ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) senior leader and former Finance Minister Miftah Ismail on Thursday said that Pakistan is witnessing an unprecedented worst economic turmoil with the third highest inflation in the world due to the “failed” economic policies of the PTI government.
Speaking at a news conference, Miftah deplored that Prime Minister Imran Khan instead of focusing on the economic crisis has started preaching “Amr Bil Maroof, WaNahi Anil Munkar”. “I and my spouse are supposed to guide our kids to the right path, so are you and the prime minister himself to guide his children to the right path. But there has to be someone who would tell the nation about the state of the economy as Imran Khan has already stated that he did not become the premier to focus on the rates of tomatoes and potatoes,” he said.
He said that Pakistan is witnessing the third fastest inflation in the world after Argentina and Turkey, adding that Pakistan’s is witnessing a double inflation compared to India where the inflation rate is 5.6 percent, while in Pakistan it is 13 percent. He added that the food inflation in Pakistan has reached 15 percent.
He also rejected the prime minister’s excuses that the inflation in the country was due to the Covid-19, adding that the food inflation compared to India is three and half times high. He also gave a comparison of the essential commodities prices during the current PTI government and during the past PML-N government, adding that the historic high inflation cannot be blamed on the Covid-19, but “incompetence” is behind the situation.
He also rejected the claims of the prime minister that the opposition was engaged in horse-trading to buy votes for the no-confidence motion against him, he challenged the premier to bring evidence of the alleged use of money.
“They are telling lies. They cannot produce single evidence as the estranged PTI members have taken the oath on the holy Quran that they haven’t received a single penny from anyone. Imran Khan is the person who purchased a single Senate seat at Rs700 million,” he alleged.
He said that the dollar has reached Rs181.70. “This is the prime responsibility of the prime minister to stop inflation and the devaluation of the currency. If you are unable to stop inflation, then for what purpose have you come to power?” he asked the premier.
The former finance minister said that due to the failed economic policies and wrong direction of the economy, people have started committing suicides and were selling their daughters, adding that the country has been lunged into a flood of foreign debt. He added that the government has borrowed another $4.5 billion from China.
To a question, he said that the PML-N’s prime minister, if elected will never said that it is not his responsibility to stop inflation, adding that the nation would witness a change visibly in weeks when the new government is formed. “With the departure of Imran Khan, the mafias would also go along with him,” he added.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2022