Islamabad: After months of wrangling and heated debate over debt, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and the Center have finally agreed to bury the hatchet and work together for common relief.
The incident took place during a meeting between KP Firebrand Minister Ali Amin Gandapur and Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi in Islamabad on Monday. Federal Minister for Energy Awais Ahmad Khan Leghari and Federal Interior Minister also attended the meeting.
It is worth mentioning here that the KP government and the Center have been at loggerheads over several issues, including CM Gandapur’s prolonged power cuts in the province and even threats to take over the electricity distribution company, Peshawar Electricity Supply Company (Pesco). ) after a severe power outage in the province.
Apart from this, the KP and central governments have been vocal in recent days about the federal government’s debt to the province.
In March, the CM announced that he would take the Gandapur debt issue to the Central Court.
“Federal and provincial organizations will work together,” CM Gandapur said at a joint press conference after the “meaningful” talks. We will work together to identify the cause of the line loss,” he said.
District leaders said people had found a way to get relief, citing “reconciliation” being done between the two sides.
“Although KP supplies electricity to the entire country, the province itself is experiencing long-term power cuts,” he said.
The Prime Minister said that he is participating in the negotiations to resolve the issues that have arisen in the province. “We need to come to the table for the rights and concerns of the province,” he said.
He said, since KP itself produces electricity, the people of the province want to stop the load and look for cheap electricity.
The CM thanked the federal government for knowing the grievances of the people of Gandapur province.
He quoted PTI founder Imran Khan as saying that “the war is not against the sentiments of the country”.
The power minister thanked the interior minister Naq for playing a key role in de-escalating the tension between the KP and the Center and bridging the gap between the two sides.
“We have found a solution to the problem,” the federal minister said without elaborating.
A unified model will be implemented in KP and other provinces,” he said.
Referring to the decision taken in the meeting, the minister said that PTI, PML-N and allied parties have taken “big steps” to revive the economy and bring the country out of crisis.
Despite other political talk, the energy minister said that they agreed on this agenda for the sake of the people and the country.
“We found a solution to the problem. This decision will be applied to other provinces as well.
He said he would solve problems related to electricity theft and losses across the country.
“PTI and PML-N together took this step to improve the country’s economy.”
Speaking to reporters, the Home Minister said the meeting ended with “development”. However, he did not elaborate on the progress and said that the session was held in a pleasant atmosphere.
He said, in the meeting, issues related to social assistance were discussed.
Ahead of the important clash, Naqvi welcomed CM Gandapur after his arrival at the Ministry of External Affairs. Speaking to the media, the Prime Minister said: Our case is in court and we hope to get help from the court. I will sit down with the [federal minister] to solve the problems of the people of his province. Differences should not interfere with political matters. “
