MULTAN-State Minister for Power Abid Sher Ali lashed out at PTI Chairman Imran Khan on Tuesday and said that the PTI would keep wailing in 2018 and the PML-N will sweep the general elections.
“Mr Khan beware! the KPK will also echo with the roar of lion in 2018 elections,” he claimed while talking to the media after holding an open court here at Mepco Headquarters.
He said that Imran Khan had mental disorder as he flew on helicopters in KPK and then delivered sermons on European austerity in Punjab. He said that even if every other person die, the dream of Imran Khan to become Prime minister would never come true. He suggested to Imran Khan not to compare the KPK Chief Minister with Shehbaz Sharif.
He claimed that Imran Khan’s case is different from Nawaz Sharif’s. “Imran Khan is indicted in money laundering and drugs cases while Nawaz Sharif is punished for country’s development,” he maintained. He said that Imran Khan claimed that the country did not make any progress but the elimination of loadshedding even before 2018 refuted his false claims. He said that Shehbaz Sharif’s pace is far faster than his KPK counterpart. He claimed that PTI’s sit-in pushed the country back and chaos was spread in the country under a vicious plan.
The minister also unleashed criticism on former president Asif Zardari. “Why didn’t he (Zardari) control loadshedding during his era and launch projects like CPEC, Motorways and Gwadar before us?” he posed questions.
He said that sensitive institutions caught Sharjeel Memon and recovered Rs5 billion from underneath his bed but the PPP leaders criticised the government. “I tell them that Sharjeel Memon and Ayan Ali were not caught by us but the sensitive institutions let them at loose and now the verdicts are coming from courts,” he added.
Turning his guns towards former President Pervez Musharraf, he said that who had given Musharraf the right to anticipate that the elections would not take place. He said that terrorism was so intense during the era of Musharraf that the people were confined to their homes. He said that no project got suspended due to the ouster of Nawaz Sharif as Prime Minister Abbasi led the schemes towards completion.
He said that the PML-N government ended loadshedding from the country and fulfilled the promise made before 2013 elections. He revealed that the power sector had been given March 2018 deadline to accomplish the up-gradation of supply and distribution infrastructure in the country. He claimed that the consumers would get electricity with good voltage in coming summers after 10 years. He declared that more electricity would be added to the national grid in coming February.
He declared that the power distribution companies have been issued direction to supply less electricity to the areas where power theft is traced. “The areas with higher ratio of power pilferage will get less electricity,” he declared. He said that the promises made by Nawaz Sharif are being materialised by the government and the country has entered a new era of progress. He said that the opponents of the government are highly worried on elimination of electricity crisis by the government. He claimed that the South Punjab region made more development in this era than the past 50 years. “Roads are being constructed and Mepco is accomplishing its schemes very quickly,” he claimed. He said that five to six transformer reclaimation workshops have be set up in each region to repair burnt transformers in shortest possible time. He said that the expenditures of power sector has been brought down considerably through good planning as a result of which country saved billions.
He said that resolving the problems faced by the public is basic responsibility of the government officials and all those Mepco officers, who do not listen to the complaints of the consumers, would be sent home. He directed all superintending engineers to hold open courts in their circles on weekly basis for resolving consumers’ problems on the spot. He further instructed all operational officers to ensure their presence at their offices between 9 and 11am. Earlier, the consumers lodged 275 complaints during the open court which included electrification of new villages, delay in completion of low tension schemes, up-gradation of transformers, installation of electricity poles, delay in installation of new connection, unjust fines and over billing.
Meanwhile, addressing a meeting of the Mepco officers, the minister directed the officials concerned to accomplish all village electrification schemes before March 2018. He declared that the government is going to introduce a new policy to encourage staff unearthing power theft.