PESHAWAR, Nov 7: Opposition members in the NWFP Assembly on Tuesday asked the government to furnish details of projects approved under the so-called ‘umbrella scheme’. They alleged that the constituencies of the opposition members had been deprived of their share in the development programme.
Initiating discussion on a question asked by Khalil Abass of the Awami National Party, Abdul Akbar Khan of the People’s Party Parliamentarians said the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal government had introduced a new method of transferring development funds to specific districts in the name of umbrella schemes.
“Under this method, the government does not provide a break-up of development schemes, instead it makes block allocation of funds. The chief minister allocates funds for unspecified schemes,” he added.
He said that in July 2004, the government had sent the PC-1 for the construction of 331km-long roads being financed by the Japanese government to the federal local government ministry. He said the MMA government had prepared its PC-1 and cost estimates and selected sites for the project but it did not seek opinion of any MPA about it.
He asked the government to furnish the PC-1 of the project before the house. He said the government had also prepared the PC-I of phase-II of the project for the construction of 700km-long roads in the province.
The minister for law and parliamentary affairs said the government had sent the PC-1 in 2004. He said first the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council had to approve it and then Islamabad would release the Japanese aid for it. He said Ecnec had not yet approved the rs3 billion project. Under the project, he said, roads would be constructed in Bannu, Abbottabad, Kohistan, Chitral, Hangu, Kohat, Lakki Marwat, Karak, Charsadda, Haripur, Nowshera, Swat, Dir and Peshawar districts.
Bashir Ahmed Bilour, Asif Iqbal Daudzai, Sikandar Sherpao, Pir Mohammad Khan, Hafiz Hashmat Khan and Amanullah Haqqani spoke on the issue and demanded that the government provide details of the PC-1 to the house.
The opposition MPAs walked out as the minister failed to satisfy them.
Earlier, the government was embarrassed during discussion on a question asked by Israrullah Khan Gandapur of the PPP (Sherpao). He had submitted his question in 2003, while the local government department provided him a fabricated answer on Tuesday. Mr Gandapur said the minister for local government had answered one part of his question. He said the minister had shifted the responsibility on the works and services department which had nothing to do with his question.
Mr Gandapur asked the government to prepare a code of ethics for the ministers. He asked how a minister would be punished for misleading the house. Local Government Minister Sardar Idrees made a speech but failed to satisfy the mover and other opposition MPAs.
Abdul Akbar Khan also initiated discussion on a question asked by Jamshed Khan of PPP-S about providing bulldozer service to the needy farmers in Buner. He said the government had abolished the agriculture engineering cell which provided bulldozers on hourly basis to the farmers and now the officials had increased the rates.
Mr Gandapur said the officials charged double or triple of the fixed amount from the farmers.
Minister for Science and Technology Hussain Ahmed Kanju assured the house that farmers would be treated fairly.
The house admitted for discussion during the current session identical adjournment motions tabled by Pir Mohammad Khan, Bashir Bilour, Nighat Orakzai, Zobaida Khatoon, Naeema Akhtar and Jamshed Khan regarding the celebration of three Eids in the province.
The opposition MPAs alleged that the MMA had divided the Ummah on a small issue. They said MMA leader Fazlur Rehman had celebrated Eid on Tuesday, while the alliance’s chief Qazi Hussain Ahmed celebrated Eid on Wednesday.
The house again expressed displeasure with the planning and development department for not providing written answers to the assembly secretariat on Tuesday.