ISLAMABAD: Former prime minister and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz central leader Shahid Khaqan Abbasi on Friday accused the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf government of creating an artificial shortage of liquefied natural gas (LNG) to open a floodgate of corruption.

Because of delayed tendering for LNG import, people had to suffer loadshedding for eight to 10 hours a day, said Mr Abbasi, alleging that a kickback of Rs1 billion was being received per ship on the import of furnace oil.

“I know who receives the money and where it ultimately reaches,” the ex-PM claimed. He said the government would pay 20 per cent higher price on import of furnace oil.

The former premier expres­sed these views while addressing a press conference. PML-N secretary general Ahsan Iqbal and Dr Musaddik Malik were also present.

This was not only the incompetence of relevant authorities but also there was an element of corruption in it, he said, adding that he was being accused of signing expensive LNG agreements without considering there would have been a loadshedding of up to 17 hours a day if the agreements had not been signed to import LNG.

He referred to a report of the State Bank of Pakistan according to which LNG-based power generation saved Rs234 billion from 2017 to 2020. “This amount is equivalent to 2.25 billion dollars,” he said, pointing out that this was more than what Pakistan got from the IMF during the period.

He said there was no issue of poor transmission lines when 23,700 megawatts of electricity was produced in June 2018.

He also alleged that four private companies were interested in establishing LNG terminals in the country, but they had to drop the plan, because ministers were asking for bribe to give the go-ahead.

Mr Abbasi said this had become known to the world that ministers in the present regime demanded commissions and kickbacks.

Circular debt

He claimed that the previous PML-N government had left circular debt of Rs1,050 billion that currently stood at Rs2,500 billion.

Mr Abbasi also criticised Minister for Information Fawad Chaudhry for suggesting that Prime Minister Imran Khan did not attend the high-level security briefing by the military high command to lawmakers a day earlier because of PML-N president Shehbaz Sharif.

When the ex-PM’s comments were sought over the minister’s remarks, the former sarcastically said: “Yes, this is indeed correct. We [the opposition] order the prime minister on what he has to do.”

He said Mr Chaudhry was not aware that the premier was not a part of the parliamentary committee on national security. “Did he not see his (the prime minister’s) chair empty?” asked Mr Abbasi.

He said the information minister had forgotten that the prime minister didn’t need to attend the meeting since he had already received the briefing and agreed with it — though “if he had come then it would’ve been very good.”

Mr Abbasi then hit out at Mr Chaudhry and asked if the latter mentioned who had ordered the attacks on opposition leader to disrupt his budget speech in the National Assembly. “Government ministers and MNAs told us that a direct message came from the prime minister to not let him (Shehbaz) speak,” alleged the PML-N leader.

Published in Dawn, July 3rd, 2021