KABUL - The draft budget for the government this year was reviewed and approved by the Council of Ministers hastily, Chief Executive Officer Abdullah Abdullah said on Saturday.

Members of House of Representatives have echoed Abdullah's concerns and pointed out that Parliament has yet to approve the budget, while the Ministry of Finance (MoF) has sought to defend the draft and the transparency of the process went through to formulate it.

Year after year, the national budget is voted on and rejected by Parliament up to three times, and ends up missing the deadline at the start of the new fiscal year. Now days pass the mark, talks are said to still be ongoing regarding changes to the draft.

"The budget came to the minister's council in its last minutes, and there wasn't even two or three hours of discussion on it," Abdullah said on Saturday. "I think that has caused the problems now in Parliament, and it needs to be reviewed."

Legislators have already spoken out against the draft that was put before them. "The budget was rejected by Parliament, and the government must include national projects, such as the construction of national roads, in the budget," House Chairman Abdul Rauf Ibrahimi said.

Others focused their criticism on the process through which the draft emerged. "The main problem is not the budget, but it is the absence of suggestions from representatives, meaning that it was brought to Parliament at the last moment," said Ramazan Jumazada, a member of the National Economic Commission of the Lower House.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Finance (MoF) has cast Parliament's disapproval as unwarranted, but within its rights. "The national budget of the country is complete, transparent and economical, but Parliament has rejected it," Ministry spokesman Abdul Qader Jilani said. "It's their right, and we will do our best to bring changes to the budget." (Tolonews)