ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif finally made it to the National Assembly on Thursday, to wa­tch and relish drum beating by Finance Minister Ishaq Dar regarding his high hopes about the government’s economic performance, which he gave just days ago.

The PM’s visit was a rare one, coming after an absence from at least two sessions and amid frequent complaints by critics that his absenteeism only showed his disregard for the 342-seat house that elected him to the office about a year ago.

His arrival in the house on Thursday, accentuated by cheers from the packed treasury benches, sparked speculation in the house and galleries that the prime minister may talk about key issues. Issues such as his government’s perceived problems with the military, the stalled peace talks with Taliban rebels, suspense regarding the new leadership due to take office in India and Afghanistan and his recent visits to Britain and Iran.

But to everybody’s dismay, this did not happen. This was particularly disappointing because the PM’s foreign policy adviser, Sartaj Aziz, had faced two days of opposition protests in the Senate for making a sketchy policy statement at the end of the foreign policy debate.

It was only when the prime minister rose to depart after spending about 70 minutes in the house that it became clear that the PM, while breaking a cycle of absenteeism, had come not to speak but to hear Mr Dar rattle out the same positive economic indicators that he gave at a news conference in Islamabad on Saturday. An opposition lawmaker, Abdul Sattar Bachhani of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), used his speech in a debate on the law and order situation to urge the PM to come to the house at least once in a week “to add to your own and the house’s honour”. But he found his call apparently ignored as the PM got up from his seat immediately to leave amid a crowd of party members.

The finance minister’s hour-long performance was marked by claims of “faster than expected” economic recovery, the revived confidence of international economic institutions in Pakistan, rising exports, the appreciation of the rupee and what Dar called the “internationally-acclaimed” transparency in the recent auction of 3G and 4G spectrum licences. This, he was convinced, would enhance internet speed in Pakistan and create 900,000 jobs in the next four years.

The show seemed aimed to counter the impact of public discontent stemming from inflation and revived power cuts as well as some battering the government took in recent street protests by the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) and Allama Tahirul Qadri’s Pakistan Awami Tehreek.

Mr Dar said he wished PTI chairman Imran Khan had been present in the house on Thursday, but he vowed to settle a score with him regarding the allegations the PTI chief had made about the investments made by the finance minister’s family members in Dubai.

Talking about the rupee’s appreciation to around Rs98 versus the dollar, which had contributed to a drop in petroleum prices, the minister said the dollar would not be valued at more than Rs99 in estimates for the upcoming budget.

Putting the current foreign exchange reserves at $13 billion, he said they would cross $15bn by July.

Other points highlighted by the minister included the growth of Federal Board of Revenue’s collection, which increased by 15.6 per cent to Rs1,745bn rupees in the first 10 months of the current fiscal year from Rs1,509bn in the same period last year. The budget deficit also featured in his remarks, which he said had come down from 5.5pc to 4pc. Exports rose 6.1pc to $19.11bn with only a 0.8pt increase in imports to $33.4bn and the trade deficit came down significantly for the first nine months of the fiscal year to $13.93bn against $14.74bn during the same period last year.

The finance minister said inflation had been brought down to single digits at 8.6pc, while he said the international community recognised that the country’s growth was witnessing an upward trend while inflation was on the decline.

He said the growth rate of the country’s gross domestic product was expected to be 4pc cent during the current financial year while it was projected to increase to 5pc next year and 6pc the year after that.

Temple attacks condemned

Earlier, the house unanimously passed a resolution, moved by Ramesh Kumar Vankwani of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-N and signed by several parties, condemning the attacks on minorities’ worship places in the Larkana, Hyderabad and Thar districts of Sindh. They also deplored the “martyrdom” (burning) of copies of the Hindu holy book Bagahwad Gita and the Sikh holy scripture Guru Granth Sahib in the Shikarpur district of the same province.

The resolution demanded that the government take “necessary steps” on a priority basis to safeguard minorities’ places of worship, which, it said, must also be protected by security personnel deployed there.

Turkish miners mourned

The house passed another resolution, moved by PPP member Naveed Qamar, expressing its grief over the death of an estimated 270 people in a mining accident in western Turkey on Wednesday and asking the government to “extend all assistance” to the Turkish government to cope with the tragedy.

Science and Technology Minister Zahid Hamid told the house that the Pakistani flag was flying half mast after the prime minister declared Thursday a day of national mourning.

The house adopted a government motion to suspend question hour for Friday, the last day of the current session, to provide time for a debate on electricity load-shedding beginning at 10am.

Published in Dawn, May 16th, 2014