Shahbaz responsible for load shedding in Punjab

Senior Federal Minister Pervaiz Elahi on Sunday said Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif was responsible for electricity load shedding in the province, asking him why he did not endorse the formula suggested by Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) chief Shujaat Hussain to end electricity load shedding in the country. Elahi said there was not just 'bad governance' but 'mad governance' in Punjab, adding that Sharif had given people nothing but deprivation. He was speaking at a convention in Rawalpindi. The senior minister said he had made four plans for power production in Punjab but the current rulers had nothing to their credit. He said his party had told the Pakistan People's Party (PPP) that electricity crisis would have to be resolved on priority basis, adding that the PPP had given due assurances in that regard. Elahi said the present rulers of Punjab should compare their performance with the development work done in every city and district of the province by his government. He said during his tenure one million people were being employed every year and now during the government of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) "12 suicides were being committed every day". The PML-Q leader said the PML-Q leadership did not make mere claims or promises as their work and facts spoke for themselves. He said the present rulers of Punjab could only hold public rallies with the help of government machinery and would not be able to win elections. Elahi said his party would field candidates in every constituency and the people would support and elect them. He said that despite hot weather, gathering of thousands of people in the convention had proved that people still remembered the work done by the PML-Q government for development of Rawalpindi and acknowledged the same with open hearts because the PML-Q had spent Rs 34 billion for the development of the city. He said a number of development projects started by his government in Rawalpindi had been stopped by the present rulers of the province out of vengeance, which was causing wastage of billions of rupees of development funds. Elahi said that through the Rescue 1122 project, his government had provided best treatment facilities to everyone, and as many as 42 colleges were established at a cost of Rs 3.75 billion by the PML-Q government. He regretted that the institutions were not functional now as the present rulers had not provided staff for those colleges. He accused the Punjab chief minister of inciting people to set blaze government properties and political parties' offices. "Offices of political parties are being burnt and lawlessness is being spread in the province. Crimes have increased by 30 percent and people from all walks of life, including doctors, teachers and farmers, are worried and on roads, protesting for their rights, employment and education, as the system in the province has completely collapsed," he said.