Punjab Assembly: Opp leader disappoints with budget response

Raja Riaz criticises govt spending, says PPP will create Seraiki province.

LAHORE:

Punjab Assembly Opposition Leader Raja Riaz lashed out at the government for preparing a “shameful” budget for the next fiscal year on Monday, but undermined his criticisms by getting several facts wrong in his speech.

The day’s proceedings, dedicated to a general discussion on the budget plan, started at 4.45pm. Leader of the House Shahbaz Sharif entered the assembly building in the middle of Riaz’s speech.

The opposition leader questioned the government’s financial management, saying their “temporary finance ministers” were ignorant and so the budget had been prepared by bureaucrats. He noted that Kamran Michael during Friday’s budget speech repeatedly applauded the vision of PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif, saying that he had guided the Punjab government to make the budget. Riaz said that maybe Nawaz Sharif should be chief minister since his younger brother “has lost his mind”. He made several mistakes in his speech, which Law Minister Rana Sanaullah took pleasure in pointing out. Riaz said that the governmet had allocated Rs1,936 billion to the Annual Development Programme for 2010-2011. Sanaullah interrupted to state that the budget was Rs193.6 billion.

Riaz said the Punjab government had only used Rs138 billion of the budget and the rest of the funds had lapsed. Sanaullah again interrupted to point out that Rs105 billion had been spent. “The person who prepared your speech should be beaten with shoes,” he said, adding that he was willing to train the opposition leader so he could give a speech with accurate figures.

Riaz, embarrassed, tried at one point to consult with former finance minister Tanvir Ashraf Kaira, but had to go back to his seat after strong opposition from the treasury benches.

The opposition leader criticised the spending at the Chief Minister’s Secretariat, noting that it had stood at Rs290 million in 2009-10, when it was allocated Rs160 million, and at Rs460 million in 2010-11, when it had been allocated Rs260 million. He said that the finance minister had announced in his budget speech that the Punjab government had cut spending at the Secretariat by 25 per cent, but it had also been allocated Rs260.64 million for 2011-12 and there was no sign of the austerity measures promised by the government.

Riaz criticised the Punjab government’s Sasti Roti scheme, noting that its subsidy had decreased by Rs2 billion from last year. He said that the scheme would likely be abolished this year because of it failure. He said the funds for the Punjab Land Development Company would be used to buy turncoats.

He said the budget was silent about how much had been allocated for the Ashiana Housing and Yellow Cab schemes, projects which had already been tried and failed in the past. He said the government also had not explained where it would get the water for the agricultural land it had promised to give to graduates of agriculture universities.

Riaz criticised the Danish School system, saying the government should focus instead on its 63,000 schools which lack basic facilities. He said he did not believe that the government would release all the money it had announced it was allocating for south Punjab. He said that the Pakistan Peoples Party would put the creation of a Seraiki province on its manifesto for the next general elections.

Later, Riaz accused Sanaullah of disrupting his speech. Sanaullah claimed that Riaz, at the earlier business advisory committee meeting, had sought three days for his speech, “but unfortunately he could only talk for an hour”. The session will resume today.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 14th, 2011.