MNAs losing interest in budget debate

ISLAMABAD: As the budget debate entered its fourth day, the thin attendance indicated that members of the National Assembly were losing interest in it.

Rather than focusing on the state of the economy and the budget, most members, particularly from the ruling Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and the Pakistan Muslim League–Nawaz (PML-N) hurled accusations against each other.

A hard-hitting speech by Nadeem Afzal Gondal, a PPP lawmaker from Punjab, pointing out PML-N-led Punjab government’s “failures” led to a tit-for-tat response that injected some excitement in an otherwise lifeless House.

Gondal asked the opposition PML-N to redirect its energies and focus on opposing the “wrongdoings” of the military and the judiciary instead of criticising government policies merely for the sake of it.

His speech also contained a veiled criticism of the Punjab administration for its alleged “patronising” of Deobandi madrasahs which he said were a security threat for the entire province.

However, budgetary matters were not completely ignored. Akram Masih Gil, a minority member from the Pakistan Muslim League–Quaid, blamed the government for ignoring religious minorities in the budget and staged a walkout to protest this. He said that the Rs156 million allocated to run the affairs of minorities was not enough and urged the government to enhance the amount.

He also reminded Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani of his two-year-old promise to build an interfaith complex in Islamabad so that followers of different religions could engage with each other.

Members from different political parties urged the government to increase the minimum wage to Rs10,000 a month and take effective measures to overcome the energy crisis.

Rana Muhammad Ishaq of PMLN-N urged the government to take effective measures on priority basis to overcome the energy crisis. He also stressed the need to pay more attention to the development of the agricultural sector.

Dr Azra Fazal of the PPP termed the budget people-friendly, saying that efforts have been made to ensure sustainable economic growth.

She urged the government to mobilise all possible resources to improve the socio-economic conditions of the people. Khushbakht Shujaat of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement emphasised the need for diverting resources to the federating units so that effective measures could be taken for the improvement of the neglected segments of society. Meanwhile, Tanveer Hussain of the PML-N expressed concern over withdrawal of subsidies on food commodities and said this will harm small farmers.

Published in the Express Tribune, June 12^th, 2010.