Pakistans Inflation Crisis Deepens as Senate Chairman Purchases Luxury Car

Islamabad, March 17: The people of Pakistan are grappling with rising inflation, while the Senate Chairman, Yusuf Raza Gilani, has purchased a luxury car for 90 million Pakistani Rupees (PKR) from the Senate budget.

According to a report by ‘The Express Tribune’, the vehicle has already arrived at the Pakistan Senate Secretariat. When questioned about the purchase, former Prime Minister Gilani confirmed that the car had indeed been bought using Senate funds.

“Yes, we purchased this car from the Senate budget, but it was ordered back in May of last year,” Gilani stated. He also mentioned that the vehicle was acquired using savings from the previous year’s budget. Given the current economic situation, he attempted to return the car, but was informed that it had already been delivered.

As reported by Geo News, a senator from the ruling party, who wished to remain anonymous, expressed regret over the purchase, deeming it unnecessary amid a national crisis where over 70 million people live below the poverty line due to soaring inflation.

Last June, Pakistan’s Federal Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb stated in Parliament that the Senate Chairman and the National Assembly Speaker receive a monthly salary of 2.15 million PKR. At that time, Defense Minister Khawaja Asif objected, claiming that the increased salaries of the Senate Chairman, National Assembly Speaker, and others amounted to economic obscenity.

According to a report from ‘Dawn’, last month, it was revealed that the Punjab provincial government planned to purchase 108 new luxury vehicles for cabinet members and bureaucrats, amounting to 1.14 billion PKR, based on decisions from the cabinet committee and recommendations from the transport department.

However, the Punjab government has yet to finalize the approval for these purchases. A senior official from the transport wing denied any plans for acquiring new luxury cars, but some sources indicated that the recommendations made in the past three months are awaiting government approval.

Sources also revealed that the transport wing had recommended purchasing 28 new vehicles for the Punjab Cabinet at a cost of 300 million PKR. Additionally, the Punjab government has already approved the purchase of two bulletproof 4×4 vehicles for two provincial ministers at a cost of 40 million PKR.

–