Law And Order Is A Provincial Subject Under The 18th Constitutional Amendment: Minister Of Information Ali Zafar

Ali Zafar, to a question said law and order was a provincial subject under the 18th Constitutional Amendment.

Islamabad (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 16th Jul, 2018 ) :Ali Zafar, to a question said law and order was a provincial subject under the 18th Constitutional Amendment.

The Federal government had no mandate to interfere in the affairs of the provincial governments, he said and added that the federal government could only provide them guidance.

The minister said he had a great desire to ensure access to information as under Article 19 A, every citizen had the right to access information and freedom of speech.

Soon after the caretaker setup was formed, in initial briefings, the state media was told that it was free to work, he said. "Earlier, PEMRA was being controlled by the government, but it has been set free by the caretaker setup," he added.

He said PEMRA could regulate private channels and the government had no authority over them. It was up to the private channels that to which party they give coverage or highlight what kind of issues.

The minister said Senate had set up a committee to probe the allegation by certain television channels about undisclosed censorship.

To a question, Ali Zafar said Nawaz Sharif and Maryam Nawaz were entitled to all amenities as per jail manual and action would be taken if they were not given those facilities.

Regarding provision of medicines to Nawaz Sharif, the minister said he came to know about it through a letter written by Shehbaz Sharif. He said provision of medicines to Nawaz Sharif was his right and he was sure that he was getting the facility.

About the accountability process, the minister said the government had set up and empowered investigation and prosecution agencies as per law of the land.

Nobody would be allowed to interfere in the work of investigative or prosecuting agencies.

Nawaz Sharif had the right to file appeal against his conviction, he added.

About the state of economy, the minister said market forces determined the Dollar exchange rate. In past, dollar exchange rate was artificially controlled which had a negative impact on the economy, he added.

He said the finance minister was making guidelines to enhance exports and other economic indicators.

Regarding petroleum prices, the minister said, "Every month you have to adjust prices of petroleum as per international markets. There are taxes on petroleum products. Normally, the government reduces taxes to give relief to the people," he added.

He said the interim government could only hold discussion with the IMF but could not enter into any long term programme.

To another question, the minister said water was a national issue, but unfortunately no past government paid any heed towards the grave issue.

He said Pakistan needed to build 17 dams to meet its water requirement, but it could build only two dams.

He said about 95 per cent water was being used for agriculture and old techniques were being adopted that led to wastage of water. "If we adopt drop for a crop method, we can save water," he said.

He said other countries were spending 20 to 25 per cent resources on water conservation and reservoirs, however only 5 percent was used here, adding Pakistan needed to work on emergency basis to manage its water resources.

He said the government had acquired the services of Pakistani water experts to overcome the issue of water shortage and they would give their recommendations to be put before the cabinet by July 21 for implementation of the water policy.