LAHORE, May 31: Political leaders of Sindh, Balochistan and NWFP have demanded greater share in the National Finance Commission award for the development of their provinces.

They were participating in a discussion on the problems of the people of their provinces with the local journalists at the Lahore Press Club on Friday.

Balochistan National Movement president Dr Abdul Hye Baloch said that the requirements of the country’s largest province, Balochistan, had been ignored in the present NFC award, given by a caretaker government five years ago. Balochistan should be given greater share in the new award.

He said that in Balochistan, many projects in the highways, health and education sectors could not be completed for lack of funds.

The Saindak project was started in 1976 but could not be completed whereas Rs16 billion had been spent on it so far.

The Bolan Medical College had taken 30 years to complete and its estimate had jumped from Rs 60 million to Rs 1.4 billion.

There was no road linking Gwadar where it was planned to build a motorway from Gwadar to Peshawar to connect Pakistan to Central Asia. Instead motorway was built from Lahore to Islamabad.

Dr Hye said that his province was allocated only 3.5 per cent of the fund which was insufficient to meet the requirements. That was the reason it was 100 years behind the developed areas of other provinces.

He said that the real problem was that the people of the country have been denied participation in power and decision making by the successive military regimes.

He said that federal parliamentary system was the only answer which could be provided by restoration of democracy. It was not possible without allowing the political parties to work.

ANP’s central information secretary Haji Muhammad Adeel said that like Balochistan the NWFP had also been affected by the national finance award.

He said that originally the allocation between the centre and the provinces in the award of 1990 was 20:80 which had been changed to 67.5: 32.5 to the detriment interests of the provinces. The original allocation of 1990 award should be restored. Water distribution among the provinces was yet another important matter which needed immediate solution. He said that the water apportionment accord of 1991 had resolved the issue but it was not being implemented.

He said that the Punjab was utilizing the NWFP’ share of one million acre feet of water. He said that Wapda owed Rs91 billion to NWFP as profit from the sale of electricity produced from Tarbela power house located in NWFP.

The federal government had undertaken to make payment but Wapda was not in a position to make payment. He said that electricity distribution should be taken away from Wapda and handed over to the provinces.

The influx of 3.5 million Afghan refugees in NWFP and Balochistan had heavily burdened the economies of both the provinces besides creating many social problems like heroin and gun culture and law and order problem.

He said that if both the provinces were not compensated war against terrorism would not succeed as there was likelihood of springing up the movements like those Taliban and Al-Qaeda in the area.

He also urged the government to hold the next general elections on party basis in one day and the seats given to technocrats in national assembly and the condition of B.A qualification for the candidates should be withdrawn.

He also extended his party’s full support to the government to meet the Indian threat of war.

Secretary-general Abrar Hussain Kazi of Awami Tehrik, a party headed by Rasul Bakhsh Palejo, complained that Sindh was not being given its share of water under the 1991 accord. He said that the people of his province believed that their water was being stolen.

He said that Sindh had a genuine and a strong case against the construction of the Kalabagh dam project.

He also challenged the contention of the Punjab that 40 million acre feet of water of the Indus river system was going waste into the sea. He said that the rulers had been creating all this confusion about water and they were responsible for dividing the people.

He said that Sindh had been hit hard by the water scarcity. Even Sukkur on the bank of Indus had no water for its people. The situation below Kotri was more serious where the people had no water at all.

He regretted that the people of the Punjab were not aware of the gravity of the situation. The water shortage had adversely affected Sindh’s agriculture and 80 per cent of its population was below the poverty line.

He said that the government had failed to maintain law and order. “The federation has collapsed in Sindh,” he added.

Dr Abdul Hye Baloch, Haji Adeel, Abrar Kazi and daily Ibrat editor Jami Chandio are in the city to attend the one-day workshop of South Asia Partnership, Pakistan , on democracy and human rights.