September 1, 2003	Monday	Rajab 3, 1424

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PESHAWAR, Aug 31: Major political parties have supported the provincial government’s demand that the NWFP should be given share from the profit of Ghazi Barotha hydro power project to offset the adverse impact the province experienced due to its execution.

In a rare show of unity, leaders of major political parties including PPP, ANP and PML-N here on Sunday joined hands with the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal government to win due constitutional rights of the province and safeguard its economic and financial interests, demanding that the federal government should immediately constitute the new National Finance Commission (NFC) and pay full amount of the net hydel profit share to the NWFP.

At the conclusion of a special meeting called by NWFP Finance Minister Sirajul Haq all major political groups agreed to form a special committee which would approach the federal government to secure NWFP’s due constitutional rights and that irrespective of their political affiliations NWFP’s representatives in the National Assembly and Senate would raise voice to help MMA protect NWFP’s interests.

Those who attended the meeting included ANP chief Senator Asfandyar Wali Khan, JI chief Qazi Hussain Ahmed, PML-N MPA Anwar Kamal Khan and the PPP and MMA members of the assemblies.

Maulana Fazlur Rehman and Maulana Samiul Haq, chiefs of their own factions of the JUI, could not attend the meeting, whereas their parties’ representatives were present.

The federal minister for water and power and chief of his own faction of the PPP, Aftab Ahmed Khan Sherpao, opted to stay away from the meeting.

Mr Haq claimed that Mr Sherpao did not attend the meeting despite having been extended invitation.

Attaching extra significance to the Sunday’s meeting, the finance minister expressed hope that the NWFP would manage to win its due rights from the Centre after major political parties had joined hands to launch joint struggle by rising beyond their political differences.

A joint press release, handed over to newsmen at a press briefing following the meeting, said that the Sunday’s meeting supported the government’s stand on the formation of new NFC, increase in the federating units’ share under the federal divisible pool, payment of net hydel profit and demanded share from Ghazi Barotha project.

Confirming the demands formulated by the meeting, Anwar Kamal Khan told Dawn on telephone that the meeting asked the provincial government to take stand on the issue of getting share from the hydro power profit.

Talking to newsmen, the finance minister said that the NWFP was justified to get share from the profit after the federal government had agreed to give due share to it following the completion of the Mangla Dam’s rehabilitation project.

“NWFP should also be paid part of Ghazi Barotha hydro power project’s profit as the government of Azad Kashmir would get benefit following the completion of the Mangla Dam rehabilitation project,” said Mr Haq.

Earlier, senior finance managers of the province apprised the participants of the meeting about the financial position of the provincial government and its demands.

The meeting supported the NWFP government’s demand that under the new NFC award federating units’ share from the federal divisible pool should be enhanced to 60 per cent from the current 37.2 per cent in an effort to help provinces over come their financial constraints.

Besides, the meeting demanded that apart from population, incidence of poverty and backwardness/under development should also be considered as basis to determine share of provinces from the total amount to be distributed among them from the federal divisible pool.

The meeting also urged the need for reviewing the tax collection system of the federal government and demanded that tax collection system should be based on the administrative and financial requirements of the federating unit.

Particularly mentioning the collection of central excise duty on cigarettes, the meeting demanded that as the NWFP was the major producer of tobacco therefore proceeds of the CED on tobacco should be handed over to the provincial government helping it to over come its financial problems and strengthen the NWFP’s agriculture sector.

The meeting also termed as insufficient the annual transfers made to NWFP on account of subvention (special grant) and demanded of the federal government to effect substantial raise under the annual transfers.

In this respect, the parties observed that the NWFP should be compensated for involving the highest incidence of poverty in comparison with other provinces with 43 per cent rate of poverty being the highest among the federating units.

It observed that the amount transferred to the province on account of subvention come to around two per cent of the total size of the federal divisible pool. Terming it negligible the meeting demanded that an amount equal to ten per cent of the total size of the federal divisible pool should be transferred to the NWFP as subvention instead of the only two per cent.

It also demanded of the Centre to grant permission to the provincial government for obtaining low cost loans from the open market to repay its expensive loans payable to the federal government — a demand federal government paid no attention ever since it was moved by Peshawar some five months back.