There was plenty of hullabaloo about austerity measures announced by the coalition government without realizing the inherent contradiction in its composition as its cabinet is rated one of the largest ones in recent times. On top of the huge number of cabinet ministers, it is now reported that they incurred exorbitant expenditures on foreign junkets continue to their brief stint in power. It was reported that Rs.63.71 million was spent on foreign visits by 23 members of the federal cabinet during the first nine months of the coalition government.
The information provided to a question asked in the NA is considered incomplete as it pertains only to the visits routed through the Cabinet Division. The information provided in this respect is not only incomplete but also hides facts. In this context, the name of the federal Foreign junkets continue to minister for planning and Development has undertaken a visit to Switzerland from 12 to 14 December 2022 but his name is missing from the list where expenditures have been mentioned. The MNA who raised the question strongly protested against these free rides by stating that the country is begging for money yet the political power holders do not have qualms to spend it frivolously. The Weekender
