Pakistan: KP and Pesco

When PTI chief Imran Khan demanded last week that control of the Peshawar Electric Supply Company (Pesco) be handed over by the centre to the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government it seemed almost like a dare since the biggest criticism of the PTI has been its supposed inability to govern. If indeed Imran was bluffing, it has now been called by the PML-N and Pesco will be handed over to the KP government. But there is more to it than appears on the surface. It involves many complex issues but the wisdom of the move will best be judged in hindsight since there are both possible advantages and pitfalls. It is certainly the case that the provincial government should be better suited to collect bills since it knows the area and the people better – and bill collection is one of the most pressing needs of the perpetually under-funded Pesco – but there is also the danger that bigwigs and influential people will be let off the hook for their dues because the politicians in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa are dependent on their support in a way that those in the centre are not. With Pesco facing a massive shortfall in electricity and having to resort to loadshedding – like every other electricity distribution system in the country – the PTI government should also be in a better position to decide how much loadshedding each area should go through. Under the federal government, Pesco had been increasing loadshedding in areas where the rate of bill recovery was low but this meant that the low-income residents of the province were bearing the brunt of the loadshedding. The PTI government should ensure a more equitable distribution of suffering.

Now if the PTI is handed control of Pesco, and it agrees to take it, the move itself may be subject to a court review to see if it falls within the bounds of the 18th Amendment to the constitution. Even before that has been done, the chief minister Parvez Khattak is asking that the centre also hand over the powers for electricity generation, transmission and distribution to the province. Doing so would be difficult and probably a huge mistake. The country does not function on the principle that each province can use all the electricity it generates since that would lead to an unfair distribution of electricity. Allowing provinces to be in charge of generating their own electricity would inevitably lead to provinces keeping all that electricity for themselves. Sindh has already started making demands that like KP it also be handed over these power units. The PTI should elaborate how it will handle this complex issue as it has changed its position from taking over Pesco to running the entire power system which is a federal subject. It appears to be pure politics and in the end nothing may come out of it.