Islamabad: Foreign visits by Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf and his three prime ministers up till 2004 cost the country’s exchequer billions of rupees.
Musharraf and the three prime ministers who served under him made 61 official foreign visits. These visits had cost taxpayers more than a billion Pakistani rupees by December 2004, and in the later part of fiscal year-2005-06, these visits cost almost the same sum that was spent between October 1999 and December 2004, the Daily Times quoted the official figures as saying.
Between June 2000 and December 2004 Musharraf is said to have made 41 official visits and toured at least 71 countries, costing taxpayers more than Rs 658 million, said the paper.
The three prime ministers went on 20 foreign visits between November 2002 and January 2005, touring 34 countries. Of the 20 visits, Aziz’s trips cost the exchequer almost Rs 352 million, it added.
Spending on delegations led by Shaukat Aziz during this fiscal year was almost Rs 900 million; documents showed a budgeted sum of Rs 759.1 million plus an additional sum of Rs 150 million. Similarly, Musharraf’s visits during the same fiscal year cost the exchequer the budgeted figure (Rs 200 million) plus a supplementary grant of Rs 100 million.
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