PPP criticizes upcoming budget

Islamabad: Secretary Finance Pakistan People’s Party, Senator Salim Mandviwala addressed a press conference in Islamabad on Wednesday with Shazia Atta Marri, Faisal Karim Kundi and Haider Zaman Qureshi.

PTI’s leader Imran Khan has spoken nothing but corruption over the last1000 days in power but his own government is engulfed in corruption scandals. Imran Khan failed to introduce reforms in any sector. The power crisis has escalated in the last three years and the water dispute between provinces is escalating. Agriculture was destroyed and a food exporting country was turned into a food importing country. Imran Khan had promised 50 lac houses but not a single house was handed over to any person.

GSP Plus status will not be available for Pakistan which was made available by the PPP. The government failed to fulfill any of its promises in 1,027 days in power. Taxes of Rs 750 billion have been levied on the poor people of Pakistan. The government has increased taxes on the people whereas the GDP growth is zero.

The government is blaming every failure on the Covid-19. The covid-19 vaccine was not available for months in the country.  Tax collection was doubled during PPP and has now reduced. In terms of dollars, the PPP had collected 36 billion dollars whereas the PTI government has collected only 26 billion dollars. The Benazir Bhutto Income Support Program cannot be renamed because it was introduced by an act of the parliament. The PPP had doubled salaries and pensions.

The IMF did not press for an increase in interest rate but the governor SBP increased it. The governor will be held accountable for 700 billion rupees.  It is ironic that the government was not aware of Governor SBP’s actions.

Tax payer data should be collected from all over the country through NADRA. There is no focus on the agriculture sector. Asif Ali Zardari says there is no need to import anything in this country. Businesses were shut down during the Covid-19 pandemic in countries around the world but their employees were paid salaries by the government. People are paying 7 percent tax on Roshan digital account. Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has left the matter of passing the budget to the Leader of the Opposition. Steel Mill and PIA are closed then how will they be downsized, he asked. The salaries of railway employees are provided by the Ministry of Finance and not from the railway account.

Shazia Marri said that IRSA is not fulfilling its responsibility in the case of water distribution among the provinces. The government should pay attention to the issue of water and solve it, she demanded. She said that the government’s performance is zero. If the performance of the Sindh government is so bad then how is the PPP winning the by-elections, Shazia Marri asked.