Et tu Brutus? PTI’s own adviser slams 2016-17 budget

Shakeel Ahmad says govt has little interest in population welfare

PESHAWAR: The Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa government was left red in the face when its own cabinet member threatened resignation and said the FY 2016-17 budget was centered on certain districts. Chief Minister’s Adviser on Population Welfare Shakeel Ahmad issued this statement during Friday’s K-P Assembly session.

Four other Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf lawmakers, including Qurban Khan and Yaseen Khalil, boycotted proceedings and tore copies of the agenda as they did not get time to have their say on the budget.

Ahmad, who hails from Malakand, first asked the K-P chief minister to take up the matter of extending Customs Act, 1969 to his region. According to him, the federal government turned down the K-P government’s request to withdraw the decision which would extend the legislation to the climate change and militancy-hit Malakand Division.



He raised the issue of rapidly increasing population and the lack of government interest in the department. “If you don’t control population growth, all the planning towards education and health improvement will keep failing,” he said. “Last year, we had a Rs349 million allocation and this year we wanted Rs990 million. However, only Rs330 million was allocated,” he pointed out.

Shakeel then lashed out at his own government for limiting allocations to just four districts such as Swabi, Mardan, Nowshera and Dir. “The resources of this province are not only the rights of four districts. Problems and issues are not only to these areas. My area has problems and people need allocations and schemes. If the fund distribution is not streamlined and distributed equally within two months, I will resign,” he warned.

He then shared huge development funds were allocated to the four districts. The adviser called for equal distribution of funds. “We got votes on our manifesto of change and reforms. We promised to hold accountable also those who embezzled funds. Now, our Ehtesab Commission is without a director general.”

ANP’s Sardar Hussain Babak, in his speech, slammed the budget cut, saying it was the biggest in the history of budgeting. “The government wanted to impress the public with a sharp increase in the budget figure which was later slashed.”

He pointed out the Local Government Act, 2013 calls for a 30% share in the ADP for districts, but here the revised budget is just 13%. Babak said according to the new budget, the districts’ share in the ADP is 21% of the local component.



He asked how the government was violating its own laws and going against its claims. The ANP leader sought an explanation from Minister for Finance Muzaffar Said on the 60% decline in provincial non-tax receipts. “The finance minister has to explain how it falls to such a level,” he said.

Referring to the recent spat between the political regime and provincial civil servants, he said 700 officers are protesting. ‘A government committee is working on the issue, but protest leaders are being transferred despite the matter being under discussion. Is this not an insult for them? The revenue targets were missed because officers are reluctant to work.”

He said foreign project assistance was down 50% compared to 2015-16, while PTI Chairperson Imran Khan claimed there would be rows of investors. “Where are these rows?”

The ANP leader criticised the government for giving hydel power projects to private sectors and not taking loans for them.

Minister for Elementary and Secondary Education Atif Khan, while responding to Babak, said, “We don’t have enough funds to sponsor all the hydel development projects. We thought of involving the private sector to generate electricity and projects of just 518 megawatts were offered to it.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 18^th, 2016.