Loadshedding or blackout of war days?

Hafiz SANAULLAH

This is NWFP commonly known as Sarhad. Pakistan's kingmaker of the time Asif Ali Zardari
has called it Pakhtoonkhwa instead of Sarhad. That was what millions of Pakistanis heard
him say so in his speech "good news for democracy" he read out the other day while
announcing the Islamabad Declaration regarding impeachment of President Pervez
Musharraf.

But it seems as if it will take time to convert Sarhad into Pakhtoonkhwa. The province has
some other issues needing immediate attention. Those demanding a royalty on electricity
are now crying out for electricity. It is irony of the fate Peshawar has a power generating
Warsak Dam under its nose but Peshawarites' nights are getting darker and darker with
each passing day. The royalty issue has been forgotten.

A war-like situation or putting in Rehman Malik's words "We are in a state of war" is the gift
from President Pervez Musharraf to NWFP, says almost every Pathan. Eighteen-hour long
load-shedding should be treated as a "blackout" of the war days.

Suppose if God forbid all the electricity towers in Peshawar are blown up in bomb blasts by
the miscreants, obviously due to negligence on the part of WAPDA bosses, and there is pitch
dark in the provincial capital, people would certainly face 18 hours load-shedding. People do
remember friendly load shedding which is coined by WAPDA bosses to befool people and
also themselves. Visit and find idle men at tailoring shops, workshops, photostat machines,
electricity mechanics, ice factories, marble factories, flour mills, lathe, tube wells,
computers, offices, shops, markets, bazaars, kitchens, washing machines and private
telephone exchanges.

The list is long, not to speak of hundreds of patients lying in hospitals and homes. Think
about newly-born babies and their mothers without electricity. See the old women and men.
Everybody cannot afford generators or UPS. Some cannot afford even one-time meal.
Running fans, refrigerators and air conditioners is a short-time need and to run the
economy is a long-term requirement. Both have been hit by hard, thanks to load-shedding.

A hoary-head, illiterate but wise enough Khan Baba is worried about his own version of this
killer load-shedding. In his view this load-shedding is a conspiracy to mentally paralyse
people and dent their spirit of patriotism for Pakistan to pave the way for anti-Pakistan
forces. Khan Baba also raises the point of midnight load-shedding in this hot weather.

Khan Baba does not stop here. He questions billing. Bills in the months of load-shedding are
bulkier and heavier than those in non-load-shedding months. Khan Baba has not spared
even the Governor's House, Frontier's House, Corps Commander's Flag Staff House, IGP
House, and Chief Secretary's House. "They are oblivious to the grievances of load-shedding-
affected people," he says. Electricity towers which supplied power to Peshawar were blown
up for a second time in Sheikh Mohammadi Grid Station near Badaber. Such negligence on
the part of all those who were supposed to protect them is intolerable.

The first blast took three weeks to repair the towers and restore electricity. One never
knows how many weeks this blast would take. Who bothers to punish for negligence on duty
what to say of miscreants who were so bold to target towers a second time? So frightened
were the PESCO bosses that they did not visit the site of the blasts on the very first day. It
is irony of the fate. If we are unable to protect the towers, how will we safeguard our
motherland?

–Email hafiz.sanaullah@yahoo.com

Published in The Post - Tuesday, August 12, 2008