MPs: Most departments under-spend allocated funds

KABUL members on Saturday rejected funds allocated to government departments under last year’s (1391) budget, saying most entities had failed to utilise more than half of funds meant at infrastructural development.

Amer Khan Yar, the house commission on budget and finance affairs, presented before the house the panel’s report on budgetary allocations and their usage, saying the panel was not satisfied with the funds used, citing various reasons.

Explaining, he said there had been dissimilarity in statistics showed in the document and the revenues generated, coupled by technical problems. He said some government departments used funds against their authority and others had not been able to use 50.6 percent of development funds.

He said officials failing to use funds on projects should be investigated, adding 13 ministries used less than 55 percent of development budget, an issue being investigated by the commission.

“The government cannot be blamed for all these shortcomings. Some projects could not be implemented due to interferences in affairs of departments,” Yar said.

But Sarwar Usmani, who represents Farah province, said procurement law, insecurity and delay in receiving money from donors had been reasons behind failure to properly use development funds.

Ghazni lawmaker Qayum Sajjadi said agriculture were among the sectors failing to properly use funds. He asked the house to summon officials who failed to use their budgets.

Speaker Abdul Rauf Ibrahimi said 133 MPs of the 137 present had voted against the budgets’ spending.

A lawmaker said the security pact with the US should be sent to the national assembly, saying it was parliament’s authority to accept or reject the deal.

Ibrahimi said the draft law on population census had been sent to the upper house and a delegation would be assigned to consider the subject and report back to thr house.

mds/ma

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