LAHORE, April 27: The Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) has challenged the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) stance on loadshedding in Punjab and put 11 questions to former chief minister Shahbaz Sharif on the issue.

“The former government led by Shahbaz Sharif cannot mislead the public on power loadshedding and absolve itself of the serious repercussions [the province faced because of energy crisis],” PML-Q information secretary Kamil Ali Agha said in a statement, which also carried 11 questions relating to the energy crisis and wants the former chief minister to answer these questions.

Where were Rs19 billion taken from the provincial kitty for power generation spent and why not even a single unit was generated despite promises of producing 350-megawatt and 500-megawatt electricity in 2008-09 and 2009-10 budgets, respectively?

Agha questioned the priority given to metro bus, sasti roti, laptop and solar lamp schemes instead of power generation to run factories and ‘keep hearths of the working class burning’.

Another query is about accepting ‘the right at source formula’ of ‘unequal’ power distribution under which the provinces were given the first right at commodities.

Sharif’s ‘failure’ to take Punjab Assembly’s unanimous resolution on Kalabagh Dam to the Council of Common Interests and other constitutional forums has also been questioned. Agha asks that what constitutional, legal and administrative role the former chief minister played except issuing statements and leading protest rallies against alleged theft of Punjab’s share of electricity.

He questions that why the Upper Chenab hydel power project was not executed in five years though the World Bank had declared it viable and promised to finance it? Similarly, why the power theft in public sector registered a hike in Punjab and power bills worth billions of rupees due towards various provincial departments were not paid, as non-payment played a role in severity of loadshedding?

The PML-N leadership has been asked that if it could strike a ‘deal’ in the name of Charter of Democracy to return home, get the ban on becoming prime minister for the third time removed and grab Punjab chief minister’s office with Pakistan People’s Party’s (PPP) help, why it could not convince the PPP to curtail loadshedding in the province? — Staff Reporter