Sharif shoos away the ‘fly’

• PM says he only drew Dr Ebad’s attention to anti-strikes statement, wants MQM to be grateful for govt’s Green Line initiative
• Says Centre assisting Sindh in mega projects, Karachi-Hyderabad Motorway will be completed in two years, promises grants for Karachi water project
• PM reiterates promise in Pak-China Corridor, cites a list of projects to address Balochistan’s ‘sense of deprivation’

Vowing before the supreme house of legislation that he meant no harm with the ‘fly’ statement, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Tuesday clarified his remark on frequent protest strikes in Karachi which had drawn the ire of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) and its expatriate chief.

At an event in Karachi on Friday, PM Sharif had said that “a strike is called in Karachi even when a fly dies” and had urged Sindh Governor Dr Ishratul Ebad to reduce the number of such strikes.

The comment drew sharp criticism from opposition politicians, with MQM chief Altaf Hussain demanding an apology from the premier, cautioning him to be “careful in choosing his words”.

‘I HOPE IT SUFFICES’:

Clarifying yesterday during the National Assembly session, Sharif said that he was not the one to start talk of “flies” and that he was merely “drawing the attention” of the Sindh governor to a statement made by someone else.

“Somebody said that even when a fly dies, there’s a strike here. On which, I said that strikes should not take place, and asked the governor if he had heard what he said. I later also talked about this in my speech. All that conversation took place in a lighter way,” he explained, hoping that his clarification should have satisfied the MQM leaders.

‘WE’RE WORKING ON YOUR PROVINCE’:

The prime minister said that the federal government was assisting the Sindh government for completion of mega development projects.

Sharif said the government has earmarked Rs 5 billion for Green Line Transport System in Karachi. He said it was a mega project expected to be completed at a cost of Rs 20 to 25 billion. He said the federal government will fully fund this project and will be a gift from the federal government for the people of Karachi. He added that the MQM should appreciate this gesture.

Moreover, the Pakistan Muslim League’s chief said work on Hyderabad-Karachi Motorway has also been started and will be completed by 2017. He pointed out that work on culverts had begun and after completion, the work of motorway construction will begin.

“We will complete the Hyderabad-Sukkur and Sukkur-Multan and Multan-Lahore sections of motorway in our tenure. I chaired a meeting this morning attended by FWO director general and National Highway Authority chairman in which all the matters came under discussion,” he said.

Focusing on Karachi, Sharif said the federal government will provide a matching grant for K-IV water project for Karachi to resolve the city’s water supply problem. He said the federal government has already released Rs 2 billion and Rs 500 million will soon be released.

Furthermore, the prime minister said the government is also launching a mega project to connect Gwadar Port with the Central Asian States and then to the western route of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). He added that all the link roads from Gwadar to Quetta and Quetta to Chaman to connect it with Tirmiz will be constructed to connect four Central Asian states.

Sharif told the House that Quetta-Chaman route will be completed by the end of next year while Chaman-Kandahar-Mazar-e-Sharif-Tirmiz will also be developed. He said work on Peshawar-Torkham-Jalalabad motorway was under process by FWO and will soon be completed. He added that it will be extended from Jalalabad to Kabul-Mazar-e-Sharif and Tirmiz.

With the completion of these routes, Balochistan will be opened and will be connected with all parts of the country, he said, adding that these were big communication projects which will connect the entire country. He said these projects were necessary for integrity, unity and cohesion of the country and ending sense of deprivation of Balochistan.