LAHORE: Punjab Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar left for Saudi Arabia on Friday to perform Umrah, an Islamic pilgrimage to Makkah that can be undertaken at any time of the year.
It will be his second journey to the holy Muslim city this year since he also performed Umrah with his family in February.
“The chief minister is not going there in his official capacity,” Muhammad Rafiullah, a public relations officer at the CM Secretariat, told Arab News. “An additional chief secretary of the provincial administration along with another officer will also accompany him. All of them are going there in their private capacity and will spend money from their own pocket.”
The chief minister reached the Allama Iqbal International Airport in Lahore without protocol, received his boarding card, and waited in the queue with other passengers.
“He will stay in Muscat and then go to Madinah. He will pray for the solidarity of the country as well as for the freedom of the people of Kashmir,” he added.
Sources say that while Buzdar is going to the Kingdom in his private capacity, he desires to participate in the washing ceremony of the Holy Kaaba.
“He desires to be among the lucky individuals who are going to participate in the ceremony,” another official at the CM office told Arab News, requesting not to be named. “He will spend that entire day in the House of God.”
Punjab chief minister leaves for Saudi Arabia to perform Umrah
Punjab chief minister leaves for Saudi Arabia to perform Umrah
- CM Usman Buzdar is undertaking the journey in private capacity
- Buzdar desires to participate in the washing ceremony of Holy Kaaba
Pakistan, US launch joint initiative to redevelop New York’s Roosevelt Hotel
- Manhattan property is one of Pakistan’s most valuable overseas assets that remains closed since 2020 due to losses
- Objective remains to secure maximum value for hotel, strengthen Pakistan-US economic ties, says Finance Division
Islamabad: Pakistan and the US have formally launched a strategic economic initiative to jointly redevelop the Roosevelt Hotel in New York, the Finance Division said on Thursday, as Islamabad aims to secure maximum value for the property in line with its privatization strategy.
The hotel, a century-old Manhattan property near Grand Central Terminal and Times Square, is one of Pakistan’s most valuable overseas assets and is owned by the state through the recently privatized Pakistan International Airlines (PIA).
Closed since 2020 due to losses, the hotel has been under review for years as successive governments have weighed whether to sell, lease or redevelop it while pursuing state-owned enterprise reforms linked to International Monetary Fund bailouts.
“The Governments of Pakistan and the United States have formally launched a strategic economic initiative, including collaboration with the US General Services Administration (GSA) regarding the operation, maintenance, renovation, and redevelopment of the Roosevelt Hotel in New York,” the Finance Division said.
Both sides signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) in Washington. The MoU was executed by GSA Administrator Edward C. Forst on behalf of the US and by Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb on Pakistan’s behalf.
The signing of the agreement was witnessed by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who is in Washington to attend the inaugural meeting of the Board of Peace, and by US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff.
The Finance Division said the agreement establishes a structured, time-bound framework for joint evaluation of the technical, commercial and economic parameters of cooperation.
It said the agreement also reflects a shared commitment to transparent, disciplined and mutually beneficial progress of the transaction.
The Finance Division said that due to the hotel’s prime Manhattan location and the complexity of New York’s zoning and municipal processes, the institutional coordination aims to reduce execution risk, enhance regulatory clarity and maximize transaction value.
It said such frameworks are consistent with international practice in cross-border real estate and infrastructure projects.
“The objective remains to secure maximum value for this property in alignment with the government’s privatization strategy while strengthening Pakistan-United States economic ties,” it concluded.
Prime Minister Sharif’s aide on privatization, Muhammad Ali, last month announced that Islamabad plans to redevelop the Roosevelt Hotel into a high-rise building through a joint venture that could involve up to $5 billion in equity and debt financing.
Ali said the government had decided against an outright sale of the property after a detailed study conducted last year showed the site could support a significantly larger structure, potentially rising to 60 stories.
