ISLAMABAD: Senators urged the government on Tuesday to resolve outstanding issues of national importance through discussions in parliament, instead of multi-party conferences (MPCs).

Speaking on an adjournment motion on the concerns of people of Khyber Pakhtunkwa (KP) and Balochistan over the western route of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), several opposition members criticised the government for ‘bypassing parliament in the process of decision making on major issues’.

The senators welcomed the government’s act of allaying concerns of smaller provinces on the CPEC by convening a meeting of parliamentary leaders of all parties at Prime Minister House on Jan 15. But, they said, it would have been better if the prime minister had given the assurances on the floor of the Senate.

Opposition Leader Aitzaz Ahsan said that it was regrettable that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif had undertaken a visit to Saudi Arabia and Iran with army chief Gen Raheel Sharif without taking the parliament into confidence. “We welcome these visits. But such decisions should be made on the floor of the parliament and not between the individuals.”

The criticism on the government came when Leader of the House Raja Zafarul Haq opposed a discussion on the adjournment motion, saying that the issue had been settled at a meeting of the country’s political leadership with the prime minister on Jan 15.

Mohsin Leghari, an independent senator who was presiding over the session in the absence of the chairman, allowed the debate, rejecting Mr Haq’s assertion and saying that the discussion in the parliament was more important than the MPCs.

Tanveerul Haq Thanvi of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement said that they (senators) should have collectively made a demand that the prime minister should come to the Senate and take them into confidence on the CPEC.

Daud Achakzai of the Awami National Party said that the prime minister should come to the house at least for the sake of prestige of the parliament.

Usman Kakar of the Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party said that four MPCs had already been held on the CPEC because of the government’s act of ignoring the parliament.

PPP’s Sassui Palejo called for involving provinces in the process of decision making on important issues like the economic corridor. She said that such decisions should be made in the Council of Common Interests (CCI).

Another PPP leader, Taj Haider, said that the prime minister should continue to monitor implementation of CPEC-related projects to remove distrust among the provinces.

He said that no rail project had been included in the CPEC despite the fact that transportation of goods through the rail was much cheaper than the road.

PPP’s Farhatullah Babar said that distrust of the CPEC’s alignment and implementation was growing because of contradictory statements by the government, lack of transparency and disregard of constitutional bodies like the CCI and the parliament in addressing the issues of concern.

Holding Federal Minister for Planning and Development Ahsan Iqbal responsible for the confusion, he recounted contradictory statements made by the minister from time to time.

After the decision to give priority to the western route made in the May 28 MPC, he said, they were expecting that the priority would be reflected in the allocations in the Public Sector Development Programme. But a close scrutiny of the documents reveals that projects under the eastern route, though not named as such, have been allocated over Rs84 billion against only Rs20 billion for road projects under the western route.

Then, Mr Babar said, came the ‘drama’ of inaugurating the so-called western route in Zhob, which actually was an old road project of the 1990s.

He suggested that the Planning Commission be sidelined from the CPEC at least temporarily and saner and trustworthy figures like Raja Zafarul Haq and Iqbal Zafar Jhagra, who had demonstrated willingness to take along all stakeholders, be given the task (of implementing the project).

He also called for taking into account reservations and requirements of the people of Gilgit Baltistan which, he said, had been totally ignored.

Winding up the debate, Raja Zafarul Haq said that a 10-member committee headed by the prime minister had been setup and any issue would be resolved through consensus. He said that the government was sincere in removing reservations of all political parties about the CPEC. It has been decided to hold regular meetings on the project to remove apprehensions.

Published in Dawn, January 20th, 2016

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