Budget fails to reflect public aspirations: Sikandar Sherpao

PESHAWAR: Qaumi Watan Party (QWP) provincial Chairman Sikandar Hayat Khan Sherpao on Tuesday said the federal budget failed to reflect the aspirations of the people and offered no relief to the public, business community as well as the agricultural sector.

In a statement, he said the budget lacked any measures aimed at economic growth, agricultural revival, or public welfare. He warned that the imposition of massive taxes was likely to have severe negative impacts, particularly on agriculture, which was already facing unprecedented decline.

He pointed out that inflation was at its highest level and agricultural degradation was pushing nearly half of the country’s population below the poverty line. “Instead of curbing its extravagant expenditures, the government has increased them by 17 percent, and this burden will ultimately fall on the poor,” he remarked.

Highlighting regional disparities, Sikandar Sherpao said around 42 percent of the country’s population now lived below the poverty line - a number that had surged to 48 percent in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and nearly 70 percent in Balochistan. “Despite depriving smaller provinces of their due resources, the government is imposing heavy taxes on them,” he added.

Sikandar Sherpao also criticised the government for once again failing to allocate promised funds for the merged tribal districts, warning that continued neglect would lead to further underdevelopment and despair in the region.

He expressed alarm over the state of agriculture, noting that agricultural output recorded a sharp decline from 6.4 percent growth last year to just 0.65 percent this year. “This is a matter of serious concern, given our heavy economic reliance on agriculture,” he stated, accusing the government of using IMF conditions as a pretext to overburden the sector with unjust taxes.

The QWP leader further said there was little hope for a significant increase in exports under the current circumstances. Regarding the 10 percent salary increase for government employees, he termed it deceptive. “The government has taken back double the amount through excessive taxation,” he said.

He also questioned the rising value of the US dollar in Pakistan while it was declining globally, blaming it on flawed government policies. “A lower dollar rate would reduce national debt and petroleum product prices,” he observed.

Expressing skepticism over the government’s ambitious tax target of Rs14,000 billion for the next fiscal year, Sikandar Sherpao noted that it had failed to meet last year’s target of Rs12,700 billion. “How can the government expect to achieve an even higher target when it couldn’t meet the previous one?” he asked.