Alleged corruption: PML-N govt must be held accountable, says Khursheed Shah

National Assemby opposition leader discusses Musharraf, farmers’ scheme and debt crises

SUKKUR: Pervez Musharraf is in the habit of spending money to hold public meetings, said Syed Khursheed Ahmed Shah, National Assembly opposition leader, while addressing the media at his residence on Saturday night.

During a private meeting he (Musharraf) confessed that, despite spending millions of rupees, nobody arrived at the airport to welcome him, said Shah. Speaking about Musharraf's statement in which he claimed that he started using a cell phone in 2009, Khursheed Shah said that "Musharraf has issued this statement so that nobody tries to get its record from the company."

Farmers' rights 

Only two per cent farmers attended the Kissan Convention, said Shah. The rest were Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) workers, he claimed. The Kissan package is just a lollipop for the farmers, he alleged. He threatened to stage a protest with the farmers if the government failed to announce the support price of their yield. All the points mentioned in the Kissan package were already announced by the finance minister in his budget speech of 2015-16, he claimed.

Corruption allegations

The volume of foreign debt was Rs15 trillion in 2013 and in just two years of the  PML — N government’s rule, it has increased to Rs17 trillion, he said. The federal government, despite paying Rs480 billion for the circular debt, has failed miserably to bring an end to load shedding, he remarked. The motorway being constructed from Lahore to Hakimullah costs Rs162 billion and Rs70 billion has not been accounted for, he said. Therefore, the matter should be brought to the public accounts committee, he added.

The government has charged 45 per cent tax on diesel alone, said Shah while talking about direct and indirect taxation.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 5^th, 2015.