December 18, 2002	Wednesday	Shawwal 13, 1423

PESHAWAR, Dec 17: Water and Power Minister Aftab Ahmed Sherpao has said NWFP’s net hydel profit share cannot be adjusted against the arrears payable by the electricity consumers of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA).

“There is absolutely no co-relation between the two,” Mr Sherpao told Dawn when contacted on telephone to ascertain his comments viz-a-viz Wapda’s intended move to adjust Rs6 billion capped share amount of NWFP’s net hydel profit share against multi-billion rupees arrears payable by FATA’s consumers and the provincial public sector entities.

Expressing his ignorance about the Wapda’s latest stand over the issue, Mr Sherpao said: “I have no knowledge about it, but now certainly I would look into it.”

In response to the NWFP government’s reminders for the disbursement of funds against the Frontier province’s net hydel profit share, Wapda has recently intimated to the federal government that it might adjust NWFP’s net profit share for the fiscal 2002-03 against the over Rs19 billion arrears payable by FATA’s defaulting consumers and the provincial government entities.

Replying a question, Mr Sherpao said payment of net hydel profit to NWFP was covered under the constitution and the same could not be adjusted against arrears.

“No one can do this,” he said and added the matter would be discussed with the NWFP governor and others.

He said the payment of net hydel profit to NWFP and recovery of dues from FATA electricity consumers were two different issues. FATA, he added, was directly administered by the federal government hence electricity dues payable by the tribal arrears’ consumers could not be recovered from NWFP.

The contentious issue hampering the working relationship between NWFP government and Wapda would also come under discussion during the Wapda chairman’s separate meetings with NWFP Chief Minister Akram Khan Durrani and Governor Syed Iftikhar Hussain Shah scheduled on Wednesday at Peshawar.

The two entities have been engaged in a tug-of-war laying claims and counter claims against each other. The last military backed civilian government in NWFP — shortly before leaving the office — lodged a claim of Rs298 billion against Wapda, a claim rejected by the Authority.

Difference between NWFP government and Wapda over the contentious issue of net hydel profit was one of the main reasons which frustrated the last federal government’s efforts to announce the 6th National Finance Commission (NFC) — due on July 1, 2003 upon the completion of one year extension of the current NFC award.