Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Senator Rashid Rabbani seems to have responded to International Monetary Fund’s (IMF’s) meetings with political stakeholders in Pakistan, including PPP and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), in a highly inappropriate manner by describing this development as “an erosion of political sovereignty”.

How come has the learned senator described the situation as “the return of East India Company when notables were asked to support the Company’s policies?” I urge him to identify and explain who was actually asking the so-called notables to support Company’s policies in the 18th and 19th centuries in the undivided sub-continent.

The senator is fully aware of the fact that the incumbent government had been making efforts day in, day out to successfully persuade the IMF to unlock its bailout programme—the criticality of which cannot be overemphasized. In other words, it was not top or lower-ranked IMF official but the prime minister himself who had been calling on the IMF MD time and again or on very many occasions, repeatedly, urging her to end Fund’s protracted procrastination over the future of programme.

It is quite out of ordinary that PPP, which is part of the present coalition setup in the country, has made its position on this development public through an individual senator.

Former finance minister Salim Mandviwala and incumbent federal commerce minister Naveed Qamar comprised the PPP team that formally met the IMF officials on Friday. I’m sure neither had described the situation as “the return of the East India Company…” before the representatives of lender of last resort. How interesting it is that the PPP wants to retain the possession of a cake and eat it, too.

Ashiq Husain Tiwana (Rawalpindi)

Copyright Business Recorder, 2023