ANP lawmakers get rich as KP becomes poorer
ISLAMABAD, May 12: With poverty rate of more than 46 per cent in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, which compares poorly with the national ratio of 37 per cent, the average worth of Awami National Party members of the National Assembly is quite high.
The average wealth of 12 members of the National Assembly belonging to the ANP comes to around Rs78.55 million. The least wealthy MNA of the party is, however, worth only Rs1.39 million.
In the statement of assets filed by MNAs to the Election Commission for 2011, Jamila Gilani, member of the lower house of parliament occupying a seat reserved for women, claimed that her net worth was around Rs1.39 million only. However, she has a loan of Rs659,000 for a five-marla house in the DHA Islamabad.
Ms Gilani has Rs242,292 in cash or in banks and a boutique business worth Rs100,000. She and her husband own shop and office valued at Rs1.7 million in a commercial centre.
In her statement of assets filed last year, Ms Gilani had claimed that the value of these two properties was Rs2.35 million. The couple also owned a car. However, the party has many rich MNAs, including Muzaffar ul Mulk who is worth Rs247.7 million. He has Rs8.37 million in the bank and car loans written off by the government.
Mr Mulk has land and house worth Rs140 million and his timber businesses are worth Rs105 million. His other assets are worth Rs2 million and he carries Rs700,000 in cash.
The richest MNA of the party is Masood Abbas who has net assets of more than Rs292.39 million and he carries cash worth Rs132 million, apart from Rs10.60 million in bank accounts. However, his bank balance has declined by around Rs9 million in one year.
Mr Abbas has properties valued at more than Rs140.45 million, which include 39 shops and a shopping centre in Peshawar.
In all, he has 18 different categories of properties in Akora Khattak, Peshawar, Murree, Rawalpindi, Islamabad and Karachi. He has other businesses and investments worth Rs6.11 million.
However, Mr Abbas owns only a 1964 jeep valued at Rs230,000.
ANP Leader Asfandyar Wali Khan has assets worth Rs34.86 million, including agriculture land valued at Rs26.8 million. His house is worth Rs3 million and a 1988 car valued at Rs500,000. His family owns Rs2.5 million in gold.
Another important member of the party, Haji Ghulam Ahmed Bilour, has net assets worth Rs40.99, including Rs13 million in cash. His business ventures are worth around Rs16.62 million and his house is valued at Rs2 million.
The net asset of his spouse, Khurshid Begum, is Rs15.75 million, in various businesses, investments.
The assets of Azeem Shabbir Bilour, a member of Bilour family, increased by 23 per cent in one year to Rs11.25 million this year. The assets of Ms Mashal Shabbir Bilour increased by more than 152 per cent in one year to Rs5.62 million.
MNA Arbab Mohammad Zahir has net assets worth Rs103.28 million, including a flat of Rs10.3 million in Islamabad, two houses of Rs7.54 million in the native province. Mr Zahir and his spouse own agriculture land worth Rs80.02 million, the two cars owned by the couple are worth Rs2.4 million, gold valued at Rs500,000, other assets Rs120,000, besides Zahir has Rs2.4 million.
Pervaiz Khan has total assets worth Rs94.4 million, which includes a school valued at Rs50 million and house worth Rs40 million, gold Rs1.5 million and other assets Rs400,000, but Mr Khan does not own a car.
The net assets of Pir Dilawar Shah is Rs37.7 million, Istiqbal Khan has net assets worth Rs30.18 million and that of Syed Haider Ali Shah is Rs19.8 million, but both the MNAs do not have cars.
Bushra Gohar is the wealthiest among three women MNAs of the party, with net assets worth Rs25.72 million. She has two apartments in Islamabad and share in a house in Nathiagali.
Ms Gohar pays a quarterly instalment of Rs280,000 for a house in the DHA. She paid Rs73,342 withholding tax.
With the net asset worth Rs14.26 million, Khursheed Begum has Rs5.86 million in cash or in banks. Her spouse has a business of Rs2 million and the couple own Rs1.8 million car.—Kalbe Ali