Nandipur Scandal

Prime Minister Mr. Nawaz Sharif along with Chief Minister Punjab and Minister for Water and Power Khawaja Asif along with others, at the inauguration ceremony of the first unit for the Nandipur Power Project at Gujranwala on May 31, 2014

Since its inception in 2008, and with a to-date expenditure of over Rs. 30 billion, the Nandipur Power Project has generated zero megawatts (MW) and is considered a failure. Recent reports suggest that Chief Minister Punjab, Mr. Shahbaz Sharif, was able to appoint a bureaucrat of his choice to the post of managing director while the project was still being constructed. The management then ordered a fuel treatment plant that was insufficient for the needs of the Nandipur projects’ full capacity.¹

According to Minister for Water and Power, Mr. Khawaja Asif, it was discovered at the end of 2014 that the fuel treatment plant can only treat enough fuel to generate 250 MW of electricity instead of the planned 425MW.²

In the wake of the losses incurred by the national exchequer, a new PC-1 has reportedly been issued, calling for the cost of the project to now be increased by another Rs. 22 billion; that is, to a grand total of Rs. 57 billion.³

On September 10, 2015, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif took notice of the scandal.⁴ The Prime Minister, in a letter to the Ministry of Water and Power, issued directions that the audit of the Nandipur project should be carried out under three terms of references: the audit of the total cost, the amount spent to-date and other expenditures regarding the project.

The Prime Minister has also ordered two separate audits — one by an independent, international audit form and another by the Auditor General of Pakistan (AGP). He also ordered an inquiry to ascertain why the plant remained closed for four or six weeks after completion and fix responsibility in the event of negligence.⁵

The AGP has formed a team specifically to scrutinize the Nandipur Power Project. The team’s mandate is to fix responsibility on those who played a key role in the project’s failure.⁶

It is the reasoned position of the Pakistan Institute of Legislative Development and Transparency (PILDAT) that the terms of reference of all inquiries into the Nandipur project, as well as their reports, should be in full view of the public and should be completely transparent. The AGP should also give attention to whether or not there were any independent checks and balances in the Nandipur project. An important outcome of all pending investigations should also be to clarify the process that was used to appoint individuals to senior management positions in at Nandipur.

NEPRA Annual Report 2014-2015

According to the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) Annual Report 2014-2015 report released on September 14, 2015⁷, the shortfall in electricity production in Pakistan is in large part due to a lack of maintenance at Public Sector Generation Companies (GENCOs). The report also states that Independent Power Producers (IPPs) have also performed poorly due to lack of fuel. Additionally, according to the report, 5 power stations in Punjab were not utilized efficiently, and thus not to their full capacity, while three others were retained even though they do not contribute anything to the national grid.

The report states that, upon inspection, it was found that transformers were operating at 80-100% more load, causing frequent tripping. Furthermore, the NEPRA Annual Report found that the Time of Use (ToU) electricity meters of nearly 70% of consumers were outdated and out-timed, which either overcharge the consumer or deprive the Government from justified charges. There is no mention in the report as to exactly how much this faulty meter system cost the government or consumers.

At a time when the Nandipur Power Plant was a complete failure and the country continues to be struggling with a power crisis, PILDAT recommends that administrative directives be streamlined, so as to avoid negligence and the lack of maintenance of power facilities.

AGP finds Rs. 980 billion irregularities in power sector in 2013-2014

The Federal Government is estimated to have injected more than Rs. 2 trillion into the power sector, besides increasing consumer tariff by nearly 200%. ⁸An Auditor General of Pakistan (AGP) report has found embezzlement, misappropriation and irregularities of around Rs. 980 billion in the accounts of WAPDA and other power companies working under the Ministry of Water and Power in the audit year 2013-14. The AGP has asked the President to order investigations into specific cases.

PILDAT is of the considered view that the investigation be carried out transparently, with detailed reports issued for the public’s scrutiny.

Pakistan and Afghanistan only Countries with Polio

At a meeting of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative in New York on September 25, 2015 the World Health Organization (WHO) removed Nigeria from its list of polio endemic countries. The WHO requires a country to be without incidence of polio for three straight years. Pakistan and Afghanistan are now the only two countries where the disease is still endemic.

Meanwhile, two new cases of polio were discovered in Pakistan: one in Quetta and another in Peshawar, bringing the total count of polio cases in Pakistan in 2015 to nearly 35 as of end of September.⁹

A child receiving polio vaccine in Peshawar

It is a cause for concern that Pakistan has not had three consecutive years without any polio cases even once. While PILDAT notes that anti-polio campaigns in both Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and Balochistan continue to be affected by terrorism, focus on remote areas in both provinces should be increased. 

National Action Plan Arrests Since Launch

According to official data for the National Action Plan (NAP), collected between January and September 19, 2015, a total of 45,464 individuals were arrested form the total number of those accused; moreover, 34419 challans were submitted after investigations in the courts of law since the launch of the NAP.

For the majority of these cases, summary trials have been conducted and the arrested individuals have been convicted as criminals. However, for the Hate Material law, trials were not practiced regularly, which stymied the conviction rate. The official data reports an overall conviction rate of 85% in the cases decided by the courts. The acquittal rate was a mere 12%.

Furthermore, the latest official figures on proceedings against criminals involved in terrorism activities across Punjab show that 3,841 convictions were made in 3,841 cases decided by the courts, while the courts acquitted 561 suspects.¹⁰

PILDAT commends the efforts of the relevant security authorities as well as the courts of law for upholding the National Action Plan. However, the slow progress on the curbing of hate material and speech should be quickened.

Prime Minister Introduces Rs. 341 Billion Kissan Package for Farmers

On September 14, 2015, Prime Minister Mr. Nawaz Sharif introduced a relief package of Rs. 341 billion worth of grants, loans and subsidies to revive Pakistan’s agriculture sector. ¹¹

The package provides a direct benefit of Rs. 147 billion to small farmers across the country in the form of cash grants and subsidies on farming inputs. Additionally, Rs. 194 worth of loans would be made to the agriculture sector. These loans would be interest-free and be given to farmers with 12 acres or less to install solar tubewells or convert the existing ones into solar. The mark-up on the loans was set to be paid by the Federal Government.

However, on September 29, 2015, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) halted certain aspects of the Kissan package. The Secretary of the ECP said the timing of the introduction of the package made it a violation of the code of conduct of the commission, as it was announced very close to the upcoming Local Government elections and could, therefore, influence voters significantly.¹²

PILDAT notes that the ECP’s restrictions on the Kissan package had logical cause. However, its halting of some of the aspects of the program may in fact cause consternation among farmers, thereby influencing their votes regardless.

Badaber Attack

The Pakistan Airforce Camp at Inquilab Road in Peshawar’s Badabar area was attacked in the early morning of September 18, 2015.¹³ The attack, for which Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan claimed responsibility, left around 30 dead and over two dozen injured; security forces also killed 13 militants.¹⁴ Five of the attackers were successfully identified and reportedly belong to the Khyber agency and Swat in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.¹⁵

National Defense and Foreign Policy

The Indian Army Chief, General Dalbir Singh, stated on September 01, 2015 at a tri-service seminar on the 1965 Indo-Pak War, that the Indian military is at a high level of operational preparedness for offensive military action on its borders, if the need for swift action arises. “We are acutely aware that the swift, short nature of future wars are likely to offer limited warning time,” he said.¹⁶

The Army Chief’s words come at a time of frequent ceasefire violations the Line of Control (LoC). On September 15, a Pakistani solder was killed in an unprovoked attack at the LoC. On September 16, the Indian Deputy High Commissioner was summoned to the Foreign Office and an official protest was lodged against the death.¹⁷

Tax Collection

The total amount of tax collected by the Federal Bureau of revenue in the first quarter of the 2015-16 fiscal year (July-September) is Rs. 584 billion. This amount stands in contrast to the desired target of Rs. 647 billion, meaning there is a Rs. 63 billion shortfall in revenue.  The FBR is required to achieve the revenue target of Rs 3,104 billion for the 2015-16 fiscal year.

It has provisionally collected Rs 253 billion for September 2015 against Rs 228 billion in the same period of last year, which is an 11% increase.¹⁸

While PILDAT commends the FBR’s efforts in increasing its overall tax collection, it should take a more proactive role in identifying and bringing into account major tax evaders. More importantly, in order to encourage more people to be registered taxpayers, the FBR should facilitate the process of tax filing by making it more streamlined and by incorporating the use of technology in expediting the process on an individual level.

Lahore High Court Orders PEMRA to Blackout Altaf Hussain’s Speeches

                
Lahore High Court has given PEMRA orders to ban all speeches by MQM chief Mr. Altaf Hussain

On September 07, 2015, the Lahore High Court ordered the Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) and the Press Council of Pakistan (PCP) to ensure a complete blackout of all activities of Mr. Altaf Hussain in both electronic and print media. The order was issued by a full bench of the court, headed by Justice Syed Mazhar Ali Akbar Naqvi. The order was based on three petitions submitted to the Lahore High Court. The petitions also sought action against Mr. Altaf Hussain under Article 6 of the Constitution, arguing that as a British citizen, Mr. Hussain is not eligible to be the head of a political party in Pakistan as per the Political Parties Act.¹⁹

Private School Legislation

The Punjab Government is working on legislation to regulate the affairs of private institutions in the wake of recent controversy regarding fee hikes and the lack of a mechanism to regulate private schools’ affairs. The legislation, titled the Punjab Education Commission Bill, will reportedly be tabled in the forthcoming session of the Provincial Assembly. Its main function will be to provide a government sanctioned check on the affairs of private schools in Punjab.

It is has been reported that a draft of the bill was presented to the cabinet in 2014 and was also given approval. However, it was never presented in the Provincial Assembly before now in light of the recent criticism.²⁰

PILDAT commends the fact that the Punjab Government has now started to take action on the matter. However, it should not wait for overwhelming criticism before doing so and must always take into account the welfare of its citizens.

Google to Help Punjab in IT

A delegation led by Vice President South Asia and South Eastern Asia of Google, Mr. Rajan Anandan, met Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif at the Civil Secretariat on September 10, 2015. The Chief Minister stated that the Punjab Government has given high priority to developing IT due to its usefulness in capacity-building and e-governance. Mr. Rajan Anandan of Google agreed to promote cooperation with Punjab government in information technology sector to assist it in this regard.²¹

Creation of Ehtesab Commission Notified After a Year’s Delay

The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Provincial Government has issued a notification of the establishment of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Ehtesab Commission Act over a year after the commission began functioning. This makes the legality of the actions taken by the commission during the last year questionable.

The wording of the notification states it as having a retrospective effect, stating that the Act “shall be deemed to have taken effect from the date of commencement of the Act.” This is reportedly beyond the Government’s powers. The notification was issued by the Establishment Department in the name of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Secretary on September 14, 2015.

The notification states: “In exercise of the powers conferred by Section 3 of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Ehtesab Commission act, 2014, (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Act No 1 of 2014) the Government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is pleased to establish the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Ehtesab Commission.²²

Arrests in KP by Ehteshab Commission

As of September 2015, the National Accountability Bureau and the Ehtesab Commission in KP have arrested more than 10 government officials, mostly from the Mines and Minerals department.²³ The arrests have reportedly lead to fear and resentment among bureaucrats. Bureaucrats in the KP government are concerned for their reputation as the arrests are made and then an official investigation is launched.

The Planning & Development Department has formally asked its officials to not attend meetings of department consultant selection committee, procurement and purchase committees.²⁴ The officials are also reportedly reluctant on making decisions regarding monetary matters and are afraid to sign official documents for fear of unwanted repercussions.

The concern is compounded by the fact that even in cases of procedural lapse, which are investigated by a departmental panel and then judged by civil law, the Commission is reportedly terming the lapses as criminal cases. It has also been pointed out that while NAB makes arrests after a board authorizes them, the Ehtesab Commission makes arrests after unilateral approval from the Director General.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Government and FATA Secretariat to Frame Guidelines for NGOs

In a meeting chaired by Relief, Rehabilitation and Settlement Secretary, Mr. Tariq Rasheed, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Government and FATA Civil Secretariat decided to formulate guidelines to facilitate international and national NGOs to carry out activities in the disaster-hit areas of the province and adjoining tribal region. The meeting was held in Peshawar on September 01, 2015 and attended by senior officials of the Provincial Disaster Management Authority, FATA Disaster Management Authority and the Army.

An official statement was issued wherein the participants of the meeting discussed the matter of repatriating Internally Displaced Persons form FATA as well as issuing no-objection certificates to various national and international NGOs and foreign donors to work in the region.²⁵

Hepatitis B Vaccination in Sindh

According to a monthly report of the Hepatitis Prevention and Control Programme Sindh, 21,113 people were vaccinated against hepatitis-B in during the month of September 2015. Additionally, nearly 51 camps were set up to help with the inoculation efforts and blood samples of 8,840 individuals were collected across the province over the course of September.

Owing to the special directives of programme manager Dr. Abdul Khalique Shaikh, hepatitis awareness seminars were also held. According to a press release, people were vaccinated against hepatitis-B in various areas, schools and offices across the province of Sindh.²⁶

Female Education in Balochistan

Alif Ailaan released a report titled “PASS/FAIL? Matriculation Examination Results in Balochistan and What They Mean for the Future,” on September 03, 2015.  According to the report, the overall the lack of educational opportunities for girls in Balochistan has not prevented girls from outperforming their male counterparts in matriculation examinations.

Over the last 15 years, cumulative 193% more females have participated in secondary examinations. This figure increased from 18% in 2001 to 30% in 2015. This is attributed to an increase in girls’ high schools, but the report notes that they are still outnumbered by boys’ high schools.

The report uses data from Balochistan Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education (BBISE) and utilizes the scores of students who appeared in the matric examinations in 2014, as well as longitudinal data from 2001 to 2015.²⁷

The provincial government of Balochistan should take notice of this and focus its efforts on increasing access of education for female students in the province. PILDAT believes that such efforts can serve as a basis for greater gender equality in the province.

Police Officers Smuggling Oil

The newspaper Dawn has acquired documents, which reveal that senior officers in the Balochistan Police are helping the smuggling of petrol and diesel from Iran. The operation is reportedly worth billions of rupees, according to documents available with the newspaper Dawn. A letter sent by the Services and General Administration Department (S&GAD) of the Balochistan Government, addressed to the Establishment Division, stated that Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), Ashfaq Anwar, and his subordinates were actively assisting the smuggling operation, which is supplying petrol and diesel to various cities in Pakistan. These activities are reportedly earning the named culprits millions of rupees per month. The Balochistan Government has asked the Establishment Division secretary to suspend SSP Anwar and initiate departmental proceedings against him.²⁸

Curbing the Supply of Substandard Meat

Following the discover of hundreds of kilograms of horse and donkey meat in Lahore in August, the Punjab Food Authority along with the Livestock department conducted raids in several cities across Punjab. The cities include Lahore, Rawalpindi, Sargodha, Muzaffargarh, Sheikhupura and Okara, among others. The raids resulted in the discovery and subsequent destruction of over 1,000 kilograms of substandard and illegal meat, including that of dead animals and donkeys. More than 50 people have been arrested in these raids across the province, with cases registered and fines imposed in some instances.²⁹

Two-Year Anniversary of Rangers Operation in Karachi

Speaking at a press conference, Additional Inspector General (AIG) Mushtaq Mahar, the Police Chief of Karachi said that crime and terrorism has seen a 70% decline in Karachi. The conference marked the two-year anniversary of the Rangers Operation in Karachi on September 07, 2015. According AIG Mushtaq Mahar, 232 police personnel and 27 members of the Rangers have been killed since the operation began.³⁰

Despite the commendable efforts of the Police and the Rangers, PILDAT believes that security forces taking control of the law and order of a city should only be a short-term solution. The more permanent solution should be to strengthen, empower and de-politicize civil institutions.

Report on Number of Schools Run by Single Teacher

The Academy of Educational, Planning and Management (AEPAM) launched a report titled ‘Pakistan Education Atlas 2015’ on September 15, 2015. The report revealed that 30% of all public sector primary schools in Pakistan were functioning with only one teacher on their staff.

The report showed that, out of a total of 124,284 primary schools in the country, there were at least 36,927 of such single-teacher schools. In Sindh, 19,011 schools or 45% of all schools are single-teacher institutions. Punjab has 6,415 single-teachers schools, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has 4,559, and FATA has 446. In Balochistan, there are 5,980 such schools, which is 57% of all primary schools in the province.³¹

PILDAT believes that is a highly unfortunate oversight in governance. After the 18th Amendment to the Constitution, education was among the subjects that were transferred to the purview of provincial governments. The governments’ respective budgets should not merely allow for more schools, but should rather focus on more teachers and facilities at already-existing schools.

References: