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Tuesday, July 16, 2013
PTI puts off anti-load shedding protest* CM Khattak to consult allied parties in order to forge consensus
PESHAWAR: The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has put off its protest against unannounced load shedding in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
The PTI, it may be recalled, had announced protest demonstrations across the province, and had even gone to the extent of announcing that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa chief minister would lead the demonstrations. However, in a statement issued on Monday, spokesman for the provincial government said Chief Minister Pervez Khattak would consult allied parties in order to forge consensus and wage a series of protests against the “unjustified and unannounced” load shedding in the province.
Meanwhile, Khattak on Monday demanded “true” electricity share for the province. Talking to media persons after a meeting of the coalition partners, the chief minister noted that WAPDA is a federal institution which is responsible for the distribution of electricity. He said the load shedding in the province is “unjustified and unannounced”. Khattak demanded supply of electricity in accordance with the province’s right; however he warned if the province is ignored they would have no choice but to protest.
The chief minister said the people of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa have been suffering hours-long power outages and his government was being defamed due to it. Khattak demanded a time frame of load shedding from the federal government and end of unscheduled load shedding. He said Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government did not want a conflict with the federation but the present situation is testing their patience. Provincial Finance Minister Sirajul Haq said that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has the capacity to generate over 25,000MW electricity.
The Jamaat-e-Islami leader said if the charge of WAPDA is handed over to the province they can guarantee that the power crisis in the country would end within three years. Haq said it seemed that the federal government does not want to invest in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. agencies
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk