–Planning minister says PML-N missed golden opportunity to revive economy, calls Dar ‘economic hitman’
–Ahsan Iqbal terms Bakhtiar’s address lecture on ‘Khusronomics’
–Says budget will hinder economic growth, increase poverty, says Iqbal
–Says PML-N has power projects, motorways to show for the debt it took during five-year tenure
ISLAMABAD: Minister for Planning and Development Khusro Bakhtiar on Sunday urged government and opposition parties to reach a consensus on the ‘charter of economy’ to break free of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) yoke.
Taking part in the budget debate in the National Assembly on Sunday, the minister urged the parliamentarians to save the economy but formulating a joint strategy.
The minister was referring to the ‘charter of economy’ brought up by Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) President Shehbaz Sharif in the House during the debate on the budget.
His proposal, however, was rejected by PML-N Vice President Maryam Nawaz in a fiery presser. However, the decision depends on the outcome of an all-party conference called by the opposition.
Bakhtiar said the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) had inherited massive fiscal and current account deficits. However, the current account deficit is $12billion from earlier $20bn.
He also criticised former finance minister Ishaq Dar for failing to revive the economy during his stint, saying the PML-N had a total fiscal space of $66bn during its tenure and could have put the country’s economy back on track.
“Ishaq Dar can be truly called an ‘economic hitman’ due to his policies,” he stated, adding that the parliament, being the most important policy making institution, should draft a charter of economy.
Ahsan Iqbal, however, played down the reservations of Bakhtiar as ‘Khusronomics’. He said the minister is reciting verses in praise of Imran Khan today, whereas in past he used to do the same for Nawaz Sharif.
The former interior and planning minister went on to criticise the PTI for presenting a federal budget dictated by the International Monetary Fund (IMF). He said such a budget would plunge millions below the poverty lines and will hinder economic growth.
Speaking during the on-going budget session of the National Assembly, the PML-N senior leader the primary target of a budget should be to achieve economic growth, create job opportunities and make social investments to provide health and education facilities to the people.
Speaking on PTI’s performance, he said the government failed to achieve its revenue target due to which budget deficit was increased.
He said there was a shortfall of Rs550 billion in tax collection during the ongoing fiscal year and the current expenditure rose by 20 per cent.
“The gimmickry of selling buffaloes and vehicles cannot control the budget deficit,” he remarked in an allusion to PTI’s austerity drive under which the government sold buffaloes and cars owned by the PM House.
Comparing his government’s achievements to that of the PTI’s, Ahsan said during the PML-N’s tenure, the industry was growing and agriculture was getting revived. He said during their government, Pakistan grew at 5.8 per cent, Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) was the best in Asia and Pakistani rupee was stable against the US dollar.
Now the country’s stock exchange and currency had lost their value and inflation had risen, he noted, adding that with a growth rate of three per cent this year, it would be difficult to create jobs for two million people.
He said PML-N government launched Vision 2025 with the collaboration of chief minister of provinces and different stakeholders.
“We implemented the roadmap under the Vision 2025, and in 2017 PricewaterhouseCoopers, a leading firm which ranks economies, said that Pakistan would be among the 20 top economies by 2030 if it continued its growth momentum.”
He said during PML-N government growth rose from 3 per cent to 5.8 per cent, inflation came down to single digit, revenue doubled and Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) increased from less than $1bn to $3bn, law and order considerably improved and Pakistan was set to attract foreign investment.
$28.5 billion of projects were materialized under the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), he told.
He said after reports of international institutions about growing Pakistani economy, in 2017 some elements conspired against Pakistan to destabilize it. He said the government had cut the public sector development programme by billions of rupees and reduced funds for different sectors of the economy.
DEBT COMMISSION:
The recent debt commission formed by Prime Minister Imran Khan also came under discussion. The former minister said the PML-N has to show for what it borrowed during its five years.
He said in the last five years, the PML-N government took loans of Rs 10,000 billion. But from 2013-2018, 12,000 megawatts of electricity was generated, 1750 kilometres of motorways, including Lahore-Multan and Multan-Sukkur section of motorways, were built.
“We developed infrastructure which was acknowledged by international financial institutions.”
The government should tell where it spent loans of Rs5000bn in its one year, he asked.
In a word to advice to the government, he said the politics of allegations and abuses look good on containers, but the treasury benches in parliament will have to show tolerance and responsibility.
PPP LEFT $2.5BN DEFICIT:
Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) leader Raja Pervaiz Ashraf said the last PPP government left, the current account deficit was at $ 2.5 billion but now it was about $ 22 billion.
He said the parliament was the mother of all institutions and it should be respected.
He recalled that the PPP government had given the Gwadar port to China by taking back its control from Singapore, laying the basis for the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).
The PPP encouraged farmers and Pakistan achieved self-sufficiency in wheat production, he added.
Raja Pervaiz reminded that the PPP government faced the challenges of worst floods in the country’s history, took back Swat and Malakand from militants, started Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP), and gave jobs to thousands of people and raised salaries and pensions of civil employees and armed forces.
Participating in the debate on the budget, PTI’s Amjad Ali Khan said the government had to approach the IMF because the last regime had left behind huge loans and the circular debt.
He said the country’s economic conditions had deteriorated because assets and properties were made in foreign countries.
The main parties in the opposition should tell the nation as to how they had come into power in the past, he added.
