Economic mess and Financial Times’ claims: Opposition, treasury trade barbs in Senate

ISLAMABAD: Opposition and treasury traded barbs in the Senate on Friday over the economic mess and the Financial Times’ claims about “the strange case of the cricket match that helped fund Imran Khan’s political rise”.

Speaking on a point of order, the leader of the opposition, Shehzad Wasim, pressed Chairman Senate Sadiq Sanjrani for referring a privilege motion against the government for not presenting the “real budget” document before the house.

He stated that on June 24, the government had presented and passed a “mini-budget” from the National Assembly through which a number of taxes were imposed and the document was still not presented in the Senate.

“The government has committed breach of privilege of the house and also violated the Constitution for its failure to present the “real budget” document in the Upper House of the Parliament,” Wasim maintained and requested the chair to refer his party’s privilege motion against the government to the committee concerned.

He also raised questions on the visit of Special Assistant to the Prime Minister Tariq Fatemi to the US, saying that the Foreign Office had stated that the SAPM’s visit to the US was in a private capacity.

“This government is running the government affairs in their private capacity,” he alleged, adding that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s son Suleman Shehbaz was part of the prime minister’s recent visit to Turkey in a private capacity where he had exchanged views on the import of solar energy’s equipment for his “vested interest”.

He also criticised the government for lifting the ban on the import of certain items amid the economic mess, besides condemning the alleged plan to sell out certain state-owned enterprises at throw-away prices to the “blue-eyed.”

While responding to the allegations, Minister for Climate Change Sherry Rehman maintained that it is the PTI which merits a privilege motion to be moved against it on the behalf of entire Pakistan allegedly for creating the current economic mess.

She further maintained that Pakistan availed 23 IMF programmes in 70 years with total debt reached at Rs24,000 billion while the PTI government left the total debt of the country at Rs50,000 billion.

The minister also referred to the Financial Times report about the charity fund from a cricket match that was allegedly sent to the PTI’s account.

“The real conspiracy against Pakistan was hatched by PTI through the foreign funding…you [the PTI] filled your own bank accounts from the charity money,” she further alleged.

Leader of the House Azam Nazeer Tarar stated that he would present the “facts and figures” in the House to know how havoc was played with the country during the PTI’s tenure.

Meanwhile, responding to the concerns raised by senators about the situations created by the recent floods in parts of the country, Tarar, who is also Minister for Law and Justice, said that the prime minister has constituted a special committee to monitor the flood situation in the country.

He said that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has sought relief recommendations for the affected areas.

He said the government will provide different assistance packages to farmers and people of urban areas who suffered from natural calamity.

Earlier, the senators urged the government to take prompt action and carry out relief operations in flood-affected areas of the country. They called for waiving loans and utility bills of the affected people.

Those who participated in the discussion included Mushtaq Ahmed Khan, Manzoor Qadir, Ejaz Chaudhry, Tahir Bazinjo, Shafique Tareen, and Saifullah Abro.

A newly-elected PPP Senator DrKhalida Sikandar Mandhro took the oath of office. Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani administered the oath. The house also offered Fateha for the deceased former Senator Syed Tahir Hussain Mashhadi and people who died in floods across the country.

Later, a resolution acknowledging the services of Mashhadi was also passed unanimously.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2022