Daily Times

Senators from both sides of the aisle on Tuesday participated in the debate on the budget 2023-24 in the Upper House of the Parliament and presented various proposals to make it more people-friendly.

Taking part in the discussion, Senator Mohsin Aziz said more resources should be generated to overcome economic issues, particularly vigorous efforts for more revenue collection.

Senator Irfan-ul-Haque Siddiqui appreciated the government’s decision of allocating an amount of Rs 1 billion in the budget for health insurance of working journalists and expressed the hope that the provinces would also follow suit.

He also hailed sufficient increase in the salaries of government employees upto 35% considering their problems. He questioned, “How investment will come when agitation, sit-ins and protests are held every day?” The opposition had an important role in the government affairs but it was their own decision to leave the Parliament, he added. Senator Siddiqui said various innovative steps were taken to boost the economy during the tenure of Nawaz Sharif when the inflation rate was under 3 percent and the country was on the right track of economic progress.

Senator Syed Waqar Mehdi said the budget was presented at a time when the country was facing economic issues due to weak policies of the past government, which had failed to deliver.

He said funds should be released for the flood-affected people of Sindh province who faced loss of lives and property during the 2022 floods. He appreciated the allocation of funds for working journalists to address their health issues and suggested to also consider their family members.

Senator Raza Rabbani said the problems of flood-affected people in Sindh and Balochistan should be considered and their due grant amount should be disbursed. He said political stability was need of the hour which was interlinked with the economic stability of the country. He demanded strict action against those who were involved in May 9 incidents and the state must enforce its writ and arrest all masterminds.

Senator Prof Dr Mehar Taj Rohani suggested to allocate more funds in the health budget to address medical problems of the people and starting new health projects. She said more focus should be on prevention aspects of the diseases like diabetes and hypertension which are silent killer diseases.

She said more attention on preventive measures means protecting various precious lives and making the country’s people healthy and energetic. She suggested to make allocations for preventive programmes. Senator Molvi Faiz Muhammad said the government should pay more focus on natural resources in the Balochistan province to generate more revenue.