AGPR employees suspend work

The government will not be able to provide the country's financial statements to World Bank (WB), International Monetary Fund (IMF) and other donor agencies next month as the employees of Accountant General of Pakistan Revenue (AGPR) have suspended their duties.
This was stated by the Supreme Council of Audit and Accounts Employees at a news conference here on Thursday. Chairman of the Council Khushal Abbasi, who was flanked by other office-bearers, said that work on the accounts had been stopped. "We have been protesting against the government and the economic managers for creating a disparity in the salaries of the federal government employees for the last 60 days," he added.
The employees of more than 12 institutions have been granted 100 percent increase in allowance whereas the employees of the remaining departments have been denied the increase, which, Abbasi said, was a violation of Article 25 of the Constitution.
He maintained that the employees of Presidency, Prime Minister's House, Federal Board of Revenue (FBR), Supreme Court and High Courts, Health Institutions, Motorway and Highway Police, Airport Security Force and Earthquake Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Authority (ERRA) and Islamabad Police had received 100 percent increase in allowance but the employees of AGPR and AGP and other departments, equally hard working and affected by inflation, were denied the increase. The unjust policies and decisions of the present government had created unrest and anxiety among the employees of the federal government, he added.
He denied reports that the ongoing strike demanding equal treatment in terms of salary allowance had been called off. "The protest and strike will continue unless our demands are not met," he said and warned that if the Finance Ministry and the Secretary Finance did not settle the issue they would not prepare the payroll of the federal government employees on Eid.
The Vice-Chairman of the Council questioned that if the FBR employees could be given 100 percent increase in allowance why not the employees of the AGPR that maintains the accounts and provide a basis to the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) for recovery. "We have stopped releases of funds for the development schemes of the parliamentarians, payment of petrol, utility and other expenditures as well as payment of all the purchases," he said warning that the situation could unfold a serious crisis for the government.