Lights out: Disconnected power supply paralyses FATA Secretariat

Work at all depts comes to a standstill; PESCO claims dues worth Rs300 million still pending.Asad Zia

PESHAWAR: Official work at the FATA Secretariat has come to a standstill over the past 10 days after Peshawar Electric Supply Company (Pesco) cut off its power supply over non-payment of dues.

Speaking to The Express Tribune, FATA Secretariat Spokesperson Fazlullah said Pesco disconnected power supply to the secretariat on November 20. As a result, work at all departments has screeched to a halt, he said.

“Although officials come to work, they have not been able to do any,” he said.

According to the spokesperson, key projects related to the seven tribal agencies and six frontier regions have been put on the backburner due to the power cut.

“We paid Pesco Rs1.2 million for the month of October,” Fazlullah said, “But it has still suspended our power supply.”

Earlier in May, Pesco suspended power to the FATA Secretariat after the institution failed to pay the dues of community tube wells in the frontier regions. The secretariat faced immense problems as all official work was carried out using generators. As a result, it took the matter to a civil court.

“We provided the court all documents and payment receipts,” the spokesperson said. “The civil court subsequently directed Pesco to resume supply to the institution. However, it has violated the court’s order and not yet resumed our power supply,” Fazlullah said.

According to the spokesperson, the FATA Secretariat filed an application for a contempt of court notice against Pesco on November 27.

When contacted, Pesco Spokesperson Shaukat Afzal said dues worth Rs300 million are still pending against the FATA Secretariat. “Payment of dues worth Rs1.2 million is nothing compared to this amount,” he said.

Afzal told The Express Tribune that he was unaware of the civil court’s order. However, he said he would look into the matter. “If the court has issued an order in this regard, then we will do our best to follow it,” he added.

According to the Pesco spokesperson, the FATA Secretariat has not paid their dues for a long time. “I am not sure when they paid the Rs1.2 million,” he said.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 30^th, 2014.