The federal government has very graciously granted a 10% increase in the salaries of government servants and has also conferred a 7% increase in the pensions of retired public servants, as announced in the federal budget 2025-26.
The honourable federal finance minister has said that this was the extent of what the federal government could offer to the serving and retired government servants within its available resources. He did not express much concern regarding the gradually declining quality of life and the rising cost of living.
Yet only a few days earlier than the announcement of the new federal budget, the federal government approved a monumental salary hike for the Senate Chairman, National Assembly Speaker, Senators, MNAs and the ever-expanding federal cabinet members.
The Senate Chairman and the National Assembly Speaker alone received more than a fivefold increase in their salaries. This increase has been effective retrospectively, which gives them additional benefits for the past few months as well.
The finance minister has defended this shower of generosity by proclaiming that this substantial hike is meant to make up for the past 9 years as their salaries had not been increased since 2016. What do you call a comparison between the salary increases of serving government employees, the pensions of retired public servants, and the hefty raises given to the custodians of the two houses of Parliament—our elected or unelected honourable representatives — when the differences are so vast they can hardly be measured against each other?
M Z Rifat
Lahore
