Headline News 22/11/2019

Headlines:

• British Muslims Can Swing the U.K. Election, But Only If They Get Out and Vote

• Saudi Aramco’s IPO is Set to Value the Oil Giant at Up to $1.7 trillion

• Nawaz Lands in London, Sets Off Heated Debate

Details:

British Muslims Can Swing the U.K. Election, But Only If They Get Out and Vote

In December’s U.K. election, British Muslims represent a swing vote that few are paying attention to. The 2 million eligible Muslim voters in the U.K. have the ability to swing the result, one way or the other. As an imam, I’m encouraging my congregation to get out and vote, and not let Muslims be excluded from the British political conversation any longer. In previous elections, the Muslim turnout has been relatively low. A parliamentary report last month found that voter registration amongst BAME communities was only half that of the general population. It may be even lower amongst some Muslim communities. Yet if Muslims do get out to vote, their impact could be transformative in many parts of the U.K. Research just released by the Muslim Council of Britain, a non-partisan umbrella body, shows that both the major parties – the ruling Conservatives and the opposition Labour party – as well as niche parties like the pro-Scottish independence SNP could lose or gain seats through the Muslim vote. There are 31 marginal seats where the Muslim electorate outnumbers the sitting member of parliament’s (MP’s) majority. In Conservative-held Hendon, for example, the ruling party’s majority is just 1,072. This is in a constituency with an estimated 8,395 eligible Muslim voters. On the other side of the political divide, Labour holds Glasgow North East by just 242 votes. If just a quarter of the 1010 eligible Muslim voters were to swing to the SNP, the Scottish Nationalists would have another seat in Westminster. But this depends on Muslims registering to vote, something that is not a given in all communities. On Nov.22, organisations like the Muslim Council of Britain are staging the U.K.’s first ever National Muslim Voter Registration Day to encourage members of our community to exercise their democratic rights. Many Muslims still feel excluded from the political process, which is hardly a surprise as the major parties have all but ignored the Muslim vote at the national level. This is systemic, but most notable with regards to the Conservative Party and its ongoing Islamophobia scandal. The Tories are accused of turning a blind eye to anti-Muslim hatred within the party’s ranks, and are refusing to hold an independent enquiry into it. Crucially for Westminster, the Muslim swing vote could be in either direction. Rather than being ideologically committed to one party, many Muslims are value voters – looking at all parties and candidates and asking themselves who represents them most closely. For many Muslims, this isn’t just a “Brexit election” — particularly because they have mixed feelings about the Leave campaign. Whilst incidents of xenophobia are clearly concerning, many Muslims have family in the Commonwealth and are open to Britain pivoting away from Europe and perhaps towards their countries of heritage. [Source: Time]

Whether Muslims vote or not their fate is sealed. The British establishment has put in place a concrete plan to make life extremely difficult for Muslims. This also includes removing Islam in all but name from the youngest Muslim generation.

Saudi Aramco’s IPO is Set to Value the Oil Giant at Up to $1.7 trillion

Saudi Arabia’s state oil giant could be valued at up to $1.7 trillion, according to a price range announced Sunday for its upcoming listing, less than the $2 trillion figure the kingdom’s crown prince had previously targeted. Saudi Aramco said in a press statement Sunday morning that it’s hoping to sell a 1.5% stake in the company, or about 3 billion shares. The indicative price range for the shares is 30 Saudi riyals ($8.00) to 32 riyals, valuing the initial public offering (IPO) up to as much as 96 billion riyals ($25.60 billion) — at the top end of the range, according to Reuters. The figure implies that the oil giant is worth between $1.6 trillion to $1.7 trillion. The IPO next month could beat the record $25 billion raised by China’s e-commerce firm Alibaba when it debuted in New York in 2014. Aramco’s listing is due in December and the company said last weekend that it will sell up to 0.5% of its shares to individual investors. Speculation and delayed announcements on the public listing of the world’s most profitable company have riveted investors and market watchers since plans for the float were first disclosed three years ago. The oil giant has delayed the IPO — originally scheduled for 2018 — multiple times, reportedly over Saudi concerns about public scrutiny over its finances and because of the complexity of its corporate structure. Analysts’ valuations of the company have varied from $1.2 trillion to $2.3 trillion. In comparison, Aramco’s closest U.S. rival, Exxon Mobil, has a market cap of nearly $300 billion and Chevron is valued at about $229 billion. When the IPO was first flagged in 2016 by the now-Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, he said then that he believed the company was worth around $2 trillion. [Source: CNBC]

Saudi Arabia’s war against Islam continues unabated. Not satisfied by imposing Western values on the Kingdom, Mohammad bin Salman now wants to sell the crown jewels of the country, which do not belong to him but belong to the entire Muslim Ummah. At this rate, MBS will bankrupt the country and make it the 51st state of America!

Nawaz Lands in London, Sets Off Heated Debate

Ailing former prime minister Nawaz Sharif arrived in London on Tuesday evening for his treatment amid bickering between the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf and the opposition Pakistan Muslim League (PML-N) over his departure. “Before departure doctors examined Nawaz Sharif at Jati Umra and gave him a heavy dose of steroids enabling him to travel abroad,” PML-N spokesperson Marriyum Auranzeb said. Mr Sharif will be taken to Harley Street Clinic for his tests and, if required, he may be shifted to Boston, US, for further treatment. The three-time prime minister is likely to be taken to Harley Street Clinic on Wednesday (today) for his tests. A special room equipped with emergency medical facilities has been prepared at the apartment of his son Hussain Nawaz, where Dr Adnan will look after him. As the PML-N leaders declared that Nawaz Sharif would return to the country once he got well, some members of Imran Khan’s party mocked his [Nawaz] illness. “Nawaz Sharif should refrain from taking qeema wala naan and khatai,” Punjab minister Fayyazul Hasan Chohan said. Federal Minister for Science and Technology Fawad Chaudhry taunted the former premier, saying “the way Nawaz climbed the stairs of the air ambulance it seemed he got well after the decision of the court [in his favour]; Sharif should have been treated like any other criminal”. When asked about the ministers and PM Khan’s statements on Mr Sharif’s illness, PML-N Senator Pervaiz Rashid said: “I can give a befitting reply in a more subtle way to the premier but not today. Mian sahib will return soon after getting well.” He said Asif Ali Zardari should also get relief as there had been some protocol for former presidents in the world. “Asif Ali Zardari had not done anything wrong in the [last] five years for which he should have been arrested,” he lamented and said Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, Khawaja brothers, Maryam Nawaz and other PML-N leaders had been subjected to vindictive politics. Asked if Mr Sharif left the country under some deal, Mr Rashid said: “The prime minister said there was no deal.” Commenting on the prime minister’s Monday speech, PML-N senior leader Khawaja Asif said: “Imran Khan is desperate and frustrated. He is not a horse of a long race.” [Source: Dawn]

What a farce and a complete travesty of justice. Sharif is allowed to escape the country “under medical grounds” while thousands languish in prison and are staunchly deprived of health care.