Opposition parties in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) Assembly on Monday raised serious concerns over the provincial budget 2025-26, calling it misleading, unrealistic, and detrimental to key public sectors such as education, health, and development.
During a fiery session of the KPK Assembly, opposition leader in the house Dr Ibadullah accused the government of presenting false figures, stating that it claimed only Rs 550 million was allocated under the Federal Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP), whereas official documents confirm the actual allocation is Rs 538 billion. They criticized the treasury benches for allegedly misleading the House and the public.
“The budget was not prepared transparently or in consultation with elected representatives,” remarked the opposition leader.
He questioned the surplus budget while saying that the provincial government was entirely depending on Federal Support, foreign aid and loans.
According to opposition leader, 93pc of the provincial budget relies on federal transfers, loans, and foreign aid, while the province contributes only 7pc of its own resources.
“How can this be termed a surplus budget?” he asked. With expenditures exceeding 12pc, he argued that claims of fiscal discipline were baseless.
Recalling 12 years of PTI government in the province, he said, the government borrowed over Rs 800 billion. Yet, he alleged that the funds were not invested in public welfare projects. Instead, they were used for political protests, media campaigns, and unfulfilled infrastructure promises.
“If last year’s budget was truly surplus, then why did the Assembly pass a supplementary budget?” he asked.
The opposition leader also focused on the failure of the KP government to utilize the full development budget.
According to him, 35pc of the current year’s development funds lapsed, continuing a 12-year trend where the government failed to fully implement its development plans.
Ibad said projects like the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system remain incomplete, while, in contrast, Punjab completed three major infrastructure projects under former CM Shehbaz Sharif.
Pointing out corruption and mismanagement in the province, he said several corruption scandals were also raised, including those involving the Kalam Jabba tourism project, solar energy initiatives, wheat procurement, Kohistan scam and others.
Opposition leader accused the government of political favoritism by allocating resources to select constituencies and ignoring underdeveloped regions.
He condemned the lack of even a single Provincial Finance Commission (PFC) meeting, terming it a violation of the constitution.
He said in the education sector, the government was accused of misleading the public by distributing “free books” while old books were provided to children.
No new schools, colleges, or universities were built. “Forty percent of children still cannot read Urdu, and sixty percent are unable to do basic math,” said the legislator.
He said that it was ironic that the government was planning to impose taxes on private schools, adding that such measures would further erode access to quality education.
Referring to health sector, he said over 60pc of Basic Health Units (BHUs) were reportedly non-functional. The MTI system has allegedly disrupted hospitals’ operations, and the health card initiative lacks proper structure and oversight.
Giving his suggestions, he proposed several reforms, including creating fair rules for equitable development funding, holding PFC meetings in line with constitutional requirements, establishing new schools in underprivileged areas, promoting research in universities and health institutions, investing in youth training, water resources, and tourism.
In conclusion, the opposition leader on behalf of the all opposition parties rejected the KPK budget in its current form, asserting it does not serve the needs of the people and lacks transparency, vision, and public welfare priorities.