PESHAWAR, Dec 30: The NWFP government has denied that it has empowered President Gen Pervez Musharraf in writing to make a decision about construction of water reservoirs in any part of the country.

Speaking on a point of order in the provincial assembly, Information Minister Asif Iqbal Daudzai denied that Chief Minister Akram Khan Durrani or any government spokesman had asked the president to decide about the construction of water reservoirs or dams on a particular place in the country.

He said the NWFP had empowered the president to make an acceptable decision on the National Finance Commission award.

He said the nation was in dire need of water reservoirs, but a consensus among the four federating units was essential before taking up such projects. The NWFP government, he said, would not be a party to any controversial decisions.

The minister said that a fruitless debate on the divisive issue was damaging national unity, which should be avoided at all cost.

Khalil Abbas Khan of the Awami National Party had earlier asked the provincial government to clarify its stand on President Musharraf’s statement in which he claimed he was enjoying confidence of the four provinces on the construction of the Kalabagh dam.

He demanded that the NWFP government explain who had empowered the president to make such a statement, and issue a rebuttal.

Endorsing the demand, ANP’s Mukhtar Ali Khan said this house had passed a unanimous resolution against the construction of Kalabagh dam, but the Centre was not paying any heed to the wishes of the provincial assembly.

Israrullah Khan Gandapur of the Pakistan People’s Party (Sherpao) said Dera Ismail Khan should be provided irrigation water from the left canal so that its barren areas could be brought under cultivation.

Amanat Shah of the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal proposed that the Bhasha dam should be constructed instead of the Kalabagh dam, which had been rejected by three provinces.

Nighat Orakzai of the Pakistan Muslim League (Q), a staunch supporter of the Kalabagh dam, said the feasibility of Bhasha dam was not ready and it would take four more years to get it completed. She said only Kalabagh dam was the option available to the government and it should be executed.

Speaking on the issue, Minister for Local Government Sardar Mohammad Idrees said it was a technical issue and must be tackled in a technical way.

Initiating debate on the government’s measures to cope with the post-quake situation, Anwar Kamal Khan of the Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) said it had been opposition’s demand that the Centre should take the province into confidence about foreign aid sought for the rehabilitation of the quake-hit people. “Who will pay the interest – the Centre or the province?” he queried.

Opposition leader Shahzada Gistasip drew the attention of the house to the absence of the chief minister and the minister concerned “during this important debate”.

He said while the provincial government had asked the Centre to constitute a high-powered committee to deal with the rehabilitation effort, it had not yet constituted such a parliamentary committee in the province.

He asked the government to stop its “double talk” and form a joint committee, which should supervise the rehabilitation and reconstruction work in the quake-ravaged districts of the province.

Shagufta Naz of the MMA criticised what she called the “double standards” of the rulers, saying that while Islamabad had organized a donors’ conference to collect funds for quake survivors, it was purchasing VIP planes out of the donations made.