KARACHI, June 15: Demanding withdrawal of Pakistan Rangers from Sindh, a legislator belonging to the Pakistan People’s Party, Sardar Ahmad Ali Pitafi, has said that a new force should be raised and trained on the pattern of the army and Rangers to check terrorism in the province.
Mr Pitafi added that more people should be recruited in the police to meet the challenge of law and order.
He made these demands while taking part in the general discussion on the budget 2011-12 in the assembly.
Fourteen more lawmakers, including six belonging to the Muttahida Qaumi Movement, expressed their views on Wednesday, which was the third day of a general discussion on the budget.
While welcoming the budget, the MQM legislators were critical of the allocation made for Karachi development and termed it injustice.
They also reiterated their demand for the inclusion of the agriculture sector in the tax net.
Earlier, opening the discussion on the budget, PPP’s Humera Alwani said Sindh produced 56 per cent oil and 77 per cent gas of the total production in the country but was given 12.5 per cent royalty in the outgoing financial year. She said after the 18th constitutional amendment, Sindh should ask for 50 per cent royalty from the federation.
She also said that committees of lawmakers should be set up at the district level to monitor ADP schemes.
Ferheen Moghul of the PPP said that former prime minister Benazir Bhutto wanted to see youths earn their living from white-collar jobs. She added that her dream had come true now in the form of the youth skills development programme.
Syed Ghulam Shah of the PPP demanded more allocation for the Gorakh Hill project saying that the project would benefit not only Dadu district but also the entire province.
Begum Zareen Majeed of the MQM said the province could be put on the road to prosperity if budget allocations were utilised in letter and spirit. Demanding a special package for Karachi, she said that the allocation of a mere Rs2 billion was injustice.
She demanded a 70 per cent cut in non-development budget and steps to reduce inflation rate, bring the privileged class into the tax net and make direct taxation system effective.
Muhammad Hanif of the MQM said that a meeting of the provincial finance commission should be held for distribution of funds to the district governments before budget sessions every year.
He complained that for the last three years, he had been submitting Hub River Road development scheme for inclusion in the annual development programmes but had failed to find it in budget documents so far.
Shahnaz Begum of the MQM highlighted the need for initiating maximum low-cost housing schemes so that the poor could get homes, which would also discourage emergence of shanties in every part of the city.
Shah Hussain Shirazi of the PML-Q said that the breakdown of law and order was a problem not only in Karachi but also in Thatta where people feared coming out of their houses after sunset.
He said his party would support the setting up of new city Zulfikarabad if the local population was given preference in jobs and provided houses.
Fayyaz Butt said the PPP had been implementing its manifesto of “Roti, Kapra aur Makan” and had provided employment to over 0.1 million people.
Opposing levying of income tax on agriculturists, Ghulam Quadir Chandio of the PPP said all major land holdings had beendistributed and the agriculture sector was already overburdened with different taxes and due to increase in the prices of fertilisers, pesticides, diesel and other agricultural inputs.
He demanded flat power rates for tube wells and releasing funds from the first month of the budget so that allocated funds could be utilised properly for implementing development schemes.
Other legislators who participated in the budget discussion were Abdus Sattar Rajpar, Ghulam Sarwar Sayal, Ministers Sajid Jokhyo and Abdul Haq Bhurt of the PPP and Husna Aftab, Waseem Ahmed and Aleem-ur-Rehman of the MQM.
As the discussion was under way, Senior Minister and PPP Parliamentary Party leader Pir Mazhar-ul-Haq requested the chair to allow him to make a statement under Rule 215.
Speaker Nisar Khuhro said there was no provision under the rules of procedure of the provincial assembly for making a statement after initiation of a discussion on the budget. The minister said he wanted to bring an urgent matter to the attention of the house.
After permission was granted, Pir Mazhar said Punjab Law Minister Rana Sanaullah had given a fatwa that Senator Babar Awan was “Wajib-ul-Qatal”.
Amongst slogans of shame, shame, he said the statement was shameful. This statement amounted to vitiation of the reconciliation atmosphere, he said.
He said the law minister’s statement manifested a particular mindset and was tantamount to inviting extremists against Babar Awan. In the wake of the assassination of Punjab Governor Salman Taseer, the federal government ought to take the notice ofthe statement immediately, he added.
Press boycott
It was around 2pm when members of the press gallery on the appeal of the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists staged a walkout and boycotted rest of the house proceedings against targeted killings of journalists.
Raising slogans, the journalists came out of the press gallery and staged a sit-in on the steps of the main entrance of the assembly building. Senior journalists addressing the protesters demanded a judicial commission to investigate the murder of Saleem Shahzad. They also expressed their determination that the assassination of their colleagues could not deter them from the path of truth and exposing anti-people forces.
They were also joined by PPP and MQM lawmakers on the steps.
Expressing solidarity and sympathy with the media persons, Information Minister Sherjeel Memon gave an assurance to the journalists that the government was determined to expose the killers of Saleem Shahzad like it had done in the case ofjournalist Wali Babar.
The house, which started the proceedings at 10.35am with Mr Khuhro in the chair, rose for the day at 2.45pm to meet on Thursday at 9.30am.