LAHORE: The Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) government has spent only Rs88 billion for development of the province in the last eight months against Rs255 billion in the corresponding period last year, claimed Opposition Leader in the Punjab Assembly Hamza Shahbaz here on Monday in the House.

Addressing the pre-budget discussion, which has been on the agenda ever since this session started three weeks ago but could not be taken up, he explained: “The PTI government inherited Rs638bn Annual Development Plan, but reduced it to only Rs238bn – cutting it by a whopping Rs400bn. Out of the Rs238bn, only Rs88bn have been spent so far.”

Earlier, the discussion had been initiated by provincial minister for finance, Hashim Jawan Bakht, and Mr Shahbaz was responding to it as leader of the opposition. Relying heavily on official data, he feared the development expenditure would go down further as the province was lagging far behind in tax collection.

“Against tax collection target of Rs276bn, the province has achieved only 31 per cent of it. Under the non-tax head, it has been able to achieve only 50pc of Rs100 billion. This double financial failure would reflect on National Finance Commission Award allocations and provincial development would suffer more.”

For dealing with such collection, the PML-N created the Punjab Revenue Authority (PRA) in 2012 and multiplied tax collection by 293pc. The PTI must take cue from it otherwise it would cause a greater financial crisis.

Offering the Punjab government a ‘Charter of Economy’, as his father Shahbaz Sharif did in his speech in the National Assembly, Hamza said: “The PTI must understand that economy runs on market sentiments and this is where it was messing up. It set out on the wrong path when it failed to decide on the International Monetary Fund issue when it came to power. That is how the rupee lost its value by 35pc, prices of all utilities – electricity, gas petroleum products – were increased beyond the reach of the poor. Medicines have gone out of reach of even the middle class and medical tests such as angiography, now cost more in government hospitals. These are hard facts and need to be taken up with a cool mind and calculation. So, let’s sit together and thrash things out before it is too late.”

Earlier, Minister Bakht informed the House that the PTI inherited huge financial troubles. It had to clear Rs91bn outstanding liabilities, retrieve the fully exhausted overdraft facility from the State Bank of Pakistan and deal with over 150 cases of liabilities. “Last one was more of a corrective budget. During 2013-2018, a total Rs2.1 trillion were spent on development. Out of this, Rs1 trillion were spent on only 10pc of the population and the rest Rs1tr on other 90pc. It only created lopsided development, which needed correction now,” he claimed.

Elaborating on his other priorities, he said that the southern part of the province would certainly get more resources to bring it on a par with the rest of the province. Apart from identifying development areas, he asked the members to also suggest ways and means to reduce expenditure, increase income and apply austerity. Improving governance is another area where the PTI invited suggestions from all House members.

Published in Dawn, March 12th, 2019