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KARACHI: Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani has rejected a perception about a clash between the judiciary and the government and parliament and said the concept of ‘trichotomy’ of powers is about exercising authority and determining the parameters of each institution. Talking to editors and senior journalists at Governor’s House here on Friday, he said the government had met the requirement of consultation for the appointment of Justice (retd) Syed Deedar Hussain Shah as chairman of the National Accountability Bureau.
He said the consultation did not mean consensus and it was the prerogative of the president to appoint the chairman on the advice of the prime minister and this obligation had been met.
Replying to a question about a row between a parliamentary committee and judges over the issue of judicial appointments, he asked how could judges appoint judges.
He advised the opponents of Kalabagh Dam to take up the matter at the Council of Common Interests (CCI) instead of playing to the gallery. He said that similar issues, including Bhasha Dam and ownership of Thar coal, had been resolved satisfactorily by the CCI.
He said the government was trying to implement its 36-point election manifesto and had so far covered 21 points.
The prime minister said because of his government’s policies the country achieved autarky in wheat to the extent that it was also exporting it despite the war against terrorism and last year’s floods.
He said law and order was a provincial subject, but Balochistan was facing multiple issues, including terrorism, extremism and attempts by foreign forces to implement their agenda.
He said the government had attempted to allay the sense of deprivation in the province by extending provincial autonomy and providing jobs to about 7,000 youths under the Aghaz-i-Huqooq Balochistan package.
The prime minister said the problems in Balochistan could not be solved in two or three years because no serious effort had been made in this regard over the past 62 years.
He said the government was working on short-, medium- and long-term projects to overcome electricity shortage and the US also was helping the country.
The completion of the projects would take three to 10 years, he said.
Replying to a question, he said the country would have faced even a worse power crisis had the PPP government in 1994 not executed independent power producer (IPP) projects despite opposition.
The prime minister said the government was also working on laying a gas pipeline from Iran which would ease the supply situation for the industrial sector.
He said people had rendered great sacrifices to reach this stage, including the death of Benazir Bhutto, and they would become a solid wall to defend democracy if it faced any threat.
The prime minister said Pakistan would like to hold talks with India on an equal footing and not as a junior partner.
Asked about demands for carving new provinces out of Punjab, he said the decision was up to the people.
