Govt under Opposition’s attack over uplift funds

LAHORE

The Opposition in Punjab Assembly on Friday continued its tirade against the government for not paying serious attention to their recommendations in the pre-budget discussion and depending on bureaucrats to make important decisions regarding allocation of funds to different departments.

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf MPA Nabeela Hakim Ali Khan chastised the Punjab government for not providing opposition members with development funds needed for work in their constituencies and demanded that parliamentary standing committees be empowered to be an important stakeholder in preparation of the yearly provincial budget.

Nabeela Hakim Ali, while participating in the debate demanded that the government should at least make all the respective standing committees of the House autonomous to gauge the exact financial status of departments besides ensuring the transparency in spending the funds; priorities for allocation and spending should be fixed prior to budget making so that deserving areas should get the required attention. She stressed on the need to have a proper system of checks and balances to improve the financial affairs of the province.

She said over 10 million children in the province were not going to schools due to poor financial status of their families and government should focus on them to improve their lot. She demanded that the House should be taken into confidence about spending of the funds on monthly basis. She demanded establishment of an agriculture university in district Sahiwal where vast majority of people had been associated with agriculture and farming.

Ahmad Khan Baloch said farmers and growers were suffering the most due to inflation. He demanded that wheat crop had been a bumper crop this year and government should fix wheat support price at not less than Rs1,300 per 40kg. He warned that growers were reaching to the brim of their patience and if government failed to purchase entire crop of wheat then they would be forced to come out on streets against the rulers.

Meanwhile, PML-Q MPA Sardar Vickas Hassan Mokal decried the expected increase in government spending on law and order with no improvement in security of the province. In light of the dependence on Rangers and Pakistan Army forces to ensure law and order in the cities, Mokal urged that the budget for Punjab police be scrapped altogether as they had failed to decrease incidents of crime in the province. He echoed others concern over the withholding of development funds from opposition members.

PML-N MPA Shehzad Munshi, speaking on the department of minorities affairs, blasted the government for only releasing Rs150 million of the Rs1 billion 2015-16 budget for projects dedicated to the alleviation of minorities in Punjab.

He demanded increase in funds for Punjab Institute of Cardiology and the traditional sport of Punjab, Kabaddi. He said that the government should provide necessary funds in all districts of the province to keep this dying sport alive which in the past had been the identity of the province. He drew House attention towards the poor state of the Christian cemeteries. He said an international congregation of Christians was held annually in Sheikhupura where people from all over the world came to attend and said that the government should allocate funds for the pilgrims there.

Referring to the low agriculture yield this year in Punjab, PML-N MPA Makhdum Hashim Jawan Bakht recommended that greater emphasis be put on agriculture research to find quality seed and boost output. His counterpart, PML-N MPA Dr Farzana Nazeer recommended that more funds in the upcoming budget be allocated for female financial and social empowerment. She demanded better farm-to-market roads to provide farmers necessary access to key markets.

PTI MPA Raheela Anwar demanded the government to release development funds for opposition members. Raheela Anwar drew House attention towards poor state of women in the province, especially regarding women health. She said women had to travel long distances to get water in Chakwal district.

PML-N MPA Sheikh Allaudin on a separate point of order brought the attention of the House to the allegedly pathetic situation of Bagh-e-Jinnah and demanded that the director of the public park be held accountable for the neglect. He demanded that the government give explanation as to why the director of Parks and Horticulture Authority (PHA) Jabbar Shaheen had been given nine extensions in violation of Supreme Court orders. Deputy Speaker Sher Ali Gorchani directed Allaudin to bring his concerns in a committee to the attention of CM, who has the final authority on the granting of extensions.

Earlier, in the session during question hour on communications and works, PTI MPA Mian Aslam Iqbal criticised the government for destroying the very expensively built Multan Road in the construction of the Orange Line Metro train in Lahore. PA Deputy Speaker also ruled that strict action would be taken against departments for failing to provide accurate answers.  The House was adjourned for Monday.