaians that the government has what it takes to restore confidence in the economy.
To him, the NPP has a track record of maintaining a stable economy anytime they are in office hence the people should trust in them.
He was speaking at a media engagement held to commemorate the 30th-anniversary celebration of the NPP.
He argued that we cannot ignore the negative impact of Covid-19 and the Russian-Ukraine war on the economy.
He said since the president took over, he has exhibited exceptional leadership which has transformed the country despite the challenges we are currently facing.


(MENAFN- Gulf Times)
Qatar Chamber, in cooperation with the Ministry of Labour, has launched the updated version of the 'Labour Re-employment Platform for Private Sector', an electronic platform that assists companies to recruit from the local market.
The launch was held during a meeting of the chamber and the ministry's Joint Coordination Committee in the presence of the Qatar Chamber general manager Saleh bin Hamad al-Sharqi and Labour Recruitment Department director Nasser Abdulla al-Mannai, as well as Captain Saad Hussein al-Kubaisi from the Ministry of Interior and Ibrahim Abdulla al-Mulla, deputy CEO of Qatari company WISA Co
Speaking at the meeting, al-Sharqi stressed the chamber's interest to launch the upgraded platform, in coordination with the ministry.
He noted that this will help companies obtain skilled and experienced workers from the local market instead of recruiting from outside the country, which saves time and maintains the continuity of projects.
Al-Sharqi also said the platform helps streamline the transfer of employment from companies that have reduced their businesses or that have redundant workers to other companies willing to hire new workers.
He said many companies have benefited from the platform during the last period, noting that the chamber launched the platform to support the private sector and assist“troubled companies.”
“The chamber promotes the platform among business owners and local companies to encourage them to use it and obtain the needed employment,” he said.
Al-Sharqi called on companies hiring new employees to register on the platform and select from the laid-off labourers.
This will be supervised by the Ministry of Labour, in accordance with the applicable laws and procedures of the state.
He said there will be subsequent developments to the platform in the coming period to provide more benefits for all parties.
He called on companies to provide feedback to further develop the platform.
Al-Sharqi also thanked the Ministry of Labour and the Ministry of Interior for their efforts facilitating the platform.
For his part, al-Mannai thanked the chamber for its positive cooperation with the Ministry of Labour in the development of the platform, saying it was the result of an integrated effort between both parties and that it will contribute significantly to strengthening the Qatari labour market.
He stressed the ministry's keenness on facilitating procedures for companies that adhere to labour laws, noting that companies that will benefit from the platform are those that are committed to the labour law and that do not have any labour violations, such as delaying wages.
Al-Mannai also said the platform will contribute to improving the Qatari labour market, streamlining the transfer of employment between companies, speeding up obtaining skilled labour, and shortening the time needed for recruiting new employees from abroad.
This enables companies to obtain their employment needs to complete its projects as per schedule, he added.
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