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January 02, 2022: National Current Affairs MCQs
1. President refuses to sign bill on LG polls in Islamabad
• Legal and political wrangling on the local bodies elections in the federal capital continued on January 1, 2023 as President Arif Alvi refused to sign the bill to increase the number of union councils (UCs).
• The bill was passed by the National Assembly and the Senate after the cabinet decided to increase the number of UCs from 101 to 125, ten days before the elections, leading to their postponement.
• `President Dr Arif Alvi has returned unsigned the Islamabad Capital Territory Local Government (Amendment) Bill, 2022 in terms of clause (1) (b) of Article 75 of the Constitution,` the presidency said on Twitter. Mr Alvi returned the bill observing it would further delay the local government elections
2. NSC likely to take `key decisions today
• In light of the spike in terror incidents in parts of the country, a second round of the National Security Committee (NSC) meeting will be convened on January 2, 2023 (today) to take `key decisions` concerning security and the economy.
• On Friday, the high-level body vowed to eradicate terrorism with full force and without any distinction before postponing the moot till Monday (today) so decisions could be finalised in view of proposals.
• Since it is quite unusual that NSC meeting continues into a second round, it is believed that decisions would be taken not only to deal with terrorism but also to stabilise the country`s crippling economy
3. Govt to borrow record Rs4.8tr via treasury bills in first quarter
• Amid a revenue setback in December and higher expenditure, mostly for debt servicing, the government plans to borrow a record Rs4.8 trillion in the first three months of 2023 through market treasury bills (MTBs).
• According to the auction target calendar issued by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on New Year`s Eve on Saturday, it will hold a total of seven auctions beginning Jan 3 (tomorrow) a special auction to generate Rs300 billion even though there is no debt maturing during the week.
• The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) on Saturday reported about Rs225bn revenue shortfall against the monthly target for December.
• The funds would be raised through MTBs of various durations of three, six and 12 months
4. Most CAREC nations have fractured food safety control systems: report
• Most countries in the Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation (CAREC) programme, which includes Pakistan, have fractured food safety control systems that exhibit limited cooperation among the local and international agencies, and as a result, consumers are likely to face food safety risks.
• A report titled Strengthening Food Safety Systems in the Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation Member Countries: Current Status, Framework, and Forward Strategies pointed out that the `food safety situation in the CAREC region is made severe by the complexity of food control systems adopted by each member country. This has resulted in wide variations in the structure and design of food control systems within the region` CAREC is an Asian Development Bank (ADB)-supported initiative, which was created in 1997 to encourage economic cooperation among countries in the Central Asian region.
• Participating countries are Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, China, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Mongolia, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan
International Current Affairs MCQs News
5. US to keep close ties with India, Pakistan
• The US budget for 2023 has two small but significant provisions for Pakistan, $15 million for improving security along the Afghan border and an unspecified amount of funds to promote gender equality in the country.
• The first pledge underlines Washington`s desire to help Islamabad curb terrorist attacks from Afghanistan that have become a major threat for Pakistan.
• The second, an unspecified amount from a $200m fund set aside to promote gender equality, indicates the possibility of further US engagement in social developments
