ISLAMABAD: Shehbaz Sharif says govt needs to lower electricity tariff to boost exports, expand agricultural, industrial sectors. Issue of electricity bills should not be politicised. Agreements with IPPs should not be criticised.
Thanks COAS General Syed Asim Munir for overwhelming support to prevent electricity theft. PM orders to upgrade JMC to tertiary level hospital. Cabinet approves signing of MoU to enhance trade with China.
ISLAMABAD – Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said Friday that his government was focused on providing relief to electricity consumers, as reducing electricity prices was a key agenda for PML-N President Muhammad Nawaz Sharif, the government, and its allies.
In his initial remarks at the Cabinet meeting, PM Sharif emphasised that the government needed to lower electricity prices to boost the country’s exports. He pointed out that without this reduction, neither the agricultural sector nor the industrial sector could expand effectively. Competitiveness in the industry was directly linked to lower electricity prices, he remarked.
Shehbaz Sharif criticised the use of electricity issues for political gain, calling it disrespectful to the public. He highlighted that the nation sought a resolution to this problem. Addressing inefficiencies and corruption within the Federal Bureau of Revenue (FBR) and the Energy Sector, and making these institutions efficient, would set the country on the right path. He assured that the government was aware of the people’s problems and doing its utmost to address them.
Shehbaz noted that the PML-N government had resolved the 20-hour daily load-shedding issue. At that time, a few were willing to invest significantly in electricity production, with China being the only country showing interest in investing in power generation. In 2015, the prime minister mentioned that some of the fastest power-producing plants in history were installed. The government set up four LNG plants, each with a capacity of 500 MW and a turbine efficiency of 64 percent. Credit for these cost-effective plants went to Nawaz Sharif. At that time, NEPRA’s tariff was $8.5, and the plants were built for just $450,000. These agreements should not be criticised, as they represented a sincere effort to address Pakistan’s most pressing challenge.
He instructed ministers and government officials to inform the public about the steps taken by successive PML-N governments to eliminate load-shedding in the country. The government had extended the last date for paying electricity bills by 10 days, said the prime minister. Likewise, the electricity tariff for the country’s industry had been reduced by Rs 8.5 per unit. A Rs170 billion subsidy was being provided to the industry in this regard.
The prime minister said that the government was making collective efforts to address electricity theft. He praised the interim government, the Sindh and Punjab governments, and Chief of Army Staff General Asim Munir for their dedicated efforts to tackle the issue.
He expressed concern that the salaried class had been heavily burdened. However, the government had provided a Rs 50 billion subsidy for consumers using up to 200 units of electricity per month.
Sharif said efforts were underway to resolve issues with Independent Power Producers (IPPs). However, he acknowledged that the issue could not be resolved overnight and the government was trying to address it. Earlier, Shehbaz Sharif informed the Cabinet that the government, allied parties, the foreign office, the deputy prime minister, as well as China and Russia, had all strongly condemned the brutal assassination of Ismail Haniyeh. He emphasised that this horrific act should shake the conscience of global organizations. During Friday prayers, funeral prayers in absentia were to be offered for the departed soul of Ismail Haniyeh across mosques in the country, including in the mosque at the prime minister’s residence.
Cabinet meeting
The Federal Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, on Friday approved the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Trade Promotion Cooperation to enhance trade between China and Pakistan.
The decision was made on the recommendation of the Ministry of Commerce. The MoU was aimed at boosting bilateral trade with focus on several key areas such as smart phone production, new energy vehicles, textiles, agricultural product processing, pharmaceutical manufacturing, and information technology.
The federal government also okayed the enactment of legislation concerning the charter of the National University of Modern Languages, on the recommendation of the Ministry of Federal Education and Professional Training.
The cabinet also approved the bill for establishing King Hammad University of Nursing and Associated Medical Sciences being established in cooperation with Bahrain on the recommendation of the ministry of Federal Education and Professional Training. The university will impart education in Pakistan to meet modern day challenges.
The report of the inter-ministerial committee formed regarding the missing persons, was submitted to the Federal Cabinet. The report said that after the Afghan war, Pakistan was gripped by terrorism. Pakistan is facing many internal challenges due to terrorism. The commission on missing persons was working for the last one decade.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif during his last stint in power had constituted an all parties committee on missing persons. The forum was told that the interim government has also constituted a committee and law enforcement agencies also cooperated in preparing the report.
The cabinet has approved a package of Rs 5 million for families of each missing person by endorsing the recommendation of committee. The cabinet also endorsed the July 22, 2024 decisions of Cabinet Committee for State Owned Enterprises.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has directed to make Jinnah Medical Complex a tertiary level state of the art hospital.
He was chairing a review meeting regarding the Jinnah Medical Complex in Islamabad today.
The Prime Minister said modern health facilities should be ensured in the JMC to patients from across the country. The Prime Minister said services of prominent experts should be hired for the preparation of the master plan of the hospital, for technical assistance and medical instruments.
Shehbaz Sharif said we established international standard Punjab Kidney and Liver Institute but a conspiracy was hatched to destroy PKLI.
He thanked Aga Khan Foundation for its cooperation in the construction of Jinnah Medical Complex.
The meeting was informed about the master plan of the hospital and progress of the project.
It was also apprised that Jinnah Medical Complex would be made a trust which would look after the administrative affairs of the hospital. The Prime Minister would be patron-in-chief of the trust. The Prime Minister instructed that hospital project should be executed transparently and should be completed in the shortest possible time.
