Opposition creates pandemonium during budget speech

ISLAMABAD: The National Assembly proceedings during the budget speech of Finance Minister Miftah Ismail witnessed strong protest, uproar and walkout by the opposition parties against presentation of the whole fiscal year budget and that too by an unelected minister who took oath of his office only on Friday.

The opposition memberswhile protesting against presentation of the budget speech by Miftah Ismail, who is not a parliamentarian, also raised slogan of ‘Vote Ko Izzat Do’ while surrounding the finance minister and tearing copies of budget documents. In the meanwhile, the members from the government benches remained standing close to seat of Miftah Ismail to prevent any attack on him.

The House also witnessed exchange of abusive and harsh language between two fire-brand parliamentarians, Chaudhry Abid Sher Ali of the PML-N and Murad Saeed of the PTI, as they came closer to each other twice but other members averted any physical clash.

The members from the opposition parties walked out of the House while raising slogans. The opposition parties had already planned protest on floor of the National Assembly if the government went ahead with presentation of the whole financial year budget instead of giving budgetary proposals for four months.

Speaking on a point of order, Opposition Leader Syed Khursheed Shah reminded the government Nawaz Sharif’s narrative ‘Vote Ko Izzat Do’. “Instead of following Nawaz Sharif’s narrative, the government today has played havoc with respect of vote by getting budget speech delivered by an unelected person,” he said.

Khursheed Shah questioned why an un-elected person was brought in the House to announce the budget when an elected Minister of State for Finance Rana Muhammad Afzal was there to do the same job.

The National Assembly hall also echoed with slogans of ‘Shame Shame’ while Khursheed Shah was criticising the role of Miftah Ismail as federal minister. The opposition leader said the government doesn’t have the right to present budget for the whole financial year, saying that by doing so, the right of the next government had been snatched.

Shah Mehmood Qureshi of the PTI, while resenting presence of Miftah Ismail in the House, said the government was setting a wrong precedent by asking an un-elected person to announce the budget.

At the same time, he said the government was announcing a budget which could not be termed as federal budget as it did not enjoy approval of the National Economic Council (NEC) due to walkout by the three chief ministers.

“There is also no reason for the government, which is going to complete its tenure in one month, to present the whole year’s budget,” he said. Speaking on the occasion, Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi said the government felt it as its responsibility to announce the budget so that system continues to run. He said the PML-N would be in power again after four months.

At the same time, the prime minister said the upcoming government would have the power to make changes in the budget. He said there was nothing wrong constitutionally if Miftah Ismail announced the budget. "It was decision of the federal cabinet that Miftah Ismail will announce the budget," he said.