KP govt determined to root out corruption: CM

Whistleblower Act to be tabled for enactment in next session of KP Assembly

PESHAWAR: Chief Minister Pervez Khattak on Tuesday said that the government was going all-out to introduce a mechanism of checks and balances through a set of legislations to ensure fair and transparent governance.

“The whistleblower law will bring an end to corruption and corrupt practices and make all governance-related issues transparent in all spheres of public dealings. The mechanism would also lead to responsiveness for the judicious utilisation of public money,” he said this while presiding over a meeting of the select committee on proposed Whistleblower Act here.

The committee gave final touches to the law, which will now be tabled in the next session of the provincial assembly for enactment.The meeting was attended by Senior Minister for Local Government and Rural Development Inayatullah Khan, Minister for Law Imtiaz Shahid Qureshi, MPAs Muhammad Ali Shah, Mehmood Bhittani, Shaukat Yousafzai, Sardar Idrees, Sardar Hussain Babak and Zarin Gul.

The participants had a threadbare discussion on different dimensions of the proposed legislation. They suggested certain amendments to finalise it for presentation in the next session of the assembly.

They discussed the law to make it more effective and reconcile to the ground reality. The participants also discussed the possible misuse of the law by various interest groups and individuals with mala fide intension. They suggested various steps for stopping the misuse.

Chief Minister Pervez Khattak said that the Whistleblower Act was one of the legislations that would eliminate all sorts of pilferages in public dealings and the misuse of power and authority.

He hoped that the proposed legislation would eliminate commission and other corrupt practices in the public sector institutions leading to institutional strengthening instead of individual as seen in the past.

There will be visible transparency and in case of any malpractices and corruption the government would initiate action. The participants of the meeting agreed to the composition of the commission to be headed by a chairman and members up to the age of 67.

It would be a financially autonomous body with remuneration to be met out of the provincial consolidated fund.The power and authority of the chairman would include the organizational structure and disposal of day-to-day affairs. After preliminary enquiry of the status of complaint, the body would start full enquiry within the stipulated time.

The participants agreed to certain safeguards for the protection of whistleblower against any victimisation and disadvantages position. If the complaint was formed on mala fide intention, the complainant would be punished

The meeting also agreed to allow the victim to claim compensation if the complaint was based on mala fide intention.The chief minister directed the quarters concerned to finalise mechanism for the enforcement of proposed law after enactment from the provincial assembly.

He hoped the record legislations made by his government would bring about openness and transparency in all spheres of public dealings. It would discourage corruption and corrupt practices and the public servant and their representatives would fully focus on the public service.

Meanwhile, the Chief Minister Pervez Khattak said on Tuesday that his government was all set to provide cheap electricity to investors in the industrial zones in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.  An official handout said that he was presiding over a meeting that was attended by MNAs Asad Umar, Jahangir Tarin and Sajida Khattak, Senators Nauman Wazir and Mohsin Aziz, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Economic Zones Development and Management Company (KPEZMDC), Ghulam Dastagir and Syed Muhammad Mohsin respectively, Secretary Energy and Power Naeem Khan and Secretary Industries Farah Hamid Khan.

Chief Minister Pervez Khattak said his government would use natural gas for the establishment of three power generation stations at Kohat, Rashkai and Hattar Industrial estate producing 225 megawatt electricity.

He said the electricity would be offered to the industries in the three industrial estates at concessional rates. He assured the businessmen that the provincial government would be a sovereign guarantor to attract and facilitate investors in the province.

“Our government has offered incentives to the investors,” he said. He directed the quarters concerned to expedite the fulfilment of procedural requirements so that the dream of rapid industrialisation of the province could be translated into reality.

He added that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was rich in natural resources and his government was providing an enabling environment to foreign and domestic investors to harness these resources for the development of the province.

The meeting thoroughly discussed the preparations made for utilisation of the 100 MMCFD natural gas for power generation approved by the federal government. The participants of the meeting were informed that the Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL) had issued demand note to the province for the provision of gas supply.

The meeting expressed happiness over the overwhelming response of investors to the biddings offered last month. The participants were informed that investors were ready to avail the opportunity and make investments.

With regard to the rates of electricity produced and sold to industries, it was decided that through NEPRA has to fix the, rates efforts would be made to keep it low. It was also decided that the provincial government would look into the issue to conduct feasibility itself or leave it to the investors.

The communiqué said that t KPEZMDC would take a decision within two days. With regard to the availability of gas, the meeting was informed that in view of the recent discovery and diggings, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa would produce more gas than its requirement.