TARBELA: Stressing the need for clean politics, Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi Saturday expressed his resolve to confront those who had allegedly resorted to unfair means to get themselves elected in the recent Senate elections.
Addressing a gathering after inaugurating 1410 MW Tarbela 4th Extension Hydropower Project, the prime minister said those who had used unfair tactics in the Senate election did not deserve to represent the will of the people.
He said the PML-N always strove for clean politics for the future of the country and was resolved to confront all dirty ploys in politics.
He said the PML-N had never encouraged such tactics and had been once again emerged as the only party whose candidates were elected without spending a single penny in the senate elections.
“On oath, PML-N senators-elect can say that they had not lured members of assemblies through such unfair tactics. The party never used abusive language against anyone as it stood for decency and order in the political arena,” the prime minister said.
He said the PML-N always strove for a clean leadership as the clean politics was sine quo non for the progress and prosperity of the country. “The PML-N will confront such evils in politics as it did not want to bring bad name to the country and the politics” he added.
He said the PML-N was ready for a consensus candidate in the Senate elections and was willing to support Raza Rabbani.
The prime minister said only people can decide the fate of a government and no one else. The people had decided in 2103 to bring PML-N to power and now would again exercise their right in July this year.
He expressed the optimism that the democratic system would thrive and the country would continue its journey towards progress and prosperity which was the manifesto of PML-N under the leadership of Nawaz Sharif.
The prime minister said when the PML-N government came to power, the country was facing daunting challenges of energy crises in the shape of crippling load shedding and gas shortage. But it faced the challenges and brought about a total financial stability and economic turnaround with a string of development projects, he said.
The prime minister said from 1999 to 2103, there had been different governments but none among them took the responsibility to address these issues. Under the PML-N government, a vast network of motorways of more than 1500 kilometres was being completed whereas various other energy and infrastructure projects under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CEPC) would further usher in an era of rapid progress and prosperity for the countrymen.
Earlier, Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi inaugurated the 1410 MW Tarbela 4th extension hydropower project.
First unit of 470 MW was commissioned, while two more units each with equal power generating capacity will be online before the advent of summer this year.
The T-4 project will play a pivotal role in balancing energy mix of the country and stabilizing prices of electricity for a long span in future with an attractive economic rate of return of more than 30% and annual cost sale of $300 million to the national exchequer.
Tarbela Dam is located on the Indus River about 100 km northwest of Islamabad. The T-4 project is located within premises of existing Tarbela Dam Project. Tarbela Dam Project, completed in 1976, has provision of 5 tunnels, 4 on Left Bank and 01 on Right Bank. Tunnels 1-3 have installed capacity of 3,478 MW with average annual energy generation of 15-16 billion units.
The T-4 project will generate 3.84 billion units annually, equivalent of burning of 1 million ton of furnace oil. Newly installed units of T-4 project are more efficient and it is expected to have 10 -15% more energy through these units.
Published in Daily Times, March 11th 2018.
