February 16, 2008

Consumer Rights Commission of Pakistan (CRCP) and Institute of Social and Policy Sciences (ISPS) have identified 47 core policy areas that need explicit party commitments of political parties in the following seven areas. (1) Economy, Trade and Welfare, (2) Education, (3) Health, (4) Safe Drinking Water, (5) Energy, (6) Consumer Protection, and (7) Freedom of Information and Transparency. These policy areas were sent to six major political parties that have decided to participate in the forthcoming general elections, namely: Muthidda Qaumi Movement (MQM), Pakistan Muslim League (N), Pakistan Muslim League (Q), Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), Awami National Party (ANP), and Jamiat Ulama–i-Islam (JUI). Of these six, five political parties provided their party line on each of the 47 policy actions except PPP. The PPP did not respond to these questions despite our several reminders. We believe that this exercise will help voters to make an informed choice while casting their votes and holding political parties accountable for translating policy commitments into concrete action after the elections.

Following are the key responses of the five major political parties:

Economy, Trade and Welfare

1. All political parties have committed that, if voted to power, they would move the taxation system from “regressive” to “progressive” for reducing its adverse effects on the poor

 

2. PML (N) and PML (Q) say they will Not provide “unemployment allowance”, if they are voted to power; other three parties have committed to provide the allowance. The PML (N) in its justification has stated that providing the unemployment allowance in the present circumstances is not practicable while PML (Q) commits that it believes in promotion of self reliance for poor. 

 

3. PML (Q) says it will Not provide a targeted subsidy on wheat flour, electricity, and public transport, if it is voted to power; other parties have committed to provide the targeted subsidy; excluding the PML (N) which says it is committed to give targeted subsidy on wheat only. 

 

4. PML (Q) says it will Not reduce General Sales Tax (GST) on essential food items and agricultural inputs; other four parties have committed to reduce the tax.

 

5. PML (N) and PML (Q) say they will Not provide medical insurance to widows, if they are voted to power; other three parties have committed to provide the insurance. PML (Q) has justified its stance by saying that it believes in promoting self reliance for poor while PML (N) has justified by saying that its too early to take such initiative in Pakistan .

 

6. PML (N) says it will Not index the salaries of government employees to inflation, if it comes to power; other political parties have committed to index the salaries with inflation; PML (N) justifies by saying that ‘periodic adjustment is preferable to automatic indexation’

Education

1. All the five political parties have committed to achieve 4.6 percent increase in literacy rate per annum.

2. All the five parties have committed to increase the budgetary allocations for education sector to 4% of GDP.

3. All the five political parties have committed to take steps to ensure universal free and compulsory education up to X by 2015.

4. All the five parties have taken steps to ensure that all teachers training institutions in Pakistan have a permanent budget line for teacher training.

Health

1. All the five political parties have committed to increase the budgetary allocations for health from 0.57 % to at least 2% of GDP.

 

2. PML (Q) says it will Not reduce GST on medicines by 20 percent, if it comes to power; other four parties have committed to reduce it.

 

3. All the five political parties have committed to ensure that maternal mortality rate is reduced up to 200 per 10, 000 live births, till 2011 as envisaged in the National Maternal, Newborn and Child Health (MNCH) Program.

Drinking Water

1. All the five political parties have committed to enact and implement a National Safe Drinking Water Act in Pakistan .

2. All the five political parties have committed to achieve the minimum target of one water filtration plant in every union council.
3. All the five political parties have committed to r aise the coverage of population with access to safe drinking water from existing 65 percent to 93 percent population.

Energy

1. All the five political parties have committed to increase power generation capacity for annual addition of 2,000 MW in power supply system .
2. All the five political parties have committed to take steps to reduce the power losses of WAPDA and KESC, at least , by 50 percent.

Consumer Protection

1. All the five political parties have committed to ensure that rules and procedures of all existing consumer protection laws are notified and publicized.
2. All the five political parties have committed to establish Consumer Protection Councils and Consumer Courts in, at least, all major cities of the provinces
3. All the five political parties have committed to formulate and implement a comprehensive Consumer Protection Policy.

Freedom of Information and Transparency

1. PML (Q) and PML (N) say they will Not reduce the photocopying fee from Rs.5 to Rs. 1 per page under the FOI Ordinance, 2002. PML (N) is of the view that reduction of fee will encourage misuse of FOI while PML (Q) say that we have to take care of inflation in regard.

 

2. PML (Q) and PML (N) say they will Not extend the jurisdiction of FOI laws to the private sector; PML (Q) stated that they can do so if FOI laws are fully implemented while PML (N) has taken stance that extension will only be allowed to areas selected by relevant regulatory bodies.

 

3. PML (N) says it will Not enact a Whistleblower Protection law in
   Pakistan as its too early for such a system here.

 

Political parties’ response on policy commitments for citizen agenda