The Provincial Assembly through a resolution called upon Federal Government to ensure uninterrupted supply of natural gas to Quetta and other townships and fulfill the promise about laying down gas pipelines in major parts of the province that are deprived this basic facilities.
Once again, quorum was incomplete, with were merely 14 lawmakers in attendance. The proceeding was adjourned for 30 minutes due to lack of quorum, pointed out by Provincial Minister for Education Tahir Mehmood during the debate on an adjournment motion.
PML-Q lawmaker Jaffar Mandokhail had tabled an adjournment motion, for a two-hour debate during Saturday’s proceedings. He said it was an irony of the fate that most of districts of the province are denied natural gas despite the fact that the province is providing natural gas to Punjab and Sindh along with the rest of Pakistan.
“Natural gas is available in Quetta, Kalat, Mastung, Pishin and some other townships while rest of the province is denied this basic need of the life” he asked, lamenting this amenity often became a luxury with pressures falling in the provincial capital along with the mercury.
This was the second such resolution on low gas pressure in the Balochistan Assembly. However, Mandokhail lamented that resolutions had not achieved the desired effect, “we raise this issue with the hope that it will be addressed but so far no attention was paid by concerned authority and federal government.”
He said the Prime Minister had promised to lay down gas pipeline to districts deprived of gas, but this promise was yet to be fulfilled.
In his motion, later converted into a resolution, he asked the federal government to ensure protection of gas pipelines, some of which are targeted on daily basis. “I request those groups that targeting pipelines that their attacks are increasing the miseries of their own people,” he added.
The Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC) has only been supplying gas to 14 out of the 30 districts in Balochistan. Supply to these 14 districts is usually limited to urban centres, ignoring remote and rural areas.
His resolution was converted into resolution before being unanimously passed by lawmakers when put before the house for voting.
Balochistan Assembly approved another adjournment motion on power outages in the province for a two-hour debate. The motion had been submitted by Jaffar Mandokhail stating that the province was facing prolonged power cuts and no efforts are being made to overcome this crisis.
Mandokhail said gas is being supplied to factories and industrial plants in Punjab and Sindh but the owner of this gas, Balochistan, was denied.
Provincial Ministers Sardar Aslam Bizenjo, Shahnawaz Marri, Finance Minister Mir Asim Kurd, Nasreen Khethran, Raheela Durani, Abdul Khaliq Bashr Dost and Ghulam Jan Baloch also criticised the federal government for what they described discriminatory attitude towards Balochistan.
“We still do not know what Aghaz-i-Huqooq Balochistan is meant for since the people of this province are denied the basic facilities of life. Under such circumstances people will obliviously take to hills to struggle for their rights,” Marri said, outlining that peace was only possible if government addressed basic issues. “There will be peace and harmony only if federal the government addressed the grievances and removed the sense of deprivation prevailing in this region,” said the Provincial Minister for Sports and Culture.
Provincial Minister for Finance Mir Asim Kurd also stood up and spoke against the discriminatory attitude of Federal Government and bureaucracy. “Natural gas was discovered in 1952 and supply to Punjab and Sindh was started after couple of years while Balochistan has been ignored to this date,” he said.
Provincial Minister for Labour, Maulvi Mohammad Sarwar of Musakhail instead chose to criticise the Provincial Government for its poor performance over the past four years. “I think we all should tender our resignations since we have failed to fulfil our promises. There is shortage of gas, clean drinking water. The education and health care system is on the verge of complete destruction,” he lamented. “How can we face the people who voted for us with expectations as representatives we would address their problems?” he asked.
Sardar Mohammad Aslam Bizenjo said the Balochistan Assembly had always voted in support of the President and the Prime Minister but the Pakistan Peoples Party government had failed to address issues of the people.
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