Coalition partners blow a fuse over power subsidy

• Punjab-only relief package draws flak from Sindh, KP
• Murad says ‘N’ spending money ‘to rectify past mistakes’
• PM asserts move solely funded by Punjab’s own budget
• Leghari says ‘good news’ on IPPs in a month or two

ISLAMABAD: The issue of soaring electricity tariffs and the Punjab-only power subsidy have ignited a war of words between the ruling coalition parties, with the PPP criticising the PML-N-led federal and Punjab governments.

The opposition has also seized the opportunity to criticise the PML-N, accusing the party of providing relief only to Punjab while neglecting other provinces.

The political friction escalated on Friday when PML-N President Nawaz Sharif, alongside his daughter and Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz, announced a Rs14 per unit relief for those electricity consumers in Punjab who use between 200 and 500 units per month. Mr Sharif claimed that the relief was funded by a Rs45 billion cut in Punjab’s development budget.

This announcement was met with disdain from the PPP-led Sindh government and the PTI-led Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government. Both provinces, apparently lacking the resources to offer similar relief, started criticising the federal and Punjab governments.

PM to the rescue

Following criticism from Sindh and KP, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif came to rescue the Punjab government on Tuesday, claiming that the Centre had not provided a single penny to the provincial government and that the relief package was solely funded by Punjab’s own budget.

During a federal cabinet meeting on Tuesday, the prime minister urged other provinces to follow Punjab’s example by reallocating their development funds to provide similar relief to electricity consumers.

“Instead of politicking, the provincial governments should follow Punjab’s course of action to provide relief to their electricity consumers by utilising funds from the trillions of rupees transferred to them under the National Finance Commission,” the prime minister stated.

“This is the right of the people. The federal government has zero contribution to this relief package. Other provinces should also do the same. If the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government wants to give such relief to the people, we will be happy. But politicking should be avoided and facts should not be distorted,” he said.

He dismissed accusations of federal discrimination, emphasising that nearly 60 per cent of NFC funds go to the provinces. The federal government, he said, had to face immense challenges in the form of payments of loans and interests on foreign-funded projects that benefited the entire country.

PM Shehbaz highlighted that the federal government has allocated Rs50 billion to provide a three-month relief to domestic consumers using up to 200 units of electricity, which constituted around 86pc of domestic power users.

He also mentioned a partnership with the Balochistan government to solarise 28,000 tube wells, a project costing Rs70 billion, with the federal government bearing Rs55 billion.

The premier stressed that the federal government, in consultation with the provincial governments, was working on long-term measures to stabilise the economy and boost the country’s trade and exports.

He said the federal government would take all such measures after taking the IMF on board, unlike the PTI’s “irrational” step of violating an agreement with the lender and pushing the country to the brink of default.

Murad blames PML-N’s ‘past mistakes’

Meanwhile, Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah criticised the PML-N, blaming the party for introducing costly power plants decades ago, which, he argued, have led to the current high electricity costs.

He said Sindh would now focus on developing its own coal and solar power plants, for which the province had been barred. Mr Shah further accused the federal government of neglecting Sindh, claiming that many projects requiring federal financial assistance remain stalled.

Sindh Information Minister Sharjeel Memon also weighed in, questioning the long-term effectiveness of Punjab’s two-month relief to power consumers and advocating for sustainable, long-term policies to benefit the entire country.

In an apparent retort, Punjab CM Maryam Nawaz called on the Sindh government to alleviate the suffering of its people, questioning why providing relief to the public was being criticised. “Is it nonsense to provide relief to the masses?” she wondered.

Punjab Information Minister Azma Bukhari also joined the fray, asserting that Maryam Nawaz would have provided relief to the people of Sindh “if she was CM of that province”.

Barrister Saif, the spokesperson for the PTI-led KP government, said providing relief to only one province will pave the way for a sense of deprivation among other provinces.

Adding to the tension, Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) emir Hafiz Naeemur Rehman announced a countrywide shutter-down strike on Aug 28 against inflated electricity bills. “The Jamaat will launch a new movement in the country on the issue,” he said.

‘Good news’ on IPPs

Minister for Energy Awais Leghari on Tuesday admitted that electricity costs in Pakistan were the highest in the entire region but stressed that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will announce “good news” about the issue of independent power producers (IPPs) in a month or two.

Speaking at the National Youth Convention in Islamabad, Mr Leghari said the government was planning to establish new power plants to address the issue of power load-shedding in the country. He stressed that despite expensive power generation, electricity was being provided to the consumers at subsidised rates.

He also admitted that due to the high cost of electricity, industries were shutting down, but the government was now providing electricity to the industries at lower rates, bearing the additional costs.

“Within a month or two Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will share good news to the public and industries,” he said. “Everyone will be benefited from it.”

Published in Dawn, August 21st, 2024