NFC Award: PPP Senator says KP govt holding Sindh responsible for own failure

PESHAWAR: The Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Senator Aajiz Dhamrah has said that the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government was blaming the Sindh government to hide its failure in getting a constitutional share in the National Finance Commission (NFC) Award.

“The chief minister should tell the nation, which letter he has written to the federal government for getting constitutional rights in the NFC for the merged tribal districts,” he told The News during his recent visit to Peshawar. Similarly, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government has not got passed any resolution from the provincial assembly on this issue, saying the entire Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government could not understand the real issue. Senator Aajiz Dhamrah, who is also secretary information for Sindh chapter of the party, dispelled the impression that the government of Sindh was blocking funds for the merged districts in KP.

He challenged the PTI government and constitutional experts to hold a debate with him on this issue at Peshawar Press Club. The PPP senator quoted Article 160, sub-article, 3-A of the Constitution that every NFC award is announced for five years and after that the amount for next five-year award would have to be increased. He claimed that whoever tried to reduce or cut the fund in the next award could be tried under Article 6 of the Constitution.

The senator said that Sindh had never opposed funds for the newly merged districts of KP in NFC but the immature rulers of KP had been accusing Sindh, ignoring constitutional provisions. He claimed that Sindh wanted to provide funds to all three provinces in NFC but that would be possible only when an amendment with a two-thirds majority was passed. Without amending the Constitution with a two-thirds majority, Dhamrah said the rulers could not even deduct three rupees. “We agreed even to give 6 percent to KP’s merged districts. We will raise no objections but we are sure they have no capacity and power to make the amendment,” he said, adding that his party has sympathies with Pakhtuns and would extend them support. He said former president Asif Zardari had empowered the provinces, saying the first award was announced in 2010 and the next award was to be announced in 2015. The senator said the KP could not get its fund up till now. He said if the KP government was interested in getting its share, the chief minister should have written a letter for his right person like the chief minister of Sindh but that was not done. He said the chief minister should have demanded his province’s constitutional share from the federal government instead of accusing Sindh government. Regarding constitution of the NFC, he said the KP government inducted irrelevant people in the commission and made the process controversial. The PPP senator and provincial secretary information Rubina Khalid said the KP government should have given amount to the merged districts from own fund.