Summary Senator Pervaiz Rashid criticizes PPP once again.
Dunya News Report (Yaruq Malik)
ISLAMABAD: Minister for Information and Broadcasting Senator Pervaiz Rashid has criticized the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) by stating that the PPP led government pushed Pakistan into ‘darkness’ during its five year tenure. He insisted that during the PPP regime, the country’s economy was poor due to bad governance in the centre and in Azad Jammu Kashmir (AJK).
Minister for Kashmir Affairs Chaudhry Barjees Tahir also criticized the PPP government in
AJK. He accused the PPP led government of being ‘corrupt’ and ‘ineffective’. He said that the Prime Minister of AJK Chaudhry Majeed, allegedly, has recruited hundreds of party workers in the AJK government without merit. He insisted that the Kashmir Liberation Cell was created to liberate the Kashmir movement and to fight for the rights of Kashmiris held in Indian occupied Kashmir. Unfortunately, the PPP government used the Cell for political gains.
The minister for Kashmir Affairs also accused the PPP of transferring funds worth Rs. 300 billion to the Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP) which were originally meant for the earthquake affected areas of Kashmir.
Previously, Pervez Rashid had accused Benazir Bhutto of ‘political victimization’ against the PML-N.
“Our accountability is being done for the last 20 years. First, it was done by the Pakistan People’s Party government led by Ms Benazir Bhutto and then by former president General Pervez Musharraf. General Musharraf was the architect of NAB and had we committed even a petty mistake, we would have been punished.” said the minister.
Another aspect of the BISP is the accusation of major corruption scandals that it has faced in recent times. In 2015, the Auditor General of Pakistan detected huge financial corruption while citing the audit report for fiscal years 2013 and 2014.
According to the audit report, an amount of Rs. 2,049.703 million was paid to 683,235 beneficiaries who either did not have a Computerized National Identity Card (CNIC) or the thumb impressions on the CNIC’s were not updated. Moreover, the report stated that the BISP paid Rs. 4,413.925 million to five commercial banks for onward distribution which was seen as an ‘undue favor’.
The total number of ‘ineligible’ beneficiaries across the country, according to the audit report, has reached 683,235. The payments were made by Bank Al-Falah, Habib Bank Ltd, Tameer Bank, Summit Bank and United Bank Ltd. The Departmental Accounts Committee (DAC), in 2013, directed the BISP management to provide the complete list of the ineligible beneficiaries within a week.
However, the BISP management failed to provide the list which established the ineligibility reported by the audit report. The audit ordered an inquiry, however, no compliance report was provided by the BISP management.
On November 12, 2015, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) arrested three people who were accused of corruption in the BISP cards and illegal withdrawal of cash from the accounts of poor women in Okara.
The BISP was launched in 2008 to provide financial aid to deserving families all over the country. Initially, the cash transfer amount was Rs. 1000 per month which was later increased to Rs. 1500 per month for eligible families that require financial assistance.
The Nationwide Poverty Scorecard Survey reported that more than 7.7 million families in Pakistan were living below the cut-off score of 16.17 (below poverty line). The BISP was developed with the objective of providing support to the deserving families in Pakistan during the economic recession.
The current dispute between the Sindh government under the Pakistan People’s Party and the federal government under Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz hovers around the same issue. PPP believes that the Rangers should work under the CM under all circumstances. The federal government is of the belief that the Rangers are operating under the National Action Plan which was accepted by all the parties including the PPP.
Moreover, the PPP considers the operation as a tool for ‘political victimization’. According to the PPP Co-Chairman Asif Ali Zardari, the operation is an ‘invasion’ and it is hurting the sovereignty of the provincial government. The co-chairman believes that the Rangers should operate under the powers of the provincial government. He also added that Rangers have been given power that goes beyond the Chief Minister of Sindh which is not appropriate and is unconstitutional.
During a recent rally, the PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari heavily criticized the federal government for being ignorant of the constitution of Pakistan. He insisted that the National Action Plan is being used only for personal grudges against the PPP.
“NAP stands for N-League’s Action Plan”, said Bilawal.
