Peshawar:
Opposition parties in the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa assembly have directly rejected the provincial budget for the financial year 2025-26 and expresses deep reservations over its substance. In sharp contrast, government members praised the budget and paid tribute to it as “best in the history of the province.”
Head of the opposition, dr. Ibadullah, who spoke on the floor of the house, criticized the budget by highlighting the provincial’s heavy dependence on external sources.
“Only seven percent of the provincial revenue is generated internally, while 93 percent depend on federal transfers and loans,” he said.
“Government expenses make up 99 percent, while development spending is only 1 percent. This is the 12th and probably the last budget for PTI’s rule.”
He criticized the Pakistan Tehreek-E-Insaf (PTI) government for not having fully utilizing the annual development program (ADP) funds during his 12-year rule. “There is a lot of activity on social media, but the reality on earth is that the province is in ruins,” he added.
Dr. Ibadullah also referred to international and regional politics and praised the army for its reaction to Indian aggression and expressed solidarity with Iran.
He approached the development allocations and noted, “Although RS538 billion is earmarked for development, this is not a surplus budget as claimed. The figures are misleading and the public is deceived.”
He pointed out the provincial debt balloon from RS166 billion in the ANP era to the RS800 billion below PTI, corresponding to an increase of 600 percent.
He called failures in flagship projects such as Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) and raised corruption charges related to Kohistan, Malam Jabba and Billion Wood -Tsunami scandals.
“RS31 billion has been recovered from Kohistan -Fidus alone because of the speaker’s efforts,” he claimed.
He also lamented the overall educational state and healthcare in the province and said that 30 percent of schools lack basic facilities, and a large percentage of students are struggling with basic topics such as Urdu and Mathematics.
In higher education, he accused universities of mass hiring and lack of research results, while also claiming that 60 percent of basic health units (BHUs) are non-functional.
“Health cards are politicized and hospitals are in a serious state. Tell us a positive achievement,” he demanded.
