The order
to make it public is to be given. The details of the issue of defaulters is
that the Pakistan Information Commission has rejected the final revision
request of the State Bank against the decision to disclose the list of 1,000
big defaulters. It has been ordered to be made public. In the judgment, it is
said that the State Bank officials have taken the stand in their revision
appeal before the Commission that they have a list of 1000 big loan defaulters
but they Cannot share that information is exempt from disclosure. Section 13A
of the Banking Companies Ordinance 1962 which deals with "Fidelity and
Confidentiality" states that every bank and financial institution shall
not share any information of its customer with anyone unless required by law.
However, the Information Commission has said in its decision that the State
Bank's role is that of a regulator, it is not bound to keep the record of
defaulters. State Bank can also provide this record by obtaining it from the
respective banks. Instead of becoming a wall in front of access to information,
the government body should play its role as a good and active and vigilant
regulator. According to Shoaib Siddiqui, head of the Information Commission,
State Bank has been given a deadline of September 5 to implement.
If the
order is violated, strict action can be taken against the State Bank officials
under Section 20 and 22 of the Right to Access to Information Act, 2017. The
importance of this decision of the commission needs no explanation. If this is
implemented, it will be possible to put an end to the evil tradition of taking
heavy loans for the wealthy in Pakistan and forgiving them. After this
decision, at least the names of such big defaulters will be kept secret. The
chain of those who take huge loans and forgive them on the bill of their
influence must be stopped forever. This injustice must be permanently ended now
that the properties of poor defaulters of a few lakhs should be confiscated and
the defaulters of crores and billions who have assets worth billions should be
confiscated. Don't get caught by the law.
The
historical electricity relief package for Punjab by the leader of Muslim League
(N) and former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to remedy the rising electricity
rates and the anxiety among consumers is certainly a people-friendly
initiative, according to which 500 units will be given to those who use it. A
relief of Rs 14 per unit will be provided in August and September bills. Up to
500 units, the basic tariff rate is Rs 37 to Rs 38 per unit. After Rs 14
relief, it will be Rs 24. Leader of PML-N along with Punjab Chief Minister
Maryam Nawaz said in a press conference that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif
should also take steps to reduce electricity prices. Appreciating the relief
package, Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif has said that work is being done for a
lasting solution to the reduction in electricity prices.
It should
be noted that the huge bills are rooted in indirect taxes and IPPs agreements,
which do not seem possible without cutting them. According to the energy
authorities, only 85 hours running IPPs are paid 49 billion. Employees of
electricity companies are given free electricity worth 15 billion rupees
annually. According to Bloomberg, electricity bills have become higher than
house rents. Nawaz Sharif congratulated Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz and said
that this relief will not end here. Solar panels will be given to houses in
Punjab from 700 billion rupees. Maryam Nawaz reduced the price of flour. They
are also working hard for health and cleanliness. He mentioned the comparison
of inflation and electricity bills during his regime with today and his separation
from power and said that if this journey of development had continued, we would
have been the Asian Tiger today. Although this relief is only for two months,
the government Better measures should be welcomed.
These
days, an epidemic called monkey pox is spreading at the international level,
and in the light of the guidelines of the World Health Organization, all
countries are taking measures to prevent it. It has been ordered to provide
face masks to the passengers coming from abroad. Passengers' luggage will be
disinfected before sending to the lounge, while those infected or suspected of
monkeypox will be handed over to the health department. It is reported that one
more patient has died, after which the number of deaths due to this disease in
Balochistan has increased to five. The presence of Congo virus has also been
found in Karachi. The breeding season of dengue mosquito has started in
different parts of the country.
Another
cause of concern is the situation regarding the polio virus. In the beginning
of the last decade, there was good news of eradication of polio from the
country except for the case of Akka Dacca, but for the last five years. It has
struck again. New cases are emerging every day and millions of dollars in
foreign aid to eradicate it seem to be in vain. In recent weeks, 266 samples
from 58 districts of the country have been found to contain poliovirus. These
include Sindh province 114, Balochistan 93, KP 31, Punjab 22, Islamabad 5 and
Azad Kashmir one. Whatever the virus, timely preventive measures must be taken
at all levels before it becomes uncontrollable. Preventing dengue mosquito
breeding, polio For the elimination of monkey pox and Congo virus, it is
necessary for the responsible parties to implement the instructions of the
health experts and there should be no reduction in public awareness through
them.
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