KARACHI, April 27: The Sindh Finance Minister Syed Sardar Ahmad on Tuesday declared in clear terms that his government did not recognise in any way the "six or seven options" offered by the federal government for a consensus agreement of all the provinces on resources distribution.
"I have suggested for convening of Sindh Cabinet next week to decide on taking a position on the horizontal and vertical distribution of divisible pool between the federation and the provinces and among the provinces," he informed a gathering of Aurat Foundation, a well-known non-governmental organization (NGO), which organized a one-day Consultation with Parliamentarians on National Finance Commission (NFC) and Gender Mainstreaming in Budget.
"I know of six options which offer a small weightage to resource generation of the province," he informed the participants and disclosed that Federal Finance Minister Shaukat Aziz on his query told him that there was a seventh option, which gives a big share to Balochistan.
He made a categorical statement that he would not put his signature on any NFC formula if the distribution of resources between provinces was not based on multiple factors that should include resource generation; the 2.5 per cent sales tax collection is kept out of the divisible pool and provided to provinces on the basis of 1998 audited accounts of octroi in which Sindh has 46 per cent share and the federation should not be allowed to retain 5 per cent as collection charges.
"There is no consensus at all," he made it clear while stating that the finance minister Shaukat Aziz is not ready to offer more than 47 per cent of the divisible pool while all the four provinces want a 50 per cent share that too "after keeping aside 2.5 per cent sales tax collection and retaining not more than 2 per cent of collection charges."
He reminded his audience that the NWFP had repeatedly asserted to reject any NFC formula that did not include hydel profit component. The Balochistan government too wants a just share in gas development surcharge and Sindh wants revenue generation be given due weightage in the resource distribution arrangement.
The Sindh Finance Minister disclosed that federal government was appointing Chairman of an arbitration committee to settle the dispute between Wapda and the NWFP on hydel profit issue.
He evaded a question on weightages being given by Sindh to population, backwardness, revenue generation and poverty and said that the bottom line is how much your share in the divisible pool increases.
Asked to explain what position Sindh would take if no consensus was reached in the NFC negotiations and federal government goes ahead with 1997 NFC formula Sardar was found wanting for an answer. "What can we do?"
Earlier he gave a detailed background of the resource distribution arrangement between the provinces and the federation asserting that every National Finance Commission formula has added to the financial woes and frustration of Sindh.
"Ninety per cent of our resources go to wages and pensions and hardly 10 per cent is available for development," he said. The Sindh Finance Minister said that his government has projected province's stand loudly on NFC issue which was never done before.
Kaiser Bengali, the Managing Director of Social Policy and Development Centre (SPDC) informed the audience that his organization had carried out district-wise mapping of poverty in Pakistan.
"The World Bank has acquired our technique," he said while pointing out that Pakistan government has not taken any notice but would take up this technique if comes through World Bank.
Budget, he said is a political document that reflects the priority government gives to the sections of population in allocation of resources and to those from where resources are to be gathered.
A team of SPDC experts briefed the audience of the gender budgeting in Pakistan to show how much resources are given to female and to male members of the society. Murad Ali Shah, a PPP member of Sindh Assembly said that parliamentarians are never involved in budget making or in the National Finance Commission deliberations.
He said that he was unaware of the NFC deliberations. Ms Anis Haroon in her brief remarks gave a background of previous five NFCs.
