QWP leader terms federal budget deficit one

PESHAWAR: The newly appointed vice-chairperson of Qaumi Watan Party (QWP) Dr Faiza Rashid has rejected the federal budget and termed it one of the biggest deficit budgets in the history of the country.

Addressing a news conference at Peshawar Press Club on Monday, she recalled that the State Bank of Pakistan had $59 billion foreign reserves in 2018 but the sitting government destroyed everything during the last 18 months. Flanked by the QWP other leaders , Arshad Afridi, Tariq Tanoli, Tariq Ahmad Khan and Akhlaq, she said the budget always reflected the vision of the ruling political party but the sitting inefficient rulers had no vision for the welfare and prosperity of people. Dr Faiza, a former MPA, also said that the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) rulers were now hiding behind the coronavirus pandemic. She said the so-called champions of reforms and change could pay one installment of country’s loan only. Dr Faiza Rashid said the PTI government had not allocated any funds for the welfare of the poor but every facility had been provided to industrialist class.

She said that on the one hand, per unit cost of electricity had increased in the PTI government and on the other, the recent reduction in petrol prices could not take the benefit to people as an artificial shortage of the commodity had been created. Criticising the government for ignoring public sector employees and pensioners, Dr Faiza said the PTI government allocated Rs10 billion for locusts but did nothing for them. She said the rulers have also ignored the poor farmers, whose crops had been destroyed by locusts.

The QWP leader said “someone else” was running the affairs of the government and the sitting rulers usually come to know about the decisions through the TV channels. Dr Faiza Rashid said the government has not allocated any fund for the overseas Pakistanis living a miserable life abroad.