A day after the federal govt settled with the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa on past arrears for hydel power dues, the government extended further credit guarantees to the province to help set up new hydro-power projects.
“If the K-P government puts the Rs70 billion (settlement which the federal government will pay) in equity, the federal government can provide Rs280 billion in credit guarantees,” Finance Minister Ishaq Dar offered the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf-led government on the floor of the National Assembly on Friday.
On Thursday, the government and K-P settled on a payment of Rs70 billion for hydel power arrears. Dar, however, was quick to remind the provincial government that energy produced in any part of the country is pooled into the national grid from where it is distributed as per quota.
The finance minister also welcomed suggestions from Mahmood Khan Achakzai to install a hydel-power project on the Swat River and Aftab Ahmad Sherpao’s call for assisting the K-P government in installing energy projects in the province. Referring IRSA’s report, Dar pointed out the need to construct dams and reservoirs to curtail wastage of water.
During Friday’s session, the house also passed a bill to promote energy conservation in the country amid crippling energy shortages. The Opposition did not oppose the bill.
NAB probing parliamentarians
The government on Friday revealed that the top accountability body has been interrogating a number of parliamentarians and ministry officials, but declined to disclose their names.
“A number of cases against sitting members of the NA as well as employees of federal ministries are under consideration in different regional offices of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB),” read a reply submitted by the law ministry in parliament on Friday.
“Keeping in view the confidentiality and non-identification of the actual role of any person, names of accused public office holders cannot be made public.”
Citing different clauses of NAB regarding on-going cases, the ministry also refused to share information about the investigations.
Official records, however, show some of the lawmakers and officials being probed are wanted for different offences including misuse of authority as holders of public office, cheating of public at large, bank loan default, misappropriation of public money, embezzlement of government funds and illegal gratifications.
“An amount of Rs1.855 billion has been recovered in eight high-profile corruption and fraud cases by NAB during the tenure of the incumbent government from 2013 to 2015,” the Law ministry said.
To a related query, the government stated that no NAB official has ever received any amount through plea-bargaining.
“In fact NAB as an organisation has recovered an amount of Rs10.717 billion under relevant laws and deposited in the federal consolidated fund since inception of NAB,” the government said.
Details of the Rs200 million recovered from former Wapda chairman Gen (retired) Zahid Ali Akbar were also included in the reply.
In reply to another question, the government said that no recovery had been made from the former management of the Senate secretariat cooperative housing society. NAB-Rawalpindi, however, has filed a reference over its sale in addition to supplementary references against beneficiaries of the sale.
Meanwhile, Minister for Human Rights Zahid Hamid on Friday responded to concerns regarding reformation of the accountability body.
