The Supreme Court has taken notice of the development funds approved by the prime minister for parliamentarians and warned that legal proceedings could be taken if it was against the law. Prime Minister Imran Khan had approved Rs500 million for each member of the parliament to carry out development schemes in their constituencies. The prime minister faced a barrage of complaints during a parliamentary meeting of allies who criticized the lack of funds to complete development goals.
Opposition parties have slammed the PTI for issuing development funds right before the Senate election, calling it a move to encourage horse-trading and urged the ECP to take notice. The prime minister was also criticized for only issuing to parliamentarians of the ruling alliance and ignoring the opposition who are unable to carry out development schemes in their constituencies.
The provision of development funds has created a new controversy as Imran Khan had opposed the move as opposition leader and vowed to stop the practice after assuming power. However, this was not the case and development funds are being issued for party parliamentarians and allies. Last year, the MQM had threatened to quit the ruling coalition if development funds were not given for Karachi and now the prime minister has been accepted the demand once again.
Development funds are a powerful tool for MNAs and MPAs to yield power. They are issued from the PSPD which a fraction of the federal budget and is used for infrastructure-related initiatives. Many projects are often incomplete due to bureaucratic red tape but the politicians depend on them for their next elections by claiming that they introduced development schemes.
It is argued that these funds have a tendency to be misused and are a form to bribe for political wrangling and that parliamentarians mint money as they funds are at their discretion Elected officials use the perception of bringing projects and gain patronage in their constituency to give the impression they have influence and stay in power. The PTI government should ensure that development funds are properly utilized and parliamentarians should be held accountable for them.
