Sindh Assembly continues debate on budget: MQM opposes commercial status for Sindh Bank

Muttahida Qaumi Movement on Thursday opposed commercial status of the newly established Sindh Bank and asked the government to review its decision and change it into micro finance so that the small traders and farmers of the province could have access to a greater financial assistance.
As Sindh Assembly resumed the ongoing debate on budget 2011-12 here with Speaker Nisar Khohro in the chair, MQM's leader Syed Sardar Ahmed opposed the Sindh Bank's commercial status, saying the province had already dozens of commercial banks. He said the government should change the bank's status into micro finance so that the poor and small farmers could receive financial assistance. He added that Banks of Khyber and Punjab were already operating on commercial modes, of which the lower stratum of the society had no benefits.
He said that the government should also change the charged expenditure, a system which British had introduced during its rule in India. He said the legislators should know the status of the country's borrowings and debt servicing. He said the lawmakers still did not know for which purpose the country had borrowed money from other institutions or countries.
He also proposed a quarterly review of the budget to monitor the expenditures and status of uplift schemes, besides replacement of old-fashioned working bureaucracy with new dedicated technical staff, saying that the old methods of budget implementation would no longer work to achieve the set targets.
He said that globally the governments had gone for outsourcing the technical staff if they failed to implement their plans and urged the provincial government to look into new ways for implementing uplift strategies in a better way. Sardar Ahmed voiced concerns over the new housing scheme of Zulfiqarabad, saying that the government had to ensure the rich class should not take over the plots to make it a high-class society and drive out poor from there.
He proposed that instead of inhabiting new colonies with huge spending, the government should provide funds to all districts of the province so that people living there could have the same facilities proposed for such housing schemes. He added the province had 22 districts.
He also criticised Police Order 2000, saying that neither it brought any benefits for the society nor it helped control violence and crimes. He proposed the police system could be reformed with few amendments in 1860 Police Order, which according to him, was still a relevant and "best" system. He said Punjab had borrowed the same police system and implemented it successfully.
He regretted the frequent transfers of police officers in Karachi, saying it was not a solution to the rising law and order challenges, adding police staff should have modern techniques with latest equipments to overpower the outlaws. He said the province should have its own Sindh Police Ranger (SPR) under the single unity of command.
Sardar Ahmed said the agriculture income tax had been misconceived by members, adding that there was an agriculture and income tax system of 2005 in place.
He said the government should implement and collect the tax on agriculture income above Rs 0.3 million. He said the utility stores had failed to carter up to needs of people and demanded a fresh ration card system in the province to help the needy and poor people attain greater chances of having essential items at subsidised rates.