Show of power: Despite 600 cut motions, Rs869 billion budget passed

Sindh Assembly speaker takes up a few of the 600 cut motions, only to reject all of them

KARACHI: In an apparent show of power amid protests from the opposition, the Rs869-billion budget and finance bill for 2016-2017 was passed at the Sindh Assembly session on Sunday.

Members of opposition parties had moved around 600 cut motions against the grants demanded by the Sindh government to reduce unnecessary, non-development expenditure allocated in various departments. The speaker took up a few of the 600 cut motions during the session, only to reject all of them and, using his powers, give the floor to the treasury members to present the bill.

Apart from this, the government also presented a Rs44-billion supplementary budget for the year 2015-2016, which was also passed with majority votes. When the budget was being passed, the session hall echoed with slogans such as 'Shame, shame', 'Go corruption go' and 'No corruption no'. Members of all the opposition parties, including the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), Pakistan Muslim League - Nawaz, Pakistan Muslim League - Functional (PML-F) and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, tore the finance bill and agenda copies in protest against the government's attitude towards passing the budget in haste.



To this, the speaker responded that the budget presented on June 11 has been discussed for a good 10 days. "Almost all the lawmakers from treasury and opposition have spoken on it, so it is high time to pass the budget today," he stated. Nonetheless, opposition members sought more time, requesting that their cut motions be taken up. These cut motions included the expenditure of Chief Minister House and Governor House and purchase of luxury vehicles and furniture for officers. Not a single cut motion was passed. "It is enough now," said the speaker. "The time has come to go home."

Earlier, education and parliamentary affairs minister Nisar Ahmed Khuhro requested the speaker to expedite the process of passing the budget, saying that it will just take more days to take up the cut motions submitted by the opposition parties. "You have powers to relax all rules and make a decision on it," Khuhro said to the speaker, hinting at getting rid of the cut motions. After this, the speaker winded up the discussion and asked the finance minister to move the motion to pass the budget. Later, the budget was passed with majority votes and speaker adjourned the session indefinitely.

‘Land mafia-terrorism link’

Speaking at the session, Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah said the land mafia is the major factor behind terrorism in Karachi.

"Most of the targeted killings have happened because of disputes over land," said Shah, responding to MPAs' queries. He added that influential people are involved in land grabbing in Karachi, claiming that he was approached by many people demanding favours in land allotments but he refused.  "The government is also very active against this mafia and has evacuated 6,500 acres occupied by these influential people," he said, adding that when the Pakistan Peoples Party was in the opposition in General (retd) Pervez Musharraf's dictatorship, some elements set the revenue record of Karachi on fire in order to tamper with them.

Earlier, as the post-budget session started with speaker Agha Siraj Durrani and finance minister demanding more funds for anti-encroachment cell of the Sindh government, PML-F MPA Nusrat Seher Abbasi objected to it. "The government has failed to retrieve thousands of acres of land under the occupation of land mafia," she said. The finance minister refuted her claim, saying that the government has made all-out efforts to provide relief to the people.

Supplementary grant for jails

During the session, the finance minister also presented a supplementary grant for the year 2015-2016 for jails in Sindh. Opposition members, including Naila Munir and Heer Soho of MQM and Imtiaz Shaikh of PML-F, opposed the grant and demanded of the government to initiate a crackdown in jails, which have now become a nursery for terrorism. "The notorious terrorists languishing in jails are operating from there," said Soho.

Bonus for employees

After the budget was passed, the chief minister announced a bonus in the salaries for three months for employees of the finance and planning and development departments and the Sindh Assembly secretariat for their hard work in the budget process.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 27^th, 2016.