GUJRANWALA, March 14: Tunis High Commissioner Zohair Dawoodi appreciated the quality products of made in Gujranwala and invited local traders to export these items to his country after developing trade relations.

He expressed his views while visiting the exhibition of industrial products at Gulshan Iqbal Park here on Wednesday.

Mr Dawoodi said that his country was importing products from European countries while quality products of Gujranwala could well find a place in the international market.

Earlier, Gujranwala Chamber of Commerce and Industry president Rana Shehzad Hafiz and other office bearers welcomed him in the exhibition.

He also informed the envoy that a trade delegation would be sent to Tunis for exploring the market there. The chamber announced that exhibition would remain closed till 6pm on Thursday (today) due to President Pervez Musharraf’s visit.

President’s visit: The district administration and traffic police impounded hundreds of public transport vehicles for carrying people to the city from remote areas ahead of President Pervez Musharraf’s visit to Gujranwala here on Thursday (today).

Commuters, including women and children, protested against the government and demanded the release of impounded vehicles.

Reports said that some senior officers of the district administration and traffic police set up pickets on different roads and the general bus stand and seized vehicles after evacuating passengers on Wednesday.

Some transporters claimed that the traffic police and the motor vehicle examiner had impounded their vehicles some two days back.

Commuters, including government employees, students and labourers were facing a great deal of inconvenience to reach the city from suburban areas for want of public transport. Motorcycle-rickshaw and taxi cab drivers bumped up their charges to exploit the situation.

Meanwhile, the local district administration and ruling PML have made all arrangements for Gen Musharraf’s visit.

The army has taken control of Jinnah Stadium, the venue where Gen Musharraf would address a public meeting on Thursday (today).

As part of security measures, the G.T Road would be sealed from Seithi Colony, Rahwali, to Gujranwala from 11am to 5pm while routes of Lahore-Rawalpindi, Hafizabad-Sialkot and Faisalabad-Sheikhupura bound buses and public transport vehicles have also been diverted.

Federal and provincial ministers, parliamentarians, nazims and leaders of the ruling party have been directed to bring maximum number of people to the public meeting. To ensure presence at the venue, leaves of patwaris and schoolteachers have also been cancelled.

The DCO announced a local holiday on Thursday to facilitate the people to participate in the public gathering. Troops as well as police personnel have been deployed in force at almost all important places in the city and along the GT Road.

Senior officers of the district administration and police reviewed the security arrangements at Jinnah Stadium on Wednesday.

BAILED OUT: A local court bailed out four senior lawyers and a former MPA and his son involved in a garbage case after the Anti-Terrorism Court No 1 deleted terrorism act from the FIR here on Wednesday.

Civil Lines police had registered a case against 200 people, including district bar president Ilyas Rehan, Sheikh Eizad Masood, Aftab Zaidi, People’s Lawyers Forum president Mian Ahad Ramey, former MPA S.A Hamid and his son Raza Hamid on the charge of dumping the garbage into the district nazim’s office to protest the poor cleanliness system in the city.

While police arrested several accused, including a former MPA and his son, and sent them to jail besides adding another offence against them in the FIR under the terrorism act.