Minister admits in KP Assembly govt facing financial crunch

Insists public properties being leased out, not sold

PESHAWAR: The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly was told on Monday that provincial government was facing financial crunch but there was no crisis in paying salaries and meeting the current expenditures.

Finance Minister Muzaffar Said was replying to a question from Mehmood Khan Bhittani of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) who had said the province was faced with a financial crisis and funds were not being released for development.

 The minister admitted there was a financial crunch and problem with the meeting development expenditures was there as well. However, he said the government had arranged Rs12 billion to overcoming the crisis.

Mehmood Khan said neither the finance minister was ready to brief the members nor funds were being released to the districts for the development schemes. Only Rs500,000 is being released to each district when 10 million is demanded for development, he explained.

Taking the floor, Sardar Hussain Babak of the Awami National Party (ANP) said the province was facing financial crisis, government lands were being sold out and loans were being sought from international agencies for running the government affairs.

“The province has not been hit by any natural calamity. Then why there is shortage of funds?” he questioned. He said the assembly was first adjourned for the Raiwind sit-in and now it would be adjourned for Islamabad sit-in.

Munawwar Khan of the JUI-F said the province was in trouble due to Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), which was fighting the Punjab’s war in the province. Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz parliamentary leader Sardar Aurangzeb Nalotha also criticized the provincial government for its policies and said development had been stopped and even funds were not released for repair and maintenance.

The finance minister said senior ministers Sikandar Sherpao and Inayatullah had worked out a strategy for releasing the funds for development projects. He said talks were under way with the federal government and it was hoped that funds would be released soon.

Inayatullah Khan said the last year Annual Development Programme (ADP) was not realistic as some facts and figures were included in the ADP on the Centre’s advice for which the funds were not released and the province faced crisis.

The province claimed Rs110 billion as hydel net profit but the federal government accepted to release Rs70 billion only. The minister said the ADP was then revised and Rs12 billion was earmarked for priority uplift schemes. He promised that the opposition members would also get development funds.

He denied any government commercial property was being sold out but added that either it would be leased out or the government would commercialize such properties. The minister said the World Bank loan, to be released next year, was actually a grant as it was on low interest rate and for a long period.

The bill for regularising the services of teaching assistants was tabled in the assembly despite the fact there was a difference of opinion between the Law Department and advocate general. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser announced October 26 for debate on the 8th National Financial Commission award after the minister criticised the federal government and accused it of intentionally delaying its announcement.