SA approves supplementary budget

The Sindh Assembly passed a supplemetary budget worth Rs38.4 billion on Friday.


Express June 25, 2010

The Sindh Assembly passed a supplementary budget worth Rs38.4 billion on Friday. Different cut motions were moved by the opposition members against government demands for grants for the supplementary expenditure of the financial year 2009-10, ending on June 30. However, all the motions moved by the opposition members were rejected.

70 cut motions worth Rs7.5 million had been proposed against the 44 demands for a reduction made by the government. The opposition felt that the government’s demand for a grant would place unnecessary burden on the public exchequer. Yet, the house passed the budget.

The Chief Minister, who also holds the office of the Ministry of Finance, asked for Rs37.6 million to maintain the Governor House, operating expenses of ministers and various other expenses.

Leader of the opposition, Jam Madad Ali, moved around the 66 cut motions, stating that the Sindh province is faced with financial constraints at the moment and cannot afford any unnecessary expenses. The grants in the supplementary budget had been demanded by the CM inspection team and the Sindh Public Service Commission, yet neither had played a tangible role.

Ali pointed out that the CM asked for Rs1.2 million for his operating expenses, while millions of rupees had been utilised to cover his fuel costs and for the maintenance of his vehicles, including a helicopter. “I have submitted 13 cut motions to reduce at least Rs 100,000 from his expenditure categories,” he said.

The CM retorted by saying that all his demands are genuine. “I think the opposition members sought help from retired officials,” said the CM, adding that their calculation on cut motions was ‘unreasonable’.

Later, Minister for Irrigation Murad Ali Shah discussed cut motion number four. He said: “The problem is that the government has shown an increase of Rs110 in the head, but the opposition is demanding a Rs100,000 reduction. This shows that they have not read the paper or understood it.”

Supporting the CM, Minister for Tourism Shazia Marri, also found the opposition’s demand to be baseless. She suggested that they “drag their office furniture out and sit outside to save up on electricity, which may help reduce their expenses.”

PML (F) MPA Nusrat Saher Abbasi stood up and asked the minister PPP to practice what she is preaching. This lead to an inflamed exchange between the two, following which the speaker adjourned the session for Saturday morning.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 26th, 2010.

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