Daily Times

Punjab Assembly Deputy Speaker Sardar Dost Muhammad Mazari was annoyed over the absence of finance minister and finance secretary from the budget session as both were not present in the House on Friday when the session started. As the session started on Friday, the opposition pointed out that the finance minister and secretary are not present here during the budget session. Deputy Speaker Mazari took notice and said that it is really unfortunate that both are absent. If the Finance Minister himself will show lack of seriousness during the general debate over budget then how one can expect seriousness from other members of the House, said Deputy Speaker. He then adjourned the House for 15 minutes while waiting for the Finance Minister Makhdoom Hashim Jawan Bakht who came to House after 40 minutes and then the session resumed again. Mazari directed the Finance Minister and Finance Secretary to remain present in the House throughout the budget session.

Parliamentary Leader of Rah-e-Haq party and an ally of the government Maulana Muawia Azam took the floor to participate in the general debate on budget. He demanded that the next budget of Punjab must be interest free as interest-based system is against the Islamic injunctions. He also said that the tax collected from the sale of liquor shouldn’t be included in the budget.

PML-N senior MPA Sardar Awais Laghari said that Nawaz Sharif was taunted as ‘Friend of Modi’ by PTI but now Imran Khan himself gave Kashmir to Modi while also helping India to become member of United Nations Security Council that is utter failure of our foreign policy. He was of the view that the PML-N built motorway for the people of South Punjab that decreased 11-hour long travel to just six hours. “The PTI mocked the people of South Punjab by announcing just a Secretariat there. We reject it,” said Laghari, who hails from DG Khan district of South Punjab. He further added that the PTI government failed to provide health facilities and ventilators to the poor people during this hard time when we are facing a pandemic.

PPP Parliamentary Leader Syed Hassan Murtaza also came down hard over the government for its failed policies. The PPP leader said that the Prime Minister gives a message during his Sindh visit that is a threat for the federation as he didn’t invite the CM Sindh in any meeting. Both the federal and Punjab governments didn’t give any relief to the government employees in budget but the Sindh government increased their salaries by 10 percent despite the fact that they are ‘looters and plunderers’, said PPP leader sarcastically. He also demanded from the Punjab government to increase the salaries of government employees. The PPP MPA said that the CM Punjab is reluctant to get the remaining amount of the province from the federal government under the NFC Award. “Please take back the World Cup of 1992 from us and give us our old Pakistan,” said PPP leader.

PTI MPAs Syed Yawar Abbas Bukhari and Sadia Suhail Rana and PML-N’s Khalil Tahir Sandhu also took part in the general debate going on in Punjab Assembly. The session was later adjourned to meet again on Monday at 2 PM.