Time for Pakistanis to pay back country by constructing dams, says CJP

–Chief Justice Nisar appreciates PM Imran Khan’s appeal for dam donations, says he has high expectations from expats

LAHORE: Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Mian Saqib Nisar on Saturday, while appreciating Prime Minister Imran Khan’s request to overseas Pakistanis for assistance in overcoming the water crisis, said that Pakistanis are capable of constructing dams with their own resources.

He said this while holding separate meetings with a delegation of a non-government organisation and journalists.

CJP Nisar said that overseas Pakistanis are willing to send money for the construction of Diamer-Bhasha Dam.

“We have [high] expectations from overseas Pakistanis who have always helped Pakistan in times of need,” the CJP said, adding that “we will try to protect their interests”.

About his decision to ask the public for funds to construct the Diamer-Bhasha Dam, the chief justice said, “The country has given a lot to its people and it is now time for the public to return.”

“The step that Supreme Court took has become the notion of entire public,” he said.

The CJP, who will retire in four months, said he will take up the work of guarding the dam after retirement and if need be will set up a hut and start living there.

Moreover, the CJP also stressed the need to pay back Pakistan’s external debts. “History will not forgive us if loans of Pakistan are not paid back,” he added.

On Friday, PM Khan requested the overseas Pakistanis to contribute in the dam fund during an “important” 15-minute address to the nation.

The prime minister said, “There is no question that we are faced with several significant problems. Our debt today stands at Rs30,000 billion but the biggest problem we currently face is the water crisis.”

“When Pakistan was made, every Pakistani had 5600 cubic metres of water. Today that stands at only 1000 cubic metres,” he said, adding that “we have a storage capacity of only 30 days for water when the safe period for water storage is 120 days. India has a capacity of 90 days. This is why making the dam for us is so important.”

Warning of the rapid depletion in Pakistan’s water resources, the premier said the country would face drought-like conditions by 2025 if immediate steps were not taken.

Prime Minister Khan commended Chief Justice Nisar for starting the dams fund but said that “this was not his job”.

“This was the job of civilian leaders who knew this was going to swell into a crisis but did nothing to thwart it.”

“I want to take over the fund-raising and want overseas Pakistanis to contribute like they used to do for the Shaukat Khanum Cancer Hospital,” he said, urging all overseas Pakistanis to make as many donations as they can to the dams fund in dollars to plug the country’s depleting foreign exchange reserves as well as provide funding to start building dams, which he said he would personally oversee.

“I will safeguard your donations [against misuse],” he promised.

“If every overseas Pakistani donates $1,000, we will have enough to build the dams ourselves,” the prime minister said.

According to a media report, out of Rs1.93 billion donated to the Supreme Court’s Fund for the construction of dams, Rs1.91 billion was donated domestically.

According to data available till September 6, a total Rs1.93 billion has been donated so far. Interestingly, only Rs20 million has been donated by overseas Pakistanis while the remaining Rs1.91 billion was raised locally.

Pakistanis donated Rs0.9 million through debit and credit cards while Rs53 million through SMS and Rs32 million through IBFT. Likewise RS1.82 billion has been donated in the bank branches in specific accounts across the country.

Overseas Pakistanis from United States donated Rs5.7 million followed by UK from where Pakistanis donated Rs4.19 million. Pakistanis living in UAE have donated Rs4.13 million. Pakistanis living in Canada have donated Rs1.5 million. Interestingly, Rs18,490 have been donated from India and only Rs3,000 have been donated by Pakistanis from Afghanistan.

Law & Justice Commission of Pakistan Secretary Raheem Awan said that overseas Pakistanis are very enthusiastic to donate to the fund but they could not do so due to different reasons, adding that there are very limited Pakistani banks branches situated in abroad. Likewise, there are also other technical issues, he added.

In view of these problems, Chief Justice Nisar has already given special instructions to the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) governor to resolve these issues so that countrymen living abroad could easily send donations.