Participating in the debate, Barjees Tahir said that a better budget than this one could not be presented in the current situation. He said difficult decisions will have to be taken to secure the future of the country. He stressed political stability to achieve economic stability.
Muhammad Aslam Bhotani commended Finance Minister Ishaq Dar for taking care of concerns of the coalition partners. He proposed that heads of national institutions should be appointed on merit. He complained that perpetrators of May 9 have yet not been brought to justice and the government should look toward this respect.
Pir Syed Fazal Ali Shah Jillani said salaries of government employees in the scales of 1 to 16 must be enhanced by fifty percent, enabling them to cope with the current price hike.
Salahuddin Ayubi drew attention of the government toward irregularities in the distribution of assistance amongst the flood-affected people of Chaman and Killa Saifullah districts. He said influential people managed to get their loans waived off and that practice needs to be stopped.
Syed Javed Ali Shah Jillani said the flood-affected people of Sindh need assistance from the Federal Government to restart their lives.
Rao Muhammad Ajmal said interest rate on agricultural loans should be decreased to single digit. He suggested diverting more financial resources on research and development to prepare quality seeds within the country instead of wasting funds on imported seeds. He, however, welcomed the tax reduction and exemption on agricultural machinery in the budget.
He proposed to grant six acres of state land to agri graduates across Pakistan to improve agri produce in the country. He said prices of fertilizers should be brought down.
Syed Hussain Tariq said the budget should have envisaged measures and reforms aimed at steering the economy in the right direction. He regretted the failure in broadening the tax net.
Others who spoke on the occasion include Mir Ghulam Ali Talpur and Kesoo Mal Kheeal Das.
Source: Radio Pakistan
