RECORDER REPORT

LAHORE: Provincial Caretaker Minister for Finance, Excise and Taxation Zia Haider Rizvi said on Thursday that the centre had not paid the complete share of NFC Award nor were the taxes received according to estimates and the current government is now facing the shortage of Rs71 billion in terms of dues.

“When we took charge of the government, the caretaker government was facing the issue of payment of Rs71 billion dues. The centre did not pay the complete share of NFC Award nor were the taxes received according to the estimates,” the caretaker minister said while briefing a group of reporters at DGPR office on Thursday.

He said the major reason of it is the suspension of taxes levied on telecommunication sector in the light of the Supreme Court verdict. Despite this chocking situation, the salaries were not stopped nor are the public welfare projects of the outgoing government affected. As far as the Orange Line Project is concerned, it is an initiative of the whole country and its payments will be made in this regard, he added.

Rizvi claimed that the top priority of the caretaker chief minister is payment of salaries of the government officials and timely payment of claims amounting less than five billion rupees, adding that the claims which are more than five million are placed at the third position so that maximum number of payments could be made to the people doing work with less investment.

Following the instructions of the chief minister, he said, the finance department directed the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) to pay under this formula and the banks remained open on June 30 as well. The issue of complete payment of Punjab’s share in the NFC Award and the receiving of sales tax on telecommunication services is being raised, Rizvi said.

“Similarly, issue of additional salaries by different banks like public sector companies has also been noticed. In addition to it, payments through other banks along with Punjab Bank is under consideration and all the relevant rules and regulations will be followed in this regard,” he maintained.

According to the minister, the caretaker chief minister has given instructions to the finance department to ensure earliest release of payments to check holders issued by the public sector and autonomous bodies. For the purpose, all the departments were directed to collect the details of their non-paid payments by July 15 so that payments could immediately be made after the approval of the supplementary grant by July 21, he said.

Replying to a question, he said there was a difference of Rs136 billion in payments made by former federal government to Punjab. “A sum of Rs44 billion has been paid in the first week of July while the remaining amount of Rs90 to 95 billion is still pending,” the minister revealed.

Clarifying the reports about the release of funds to local government, Rizvi said, the funds of local governments have not been frozen, but are being paid gradually. Explaining about the powers and authority of the caretaker setup, the finance minister said they can release any loan or recruit anybody. “We can only propose a regulatory system which will also be shared with the media,” he added.