UN appeals for $357m for flood-ravaged Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: The United Nations on Sunday launched an appeal to raise 356.9 million dollars under its Rapid Response Plan 2011, which will be spent initially on 91 projects in the flood affected areas of Sindh and Balochistan, due to heavy monsoon rains.

The Rapid Response Plan 2011 was launched here at a local hotel by Humanitarian Coordinator of United Nations, Timo Pakkala at a ceremony where Minister for Information and Broadcasting Dr. Firdous Ashiq Awan was the chief guest.

Representatives of diplomatic community, UN organizations, government departments, National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) and others were present on the occasion in which the UN Humanitarian Coordinator launched this plan.

The Rapid Response Plan has been launched on the appeal made by President Asif Ali Zardari after his visit to the flood affected areas of Sindh when he phoned the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon for generating funds from the international community to help the victims due to gravity of the devastation caused by unprecedented rains.

It is an initial plan for emergency needs, which will be reviewed after a month to assess the actual needs, when the complete destruction and damage data will be compiled from the affected areas.

Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan while addressing the launching of the Rapid Response Plan said unprecedented heavy rainfall have affected  23 districts of Sindh and five districts of Balochistan.

The Minister said the situation further compounded due to a number of breaches in all the irrigation channels and Left Bank Out Fall Drain.

Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan said, unfortunately 342  precious lives have been lost due to the floods while 633 persons were injured and millions of people are vulnerable to different diseases, particularly acute respiratory infections, diarrhea, malaria and  infections.

She said, “More than 7.1 million people have been directly affected out of which 491,000 people have been accommodated in 2618 relief camps.”

As many as 1.3 million houses have been damaged and over 6 million acres of land including 2 million acres cultivated land has been affected, she added.

The Minister said heavy damages to property, infrastructure, agriculture and livestock have been reported, however, the actual damages could be ascertained after detailed damages and needs assessment is carried out.

The Information Minister said the Government of Pakistan, under the dynamic leadership of President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani, despite being faced with resource constraints, has so far mobilized approximately 166,000 tents, over 869,000 family food packs and a large number of other relief items including blankets, mosquito nets, water purification units, medicines and jerry cans etc.

She said, “The government had tried its best to cope with the situation by itself, however, due to the sheer scale of the disaster it came to the conclusion that the situation exceeds the capacity of any single stakeholder.”

She said in view of this President Asif Ali Zardari requested UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon to supplement the Government’s efforts.

The Minister hoped that the people of Pakistan would receive similar generous support as has been extended by friends and international community in the past for the Rapid Response Plan of $356 million.

“We are confident that the Rapid Response Plan – Pakistan Floods 2011, launched today, jointly by Pakistan Government and the UN would receive the required funds from donors,” she added.

The Minister said Pakistan government together with the UN would ensure transparency and accountability in the utilization and delivery of the assistance to the affected people in a most efficient manner.

She said it is natural disaster as people of Pakistan especially living in Sindh are unfortunately once again passing through great hardship due to unexpected and unprecedented heavy monsoon rains.

She said Pakistan is prone to hydro meteorological disasters; however, the frequency and intensity of such disasters have increased in the recent past, primarily due to climate change phenomenon experienced all over the world.

The Minister said a well placed three-tier disaster management system consisting of district, provincial and national disaster management authorities has been evolved by the government.

Referring to the issue of visa and permission to the non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and international community to reach to the flood affected areas, the Information Minister assured that there is no such problem and government of Pakistan has been facilitating the donors in this regard.

She said previous response of international community so far was due to Pakistan’s personal efforts at international level while the UN has launched its campaign today and expressed the hope that there will be good response of this campaign.

Humanitarian Coordinator of United Nations, Timo Pakkala while announcing the Rapid Response Plan said it is basically for the 91 projects identified initially to provide shelter, food, medicines and clean drinking water in the affected areas.

He said the UN has already started supply of food, shelter, medicines and other basic needs of life to the flood affected areas without waiting for the funds to be generated.

Timo Pakkala said this plan is for initial response to the victims and it will be reviewed after 45 days to revise the needs and demands of the people of the affected areas.

Giving some details, he said, with the present resources of Pakistan government, only 30 percent shelter could be provided to the homeless victims.

He said out of 5.44 million affected people there are 2.60 million women and 1.96 million children, while 1.8 million people have been displaced and 1.0 million houses have been damaged.

He said 64 percent people in the flood affected areas are without clean drinking water while 67 percent food stock of the people had been destroyed.

He said 70 percent crops in the area have been damaged while 280,000 families have lost their livestock.

Replying to a question, Timo Pakkala said so far no country has announced its pledge under the Rapid Response Plan 2011 adding that some of the countries have already announced their donations before.

He however clarified that it will be up to the donor countries either they want to contribute directly on bilateral basis or they can contribute through this Rapid Response Plan.

He said Rapid Response Plan is for providing immediate relief and after its revision, a fresh plan would be prepared for reconstruction, rehabilitation and improvement of other basic facilities to the flood victims.

Brigadier Sajid Naeem, representing National Disaster Management Authority explained the contingent plan and ongoing efforts of the NDMA for the assistance of flood victims.

He said NDMA has been coordinating with other departments of the federal and provincial governments and international community to provide best possible help to the flood victims without delay.

He said the NDMA had already prepared a contingent plan according to the reports of Met office, but the rains were much more than the assessments of Met office and beyond the capacity of the canals and rivers that created more damage. AGENCIES

Hurricane Irene to make landfall at U.S. East

NEW YORK: Energy companies on Friday activated emergency plans as the densely populated U.S. East Coast braced for blackouts from Hurricane Irene that could affect millions.

Meantime, three major New York-area airports will close to domestic and international arrivals beginning at noon EDT on Saturday due to Hurricane Irene, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey said.

John F. Kennedy International Airport and LaGuardia Airport in New York as well as Newark Liberty International Airport, however, will remain open to departures, the Port Authority said in an alert on its website.

Major U.S. airlines are in the process of cancelling most of their flights through the weekend at the major New York-area airports.

Oil refineries in the U.S. Northeast scaled back operations and pipeline operators warned of potential delays for fuel distribution. The Coast Guard said it had no plans yet to shut the New York Harbor, but energy traders said delays could affect the delivery hub for millions of barrels a day in crude and oil products, by pipeline, barge and ship.

Storm-caused blackouts could be a huge menace, energy experts, meteorologists and U.S. officials warned.

“The range of possibilities from this storm is enormous,” said energy analyst Tim Evans at Citi Futures in New York.

“We could see anything from blackouts putting the entire Northeast in the dark, to only very localized problems.”

At 2 p.m. (1800 GMT), Irene’s center was 300 miles south-southwest of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, churning northward. It weakened early Friday to a Category 2 hurricane from a 3 on the five-step Saffir-Simpson scale, but was expected to retain hurricane force and scour the length of the mid-Atlantic coast on Sunday.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency said power outages could last days, with flash flooding in coastal areas and strong winds expected to reach far inland.

Irene may leave 5 million to 7 million people without electricity, a Deutsche Bank meteorologist wrote in a report, adding high tides due to a new moon on August 28 could exacerbate storm surges.

Although the East Coast does not have major offshore oil and gas production like the hurricane-prone Gulf Coast, its huge power and pipeline networks, nuclear plants and refineries mean the energy stakes are high as Irene bears in on North Carolina.

The storm threatens to tear up to the Northeast starting Saturday.

Hurricane Katrina in 2005 knocked out Gulf Coast refining for weeks, months for some plants, while the last major hurricane to batter the East Coast, Gloria in 1985, left millions without power but caused little lasting damage to energy infrastructure.

As a category 2 storm, Irene already packs winds between 96 and 110 miles per hour and storm surges of 6 to 8 feet.

East Coast utilities were lining up thousands of workers from as far away as Texas to descend on storm-ravaged areas through the power industry’s mutual aid program. Crews would clear fallen trees and debris and restore power as quickly as possible after Irene passes.

“If the storm tracks anywhere close to the worst-case scenario, it will be a very major mobilization,” said Jim Owen of trade group Edison Electric Institute.

East Coast oil refineries, which process up to 1.6 million barrels per day (bpd) of crude, planned to brave Irene without total shutdowns. But some were scaling back, the National Petrochemical and Refiners Association (NPRA) said.

Sunoco’s Marcus Hook refinery in coastal Pennsylvania has cut rates by 25 percent to 140,000 bpd, a source familiar said.

Irene’s severity had nuclear power plant operators near the coast securing equipment and battening down the hatches.

Dominion Resources Inc, which shut its Virginia-based North Anna nuclear plant on Tuesday following an earthquake, said the plant would remain closed through the storm.

Hurricane winds may cause Dominion to idle other reactors along the seaboard over the weekend, the company said, even though they are built to withstand winds of up to 360 miles per hour.

Any closure of the New York Harbor could create backlogs of ships waiting to deliver crude or fuels, but would not be likely to cause a prolonged supply crunch.

Oil terminals in the East Coast region had around nine days of crude supply on hand last week.

The consumption region, known as PADD 1 in the refining industry, depends largely on imports of fuel, and its depots currently hold enough gasoline to cover 23 days of regional demand, 46 days for heating oil, according to the NPRA.

The largest U.S. refined products pipeline, 2.37 million bpd Colonial line, continued to operate normally on Friday but said it expected deliveries to be partially affected by Irene.

Colonial ships fuels including gasoline and diesel to terminals in Irene’s projected path, including Virginia, Maryland, and New York Harbor, where the line ends.

“This is not Katrina,” said Jim Beck of the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

“PADD 1 has plenty (of crude) to ride out any kind of supply disruptions. We are well-covered with (oil) products for this time of year.”

Several oil terminals were due to close temporarily. Pipeline and terminal operator Magellan Midstream partners was shutting oil terminals in North Carolina and Virginia on Friday. Enterprise and Kinder Morgan planned to close some coastal terminals.

Prices of front-month gasoline futures in New York Harbor retreated 1.1 percent on Friday. They had gained more than 3 percent Thursday on concerns over supply disruptions.

In the Bahamas, which was pounded by Irene on Thursday, Buckeye Partners said its massive 21.6 million barrel Borco oil shipping terminal was restarting on Friday. AGENCIES

Swiss freeze over $200M in bribe money: report

The money was reportedly intended to be given in suspected bribes intended for foreign officials since 2008.

The paper cites the federal prosecutors office as saying the funds were deposited in Swiss accounts by multinational companies for the purpose of bribing officials around the world to secure contracts. The report didn t name any individual companies.

An email to the prosecutors office Sunday was not immediately answered.

In the past, Switzerland was a popular place for multinational companies to “park” bribes due to its lax anti-corruption laws.

Since 2000, the country has tightened its legislation to conform with the requirements of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.

Sindh not to cancel old arms licences

Those weapon licences issued by the federal government will be cancelled next month (September).

A few weeks ago, Federal Interior Minister Rehman Malik announced that all weapon licences across the country will be cancelled soon to tackle the bogus licences after which new weapon licences will be issued and registered by National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA).

Contrary to Rehman Malik’s announcement of cancelling all weapon licences, the Sindh government has now announced that it will not cancel its provincial weapon licences.

Meanwhile, the federal government has announced that a ban has been imposed on Weapons Permit-144 and all federal weapon licences will be cancelled in September.

Sindh’s weapon licenses will not be cancelled: Sindh Home Department

KARACHI: All weapon licenses issued by the Sindh government will not be cancelled, said the Sindh Home Department today.

Those weapon licenses issued by the federal government will all be cancelled next month (September).

A few weeks ago, Federal Interior Minister Rehman Malik announced that all weapon licenses across the country will be cancelled soon to tackle the bogus licenses after which new weapon licenses will be issued and registered by National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA).

Contrary to Rehman Malik’s announcement of cancelling all weapon licenses across the country, the Sindh government has now announced that it will not cancel its provincial weapon licenses.

Meanwhile, the federal government has announced that a ban has been imposed on Weapons Permit-144 and all federal weapon licenses will be cancelled in September . TrendPK

Old arms licences to be void on 31st: Rehman Malik

Talking to the media in Karachi, Rehman Malik said deweaponisation will be carried out in phases. He said the holders of manual arms licence should surrender it to get a new, computerisd licence. All zonal headquarters of the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) have been directed on the matter, he added.

The minister said anyone carrying a weapon without a computerised licence after this date will be charged under the Pakistan Arms Ordinance and the Anti-Terrorism Act.

He also said all people should ensure that there is no illegal SIM card issued in their name because action would be taken by relevant authorities. He said the people could dial 668 and enter their National Identity Card number to know the number of SIMs registered in their name. He said if a SIM was found being used for any crime after September 5, action would be taken against the owner of the SIM and a First Information Report (FIR) will be registered.

Rehman Malik said an officer of Deputy Inspector General level will be assigned to work with intelligence agencies and the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) against extortionists in Karachi.

He said major issues in Karachi were sectarian, ethnic and political. He said action indiscriminate action would be taken against unscrupulous elements. He claimed killings in Karachi had been controlled and the situation was being monitored on an hourly basis.

Govt failed to control prices: Nawaz

Talking to mediamen after having a meeting with PML-N coordination committees, he said the yellow cab scheme was announced in the budget.

According to plan, 20,000 cabs would be launched at once and distributed candidly on easy installments. It would not only eradicate unemployment but also promote the industrial sector.

He suggested that the federal government should launch such schemes on national level.

He said that the government had failed to control over price hike. If the expenses of government are curtailed, “we need no foreign aid”, he added.

CM Shahbaz Sharif himself drove the cad while Nawaz Sharif sit on the front seat and Zafar Iqbal Jhagra and Pir Sabir Shah in the rear.

China agrees to control Gwadar Port, Raisani rejects decision

According to a statement issued by the Ministry of Defence, Defence Minister Ahmed Mukhtar said that China and Pakistan have agreed to work jointly to establish peace in the region. China will be handed over the control of Gwadar Port when Singapore Auhtority’s tenure would come to an end.

He revealed that China has also decided to give FC-20 jets to Pak Air Force while Pakistan had requested China to give a frigate of 44,000 tonnes weight on credit.

On the other hand, Balochistan Chief Minister Nawaz Aslam Raisani has rejected the decision of handing over the Gwadar Port to China because the federal government did not take the provincial government into confidence. He said that Balochistan government has ability to handle the port.

Zardari terms Babar Awan indictment political victimisation

ISLAMABAD: Expressing concern over the indictment of Federal Law Minister Babar Awan in robbery and kidnapping cases, President Zardari said the step is against democratic values.

According to Presidential spokesperson Farhatullah Babar, the president considers the move by the Punjab prosecution department as based on “ill will”.

President Zardari was quoted as saying that such steps amount to victimisation of political opponents, and undermine the freedom of the judiciary. Two cases were registered against Awan 12 years ago when he was pursuing cases against President Zardari.

On Saturday, a Rawalpindi court indicted the federal law minister in both cases.

Updated from the print edition (below)

Babar Awan indicted for robbery, harassment

Federal Minister for law and Justice, Babar Awan, was indicted on Saturday by an area magistrate here for a robbery and harassment case registered against him in 1998.

The minister appeared in person before Area Magistrate Mehr Sarfaraz Hussain and rejected what he called false and politically motivated allegations.

An FIR was registered in Sadiqabad police station Rawalpindi in 1998 on the complaint of Sheikh Iftikhar Adil, the editor of a daily newspaper Asaas. The complainant had said Awan and a few armed men had tried to abduct him near Sadiqabad.

The journalist had told the police that he was tortured and given life threats after Awan failed to kidnap him. Awan is also accused of having stolen important documents belonging to Adil.

Awan had obtained bail but he failed to appear in court after the expiration of his bail. Later, the court had issued arrest warrants for the minister who then appeared before the court and obtained bail. The area magistrate has asked concerned parties to present evidence by the next date of hearing, March 12.

Khanani and Kalia: FIA chief questions suspects’ acquittal

ISLAMABAD: The Director-General of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), Waseem Ahmed on Saturday said exonerating suspects in the Khanani and Kalia case was questionable.

Ahmed was speaking before the Senate’s Standing Committee on Interior chaired by Senator Talha Mehmood. The FIA chief also alleged that a large sum of money was used for the release of the accused, saying that there was enough proof of their involvement in money laundering. “You will be surprised to know how many days they spent in jail and how many days in the hospital,” the FIA chief said.

He added that the prime minister’s son had paid Rs8 million as custom duty for importing a vehicle and the notification for the import of the bulletproof car was issued by the interior ministry.

Waseem said that the FIA is currently conducting inquires in 35 different key cases. By the end of April, all inquiries will be completed, he said. He claimed that in the last four years the agency had only handled immigration duties and corruption cases were dealt by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), but now many corruption cases have been handed over to the FIA. “The FIA should be fully authorised to procure documents to expedite inquiries,” he said.

Presently around 1,032 positions are lying vacant in the FIA, which is one of the reasons for delays, he said. Ahmed further claimed that the salaries and incentives given to FIA officials are much less than that given to provincial police personnel. No efficient officer from any other departments is ready to work in the agency, he said, adding that “possibly political pressure is one of the reasons for not advertising vacancies.”

The committee unanimously recommended to immediately fill vacant positions, and said the interior ministry will be asked to bring salaries at par with provincial police officials.

Meanwhile, the senate committee said there were irregularities in the Federal Bureau of Revenue (FBR) and directed the department to plug loopholes in revenue collection.

Earlier, FBR officials told the committee that an inquiry was under way against an official from the FBR’s intelligence wing in Karachi, who had illegally using an imported vehicle owned by another citizen.

The committee was also informed that the health ministry has registered 16, 500 drugs during the last two and half years, which is higher than the total number of drugs registered in the past 60 years. The committee has asked for a report on the sudden increase.

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