[Current Affairs] July 21, 2020 Top Pakistan Current Affairs for Entry Test Prep

2: Operation ‘get rid of this govt’

What’s going on? A public health crisis isn’t stopping the opposition from challenging the ruling govt. Opposition parties agreed to call an All Parties Conference (APC) after Eid ul Azha. The agenda will include ways to boot out the current govt.

The details: The joint opposition includes Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N). PPP senior leader, Qamar Zaman Kaira, and PML-N senior leader, Ahsan Iqbal, discussed the upcoming APC during a press conference. The opposition is reportedly worried about the internal and external dangers Pakistan will face if the current govt remains in power.

Tell me more: PML-N’s Iqbal accused the current govt of pushing people into poverty, suppressing the media, and isolating Pakistan in the international community. Iqbal also brought up the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), which is monitoring Pakistan’s efforts to combat money laundering and terrorist financing. He alleged that the govt plans to target political opponents under the guise of terror financing legislation.

The bottom line: The country’s two biggest opposition parties are locking horns with the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) govt.

3: Private school association has its own plans: The All Pakistan Private Schools and Colleges Association (APPSCA) plans to reopen educational institutions across the country on August 15. The APPSCA is side-stepping the federal govt’s aim to reopen schools in September. APPSCA president, Hidayat Khan, claimed that COVID-19 cases are declining, so they will reopen schools while keeping safety protocols in mind. Khan also has a ‘million march’ game plan in case the govt tries to stop them.

4: Pakistan resumes polio campaign: Pakistan is kicking-off polio vaccinations in high-risk districts after a four-month pause due to the COVID-19 outbreak. For now, vaccinators will go door-to-door to vaccinate more than 800,000 children in Karachi, Quetta, Faisalabad, Attock, and South Waziristan. At least 59 polio cases have been registered in Pakistan this year. Chief of the govt’s polio eradication program, Dr. Rana Muhammad Safdar, said the current drive will be difficult, but vaccinators were being equipped with protective gear to prevent the spread of COVID-19. In addition to COVID-19 related challenges, polio workers will likely encounter parents who don’t want to give their kids the anti-polio vaccine. Reminder – Pakistan is one of the only two countries in the world where polio is still widespread.

Current Affairs Quiz: [Quiz] GK & Pakistan Current Affairs Quiz 18 July 2020