Shrinking wallets?: FATA senators claim drop in affluence

Only two lawmakers show increase in wealth .

ISLAMABAD: Most senators from the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) have informed the election commission of their depleting worth of assets compared to last year.

A majority of these lawmakers have a share in line revenues from natural resources. However, there is no mention of such incomes or their details.

There are a total of eight senators from Fata. Their collective assets amounted to Rs2.1 billion in the last fiscal year, but in their written statements this year, the figure stands at just Rs1.3 billion.

Each senator from Fata, on average, has assets worth Rs162 million, while last year the figure stood at Rs273 million.

According to the data released by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), none of the lawmakers from the tribal belt have declared any property they own abroad, nor have they mentioned any vehicles in personal use.

According to Senator Malik Abdul Raziq, his assets have depleted by Rs145 million since last year. He owned property worth Rs645 million previously, but now it stands at just Rs500 million. Raziq is still, however, the richest senator from FATA; last year it was Muhammad Haris Khan with assets worth Rs724 million.

Senator Haji Khan’s assets have depleted by Rs105 million, from Rs340 to Rs 235 million, while Senator Abbas Khan has declared assets worth Rs143 million compared to last year’s Rs247 million.

Another senator from Fata, Idrees Khan Safi has also shown a Rs100 million deduction in his wealth. He owned two cars worth Rs4 million previously, but owns none now, according to the data.

Senator Rashid Ahmed said he has assets worth just Rs1.8 million, while he had mentioned last year that he owned property worth Rs38 million. In the asset declaration forms, he listed the value of his agricultural land and natural resources mines as “unlimited.”

Senators Saleh Shah and Hafiz Rashid Ahmed are the only lawmakers from Fata whose assets have appreciated. They declared an appreciation of Rs4.2 and Rs3.6 million, respectively, in their wealth.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 24^th, 2012.