Senate session: Fear voiced over military-civil disconnect
PPP, MQM, ANP, PML-Q slam government for not taking parliament into confidence.
A policeman keeps guard near an inscription written on the parliament building in Islamabad March 20, 2012. PHOTO: REUTERS
ISLAMABAD:
Opposition in the Senate expressed apprehension about the peace talks between the government and the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan negotiators as they claimed there was a disconnect between the civilian government and the security establishment.
The Pakistan Peoples Party, the Muttahida Qaumi Movement, Awami National Party and the Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid slammed the government for not taking parliament into confidence.
The Taliban were buying time to re-group after they suffered losses when the armed forces bombed their hideouts recently, they unanimously declared. PML-Q’s Kamil Ali Agha said the government should have not only consulted the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and Military Intelligence (MI) but also the United States, Afghanistan and even India on this dialogue, since many foreign hands are involved in this insurgency.
Meanwhile, Senator Farhatullah Babar said that historically there has been a serious disconnect between the civil and political arm and the intelligence and security arm of the state, which is a serious impediment in the fight against militancy.
Earlier, during the question hour, the opposition staged a walkout to protest the “non-serious attitude of ministers” who did not turn up to respond to their queries. They also griped about how “the prime minister has also totally ignored the Upper House”.
Minister’s statement on KanupP irks senators
What was dubbed an irresponsible statement, a minister claimed that in case of any major disaster to the two under-construction nuclear power plants in Karachi, it would only affect a few kilometres of the metropolis.
“If a blast takes place (inside these plants) it will damage an area not more than five to seven kilometres” was Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Aftab Sheikh’s response, while he answered questions raised by Senators on Thursday regarding safety standards being adopted in the two new nuclear reactors being built in Karachi with China’s help. PPP Senator Raza Rabbani said that nuclear “blasts” are not like normal bomb blasts and radiations affect huge areas.
He made these remarks without realising the gravity of the issue, said senators in the opposition benches.
Meanwhile, PPP’s Saeed Ghani wanted to know the safety standards of the nuclear plants and sought a clarification on the claim that the technology used in the under-construction plants has not been tested before.
Sheikh responded that the same technology was used in the 137 MW nuclear reactor installed with Canada’s assistance in Karachi in 1972. Nineteen such reactors were already working in China, he added. Raja Zarfarul Haq also tried to assuage the Opposition, assuring them that the best safety measures were in place. There were lobbies within and outside the country working against Pakistan’s nuclear programme, he said.
When the United States denied Pakistan the same nuclear facilities it was extending to India, Pakistan had to approach China for civil nuclear technology and the latter agreed to provide it despite Western pressures. In a rare show of unity, Raza Rabbani seconded Raja Zarfarul Haq comments.
Published in The Express Tribune, February 7th, 2014.
Opposition in the Senate expressed apprehension about the peace talks between the government and the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan negotiators as they claimed there was a disconnect between the civilian government and the security establishment.
The Pakistan Peoples Party, the Muttahida Qaumi Movement, Awami National Party and the Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid slammed the government for not taking parliament into confidence.
The Taliban were buying time to re-group after they suffered losses when the armed forces bombed their hideouts recently, they unanimously declared. PML-Q’s Kamil Ali Agha said the government should have not only consulted the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and Military Intelligence (MI) but also the United States, Afghanistan and even India on this dialogue, since many foreign hands are involved in this insurgency.
Meanwhile, Senator Farhatullah Babar said that historically there has been a serious disconnect between the civil and political arm and the intelligence and security arm of the state, which is a serious impediment in the fight against militancy.
Earlier, during the question hour, the opposition staged a walkout to protest the “non-serious attitude of ministers” who did not turn up to respond to their queries. They also griped about how “the prime minister has also totally ignored the Upper House”.
Minister’s statement on KanupP irks senators
What was dubbed an irresponsible statement, a minister claimed that in case of any major disaster to the two under-construction nuclear power plants in Karachi, it would only affect a few kilometres of the metropolis.
“If a blast takes place (inside these plants) it will damage an area not more than five to seven kilometres” was Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Aftab Sheikh’s response, while he answered questions raised by Senators on Thursday regarding safety standards being adopted in the two new nuclear reactors being built in Karachi with China’s help. PPP Senator Raza Rabbani said that nuclear “blasts” are not like normal bomb blasts and radiations affect huge areas.
He made these remarks without realising the gravity of the issue, said senators in the opposition benches.
Meanwhile, PPP’s Saeed Ghani wanted to know the safety standards of the nuclear plants and sought a clarification on the claim that the technology used in the under-construction plants has not been tested before.
Sheikh responded that the same technology was used in the 137 MW nuclear reactor installed with Canada’s assistance in Karachi in 1972. Nineteen such reactors were already working in China, he added. Raja Zarfarul Haq also tried to assuage the Opposition, assuring them that the best safety measures were in place. There were lobbies within and outside the country working against Pakistan’s nuclear programme, he said.
When the United States denied Pakistan the same nuclear facilities it was extending to India, Pakistan had to approach China for civil nuclear technology and the latter agreed to provide it despite Western pressures. In a rare show of unity, Raza Rabbani seconded Raja Zarfarul Haq comments.
Published in The Express Tribune, February 7th, 2014.