LAHORE: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf Chairman Imran Khan on Sunday said all economic indicators i.e. agriculture, energy, law and order, education and health, supported his claim that the Punjab government’s performance had been pathetic.
Addressing a press conference at the party’s central media cell on Sunday, he shed light on the failed performance of Punjab government and revealed the Punjab government’s claimed figures did not reflect reality.“The actual figures show that the average growth in Punjab has been a mere 2.5 percent compared to the national growth rate of 3.4 percent. Punjab, which is predominantly an agricultural area, has also suffered in this sector as the growth rate in this sector indicates only one percent growth compared to the national average of three percent,” he stated.
Imran said the Punjab government had been blaming the federal government for shortage of energy, using the 18th amendment as a shield to hide their own shortcomings. However, the PTI chief stated that prior to this amendment; Article 157 of the constitution gave explicit authority to the provinces to undertake energy projects. He said the Punjab government had not produced a single megawatt of energy in the last four years. Moreover, he said law and order situation in Punjab was also abysmal. He said there had been an overall increase in crimes by 12 percent, with crimes against property increasing by 37 percent, robbery by 109 percent, murder 15 percent and rape 22 percent.
“There has been a lot of talk of education by the Punjab government; however, statistics show that 5,700 schools have been shut down during their tenure. While the population has increased manifold, the gross enrollment at primary level has gone down by one percent,” the PTI chief stated.Imran said rather than spending on sectors like health and education, the entire development fund had been spent on an ill-planned project i.e. the Rapid Bus Transit System.
He said the project was merely an election gimmick in order to create hype amongst the masses and it cost more than the combined provincial budget for education and health. He said the project initially started with Rs 21 billion allocated for it, however, according to their sources, the project had been revised and it was suspected that until its completion approximately Rs 70 billion would have been spent on it. The PTI chairman added that Pakistan needed change and PTI was the first party to have stated in its economic agenda that they would ensure the devolution of power and direct funding down to the village level. He said the PTI was also the first party to have stated that it would broaden the tax net.
PTI chief takes notice of internal differences in party
Taking notice of internal differences in the party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan on Sunday directed PTI President Javed Hashmi and Vice Chairman Shah Mehmood Qureshi to contact party’s disgruntled members and address their apprehensions. Sources in the PTI said some families hailing from Punjab were planning to leave the PTI reportedly due to certain differences which would prove a big setback for the party. Khan tasked Hashmi and Qureshi to address the grievances of the members planning to leave the PTI. The sources said Hashmi and Qureshi would soon contact the disgruntled families. – Nation
