PESHAWAR, June 29: The NWFP Assembly on Thursday approved the remaining 40 demands for grant worth Rs9.02 billion to meet excessive expenditures to be borne by different departments till June 30, 2007.

Opposition lawmakers, who withdrew their cut motions on additional spending by the government, criticised the works and services department for its poor performance. It had become a routine practice of the government to spend excessively and get it approved by the house, they said and sought transparency in financial matters of the government.

Speaking on over Rs420 million additional amount spent on the construction and renovation of roads, highways, bridges and buildings, the opposition lawmakers asked the government to explain where this huge amount had been spent because they had not seen any new bridge, road or building in the province.

Bashir Ahmed Bilour of the Awami National Party said they had not approved this amount in the previous budget. “It is unfair to bypass the house. We have already approved Rs1.38 billion for the works and services department in the supplementary budget,” he added.

Abdul Akbar Khan of the People’s Party Parliamentarians asked the minister concerned to explain where had the government spent an additional amount of Rs350 million which was not shown in the supplementary budget.

Opposing the grant of Rs10 million for the Governor’s House renovation, he said a poor province like the NWFP could not afford such huge spending.

Makhdoom Syed Mureed Kazim of the PPP (Sherpao) drew the attention of the house towards the battered conditions of two inter-provincial highways —- Dera-Chashma and Chashma-Kundal — passing through Dera Ismail Khan and said the government had not spent any amount on these highways.

Speaking on behalf of the chief minister, Information Minister Asif Iqbal Daudzai gave a detailed breakdown of Rs420 million spent on flood related activities across the province. He said the government had released this amount for relief work in the flood-hit districts last year.

Speaking on huge allocations for members of the Pakistan Muslim League and PPP-S by the federal government, Akbar Khan said it was a first step towards rigging the coming elections.

He said Islamabad had given Rs15 million to each PML member and Rs10 million to each PPP-S member for development schemes while the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal government had allocated huge funds for their MPAs.

Local Government Minister Sardar Idrees endorsed the objection of Akbar Khan and termed the move unfair on the part of the federal government.

The house through a unanimously adopted resolution urged the federal government to provide emergency assistance to the flood affected people of the NWFP like it had granted to the victims of floods in Sindh and Balochistan.

Minister for Social Welfare Hafiz Hashmat Khan presented the resolution.