JI condemns huge increase in salaries of ministers

PESHAWAR: Jamaat-e-Islami Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (Central) Chief Abdul Wasi has condemned the approval of a record 188 percent increase in the salaries of federal ministers and ministers of state, which he termed as an insult to the 47 percent of Pakistanis living below the poverty line.

In a statement issued on Monday, he criticized what he called the hypocrisy of the federal government. “On one hand, the rulers constantly claim that the national treasury is empty, while on the other, they have signed off on an ordinance approving an outrageous salary increase for handpicked ministers who were imposed on the nation through controversial Form 47 results,” he said.

He added that while millions of citizens face unemployment, hunger, and a lack of basic healthcare, the government has raised ministers’ salaries from Rs200,000 to Rs519,000. “It’s not just an unjustified burden on the national exchequer, but a robbery,” he said.

The most serious issue was that the pay increase will be implemented retrospectively from January 1, 2025, he said.Abdul Wasi said this move is shameful given the worsening economic conditions in the country. “Due to the criminal negligence and poor governance of the ruling elite, corruption is rampant and the common man is being forced to pay the price for the luxuries of the few,” he said.