June 12, 2008	Thursday	Jamadi-us-Sani 07, 1429

LAHORE, June 11: Most political parties have rejected the federal budget for the year 2008-09 and Pakistan Muslim League-N (PML-N) leaders, except Senator Ishaq Dar, chose not to comment on the annual financial exercise.

Mr Dar, who resigned as finance minister on judges’ reinstatement issue on May 13, said that he was in favour of imposing Capital Gain Tax (CGT) and Capital Value Tax (CVT) and had he presented the budget the levies would have been part of it.

PML-Q: Former ruling party’s Punjab general secretary Chaudhry Zaheeruddin says the opposition listened to the budget speech without any desk thumping thus opening a new chapter of decency in politics. He saw no relief in the budget for the commoner.

He said the construction industry had been ignored in the budget while only peanuts were offered to the textile industry.

He said the Benazir Income Support scheme was a political financing for Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) workers only. The PML-Q leader said the raise in pension and salaries did not match the price-hike seen in the first three months of the government. “Vegetable ghee selling for Rs60 per kg in our government is not available for Rs160 per kg while the wheat flour price has also been doubled.”

He said the corporate farming idea would fail to attract investors for want of water and the budget lacked any clear policy to build new water reservoirs. “They (rulers) are turning the country into a desert.”

JI: Jamaat-I-Islami secretary-general Syed Munawwar Hasan said the budget did not reflect the PPP’s slogan of ‘roti, kapra aur makan’ or bread, clothing and shelter.

He said most of the Rs34 billion funds allocated for the Benazir programme would be devoured by PPP leaders as party workers would fail to benefit from it.He called the income support scheme and the raise in pension and salaries “cosmetic steps to appease a few”.

PPP-SB: PPP-Shaheed Bhutto Punjab President Dr Mubashar Hasan says the budget was no different than the budgets presented in the last 30 years as it follows the doctrine of free enterprise, deregulation, privatisation and globalisation. He calls it a bid by the rich to become super rich. “It’s a good budget. Good for the rich, good for the corporate world and good for the multinational companies,” he said.

He said the budget contained nothing for 98 per cent of Pakistanis as what the rulers gave the masses by increasing salaries were facing difficulties because of price-hike.

Raising the ratio of direct taxes, he said, was just an eye-wash as the billionaires who operated stock exchanges with their illegitimate income were not imposed any tax. He said Capital Gain Tax should have been imposed on them but the government instead gave them two years exemption.

“There is no increase in direct taxes on higher income groups. Heavy taxes should have been imposed on them.”

About the allocations for the energy and water sectors, Dr Hasan, also a former finance minister, said each year independent power producers (IPPs) took away $1.0 billion profit. This meant a new power house of the capacity of 1,000 MW could be built each year just by arresting the flight of this capital, he added.

He said privatisation of power units had totally failed as neither the government nor the IPPs built any new power house.

He said he had been hearing announcements and allocations for dams for the last many decades. “The fact is that power producers will not use coal for thermal power because it hurts the interests of those operating the oil trade.”

He declared the Benazir programme very unfortunate as it would make people beggars before the government.

“They should have cheapened eatables, gas, power, transport, etc. instead of offering masses alms.”

LPP: Labour Party Pakistan spokesman Farooq Tariq says the budget speech does not touch foreign loans which, he says, the government should refuse to repay unless the country’s economic health becomes stable.

He said the Benazir Support Programme would fail to reduce poverty like the earlier scheme of this nature for no government was taking care of the root cause behind the increase in poverty graph – privatisation, a free hand to multinationals, and World Trade Organisation agreements.

He alleged the PPP government was following Musharraf’s policies and criticised it for attempting to introduce corporate farming in the country. He praised the government for enhancing pension and salaries of government employees though, he said, the raise was not in proportion with the price hike.

He demanded minimum wages at Rs12,000.

JUP: Jamiat Ulema-i-Pakistan Secretary General Qari Zawwar Bahadur says the measures taken in the budge for the poor were not sufficient and unbecoming for the claimants of being representatives of the masses.