LAHORE: Mumtaz Ali Chang, a Member of the Punjab Assembly from Pakistan Peoples Party on Friday threatened the government, saying that if the people of Sadiqabad are not treated equally, he will leave the government benches and join the opposition. He expressed these views in Punjab Assembly during a budget debate.

Chang said that the government has not allocated a single rupee for his constituency in the budget. He demanded that the government should establish a university in Sadiqabad and provide equal opportunities for education and health.

He also alleged that corrupt police officers have purchased land worth billions of rupees in the area.

He demanded accountability of corrupt police officers and government officials. He said that the government has spent billions of rupees on the Orange Line train in Lahore, but the people of Sadiqabad do not even have access to basic amenities like roads and bridges. He demanded that the government should provide equal funding for his constituency and establish a university in the area.

Deputy Speaker Zaheer Iqbal Channar suggested that if Mumtaz Chang is ready to give 50 acers of land for the establishment of university then government should consider his suggestion.

Earlier, debate on the budget continued for the second day in the Punjab Assembly, with members targeting each other with political criticism rather than discussing the budget. Opposition members threatened to protest and boycott the session, saying that the government was not ready to listen to their demands, and that if they called for a protest, government imposed Section 144.

The Finance Minister was also heavily criticized for arriving late to the session, which was adjourned for an hour due to his absence.

Moreover, discussion on budget started after an hour when Finance Minister Punjab Mian Mujtaba Shuja-ur-Rehman arrived in the House. Opposition members said that Punjab is not anyone’s personal estate, and some areas have been given more development schemes while others have been neglected. They alleged that the police are only used to arrest us, and the government is not ready to listen to our demands. They criticized the government for not boycotting Israeli products, saying that those who call us “traitors” are themselves are political hypocrates.

They also accused the government of lacking the courage to establish a judicial commission to investigate the May 12 incident.

Opposition members questioned that why farmers are being crushed, journalists are being silenced, only when Sharif brothers are in power.

While responding to the criticism Finance Minister Shuja said the government has not imposed any restrictions on peaceful protests. Shuja said if anyone blocks the roads government will take notice.

He further said, May 12 is a dark day in the country’s history and will remain so. He added, “Nothing new is happening; when Pervez Elahi used to sit on this chair, everything was fine.”

He said government does not want that any political worker’s house was raided or harassed by administration.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2024