Re: NWFP to be renamed says Durrani!
Considering the Federal government won’t even honour a supreme court endorsed arbitration award, I doubt Mr. Durranis ability to deliver on his promise.
PESHAWAR: Lawmakers of NWFP to hold rally in Islamabad: Net hydel profit dispute
PESHAWAR, Jan 6: The NWFP government is pressing the federal government to implement the arbitration tribunal’s decision regarding the payment of net hydel profit dues.
It also urged members of provincial legislature, the National Assembly and Senate to gather in Islamabad to register their protest with the federal government for what it termed reneging on its commitment as the guarantor for implementing the tribunal’s decision.
District and tehsil nazims are also being asked to participate in the meeting that is scheduled for Jan 9 at the Frontier House in Islamabad in which the NWFP government would chalk out a strategy against the Wapda, which has challenged arbitration tribunal’s decision in a local court of the capital city, Islamabad.
According to sources, members of the National Assembly, Senate, MPAs and other representatives from NWFP would organise a protest march in Islamabad on the same day, however, guidelines would be finalised in a consultative meeting with different political parties.
Chief Minister Akram Durrani, who arrived here from Saudi Arabia on Saturday, would meet parliamentary party leaders of the PPP-P, ANP, PPP (Sherpao), PML-N, ruling PML, Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) and independent groups in the NWFP Assembly on Jan 7 at the Chief Minister’s House to devise a joint strategy against violation of arbitration tribunal’s decision.
Sirajul Haq, former senior minister, said that Wapda was ‘humiliating’ the province’s 20 million people, therefore, the NWFP government would ‘go to every extent to secure its rights’.
“Despite being the guarantor, the federal government did not appear to accept the tribunal’s decision and this is why Wapda has challenged the decision in a lower court,” the former finance minister said, adding that no one feel comfortable trusting the federal government if it did not change its attitude.
“The prime minister should not backtrack from his commitment as he was the guarantor of the arbitration tribunal’s decision for solving net hydel profit dispute between Wapda and the NWFP government” he said, adding that denying NWFP’s rights would be against the unity of the federation.
According to an MPA, the provincial government had instructed the district government to compile a list of areas which still remained without electricity. “Knowing exact figures will enable the government to plead its case more effectively,” he observed.
It was also learnt that the NWFP government has finalised ground work to move the Supreme Court against the federal government and the Wapda for non-implementation of a trilateral arbitration tribunal award, settling a 14-year-long dispute over net hydel profits.
The NWFP government would plead its case to compel Wapda to accept the award announced by the tribunal on Oct 9, 2006.
In this regard, provincial cabinet had earlier decided to wage a legal battle on the Wapda following its inability to release the first instalment of Rs22 billion on account of net hydel profit arrears and subsequently moving to the civil court against the arbitration tribunal award.
The government has formed two separate committees each headed by a provincial minister to pursue the case effectively both on legal and political fronts.
The arbitration tribunal had declared Wapda was liable to pay Rs110.1 billion to the NWFP government in arrears for a 14-year period starting from 1991-92 besides uncapping the share from Rs6 billion annually.
The Wapda was also required