Ashraf calls for unity in holding free, fair, transparent elections

Prime Minister inaugurates Khan Khwar 72MW hydro water project.

BISHAM: Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf on Saturday urged all the opposition parties to shun differences and come forward for holding of free, fair and transparent elections in the country.

“Election is the only process to reach the power corridors,” Ashraf said while addressing a gathering after inaugurating the 72 MW Khan Khwar hydro power project in the mountainous Bisham district of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa.

The Khankhwar project has been completed at a cost of Rs 11 billion with the cooperation of China and Rs5 billion financial assistance of the Islamic Development Bank.

Ashraf said that he did not have differences with any opposition party, instead all political parties should make a collective effort for holding free and fair elections. For this, he said a consensus Chief Election Commissioner had been appointed because "we do not want any hanky panky in the polling process."

He said that he had never made any effort to manipulate the elections, rather "we are victim of conspiracies".

The Prime Minister said that the present government would remain in power till the time the Almighty wanted. He added that some people were predicting the time and date for the departure of the incumbent government, but all such speculations fizzled out with the passage of time, he added.

Ashraf further urged that no effort should be made to destabilise the government and added that collective efforts were needed to steer the country out of the present crisis.

The Prime Minister said that he was sincere in establishing cordial relations with the opposition parties.

Ashraf also took a swipe at the Judiciary, saying he regretted dictators had managed to rule the country for more than 10 years in a single go but no one had stopped them from their unconstitutional actions, but an elected government was unnecessarily being targeted.

New projects to reduce loadshedding

Ashraf, who was most known for his deadlines during his time as Minister for Water and Power, said that all the hydro power projects, including Nelum Jehlum, Dober, Kohala and Dasu, would be taken up for overcoming the energy crisis.

The future of the country, he said, lies in increasing hydro power generation, adding that work on the Thar Coal project has already been initiated.

The Prime Minister, referring to the energy crisis, said that demand for power was increasing whereas the previous regimes failed to add a single MW to the national grid.

“After Mangla, Tarbela and Ghazi Barotha, which other scheme in the hydro power sector has been initiated, the Prime Minister asked. " I also want to install a tent in Thar area for the execution of coal project,” he said and added. "We do not believe in hollow slogans, we all are patriotic people."

He referred to the electricity crisis in 1993 when Benazir Bhutto was in power. In order to overcome the crisis, she had given the task to the IPPs, but that programme was subjected to criticism, he added, pointed the opposition PPP governments had faced in rectifying the energy crisis.

Resultantly the investors stopped investment in the IPPs. Some investors were also put behind bars by Saifur Rehman, he added. Despite the obstacles, Ashraf said then Benazir Bhutto government managed to add 4000MW power to the national grid through IPPs. Had the IPPs not been introduced then, what would have been the power situation now, he asked.

The Prime Minister said that there should be no politicking on matters of national interest and propaganda that damages the country, should be avoided. He said that now everyone in the country was advocating for generating power through the IPPs (independent power producers), which were launched by Benazir Bhutto 20 years ago.

He paid tribute to the people of KPK for their relentless struggle in the war against terrorism, which had no precedent in the world. He also lauded the Chinese engineers and workers for their non stop work in materialising the project. "There is no phrase in the books which can be used to explain Pak-China friendship," he added. He said that Pak-China friendship was time-tested.

Referring to the demands presented by WAPDA Chairman Shakil Durrani in his welcome address, the Prime Minister sanctioned a grid station at Bisham and approved a cadet college.

He also announced one month salary for WAPDA employees working on the Khan Khwar project. He also approved setting up a passport office in Bisham. He directed the WAPDA authorities to fully honour all agreements made with the local people.

The ceremony was addressed by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister AmirHaider Khan Hoti, Minister for Water and Power Chaudhry Ahmed Mukhtar and the WAPDA Chairman.