A lifeless budget debate saw a few moments of high drama when lawmakers from Punjab and the rest of the country set aside their party affiliations to support and oppose the controversial hydropower project.
The house echoed with shouting and desk thumping of lawmakers, as none was willing to listen to the viewpoint of the other.
It all started when Bushra Rehman of the PML-Q urged the government to take immediate steps for the construction of Kalabagh Dam, which, she thought, was vital to securing a prosperous future for coming generations.
“It (Kalabagh Dam) is to save the country.it is for the coming generation of Pakistan,” Rehman spoke of Kalabagh Dam which the incumbent government says will never be constructed without the consensus of all four provinces.
Bushra’s demand infuriated members from the Awami National Party (ANP) and some lawmakers of the ruling Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) as they interrupted her speech by shouting at her.
Members from Rehman’s PML-Q and rival PML-N set aside their political differences, at least for some time, to launch a counter-attack on the opponents of Kalabagh Dam. As a result the house turned into a fish market.
ANP’s Pervez Khan said that the demand for the construction of the controversial dam negated the spirit of both democracy and the Constitution as three out of four provinces have rejected the proposal.
“If the Kalabagh dam issue is raised here again.it will trigger hatred among the federating units,” Khan argued.
Khan’s point of view was supported by a PPP member from Sindh who called the Kalabagh Dam issue a “dead horse” which should never be talked about in the National Assembly.
He dared supporters of the project to initiate it. “If Nawaz Sharif (former
premier) could not do it with a two-thirds majority and Musharraf (could not do it) with his guns, who else can build it,” said Gul Muhammad Jakharani.
Earlier, a PPP stalwart opposed the way his own party’s government is handling the economic matters and called for a paradigm shift.
MNA Zafar Ali Shah said people were now regretting for voting the PPP to power and urged the party leadership to move swiftly to win back the support it once commanded.
Several members from rural feudalistic background censured calls for taxing the agriculture sector as the debate entered what appeared to be the final round before the process of the passage of the budget starts.
Published in the Express Tribune, June 16th, 2010.
COMMENTS (4)
Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.
For more information, please see our Comments FAQ