The opposition members also took exception to the distribution of resources among district governments through the provincial finance commission (PFC) award and objected to the procedure underlined for the execution of development schemes under the Tameer-i-Sarhad Programme (TSP).
The session started with a delay of about 40 minutes. There was a heated debate on the distribution of resources among the provinces and the district governments, lack of involvement of the members in formulating the annual development programme and the TSP, under which every MPA has recently been released Rs5 million for development works.
Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) parliamentary leader Anwar Kamal Khan, Sikandar Sherpao of the Pakistan People’s Party (Sherpao), PML (Quaid-i-Azam) parliamentary leader Mushtaq Ahmed Ghani, PPP Parliamentarians parliamentary leader Abdul Akbar Khan, and PPP-S Parliamentary leader Syed Murid Kazim stressed the need for a strong stand to secure constitutional rights of the province from the Centre.
Anwar Khan said population should not be the sole parameter and backwardness should be given equal consideration for the distribution of resources under the new National Finance Commission award.
He said the NWFP’s share from the federal divisible pool was much less than its the fiscal effort and the annual disbursement was less than the central excise duty on tobacco and cigarette collected in the province.
Other opposition members, including Mian Nisar Gul, Arshad Khan and Dr Mohammed Saleem, also contended that the NWFP’s resources were being utilized for the benefit of other areas.
Akbar Khan termed the distribution of resources among district governments in line with the PFC award against the Constitution.
He said district governments could be allocated funds only after an approval of the provincial assembly in accordance with Article 119 of the Constitution.
“We don’t consider the PFC as part of the Constitution, hence, we would strongly oppose distribution of resources in accordance with the PFC award,” said Mr Khan.
Calling upon the treasury benches to oppose the PFC award, he said the authority vested in the commission had undermined the powers of the chief minister, finance minister and the provincial assembly.
He agreed with Speaker Bakht Jahan Khan when he remarked that the award amounted to breach of the MPAs’ privilege.
The PPP leader was of the view that in the presence of the NFC there was neither justification nor need for establishing the PFCs.
He said the provincial government should give the next budget in line with Article 119 instead of the award.
He opposed the manner in which budget was presented. “The criteria has hardly undergone any change ever since 1937, when demands for grants were presented before the provincial assembly by the then provincial finance minister Mr Khanna,” he said.
He said before the budget was presented before the provincial assembly it should be discussed by the standing committees.
The prevalent procedure provided opportunities to the bureaucracy to hoodwink the legislature as in a debate of four to seven days the MPAs could not grasp the document in totality, he said.
Opposition benches criticized the guidelines set for them to identify and execute development schemes in their constituencies. They said it was not possible for MPAs to execute the schemes in two months.
Local Government and Rural Development Minister Sardar Idrees assured the members that the unspent funds would not lapse on June 30.
He said the MPAs would be accommodated even if they wanted to carry out development schemes other than the ones specified in the list provided to them. He asked them to submit their proposals for the development works. He assured them that his department would expedite their proposals to ensure an early execution of the works.
Earlier, the house witnessed a heated debate between the speaker and Akbar Khan, who wanted to discuss the North West Frontier Province Finance (amendment) bill, 2003, which was tabled last week by provincial law and parliamentary affairs minister Malik Zafar Azam.
The speaker said the stage of discussion had passed.
The bill was tabled when the opposition had staged a walk out in protest against the transfer of a forest conservator in relaxation of a ban by the chief minister.
After Mr Khan was not allowed to debate the issue, he asked the speaker to take consent of the house for its passage through voting.
The house adopted it as an Act after 48 members supported it and 28 voted against it.
Under the Act, open market transactions of tobacco have been brought under the purview of tobacco cess.
In the absence of the opposition, the government also tabled the Shari Nizam-i-Adl (amendment) ordinance, 2003, seeking minor textual changes in the ordinance and delegating powers of executive magistrates and magistrates to district police officers and Ilaqa Qazis as necessitated following the promulgation of the Local Government Ordinance, 2001.