FROM A RINGSIDE SEAT

A unanimous resolution jointly moved by the Treasury and Opposition benches told the story of the Senate's sorrow over the earthquake in Sichuan province of the Chinese People's Republic, our special and all weather friend. It was the first item in the Senate agenda on Tuesday.
"The Senate as well as the people of Pakistan stand solidly behind the government and the people of China in this hour of grief and urge the Pakistan government to act speedily in providing relief to the affected people." Needless to state, the Resolution was adopted instantly.
Thereafter, we can now report that Syed Naveed Qamar would be the next Finance Minister. His appearance in the Senate to wind up the debate on price hike almost makes this certain. There are other plausible reasons to justify Naveed Qamar's choice for presenting the new administration's first budget in the National Assembly, even though we hear Shaukat Tareen's name mentioned.
However, we must remember that the Lower House is the forum to lay down the annual fiscal policy of the government. The responsibility of piloting the budget is usually for either a Member of the National Assembly, or a Senator.
Even if Shaukat Tareen is named as such it would be inappropriate for him to present the budget, because he would not know parliamentary procedures.
Remember, Salman Shah, had a higher stature than Minister of State. Yet, Omar Ayub Khan presented the budget during the last two years.
With Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan no more there as Minister we had Naveed Qamar to answer for almost 30 percent price hike during the past 42 days which is driving the poor to suicide, as Senator Babar Ghauri put it while opening the debate, in which he was the first speaker.
The new administration is recycling the same old arguments quoting the prevailing international situation as the reason. Why cause more discomfort by increasing the cost of Haj air tickets? The MQM representative asked, adding a punch that poor people gathered each penny for the pilgrimage.
But what would the Minister say in the winding up speech except to put the blame on international phenomena. But the Opposition had already helped him out of a difficult impasse by quoting World Bank and Asian Development Bank statistics.
Senator Humayun Khan thought oil was the main culprit. If oil prices had increased from $65 in November to $122 in May, it is having roller coaster effect on every thing, from world trade, wheat, palm oil, cattle fodder, stock market, any thing that touched the life of the common man.
Intrinsically, all this connected with the shrinking value of the Pakistan rupee, which had risen from Rs 61 (November) to Rs 68 (May 12). Would the Minister explain this step fall, a devaluation of rupee by 12 percent? Not that easy, said Senator Liaquat Bangalzai. Each country faced the economic crunch of price rise. Yet consumers of some countries did not have to face rise beyond 2 or 3 percent.
Bangalzai also suggested new measures for the next year's budget, such as restricting sales tax on oil and petroleum goods to 2 or 3 percent; as well as fixing duty hours of common unskilled labour to only five hours daily. If he agreed to work beyond five hours he should receive Rs 50 as compensation. What could the finance Minister do to keep prices from rising?. A hard question? Probably a dyed-in-the-wool economist could give an answer.
However, we see themes of provincial rights and autonomy keep returning, including the old question of provincial share in electricity profits. Abdur Rahim Mandokhel, Haji Adeel, Ilyas Ahmad Bilour, and Professor Khursheed Amad, claimed, that the central government must pay an outstanding debt of Rs 42 million, and Rs 22 billion annually.
This amount was decided by a tribunal to which the central government had gone to. Yet the government had reneged on this award and accepted only six billion rupees per annum. Foul play cried the three Senators moving the Notice.
But we had Raja Pervez Ashraf to tackle the problem. He said there were differences in calculating profits based on power generated by hydro-electricity projects and Wapda had some objection about it, and had moved the court for adjudication. Therefore, as of now, the matter was sub judice.
Incidentally, the old question of the name for the North West Frontier Province. Naeem Chattha was not all that pleased when Leader of the House referred to NWFP as Pakhtun Khwa, and interposed with a remark that Senators had taken oath on the Constitution and it would be unconstitutional for Raza Rabbani to refer to the province by a new name.
Raza Rabbani retorted that those who had voted an ineligible person as unconstitutional President should not have the gall to remind people about the sanctity of oaths. Then he justified the new name on the strength of two resolutions passed by the NWFP Assembly. By the way, the leader of the House took control of the House explaining a number of points raised by Members on previous occasions.
An important part concerned the overdue elections in Cantonment as well as Islamabad. Raza Rabbani informed the House that for some unknown and inexplicable reason President Musharraf had stayed the election, which was to be held at the same time as the local bodies.
The Defence Ministry has now promised the election both at Islamabad as well as cantonments, whenever the federal government decided. A glad tidings perhaps for the residents of Islamabad who might have their own elected local government to replace the Capital development Authority.