Senate proceedings: ‘Armed forces shouldn’t engage in commercial ventures’

ANP senator hits hard at finance minister’s plan to audit the defence budget.


Qamar Zaman/zahid Gishkori June 14, 2011

ISLAMABAD:


The Awami National Party (ANP), a key coalition partner of the ruling Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) on Monday demanded that the armed forces restrict themselves from engaging in commercial ventures.


“The army should not engage itself in any business other than that concerning its homeland,” said Senator Haji Adeel, while addressing the Senate. Earlier, he noted that defence authorities had been conducting business in the fields of banking, cement industry, wedding halls, etc.

Speaking on the floor of the house, Adeel hit hard at the ambitious plan presented by Finance Minister Dr Abdul Hafeez Shaikh during his budget speech, to conduct an audit of the defence budget and eliminate corruption. “How would this happen?” Adeel questioned, adding that the government had not shared a plan to accomplish the job.

“We stand by our military in the war against terror on the only condition that the military comes up with details of their expenditure,” he said amid an apparent unease in the Senate on the issue of the controversial nomination of leader of the opposition.

Earlier, the ANP withdrew its decision to boycott the budget session after a meeting with President Asif Ali Zardari and Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah. The ANP senator said terrorism was not merely Pakistan’s issue and asked India and Pakistan to support each other in the war. “If we lose this battle against terrorism, it could reach the streets of Mumbai and Calcutta.”

Senator Adeel said terrorism and corruption are major challenges facing the country which should be addressed on a priority-basis.  He demanded that arrears with regard to net Hydel profit should be provided to Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa at the earliest. Earlier, Senate Chairman Farooq H Naek adopted 66 recommendations for possible incorporation in the budget for the next financial year.

Senate Standing Committee on Finance chaired by MQM Senator Ahmad Ali was assigned to prepare recommendations. “Taxation laws should also be invoked in Gilgit-Baltistan, FATA and PATA to eliminate discrimination between different parts of the country,” it suggested.

The PML-N which kept itself at a distance from the budget, did not take part in the proceedings pertaining to the controversial nomination of JUI-F Senator Ghafoor Haidri as leader of the opposition.

Taking part in the debate on the new federal budget, Surriya Ameeruddin, Sabir Baloch and Abbas Khan Afridi stressed the need for broadening the tax base to generate more revenues to be spent on the development of the country and welfare of the people.

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

COMMENTS (1)

Mirza | 12 years ago | Reply I salute the ANP leadership. Thanks, you are true leaders.
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