PESHAWAR, Aug 20: Federal Minister for Inter-Provincial Coordination Salim Saifullah Khan has said that the no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz is doomed to fail and the opposition is trying to find a way out for avoiding defeat in parliament.

Speaking at a lunch he hosted in honour of local journalists at his residence here on Sunday, Mr Saifullah said opposition leaders were aware of the fate of no-confidence motion and were trying to find a way out.

He urged the opposition to be firm on their plan and table the motion in parliament so that people could know their popularity and strength.

He said the government had put the country on the track of development and even non-partisan or neutral people were appreciating its performance.

He said record mega-developmental projects had been launched by the government and soon people will witness a revolution of development in the country.

The minister said the Supreme Court in its ruling had decided that the privatisation of the Pakistan Steel Mills was done in haste. There is no mention of corruption in judgment of the apex court in Steel Mills privatisation case, he added.

He said the governments of Mian Nawaz Sharif and Benazir Bhutto also carried out privatisation and a number of public sector entities, including banks and power-generating units, were sold to private parties.

He said that the government will soon re-tender privatisation of the Pakistan Steel Mills under the guidelines given by the Supreme Court.

He said the opposition was attempting to create the impression that the Steel Mills was a profitable organization. In fact, he continued, the mill was running in loss and its losses were in billions of rupees which the government could not afford.

He said countries like China and Russia were opting for privatisation because the government’s job is providing basic facilities and not getting involved in business.

Referring to Women Protection Bill to be tabled in the National Assembly on Monday, Mr Saifullah said the bill is not aimed at bringing any change in the Hudood Ordinance.

He said the bill is aimed at providing protection to women folk and only the punishment of rape has been modified. The bill, he continued, will be referred to the committee concerned after passage in the National Assembly where discussion would be held over it and amendments could also be brought in it at that stage.

He clarified in categorical terms that the government was not going to do any legislation against the teachings of the Holy Quran and Sunnah and there was no foreign pressure on it in passing the Women Protection Bill.

About flood damages in the NWFP, Mr Saifullah criticised the provincial government in failing to take preventive measures. He said it was the responsibility of the provincial government to direct district governments for taking preventive measures during the monsoon season.

He said the federal government is extending full help in carrying out relief work and providing rehabilitation to flood victims and will continue doing so in future.

He said it was the responsibility of the government to provide protection to citizens.

He said the MMA government in the NWFP should keep its house in order and avoid putting blames of its mistakes on the federal government.

About the performance of the Inter Provincial Coordination (IPC) Ministry, Mr Saifullah said the meeting of the IPC would soon be held by the end of the current month and the provinces were sending their demands for involving them in the agenda of the meeting.

He said that a sub-office of the IPC would be opened in Peshawar for making its access easier to the provincial government.—APP