Cabinet meeting: Reko Diq: JUI(F)-BNP(M) boycott confirms fissure

ISLAMABAD: The Federal Cabinet on Tuesday gave formal approval to sign the final deal for the Reko Diq project on December 15, 2022. The federal cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif was held at the PM House.

Sources said that cabinet members belonging to BNP (Mengal) and JUI (F) did not attend the meeting in protest.

In the meeting, a detailed discussion was held on the restructuring of the Reko Diq project, said a statement of the PM House.

It stated that the prime minister said in his opening remarks that the government of Pakistan will ensure the protection of the rights of investors in all investment projects including the Reko Diq project. All the promises made to them will be fulfilled, it added.

The Federal Cabinet approved the Reko Diq Project Funding Plan approved in the meeting of the Economic Coordination Committee on 11-12-2022.

“The Federal Cabinet gave formal approval to sign the final deal for the Reko Diq project,” it stated.

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In this regard, it added that the cabinet also gave a formal permission to the officials of the Ministry of Petroleum and other ministries, as a result of which the final signing of this deal will be done on December 15 and the agreed agreement will be completed, it added.

It further stated that the meeting was told that a presidential reference was filed under Article 186 of the Constitution for a legal opinion on the final agreements on the Reko Diq project.

It was further told that the Supreme Court has termed the agreement as transparent and according to the law.

The Federal Cabinet was told that the opinion of the Supreme Court has already been taken regarding the Foreign Investment (Promotion and Protection) Bill, 2022 Amendment Act under discussion in the Parliament.

On the recommendation of the Petroleum Division, it added that the Federal Cabinet has approved the signing of the final agreements for the reorganization of the Reko Diq project.

The Federal Cabinet also approved the regulatory framework for state-owned enterprises (SOEs) and their special purpose vehicles (SPVs), Government of Balochistan’s special purpose vehicles (SPVs) and Reko Diq Project Company regarding the restructuring of Reko Diq.

The Cabinet was informed that it was agreed by the coalition parties that this legislation was to the extent of the Reko Diq project.

In this regard, a five-member cabinet committee was formed to remove some legal obstacles, which include, Finance Minister Ishaq Dar, Commerce Minister Syed Naveed Qamar, and Economic Affairs Division Minister Sardar Ayaz Sadiq, in addition to the Law Minister. The Cabinet Committee will hold talks with the leaders of the coalition parties and take them into confidence and address their concerns.

It was decided that the amendment will be done in the bill in consultation with the concerned parties, it added.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2022