• Long-delayed land port authority gets official nod to boost trade
• Cabinet okays bills to regulate private security firms, extend tenure of HEC chairperson
• Shehbaz terms IMF deal ‘only a breather’; first tranche expected in July

ISLAMABAD: The federal government on Monday introduced further amendments to the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) law through an ordinance signed by acting president and Senate Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani, allowing the accountability watchdog to detain suspects over ‘non-cooperation’.

A notification signed by Mr Sanjrani stated, “The prime minister’s advice at para 6 of the summary is approved. The National Accountability (Amendment) Ordinance, 2023, is signed and promulgated.”

The ordinance signed around midnight also increased the duration of physical remand from 15 days to 30 days. Under a recent amendment by the sitting government to the National Accountability Ordinance 1999, the duration of physical remand had been reduced from 90 days to 14 days.

Port and land authority

Earlier, the cabinet approved in principle legislation for the establishment of the Pakistan Land Port Authority (PLPA) to ensure the timely movement of goods, people, and vehicles across international borders to boost trade and transport logistics.

An official told Dawn that the proposed authority will supervise the multi-agency operated facilities at border points and other inland dry ports for cohesive management of the cross-border movement of goods and people.

The cabinet directed that the draft legislation be sent to the Cabinet Committee for Disposal of Legislative Cases (CCLC) after consultation with the commerce ministry.

The idea for a land port authority was first floated in 2012 by the PPP government. Then prime minister Raja Pervaiz Ashraf had also approved its constitution in principle to eradicate lack of coordination which “causes a delay in the flow of goods and passengers”.

At the time, apprehensions were expressed that the project would face delays due to red tape. The issue also came up during the tenure of PML-N which “approved the establishment of the Land Port Authority” in 2015 to oversee cross-border movement of goods and people. It was previously reported that the authority would be made functional in Feb 2022.

Private security, HEC

The cabinet also approved a bill pertaining to the regulation of private security services. It seeks to regulate and monitor private security agencies and will be sent to the CCLC.

A source said the government was prescribing a standard uniform for private guards which may not resemble the uniforms of the armed forces and other law enforcement agencies. The guards will be required to be properly trained and equipped. They will be barred from displaying weapons outside the premises being guarded by them.

The cabinet also approved the Higher Education Commission (HEC) amendment bill that seeks to increase the term of the HEC chairman from two to three years.

The proposed law would deprive him of the status of a federal minister the chairperson currently enjoys under the existing law. The term of the HEC chairman used to be four years, but it had been reduced to two years by the PTI government.

The cabinet also accorded approval for the transit of a World Food Programme container carrying spare parts for its vehicles, from Karachi to Kabul to ensure continued supply of food to Afghanistan. The cabinet was also briefed on the solid waste management project for Islamabad and told that tenders had been floated to acquire the services of reputed international companies under a long-term policy. The cabinet also approved the solid waste management bill which was sent to the CCLC.

IMF deal only a ‘breather’

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif noted that the deal with the IMF was a ‘moment of concern’, not a ’matter of ‘pride’. He said it was just a ‘breather’, stressing that the next government will have to introduce “real reform”.

The premier said though it was good to move away from the brink of collapse, it was unsustainable to run the economy in this manner.

Underlining the need for concerted efforts to put the country’s economy back on track, the institutions, while remaining in their respective jurisdictions, will need to make joint efforts for at least 15 years to pull the country out of the economic quagmire, Mr Sharif added.

He showered praise on General Asim Munir for his “key role” in securing $3 billion from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. He said as a result of the staff-level agreement and a $3 billion standby arrangement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the trust of investors and the business community was rapidly reviving.

Standby arrangement

The premier briefed the cabinet about the nine-month standby agreement that his government reached with the Washington-based lender last week.

“The first instalment from the IMF will be received in July,” he told his ministers. He added that China helped Pakistan several months before the deal just like it has done in the past.

“If the deal with the IMF had not been finalised, the situation would have been different,” he added. “I pray that this is the last IMF deal. But this is easier said than done,” he remarked.

He pointed out that state-owned enterprises, like Pakistan Steel Mills, and PIA among others, were eating up around Rs600 billion annually. He said that during the remaining 40-42 days of the government’s term, the cabinet members should make efforts to leave behind a policy framework providing a roadmap and a vision for future development.

PM Shehbaz said the government’s continued struggle and prudent policies had started bearing fruits as signs of the country’s economic revival were rising.

“We are resuming the journey of economic development,” he said and vowed to continue the journey of economic stability and national development.

“Under the leadership of Nawaz Sharif, just as China-Pakistan Economic Corridor was launched, the economy revived, the inflation rate kept at around 4 per cent, the growth rate brought to 6.1pc, and the policy rate was kept at 6pc, we are coming back again to same journey of development,” he claimed.

Published in Dawn, July 4th, 2023