JI terms federal budget as disappointing

Lahore : Ameer, Jamaat e Islami, Pakistan, Senator Sirajul Haq, has termed the federal budget as disappointing and said the government in its last budget had failed to provide any relief to the masses.

Commenting on the budget, he said the general public that had been expecting substantial relief in the budget. He said that  the budget deficit had reached a new height and there was no revolutionary measure in the sphere of education and health.

Burning issues like unemployment had been ignored and there was no clear cut policy to control foreign loans and their repayment. The government that had been assuring to break the begging bowl had secured record loans and still there was no guarantee against seeking fresh loans. He said that though the prices of fertilizer would come down, other sectors concerning agriculture including farm inputs, pesticides and farm machinery had been ignored. There was no target for the industrial development nor was there any planning in this respect.

JI Secretary General, Liaqat Baloch, termed the budget as anti people and rejected it altogether.

He demanded raise in the wages, salaries and pensions in proportion to the increase in inflation and the price hike.

He said that the last budget of the government was a bundle of false figures like its previous budgets. He said that the taxes, deficit and fresh loans would result in a flood of price hike and the poor would be further crushed. The sectors of education, health would further deteriorate and the worries of the downtrodden would increase.  The crisis of energy and water would continue and affect agriculture and industry.  The gap between the imports and exports would further increase.

He said the budget had not given any working formula for the privatization of the Pakistan Steel and the PIA. It was also silent on the government strategy to abolish interest, and to wipe out corruption and for the accountability of the corrupt mafia.