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Budget for armed forces should be audited: Imran Khan
People in power should pursue austerity; should restrict their expenses, says Khan.
People in power should pursue austerity; should restrict their expenses, says Khan. PHOTO: INP/ FILE
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Chairman Imran Khan joined the chorus in criticising the government over the budget presented for the year 2012-13, by condemning the amount allocated to the armed forces. “The budget for the armed forces should be audited.”
Speaking at a press conference in Islamabad on Sunday, Khan said that in order to stop corruption, National Accountability Bureau (NAB) should be allowed to operate “freely”.
He questioned the expenditure for maintaining chief minister houses in all four provinces. “We have four CM houses while the people are starving.”
“The people in power should pursue austerity,” said the PTI chairman. “They should restrict their expenses.”
Khan said that corruption in Pakistan has reached its saturation point. “Either corrupt people will survive or Pakistan will. Corruption in Pakistan has reached a point where they cannot co-exist.”
He alleged that corruption in different government-run corporations amounted to billions of rupees. “The deficit in Pakistan Steel Mills has reached more than Rs40 billion in the last four years, while corruption done in Pakistan International Airlines and Pakistan Railways is not hidden, too.”
“The outstanding arrears which are a result of 400,000 illegal connections as noted by the Pakistan Electric Power Company (Pepco) have to be borne by the consumers in the form of tariff hikes,” said Khan.
He said that according to a survey conducted by Water and Power Development Authority (Wapda), in the last four years, about 2.8 million air conditioners were bought, while bills for only 185,000 were being paid.
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Reader Comments (97)
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now those who used to say establishment supports imran khan should once and for all shut up…
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Only IK has the GUTS to speak the truth-he walks the talk!
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Pakistan is the country where there are unaccountable institutions exists. how long this should continue?
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IK should immediately be made the head of National Accountability Bureau.
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Well you cant fool me Mr IK.Recommend
Climax before the drop scene.Recommend
As if the budget of all other departments is carried out
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The most sense he has spoke these past few years.
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We cant afford to loose this man. At least he deserves a chance.
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Now Pti should be given chance
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This carries no significance other than trying to please those who call him establishment backed character. It should be audited but this not where most of the corruption happens. The bureaucracy, the government sector directly responsible for facilitating people are the culprits. Inland revenues, customs, excise and taxation are those who annually swallow much more than the total budget allocated from armed forces.Recommend
Kamaal hai, Altaf Hussain has been saying all these things since the last 20-30 yrs its been falling on deaf ears I think.
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quite frankly, i have never been the fan of IK. but definitely these kind of clear policy stance will gain him credibility in the masses. More importantly………….he should stnad to his words if and when he comes to power.
my request for all PTI fans is that they should now stop saying that A, B or C is copying IK. what IK is saying now is being demanded by NS and other political leaders.
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It should be audited, so that India can get access to our defence spending either through spies in auditing firms or through the audit publication.
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very late off the mark…
Copying NS as usal…
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@Omer:
Would appreciate if you can name our traitors in the auditing firms.
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@Omer: How naive of you! Where did IK suggest that the expenditure details needs to be publicly catalogued? An audit is a confidential exercise, dear.
Kudos to IK for such brilliance!
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The bad thing is corruption is so ingrained, so deep set, it has become part of every day life. You need a document or anything done..without paying them an amount close to what is being asked..you will not get it..It will be very hard to get rid of this, Its not only the government which is corrupt. It’s like everything is run by a mafia..
If the Pakistanis want a better Pakistan, Imran Khan can’t do it on his own. It will take every Pakistani to end corruption.
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@Blithe: Really!!!!!! hahahahaha!! lol Imran copying nawaz, what have u being smoking my friend??
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@Zaikam: ‘ It should be audited but this not where most of the corruption happens’
Guess who overtook control of Pakistan during 2000 and milked away US$14 billion?
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India has focused its economic uplift and not the armed forces. India has no more issues of power…. defense etc….with Pakistan. The world has changed now and India is emerging as 3rd largest economy. We need educated,honest, sincere people in our top brass,like Imran Khan,I fully support him.
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@Salman: ‘An audit is a confidential exercise’. There is a word called ‘leak’.Dear?
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@Ali: nice joke man!
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ty imran for standing up and speaking up that openly, we all strongly agree that all budget should be audited, especially to presidency and pm mansions and their subsequent so called royal familes (read new money). Totally behind you in this war against the corrupt and rubbish political elite of Pakistan
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Corruption in Pakistan has become an epidemic that is eating deeper and deeper into the vitality of the country.As Imran Khan has quite rightly said it has reached the saturation point.Money allocated to various sectors of the economy for development is misappropriated to the extent that the economic progress of the country is stifled and scuppered The government corporations are mismanaged and running at a loss becoming white elephants.The cost of living is skyrocketing and the masses are forced to undergo immense hardship while the Ministers and government cronies amassing wealth and leading lavish life styles.This situation has to end and people have to be redeemed.To achieve this objective the corruption has to be stamped out and the funds allocated to the various sectors of the economy need to be spent prudently.
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nobody imagine what had happen during earth queck mission, My GOD? IK you have the right knowledge.
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An Independent audit should be carry out by the Big-4 external audit firms rather then by army internal audit or some other Gov department.
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Proper Independent Accountibility Department and Fair Judiciary System(court case Life- max 5 years) wil create a reamrkable change.the one we Expect every next day for our self ,for our generations.good luck IMRAN KHAN. i hope u collapse the fuedal lord system
by implementing land reforms.
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Nawaz Sharif , Imran Khan and Aitezaz Ahsan has been saying this for years but they dont have Charisma so people give a damn about it.
So who is Copying whom should be evident to everybody.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mkeKt5953Fs
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agree with u mr khan…………
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A CORRECTION>> In my Comment it is not Imran Khan but Altaf Hussain. Altaf Hussain is also vocal like Nawaz Sharif and Aitezaz in the past but these three leaders are not heard at all.
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had Nawaz said about budget cut of armed forces all the PTI trolls would ve take it as political point scoring.
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Will IK go for on the road for “The budget for the armed forces should be audited.” I think NOT.
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70 % budget consumed by defense, rest of 20 % eaten away the corrupt rulers and only 10% left for poor masses ,what a budget!
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people like nawaz sharif altaf hussain asif ali zardari have all been in power. They failed to audit the budget for armed forces.
pml n was in coalition with ppp for 4 years and yet they still could not do it.
Imran khan’s talk gains more significance as allegations were thrown at him for being an isi stooge. Kudos to Imran khan i hope he succeeds and implements it
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Imran Khan please continue on as the nation is sick & tired of the ruling elite who blatantly lie and live in an utopian society which is cutoff from everyday life of common Pakistanis. Unfortunately corruption from the top has oozed down, so we need strict cleansing and a change from the present system. Imran Khan, you lead and we are with you.
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it is the first time i have heard something sensible from IK that the budget for army should be audited
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Pointed rightly by IK, Army’s expenditure should not only be audited but also slashed and utilize these funds in health care and education of our nation. I guess people who have been pointing fingers now think twice before ranting him as fauj backed politician.
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@Dare to speak!: Keep your record Straight. 20 Percent of the Budget or less than 3 percent of GDP is given to Army not 70. I am ashamed that Imran Khan is Bashing our Army but he is considering Talks with Taliban and call them Legitimate power.
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Butt: I don’t which 14 billion are you talking about? Pakistan was a much better country progressing with the highest GDP rate in her history in those years of Mush’s rule. Corruption was much less, NAB was much more functional, development was fastest we’ve ever seen, policing was much better. Talk some sense.
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That is the end of Kaptaan’s political career ! He dared to speak against the establishment !!
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@ Mr. Muhammad… u r right…how can u fool a fool..
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a large number pf share of our annual budget goes to our armed forces and personally i feel they utilize the funds efficiently . As compared to other institutions they are more organized and by looking at the military development and construction one is can easily conclude that a large sum of money is being put to use adequately but an accountability of the institution is necessary
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@anwar:
People like you who supports corrupt leaders are responsible for the destruction of Pakistan. Imran Khan please save us from the illiterate leaders.
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@Dude:
Dude, where have you seen IK bashing the army? IK made in clear in Pindi jalsa speech that he will not let people malign the army. And now people like you are spreading lies here. Shame on you! Now that IK has criticised army budget, you are saying he is bashing army. Earlier you must have been saying that IK is armys stooge? shame on you.
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PTI troll in full action
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Looking for an answer.
Does anybody have any idea that how much fund we received since this so called war against terror, earth quick in Northern areas and last year water flood in interior sindh and Panjab? this is a top secret?
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@Request i would request you to read my previous comment carefully again
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Long Live IMRAN KHANRecommend
@Zaikam. I agree. A lot these people just through figures with out checking them.
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@Maverick:
IK to “collapse the feudal system” ?!?!?!??!?
You must be delusional.
Look all the Piri landlords gravitating towards his party ..,,
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@Omer: Still waiting for the names of the auditing firms.
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@Muhammad:
He can’t fool you because you are already a fool. Anyone who suports any tried and tested corrupt politician is in my opinion a fool. The only politician who hasn’t been tried is Mr.Khan. So if you are supporting someone other than him who has already been tried whether its PMLN, PPP etc and has looted the country then quite frankly you have already been fooled.
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*throw
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Someone tell this man that all army institutions are audited by private firms. For example AWT is audited by KPMG, NLC is audited by KPMG, Askari Bank was formerly audited by PWC and is now being audited by KPMG. These audits even though are not statutory, provide reasonable assurance that the Financial Statements give a true and fair view of the institutions. These audits also highlight weaknesses in the systems and any material discrepancies. Budgets cannot be audited. One can only do a reasonableness test on them i.e. whether the amount allocated is reasonable for the justified expense.
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@Ali:
The difference is Altaf Hussain has been saying these things from his safety perch in London
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Who will bell the cat!!
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Good idea for the first time from our own angry middle aged hero, little flawed though due to wording. Budget should be scrutinized and analyzed for every line item for every institution including the Army and independent audit should be there for actual spending, audit of budget does not make any sense. Pakistani Army operates very much like an independent country, this idea of accountability will be the first step towards making it an organization under the Ministry of Defense.
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I would like to support Ayesha Azeem s coments. Long live IMRAN KHANRecommend
First good idea by Mr Imran Khan
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@Zaikam
You are classic case of main na manoon..( I don’t believe) .
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@Muhammad:
you already a big fool so IK will not waste time on you…Recommend
How about a Dharna at GHQ to enforce this.
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cool
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imran khan should mind his own business.
whi is he to say army budget should be audited !
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Very good Imran…
Not just army… every govt corporation must be audited by external auditors…
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I have never liked IK however with these comments he is gaining my support. Kudos sir!
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@ dare to speak u need to go to school and learn how to calculate percentages .
2nd who says budget of army or there expenditure is not auditted????
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IK makes a number of valuable points and for once he is begining to sound less hysterical and more mature. Let us hope this continues.
Now, the REAL question is how do we find SOULTIONS for these long-standing problems. We even KNOW how to solve them but lack the political will even if it is in the self-interest of the politicians to do so.
Will IK be that catalyst and take on the criminals, the tax cheats and those who do not pay their bills. Will he order the lights to be switched off in the palatial homes of the powerful civil and military bureaucracy? Will they give up so easily and go running to the nearest bank to deposit their long unpaid bills which, taken together, run into billions and are strangulating the economy?
I don’t think so.
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Pak army still lost three wars.
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Imran Khan is our leader and next Prime Minister of Pakistan Inshallah.
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In case you didn’t know it your already have an auditor of your budget – it’s called your Parliament which has the right to ask questions and approve or disapprove the budget. Whether they have guts enough to bring up the tough issues maybe the real issue.
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I wacthed Imran khan’s recent documentary ”People and Power” by Al Jazeera on http://topdocumentarystream.com/people-power-imran-khan/. Interesting!
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khan is the last ray of hope i think, as well as wise & brave leader. Inshallah he will be our next PM but he should behave the same way as he is today. my vote is unquestionably yours Imran.Recommend
Rs 545 Billion Allocated for the Pakistan’s Defense Budget, which is 18.41 percent of the Budget or less than 3 percent of GDP is given to Army not 70. Govt exp is Rs. 240 Billion is allocated for their protocol and Rs. 1185 Billion is budget deficit and Imran Khan is Bashing our Army not other because he politician and he did not blame them. He only criticize our Army, they are defending the country. He never goes to Gayari and never says any world for for shuhada and their bereaved families. He think that if he criticize army and he will get a place in media. His this act is to lives in media.Recommend
No, the budget for the armed forces should only be cut when they aren’t doing the jobs that the civilan governement should be doing ! The armed forces put its own money in the rehabilitation of the floods and is performing many duties which are the responsiblity of the civilian government so it is unfair to say that the military budget is soo big !
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At last Imran Khan and Mian Sahib are on the same page. if one says something, the other repeats it. Therefore its best for the country if both of them join hands and save us from complete destruction. The question remains that who should lead this alliance? In my opinion, Mian Sahib has advantage because of his experience and very close relationship with our friendly countries. Twenty five percent seats at national and provincial levels, four main ministries at federal level and Chief Ministership of K.P. would be a huge jump for PTI. With this winning formula, PTI will gain experience and opportunity to prove as national party. Calling shots alone and expecting miracle is a failed strategy. Even if hidden forces bring PTI to power, the huge burden of millions of problems will crush PTI within days.
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WoW Sanity for the very first time!
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See now he is following footsteps of PML(N)…..lol
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@Muhammad: Imran Khan can’t fool you as you are already midset fool.
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@Fahd: Nawaz has no courage to do it. Only Imran khan can do it.
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It is good to put this news clip in context of detail presentation that was made in the press conference. Please watch complete video as it shows PTI thoroughness on financial situation of the country – http://www.insaf.pk/Media/Videos/tabid/62/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/11616/PTI-post-budget-press-conference-Asad-Umar-Jahangir-Tareen-Imran-Khan-3rd-June-2012.aspx
I like Imran Khan because he knows where to put the people regardless of their time and affiliation. He believes in merit and I think others should learn from him too. You can’t grow from where you are with your family members and personal affiliations.
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I am a PML N supporter and I have to admit, a very gutsy call ! Good work IK, I wish you and PMLN can come to terms !
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If you are really serious about it, my vote is for you and I will convince people around me to vote for you.
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A daring and bold statement by IK. Let us hope the army listens to him. The govt cannot bell the cat and it is only the forces in Punjab (including NS and IK) who can help the govt bell this big fat cat.
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LOOK who is talking IK is talking about army like nawaz is in opposition.
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@Meekal Ahmed:
dunya ummeed par qaim hai. So far he has delivered what he has promised and I hope he will fulfil this one as well.Needs to be given a chance.
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Looks good in that photo, innit!!!
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@Gilgiti-No voting right but Proud Pakistani:
“Does anybody have any idea that how much fund we received since this so called war against terror, earth quick in Northern areas and last year water flood in interior sindh and Panjab? this is a top secret?”
The total amount is about $35B
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@sajjadahmed:
“Rs 545 Billion Allocated for the Pakistan’s Defense Budget, which is 18.41 percent of the Budget or less than 3 percent of GDP is given to Army not 70.”
The true figure including all salaries, pensions, interest payment on past defense purchases, new purchases, nuke and missile program and the ISI is over 65% of the budget. As a percentage of TRUE GDP this is around 8 to 12%.
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Vote for Imran Khan. I am confident he will work towards solving the countries dire problems and make it a prosperous country. If he does not win next elections, I think the country will completely destroy itself
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@Muhammad:
I think you’re quite easy to fool.
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@Ch Allah Dad
From 5 seats max to CM in KPK and ministries in punjab and national level, This only proves you know it from the core of your heart that PTI is gaining alot everyday…just wait and watch brother.
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@anwar:
I am really sorry i completely misunderstood. LONG LOVE IMRAN KHAN
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@Omer:
It’s a harmless statement. Doesn’t mean a damn thing. How much info do you get from civilian audits? Defense budget details should be public knowledge like other state expenses. Secondly there should be equal accountability for everyone. Politicians have faced death and hardships at various times. Bhutto hanged. Benazir murdered. Nawaz jailed and exiled. Zardari too has had a long innings in jail; so too have Gilani, Javaid Hashmi etc. Yahya Khan lived with full military honours after breaking up the country. Zia made judges kneel down and pass death sentences for imaginary murders. 4000 people died in the Ojheri camp disaster and Junejo lost his goverment for trying to set up an enquiry. Musharaf left with a guard of honour. Generals who rigged elections with secret funds walk free on the streets. That is where Imran keeps his mouth shut!
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focus on army – why isnt the health and other budgets being audited – why pick on the army ..
this clearly shows tht army and isi supports him ….
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@truthbetold….. dude u are obviously too high….. taking the defence budget from 18.5% to 65 % means u are actually saying the entire budget is a lie and that the nearly 46% of the budget is marely a cover for the defence budget!!!
get real ….. this 18.5% includes everything….. its ppl like u who leave no chance maligning the defence institutions!!!
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