Assembly session: Lawmakers say ‘undue attention’ should not be given to LHC verdict

Information minister condemns blast ahead of ANP rally.

PESHAWAR:

Lawmakers in the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Assembly reiterated their stance against the Kalabagh Dam during Monday’s session. 

“The administrative decision taken by the Lahore High Court (LHC) comes in at a crucial time,” said Opposition Leader Akram Khan Durrani. He added that three assemblies have already passed a resolution against building the dam. Moving a new resolution is not required and political parties should not give the issue undue attention, he said.

All dams should be constructed through consensus, said Pakistan Muslim League–Nawaz lawmaker Javed Abbasi. He cautioned, however, at the way issues are being dealt with and said that not a single mega-project will be completed in the future.

Information Minister Mian Iftikhar Hussain said the Kalabagh Dam is a ‘dead horse,’ adding that they will continue to oppose it. He said electricity supply should be increased through indigenous production instead of relying on hydel power from K-P.

Commenting on the war on terror, he said that negotiations between the Taliban and the Northern Alliance can bring peace in the region.



Hussain also condemned a bomb blast that occurred at an Awami National Party (ANP) gathering in Charsadda on Monday. Political forces are being targeted and militants want the leadership to stay home as elections approach, he said.

Balambat Irrigation scheme

Lawmakers were angered of the irrigation department’s Balambat Irrigation Scheme in Upper Dir. K-P Assembly Speaker Kiramatullah Chagarmati told provincial minister Saqibullah Chamkani that the report on the scheme should be shared with the concerned department, adding that it should also be presented before the house, which has been debating the issue for some time.



Minister for Livestock, Hidyatullah Khan, told the house that a stretch of over one and half  kilometers of the scheme was still incomplete. The irrigation department, however, had the chief minister inaugurate the project. Durrani demanded that those officials be punished who made false claims before the house and the cabinet.

Technically this issue cannot be referred to select committee under assembly rules because it is not a bill, PPP lawmaker Abdul Akbar Khan said. The speaker can form a special committee on the subject, he added. The speaker, however, did not entertain any such suggestions.



Bills

Three bills, including K-P Medical Transplantation Authority Ordinance, 2012, Elimination of Custom of Ghag Ordinance, 2012 and K-P Payment of Wages bill 2012 were presented before the house.

Education Minister Sardar Hussain Babak asked the speaker to refer the K-P Private Schools Regulatory Authority Bill, 2012 to the select committee for further deliberations. The speaker complied and adjourned the session till Tuesday evening.

A unanimous resolution demanding the implementation of the 7th wage board award in media organisations was adopted by the assembly.

The resolution was moved by Hussain following a walkout by the press gallery.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 11^th, 2012.