Muhammad Asad
ISLAMABAD: PTI Government is taking physical steps to ensure transparency in forthcoming Senate Election through open and verifiable ballot.
There had been auction of vote by the parliamentarians during Senate Election in the past and a video is being circulated on social media regarding this moral and financial corruption during Senate Election in 2018. It was orated by Federal Minister for Planning Asad Umar in a news conference along with Federal Minister for Information and Broadcast Senator Shibli Faraz on Tuesday.
Asad Umar said that then PTI Chief suspended all those MPs involved in auction of vote in 2018. For this reason, government issued an ordinance to fulfil its promise made by PTI voters to ensure transparency.
While answering a question regarding government haste on legislation on Senate open ballot. Asad replied that PTI government is not in haste but was involved in discussion with PML-N government on reforms in several matters including Senate poll date back to 2014, however, the things could not evolve in the right direction.
While deliberating on today’s Cabinet meeting, Senator Shibli Faraz said that District price control Committees proved to be ineffective and the government has abolished these committees and assigned the job of price controlling to District administration DCs, ACs and the administrative chain under them.
According to Shibli Faraz, government had clumped down on 2192 Petrol Pumps across the country involved in sale of smuggled oil, in a drive to stall a continuous loss in revenue collection due to smuggling. In the result of these steps, government will be able to add Rs. 120 billion in tax collection during current year. He accused the Sindh government for withholding wheat storage despite its short fall in the country during past months.
According to him, this act has exposed the Sindh government sincerity with people of Pakistan particularly Sindh, where people were helpless to buy costly flour due to recent shortfall.
Shibli Faraz, also shared the outcome of Sugar inquiry report in the wake of its implementation by the concerned institutions. According to him, FBR collected Rs. 368 billion in tax audit and Rs. 29 billion in the head under GST, while NAB remained successful in recovery of Rs. 22 billion in the related case of money laundering.
According to him, the farmers also got their share by receiving very good price of their crop. However, the case of subsides is still under investigation by the NAB.
He said that Cabinet decided to extend the current Afghan transit trade agreement for three months because previous agreement is going to expires on 11 February 2021.
According to Information Minister, under Digital Account initiative of State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), the overseas Pakistanis had sent Rs. 500 million under this initiative, which is a very positive and encouraging contribution to the Country’s economy.
