Govt, opposition unite for KP rights: CM aide

PESHAWAR, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 23rd Jun, 2026) Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's Finance Adviser, Muzammil Aslam, here Friday said that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is the only province where both the government and the opposition are united on the issue of provincial rights.

He said that the time has come for all political parties to unite and adopt a common stance to secure their constitutional and financial rights.

Concluding the debate on the 2026–27 provincial budget in the provincial assembly, he proposed the formation of a special committee of the assembly to review the province’s financial rights and fiscal matters with the federation.

The committee would prepare consensus recommendations so that the province’s case can be presented more effectively at the national level.

Muzammil Aslam said that, according to the Planning and Development Department, the size of the Provincial Development Program has continued to increase. He noted that the local ADP was Rs. 70 billion in 2024, increased to Rs. 153 billion in the first year and Rs. 195 billion in the second year, and is planned to reach Rs. 225 billion in the coming fiscal year.

This represents an increase of Rs. 160 billion in just two years. He said that Rs. 160 billion was spent on the merged districts during the last fiscal year, while the Federal government provided only Rs. 80 billion.

For development spending, only Rs. 50 billion was provided instead of the required Rs. 66 billion. Similarly, funding for the Accelerated Implementation Program (AIP) was reduced from Rs. 37 billion to Rs. 22 billion, but the provincial government spent Rs. 40 billion from its own resources.

For the upcoming fiscal year, the federal government has allocated Rs. 27 billion for AIP, while the provincial government has increased that amount to Rs. 52 billion.

The finance adviser underlined the need for ensuring the issuance of a new National Finance Commission (NFC) Award.

He said that KP was assured at the National Economic Council meeting that if consensus on the NFC is not reached within six months, a summary will be sent to the President so that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s share can be reassessed, potentially bringing the province an additional Rs. 300 billion annually.

Muzammil Aslam announced that the provincial government would also approach the Constitutional Court regarding the NFC Award. He said that in 2013 the province’s debt was Rs. 150 billion, equivalent to approximately $2 billion, whereas today the debt stands at Rs.

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809 billion but is still worth less than $3 billion. According to him, the government of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf added only $1 billion in debt, which was spent on development projects.

He said that a surplus budget is a sign of fiscal discipline and that this financial stability enables the province to pay salaries and meet emergency expenditures on time. He recalled that during major floods, the rehabilitation of temporarily displaced persons (TDPs), and the fuel crisis, the provincial government used its own resources to provide immediate relief and billions of rupees in assistance to affected people.

Expressing concern over the growing burden of government employees and pensions, he said that there are currently about 225,000 pensioners and nearly 675,000 government employees.

Therefore, caution in new hiring and strict fiscal discipline are essential.

Muzammil Aslam claimed that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is performing better than other provinces in the sectors of education, health, and policing. He said that after increases in ad hoc relief and conveyance allowance, the overall income of government employees has risen by approximately 17 percent.

He also stated that the government has reduced several taxes instead of imposing new ones.

He added that in the upcoming fiscal year's budget, an additional Rs. 59 billion has been allocated for health compared to last year. Allocations include Rs. 468 billion for education, Rs. 191 billion for police, and Rs. 90 billion for local governments. More than Rs. 125 billion has also been allocated for the Health Card program.

Muzammil Aslam said that the provincial government will release an Economic Survey of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa within three months and that, in the future, a provincial economic survey will be formally presented before the budget each year.

Criticizing the federal development program, he said that out of the Rs. 1 trillion Public Sector Development Program (PSDP), only Rs. 2.2 billion has been allocated for six schemes in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, which he described as unfair to the province. He added that although the federal government has allocated Rs. 95 billion for current expenditures and Rs. 56 billion for development spending in the merged districts, the current expenditures alone amount to Rs. 190 billion. As a result, the provincial government will have to cover a shortfall of Rs. 121 billion from its own resources.