–Khursheed says government had no right to present budget
ISLAMABAD: Senators from both sides of the aisle on Wednesday urged political parties to work for progress, prosperity and development of the country.
Opening the debate on federal budget 2018-19, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) parliamentary leader Azam Khan Swati said that all the political parties should work for eliminating corruption.
He said that the budget announced by the government last week was not pro-poor. He claimed that the government had not achieved the targets which it had set in the last budget. No country could progress without investing in education and the government had done nothing to improve the literacy rate, he added.
Swati said that economic emergency should be announced as otherwise the country would be declared bankrupt.
Lt General (r) Abdul Qayyum of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) said that the lawmakers should give recommendations to improve the budget. It was unfortunate that the PTI’s parliamentary leader in the Senate was doing political point securing instead of giving suggestions because it is the collective responsibility of political parties to work for the country’s uplift, he added.
He said that presenting the budget in the parliament was a legal obligation.
He further said the government had added thousands of megawatts of electricity to the national grid. Many pending power projects had also been completed by the government in the last five years, he added.
Qayyum expressed hope that in the coming year, exports would be increased due to the steps that were taken by the government.
He said that during the PML-N government‘s tenure, gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate and tax collection had increased.
“Tax collection has increased by 13.2 per cent to GDP,” he added.
He said that 10 per cent increase in retired employees’ pension was not enough and suggested the government to raise the same by 100 per cent.
Awami National Party’s (ANP) Sitara Ayaz said the budget was not pro-poor while many incentives had been announced for the rich. The government should announce steps for the middle class, she added.
She appreciated the government for increasing tax collection. She extended full cooperation to the government for addressing the challenges the country is facing.
Pakistan People’s Party’s (PPP) Sassui Palijo said that it is unfortunate that the 18th constitutional amendment had not been implemented in its true letter and spirit. No allocation had been made for the provinces in the budget, which was also anti-poor, she added.
PTI’s Faisal Javed Khan termed the federal budget pro-rich as nothing had been announced for the middle class in it.
He said that more funds should be allocated for education and health sectors and demanded effective legislation for eliminating the menace of corruption from the country.
Minister for Climate Change Mushahidullah Khan said the people would elect the next government on the basis of political parties’ performance. Almost all the main contending parties were currently in the government in different provinces and it would be easy for the people to analyse their performance, he added.
He said that both PPP and PTI had failed to deliver in Sindh and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), where they were in government respectively. The Sindh government had not initiated a single development project in the province, he added.
Mushahidullah said that the federal government had added thousands of megawatts electricity to the national grid and reduced load-shedding in the country. It was also laying a network of motorways across the country, he added.
The minister said the government had restored peace in Karachi by taking effective measures against criminal elements.
He said that the PML-N government had launched several welfare-oriented projects across the country. The economy had improved due to the measures adopted by the government and the opposition parties are afraid of the PML-N’s development agenda and the popularity of its leadership among the masses, he added.
PML-N’s Ghous Muhammad Khan Niazi said that international institutions had appreciated the performance of Pakistan’s economy. The government had announced a pro-people budget, he said, calling for 100 per cent raise in pension.
He said that GDP had grown significantly during the tenure of PML-N government.
Leader of the Opposition in the Senate Sherry Rehman lamented that the ministers were not taking any interest in the proceedings of the house. There was nobody in the house taking notice of the speeches, she added.
She announced a walk-out from the house to protest the absence of ministers.
Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani adjourned the session till 3 pm on Thursday.
Meanwhile, Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Khursheed Shah rejected the budget and said that the government had no right to present a full year’s budget when its tenure was due to end on May 31.
“Budget allocation is serious business, you cannot just present it to get it off your shoulders,” he lamented.
“Things will take a turn for the worst if only one province is given preference and the government is not ready to address the deprivations of the smaller provinces,” he added.
