Daily Times

Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Sindh President Nisar Khuhro Sunday announced that his party will launch a movement across province against what he called a conspiracy to roll back the 18th Amendment and proposed cut in the provincial share in the NFC award, adding that protests will be held in all district headquarters in the first week of February.

Addressing a press conference here at the local press club, Khuhro said he will invite all the opposition parties next month to visit Sindh to discuss issues pertaining to 18th Amendment, NFC award and provincial autonomy and chalk out the future line of action. He said a review petition is being filed in the Supreme Court against the decision of handing over NICVD and three other hospitals to the federal government. He said that the annual grant of the NICVD was enhanced from Rs 800 million to Rs 4 billion by the Sindh government, adding that people from all provinces were getting free treatment at the facility.

Khuhro said 150,000 angioplasty and 5,000 bypass operations had been carried out at the NICVD free of any charge. He said due to efforts of Sindh government, NICVD’s name has been mentioned in the Guinness Book of world record.

Khuhro demanded that share of coastal development should also be included in the new NFC award. He said the present government believed in federalism and one unit, adding that if anything happened to the 18th Amendment and NFC award then they will not sit at homes.

Khuhro said the rehabilitation of Sukkur Barrage project was excluded in 2018 from ECNEC whereas the barrage has completed its life which should be constructed afresh. He said through the Nai Gaj Dam, 28,000 acres of land can be irrigated but now Centre was not prepared to sanction funds for the project. He demanded of the federal government to allow lining of Nara and Rohri canals.

Khuhro said Sindh will not sit down silent on the upcoming ‘mini-budget’ as peoples’ lives have been made miserable. “When operation against terrorism is successfully underway, question arises why military courts are needed,” he asked, adding that he has reservations over the military courts and hence will not be able to support them.

Khuhro said accountability should be held across the board. “We are not against accountability but it should start from the Centre,” he said. “We are waiting when Pervaiz Khattak, Aleema Khan and Faisal Vawda are arrested,” he said.

He termed the Sahiwal incident as barbaric wherein an innocent family was targeted by police officials.

Published in Daily Times, January 21^st 2019.