A PPP legislator, Imran Zafar Laghari on Wednesday expressed dissatisfaction over the budget in the provincial assembly for the next fiscal year and regretted that bureaucracy had ignored his flood-ravaged district completely to allocate share in the uplift outlay of Rs 161 billion.
A rather confused, disturbed and low-attended budget session resumed its debate after a day of break for Benazir Bhutto's birthday events organised by the PPP government. The Imran's remarks during his speech left the members attentive, wanting to know what Planning and Development Department of the government had planned to run the province development projects. He said that his district Dadu, had been left out of from the budget development allocation.
He blamed the bureaucracy had subdued the people's elected representative in the next fiscal budget who had huge plans to develop their respective constituencies. He said the fiscal budget had introduced no development schemes to rehabilitate the flood affectees, who according to him, were still languishing in tents in soaring temperature.
He alleged P&D Department had no intentions to do uplift work for repair of dykes and strengthening the irrigation system in the flood affected district, saying the irrigation system had become vulnerable to sustain any water pressure and likely to collapse again or cause fresh breaches in the embankments.
Imran said the budget had also ignored the repair of Right Bank canal, while the flood damaged many school buildings still needed the government's attention and funds for rebuilding and resuming academic sessions. The Sindh's lawmaker pointed out that the civic infrastructure had badly damaged in the deluge and people of the district were not getting any relief from the authorities.
He said about 45 water schemes in the district had collapsed in floods, which had received no budget allocation for rebuilding. "ADP has not allocated a single penny for these schemes development," he said. He said like Karachi and Hyderabad, the government should also introduce a master plan for Dadu, Noshero Feroz, Sanghar and other areas so that the backward parts of the province could attain development.
The ANP lawmaker, Amanullah Khan Mehsud demanded improvement in the healthcare and education system of the province, besides tidiness at the government-run hospitals. He said the former Home Minister, Zulfiqar Mirza should end his leave and return to Pakistan to take over his responsibilities, as cases of targeted killings had again surfaced.
He said the government should arrest the skyrocketing food inflation besides increase minimum salary from Rs 7, 000 a month. He voiced concerns over the killings of journalists and threats to their lives, demanding of the government to provide them with free-licences to hold weapons to protect them against terrorism. He said the journalists cases should be sent to special courts for rapid disposing of. He blamed the bureaucracy was creating hurdles in the continued schemes and held it responsible for their incompletion on time.
Mehsud also questioned the government's role in the continued dispute between KESC and its employees, saying that there should be a solution to the problems. Sindh Excise Minister, Mukesh Chawala regretted the government had ignored his department in the next fiscal year budget and allocated no funds for it to buy new mobile vans for staff, weapons and rebuild the damaged offices.
He said the department continued to collect 35 more annual taxes than the set targets, and lauded the efforts of his team and staffers. He questioned the P&D's role in allocating of funds in the budget for departments. He said about 70 percent offices of his departments in the province had damaged due to vandalism in the wake of Benazir Bhutto's killing, which still needed repair work.
A lady MPA, Nusrat Sehar Abbasi of PML-F said the budget presentation was aimed at only pleasing the bureaucracy. She said the Sindh province had collected Rs 13 billion taxes for the federal government and received Rs 200 billion under NFC award but the government had not informed the house about the funds.
She said the PPP government had failed to deliver to the masses what its former slain chairperson Benazir Bhutto had pledged to the nation. She alleged the government was providing jobs against the bribe, saying 80,000 jobs had been sold. She said the KESC employees were protesting for several months but the government took no action to ensure their reinstatement. She said the province healthcare and education systems were in poor conditions.
Nusrat said whom the PPP lawmakers demanding for the return of Zulfiqar Mirza to assume charge of Home Department to control deteriorating law and order in the province. She said 40 people were killed in Karachi whereas, girls were subjected to rape but the government had failed to do anything to overcome the poor situation. She also questioned the government's reconciliatory policy, saying it was only benefiting the rulers.. She said PML-F was in a few numbers during the regime while pointing at MQM and PML-Q members, which are both part of the PPP-led government, were holding the major share in the government.
Sindh Information Minister, Sharjeel Memon acknowledged the province was facing education and healthcare problems, which needed maximum funds in the fiscal development allocations. He said the government had presented Rs 161 billion development budget, which was a success for its members and leadership after the recent floods had left nothing intact in the province.
He said the Sindh government would set up a press gallery in the Sindh Assembly naming it "martyrs gallery" to pay homage to killed journalists who had laid down their lives for upholding the just cause. Besides, he said, the government had also announced to provide a monthly stipend to the families of slain journalists. He said the government had also planned to undertake journalists' registration to split up the bona fides from fake ones.
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