Safe City Project: Govt challenges SC’s order striking down agreement

Counsel contends deal was struck between two governments.

ISLAMABAD:

The government on Friday challenged the Supreme Court’s order of striking down the Safe City Project, contending that it could not annul an inter-state agreement.

In a review petition, the government’s counsel has argued that the Framework Agreement for the Safe City Islamabad Project was signed by Finance Minister Abdul Hafeez Sheikh in the presence of Pakistani and Chinese premiers. The Chinese government had committed to pay subsidies to the Export-Import Bank of China “directly” for a concessional loan at an interest rate of 2 per cent per annum to the Pakistan government for financing the Rs19 billion project.

The contract was signed by National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra) and a Chinese company in August 2011, for the project that aims to make Islamabad and Peshawar safe from terrorist attacks.

The apex court on August 23 ordered the project’s cancellation, directing the government to re-initiate the bidding process.

In the review petition, the counsel has maintained that the inter-state agreement “makes it amply clear that the financial agreement is essentially and primarily between two governments and not between the Government of Pakistan and a Chinese bank”. The judgment on the contrary has refused to acknowledge the state-owned Chinese bank as an international financial institution, he added.

The court was asked to stay the effect of its judgment as Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf is to undertake his first state visit to China next week.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 8^th, 2012.