Senate panel told: ‘Tal Block residents denied gas’

Senator Bangash says ex-PM Ashraf unveiled Rs48b gas schemes in his area.

ISLAMABAD:

A parliamentary panel was informed on Thursday that former prime minister Raja Pervaiz Ashraf had issued directives to set up gas development schemes worth Rs48 billion during his short-term in office.

The disclosure was made by Senator Abdul Nabi Bangash in a meeting of the Senate Standing Committee on Petroleum and Natural Resources held on Thursday and chaired by Senator Muhammad Yousuf.

Bangash threatened to stop the oil supply from Tal Block if the locals were not provided gas connections. He threatened to file a case against secretaries from the ministries of petroleum, planning and finance over reluctance of implementing Rs900 million worth of gas development schemes to provide gas to the people living in the area around Tal Block. Bangash has already moved Peshawar High Court against the Sui Northern Gas Pipeline Limited (SNGPL) and the petroleum ministry for not providing gas to their area.

“The SNGPL is no more interested in initiating work on schemes worth Rs48 billion in constituencies of former premier Raja Pervaiz Ashraf, former deputy prime minister Pervez Elahi and former Public Accounts Committee chairman (PAC) Afzal Chan and some other influential politicians,” Bangash said. “This is a criminal offence ... people of the Tal Block are not being provided gas and I will go to court against the secretaries for action,” Bangash said, adding that Tal Block was his union council and he had been begging for gas for it “since ages”.

He also threatened to walk out from the committee and resign as a member, and demanded that the committee issue arrest warrants for those who were not attending the committee and blocking gas supply to his union council.

He said the PPP government had promised to release Rs150 million worth of funds but the money was now shifted for the development schemes.

Similarly, another committee member Rozi Khan Kakar said that people of Balochistan were not being provided gas despite the province being a major gas contributor to other parts of the country. He added that people living in oil and gas producing areas were being exploited.

Meanwhile, Petroleum Minister Suhail Wajahat assured that kickbacks would be stopped in award of contracts and transparency would be ensured.

Talking to reporters after the meeting, he said he was not involved in any corruption.

The Transparency International has recently written a letter to the premier asking him to act against Wajahat over corruption charges.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 12^th, 2013.