Passage of ministers’ salary bill triggers heated debate in KP Assembly

PESHAWAR: The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly on Friday passed the KP Ministers’ Salaries, Perks and Privileges (Amendment) Bill, 2021 after a heated debate as the opposition lawmakers complained that the perks and privileges of the ministers were being increased but Members Provincial Assembly (MPAs) were ignored.

The amended act recommended payment of ministers’ utility bills by the departments concerned. The members from the government and opposition exchanged arguments over the passage of the bill.

The treasury benches argued that the bill would help save the public exchequer as ministers’ bills were already paid by the government but now the department concerned would pay the bills to avoid penalty due to delayed payment.

However, the opposition members complained that the MPAs from both the treasury and opposition were ignored and only those holding ministerial portfolios would benefit from the passage of the bill.

Nighat Orakzai of Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) said that eight bulletproof vehicles were reportedly purchased for the President’s House while the Prime Minister’s salary was increased to Rs900,000 after arguing that he could not run his expenditures in Rs200,000.

She said the Governor’s salary was increased to Rs800,000 from Rs80,000 but the salaries of MPAs were not raised even though they were facing hardships in meeting their expenses. “Is this the austerity Prime Minister Imran Khan had promised?” she asked.

Sardar Hussain Babak of Awami National Party (ANP) also advocated Nighat Orakzai’s point, saying irrespective of whether they were in the government or opposition the salaries of MPAs should be increased to the same level.

In his reply, Minister Qalandar Khan Lodhi opposed the proposal, arguing that being public representatives the elected members should serve voluntarily instead of demanding huge salaries.

Sardar Hussain Babak and Nighat Orakzai challenged Qalandar Lodhi, saying the ministers should surrender their salaries, official cars and residences then the MPAs would not make any demand.

Special Assistant to the Chief Minister on Information Kamran Bangash said the salaries of the president and the prime minister had not been raised.

He maintained that instead the salaries of the provincial ministers were decreased in the 2019-20 budget. He said the provincial government had not purchased any vehicle as it was following the austerity drive.

He said there was no new incentive for the ministers in the bill but just the mode of payment was changed. “Instead of reimbursement the bill would be directly paid by the departments. The government would not oppose an increase in MPAs’ perks and privileges, but the matter should not be linked to this bill,” he argued.

Speaker Mushtaq Ghani said he would talk to the chief minister regarding increase in MPAs’ salaries, adding, the bill was being passed conditionally to enhance the members’ salaries.

To a question by Sardar Aurangzeb Nalotha regarding the recruitment of non-locals as class-IV employees, Mushtaq Ghani ruled that government departments should not appoint non-locals.

He sent out of the House the officers of the excise, establishment and finance departments for coming to attend the assembly proceedings without preparation. He said the attitude of the bureaucrats taking the House proceedings for granted was not tolerable.

He asked Minister for Labour and Culture Shaukat Yousafzai to inform the chief minister about the absence of ministers, the bureaucrats’ attitude and non-seriousness of the treasury benches and report to the House on Monday as to what action was taken.

The House also unanimously adopted the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Violence against Women (Protection and Prevention) Amendment Bill, 2021 and KP Board of Technical and Commerce Education (Amendment) Bill, 2021 before the session was adjourned until January 18.

The bill was moved by Minister for Social Welfare, Dr Hisham Inamullah Khan.

Dr Hisham Inamullah said that the bill was aimed at protecting women from all types of violence.

The minister said that the government would constitute a District Protection Committee in each district which would submit a biannual report to the Chairperson of Provincial Commission on Status of Women.

Earlier, fateha was offered for the departed souls of senior journalist Baqir Moosvi and the husband of senior female journalist Nadia Sabohi. PPP lawmaker Nighat Orakzai suggested that financial assistance should be paid to the bereaved families.