ISLAMABAD: The government has started contacting opposition parties to dissuade them from launching a mass protest in the federal capital, said defense minister Pervez Khattak on Thursday.
“We have started negotiating with all opposition parties and hopefully [the effort] will yield positive results in the next couple of days,” he said in an informal chat with journalists in Islamabad.
The prime minister on Wednesday announced to form a committee led by Khattak to hold talks with the opposition factions, especially the Jamiat-e-Ulema-e-Islam (JUI-F) that has announced to start its “Azadi March” on October 27 and enter the federal capital on October 31 to dislodge the government.
JUI-F Chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman has been struggling to start an agitation against the government since the general elections in July last year wherein his party only managed to clinch a dozen seats in the National Assembly.
He has now received political support from other major opposition groups – the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) – who accuse the government of deteriorating the country’s economy and victimizing opposition politicians by slamming them in jails on corruption charges.
“Pakistan is a democratic country and we want to resolve all issues of the opposition through dialogue,” the defense minister said, though he also warned the opposition parties against creating an environment of chaos and turmoil in the country.
“It is their [opposition’s] democratic right to protest, but if the opposition only wants to spread anarchy in the garb of agitation we won’t allow it,” Khattak added.
Meanwhile, the JUI-F has ruled out the possibility of talks with the government until the prime minister resigns from his position. “This is an illegitimate government, a product of rigged elections and we may talk to them only after the prime minister resigns,” Hafiz Hamdullah, senior JUI-F leader, told Arab News.
He said that “all preparations for the anti-government march are in place and no force can stop us now from marching toward Islamabad.”
Political analysts said the government’s engagement with the opposition parties to stop their protest at this stage would not yield result, but some differences over issues, such as transparency in elections and improvement in governance, can be worked out.
“Maulana Fazlur Rehman, who was reduced to a nobody after the last year’s elections, has succeeded in garnering political relevance through mounting pressure against the government,” Zahid Hussain, a political commentator, told Arab News.
He said the opposition parties would protest against the government as per plan, but “they will neither succeed in getting the prime minister’s resignation nor a new date for fresh polls in the country.”
Government hopeful to avert opposition protest through dialogue
Government hopeful to avert opposition protest through dialogue
- Says it’s opposition’s right to protest, but the government won’t allow anyone to create chaos
- Analysts maintain the JUI-F chief has acquired political relevance by mounting pressure on the government
Pakistan forms committee to negotiate financial advisory services for Islamabad airport privatization
- Committee to engage Asian Development Bank to negotiate terms of financial advisory services agreement, says privatization ministry
- Inaugurated in 2018, Islamabad airport has faced criticism over construction delays, poor facilities and operational inefficiencies
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Privatization Ministry announced on Wednesday that it has formed a committee to engage the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to negotiate a potential financial advisory services agreement for the privatization of Islamabad International Airport.
The Islamabad International Airport, inaugurated in 2018 at a cost of over $1 billion, has faced criticism over construction delays, poor facilities, and operational inefficiencies.
The Negotiation Committee formed by the Privatization Commission will engage with the ADB to negotiate the terms of a potential Financial Advisory Services Agreement (FASA) for the airport’s privatization, the ministry said.
“The Negotiation Committee has been mandated to undertake negotiations and submit its recommendations to the Board for consideration and approval, in line with the applicable regulatory framework,” the Privatization Ministry said in a statement.
The ministry said Islamabad airport operations will be outsourced under a concession model through an open and competitive process to enhance its operational efficiency and improve service delivery standards.
Pakistan has recently sought to privatize or outsource management of several state-run enterprises under conditions agreed with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) as part of a $7 billion bailout approved in September last year.
Islamabad hopes outsourcing airport operations will bring operational expertise, enhance passenger experience and restore confidence in the aviation sector.
In December 2025, Pakistan’s government successfully privatized its national flag carrier Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), selling 75 percent of its stakes to a consortium led by the Arif Habib Group.
The group secured a 75 percent stake in the PIA for Rs135 billion ($482 million) after several rounds of bidding, valuing the airline at Rs180 billion ($643 million).
Pakistan’s Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb said this week the government has handed over 26 state-owned enterprises to the Privatization Commission.
