Day by Day Current Affairs (August 27, 2018) | MCQs for CSS, PMS, NTS

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 August 27, 2018; National Current Affairs

1. Zafarul Haq notified as new leader of opposition in Senate

• Senate Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani officially nominated Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Senator Raja Mohammad Zafarul Haq as new leader of the opposition in place of Sherry Rehman of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), according to a notiñcation issued by the Senate Secretariat.
• Mr Haq, who had served as leader of the house during the previous government of PML-N, has been appointed as new leader of the opposition after the change of government at the Centre recently.
• Mr Haq will be heading the largest opposition in the Senate where the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) and its allies are in a minority.
• Earlier, the Senate chairman had notified PTI`s Syed Shibli Faraz as new leader of the house after his nomination by Prime Minister Imran Khan.
• The leader of the house represents the prime minister in the upper house of parliament and is mainly responsible for the smooth conduct of the house on behalf of the federal government. The Senate chairman issues directives to the federal and sometimes even to the provincial governments through the leader of the house.

2. JF-17 Thunder wins acclaim at Radom air show

• Amidst thundering applause by the spectators, Pakistan Air Force`s JF-17 Thunder exhibited its dazzling aerial display during the opening day of Radom International Airshow at Radom-Sakdu Airport, Poland, on August 26, 2018.
• Painted in the colour scheme of Pakistan`s national flag, the pride of the nation, JF-17 roared in the Polish skies and left the spectators spellbound with its breathtaking manoeuvres.
• The thundery performance by PAF`s display pilot, Wing Commander Zeeshan Baryar, included some extraordinary aerobatics like the muscle climb, thunder turns, slow speed performance and inverted flight.

3. 23-member Punjab cabinet announced

• Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf on August 26, 2018 announced 23-member Punjab cabinet inducting most of the party loyalists with longstanding party affiliation.
• Abdul Aleem Khan – the party loyalist who is considered close to Imran Khan – was given portfolio of local government with a status of senior minister while Mian Mahmood-ur-Rasheed was given the portfolio of housing and works.
• Dr Yasmin Rasheed was given the portfolio of primary and secondary healthcare / specialised healthcare and medication education while Fiaz-ul-Hassan Chohan was made information and culture minister.
• Raja Rashid Hafeez was given the portfolio of revenue. Raja Basharat was allocated law and parliamentary affairs. Raja Basharat held this portfolio in the cabinet of Ch Pervaiz Elahi.
• Other ministers inducted in the cabinet in the first phase and their portfolios include Hafiz Mumtaz Ahmad, Excise, Taxation and Narcotics Control; Makhdoom Hashim Baksh, Finance; Sami Ullah Chaudhry, Food; Raja Yasir Sarfaraz, Higher Education; Mian Mahmood-ur-Rashid, Housing, Urban Development and Public Health Engineering; Mian Aslam Iqbal, Industries, Commerce and Investment; Taimor Khan, Youth Affairs and Sports (he was elected as independent and joined PTI later); Murad Rass, School Education; Mohsin Leghari, Irrigation; and Anser Majeed Niazi, Labour and Manpower.
• Sibtain Khan, Sardar Asif Nakai, Hafiz Ammar Yassir, Hasnain Dareshak, Malik Anwar, Ch Zaheeruddin, Hashim Dogar and Malik Nouman Langrial have not been allotted the portfolios yet.

4. Government announced 15-member Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa cabinet

• Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf on August 26, 2018 announced 15-member Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa cabinet comprising 12 ministers, two advisors and one special assistant.
• Muhammad Atif Khan, who was also a strong contender for the post of chief minister, was made Minister for Tourism with the status of senior minister. Other ministers include Shahram Khan Tarakai, Local Government; Taimoor Saleem Jhagra, Finance; Syed Ishtiaq Urmer, Forest; Qalandar Khan Lodhi, Food; Shakeel Ahmad Khan, Revenue; Mohib Ullah Khan, Agriculture; Dr Amjad Ali, Mineral Development; Sultan Muhammad Khan, Law and Kamran Khan Bangash, Information Technology while Akbar Ayaz Khan was not allocated a portfolio.
• Zia Ullah Bangash was made advisor to the CM with no portfolio while Abdul Karim was made Advisor to the CM on Industries. Shah Muhammad Khan was made special assistant to the chief minister and he was given the portfolio of Transport.

5. Govt bans VIP protocol at airports

• As part of its austerity plan, the government has banned VIP protocol given by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) to influential people at airports.
• The decision is being implemented by the government from August 26, 2018 as the ministry of interior has directed all ofhcials concerned of the investigation agency`s immigration wing to implement it.
• It is worth mentioning that such decisions had also been taken by previous governments but they could not implement them in a letter and spirit.
• It had been observed that influential people were given VIP protocol at airports so that they could avoid standing in long queues and get cleared their luggage without any hustle, he said.
• The VIP protocol was usually given to politicians, legislators, senior bureaucrats, judges, military ofñcials andjournalists.
• The interior ministry has directed the FIA that no government official or other VIPs would be given protocolat airports across the country.
• Interestingly, all previous governments had decided to eliminate VIP culture at airports but there was a VIP lounge at Benazir Bhutto International Airport in Islamabad where VIPs and influential people sat in a luxurious atmosphere, meanwhile their luggage was get cleared by officials of FIA, Airport Security Staff or Civil Aviation Authority.
• However, there is no such lounge available at the new Islamabad airport established near Fatehjang where all passengers have to follow the normal procedure.

August 27, 2018; International Current Affairs

6. New Australian PM revamps cabinet

• New Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison rewarded supporters and extended an olive branch to rebel right-wingers as he unveiled his `new generation` cabinet on August 26, 2018 after taking power in a party-room coup.
• Morrison, the former treasurer (finance minister), was sworn in as prime minister on August 24, 2018 after winning a Liberal Party leadership challenge against incumbent moderate Malcolm Turnbull. The challenge had been instigated by Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton, whom Morrison also to the right of the party defeated in a secret ballot.He sought to heal the wounds exposed by the infighting. Dutton kept Home Affairs but his super-sized portfolio was split to separate immigration and national security, with migration issues to be handled by former assistant finance minister David Coleman.

7. McCain, war hero and maverick Republican, dies

• Senator John McCain, a former prisoner of war in Vietnam who ran in US presidential elections in 2008 as a maverick Republican and became a prominent critic of President Donald Trump, died on August 25, 2018. He was 82.
• An Arizona senator for more than three decades, McCain had been suf fering from brain cancer since July last year and had not been at the US Capitol this year.
• McCain frequently battled with Trump and his family has said he did not want the presidentto attendhisfuneral.Flags flew at half mast at the White House on Sunday. Trump has tweeted his `deepest sympathies and respect` toMcCain`s family, although he added no words of praise for McCain himself.
• McCain will lie in state in both Phoenix, Arizona, and in the Capitol rotunda in Washington.
• He will receive a military funeral service at the Washington National Cathedral, where Vice President Mike Pence was expected to attend, before being buried at the Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland.
• McCain`s death brings to 50 the number of Republican-held seats in the 100-member US Senate, with Democrats controlling 49. Republican Arizona Governor Doug Ducey will appoint a member of his own party to succeed McCain after the funeral.

8. Prolific US playwright Neil Simon dies at 91

• Prolific US playwright Neil Simon, who won more combined Oscar and Tony nominations than any other writer, died on Sunday aged 91.
• A legend of American theatre, he was responsible for such works as The Odd Couple, The Sunshine Boys, Barefoot in the Park and Lost in Yonkers. The New York native, who grew up during The Great Depression, passed away from complications related to pneumonia.
• Much of his work centered on the everyday struggles of the middle-classes, which he used to explore what he called `domestic wars` and inter-family conflict.
• He was also known as a king of comedy, peppering his plays with a heavy dose of witty one-liners.
• In 1983 he gained the rare accolade of having a New York stage, the Neil Simon Theatre, named in his honour.
• Overall he won one Pulitzer Prize, a Golden Globe and three Tonys

9. Mnangagwa finally takes oath as president of Zimbabwe

• Emmerson Mnangagwa was officially sworn in as president of Zimbabwe on August 26, 2018 after winning a bitterly-contested election which was the country`s first since the ousting of strongman Robert Mugabe.
• Mnangagwa, whose victory in the July 30 polls was challenged by the main opposition, pledged to `protect and promote the rights of Zimbabweans` at an inauguration cere-mony attended by thousands of supporters at a stadium in Harare.
• Since independence from Britain in 1980, Zimbabwe has known only two presidents Mugabe, who ruled with an iron fist for 37 years, and his erstwhile right-hand man Mnangagwa.

August 27, 2018; Sports Current Affairs

10. Irfan breaks T20 record with one run in four overs

• Lanky Pakistan fast bowler Mohammad Irfan bowled the most economical spell in Twenty20 cricket history on August 25, 2018, only conceding a run from his final ball.
• The giant 7ft lin (2.16m)left-armer, playing for Barbados Tridents against St Kitts and Nevis Patriots in the Caribbean Premier League, also took the wickets of the usually big-hitting West Indies internationals Chris Gayle and Evin Lewis, while delivering a remarkable 23 dot balls.
• But Irfan ended up on the losing side anyway, as after he had bowled his maximum four overs, the Patriots chased down their target of 148 with seven balls to spare to win by six wickets.
• The 36-year-old, who hasn`t played internationally for two years, dismissed star man Gayle with the first delivery of the innings. Irfan ended with figures of four overs, three maidens, with two wickets for one run.