KARACHI, June 10: Leader of the opposition in Sindh Assembly Nisar Ahmad Khuhro said that considering traditions, the opposition in the assembly attended the Friday’s assembly session with black armbands to protest against violation of the Constitution’s article 160, whereby the budget was presented without the NFC Award.
Mr Khuhro, who was flanked by Makhdoom Jamil-uz-Zaman and Murad Ali Shah, was addressing a press conference in his chambers on Friday after the budget session was adjourned to meet again on Monday.
He recalled that the current NFC Award had been due in June 2002, but General Musharraf at that time argued that since there was no civil government, the award’s announcement would be left to the coming political government.
After the new elected government was formed in October-November 2002, the then Finance Minister Syed Sardar Ahmad moved a resolution demanding that the NFC award should be based on multi-dimensional aspects instead of population only.
In the next year, the award was again not announced, as according to the finance minister, Sindh stuck to its principal stand.
This year – the third year in running – the budget was again presented without the NFC award despite an announcement that Sindh had shown flexibility in its stand.
He said the federal government had made a joke of the unanimous resolution adopted by the Sindh Assembly regarding the NFC Award.
Mr Khuhro said it manifested the federal government’s prejudice, and the Sindh government’s failure to present its case forcefully.
Therefore, he said, the PPP considered the exercise of presenting the new budget a waste of time. It was why it staged a token walkout, he added.
Recalling the arrest of MMA MPA Nasrullah Shajjee, he said it was shameful that even members coming to attend the assembly session were being arrested. It was a calculated move to overawe opposition members by arresting them and harassing them.
In this connection, he also referred to the arrest of Jam Saqi’s wife, Mohan Lal, Shamim Ara and Ghulam Quadir Chandio to scare the opposition and to cover up for the government’s failure.
He also referred to the murders of ex-MPA Aslam Mujahid, Abdullah Murad, Munawwar Suharwardi, Mufti Nizamuddin Shamzai and others whose killers were still at large, which spoke volumes of the law and order situation prevailing in Karachi.
He said if the government could not to rein in the law and order situation in Karachi alone, how could it control the same throughout the province.
