PESHAWAR: Chief Minister Pervez Khattak announced to stage a protest sit-in in front of Parliament House on May 12 against the alleged changes in the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and indifferent attitude of the federal government towards Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and other smaller provinces. “We have no other option but to take to the streets for our rights as the federal government doesn’t bother to listen to our grievances and pay our arrears,” Pervez Khattak said while speaking Thursday on the assembly floor after presiding over a meeting of the parliamentary leaders of all the political parties represented in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly. He said the parliamentary party leaders had agreed to stage protest march from the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa House in Islamabad on Tuesday and the sit-in in front of Parliament House. He said the provincial government was confronted with three big issues including prolonged electricity loadshedding, non-payment of its share of net hydel-generation profits and low share of the province in the China investment in Pakistan. Pervez Khattak said the federal government had not taken the provincial government into confidence while making changes in the Gawadar-Kashgar route that excluded some cities of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. “Under a conspiracy, some portions of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa were excluded from Pak-China Economic Corridor,” he said, adding, the province was given low share in the huge investment pledged by the Chinese President Xi Jinping during his recent visit to Pakistan. “We demand at least two economic hubs in our province as part of the Gwadar-Kashgar route as industrial units are the main features of the Pakistan-China Economic Corridor,” he added.The chief minister feared prolonged electricity loadshedding and faulty power distribution system would affect the law and order situation in the province. “We will seal the Wapda stores where transformers are being provided on political grounds,” he warned. He stressed that mark-up rates would be claimed on money given to Wapda by the provincial government and legislators for provision of transformers. The chief minister informed the House that the parliamentary jirga also agreed on demanding immediate release of payment of the capped amount of Rs600 million as Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) share in the net hydel-generation profits. “The capped amount should be increased to Rs17 billion in keeping with the current rates of electricity. KP would demand its share in the river waters being utilised by other provinces under the 1991 Water Accord,” he maintained. Parliamentary leaders of Qaumi Watan Party, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, Pakistan People’s Party and Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-F spoke on the occasion and endorsed the decision of the parliamentary jirga for staging the protest sit-in in Islamabad on May 12. However, they also criticised the PTI-led government for unequal distribution of development funds and projects amongst the provincial assembly members. The provincial assembly has constituted the parliamentary jirga led by Chief Minister Pervez Khattak and comprising of parliamentary leaders of all the political parties present in the
