FY22 Budget: PML-N will not allow govt to 'impose IMF demands': Shehbaz

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) president and leader of the opposition in the National Assembly Shehbaz Sharif has vowed that his party will not allow the government to impose the International Monetary Fund (IMF) demands on the people in the forthcoming budget.

In a statement, which was shared to the media by PML-N spokesperson Marriyum Aurangzeb here, Shehbaz challenged the PTI government's claims with regard to the country's economy, saying that people are hungry and unemployed, while the "indifferent" rulers are making "false" claims as "all is well".

He said that the rulers have no knowledge of the economy and they are unaware of the plight of the people, who are even striving for managing their two times meal.

He maintained that the prices of flour, sugar milk have gone up, while the government could not ensure the supply of flour in the country.

"In a country which produces surplus wheat, the present government failed to ensure supply of flour...what else could be a greater proof of corruption and incompetence of this government?" he asked.

"Today, the people are facing shortage of medicines and other essential commodities. The prices of essential commodities have gone beyond the reach of the people. If corruption scandals of the rulers become a daily routine, the people to be the ultimate victims," he maintained.

Shehbaz further maintained that the price of flour has increased by Rs57 per kg which is a 73 percent increase, the price of sugar has gone up to Rs120 and Rs130, while the price of milk has increased by 31 percent. "These are the basic necessities of the people which are very expensive for the poor people of the country," he added.

The PML-N president has also directed the party's Economic Advisory Council to expose the government's dismal and disastrous economic performance, instructing the council to highlight the serious crisis faced by the people of Pakistan due to the skyrocketing inflation, record unemployment and economic destruction of the country 'because of "the PTI's disastrous policies".

He also instructed the council to present its proposals to safeguard the rights of the people considering the dire situation.

"The government may change the statistics by lying but that won't change the ground realities of the economy clearly visible to everyone. The PML-N will not allow the demands of the IMF to be imposed on the people in the name of budget," he vowed.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2021