ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) has criticised federal Minister for Science and Technology Fawad Chaudhry for blaming provincial governments for the prevailing price hike in the country as the main opposition Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) asked Prime Minister Imran Khan to disclose names of those involved in the recent wheat and sugar crises in the country.

In a statement released by the party’s media office here on Thursday, PPP Senator Sassui Palejo expressed surprise over the minister’s remarks which he had made during a TV talk show only a day after the prime minister himself accepted the responsibility of the recent wheat and sugar crises.

Ms Palejo said that the people of the country knew well about those responsible for the wheat and sugar crises and the price hike.

The science and technology minister in a TV interview on Wednesday stated that the countrymen faced the wheat and sugar crises due to mismanagement by the provinces. He also stated that it was the responsibility of the provincial governments to control price hike and maintain wheat stocks and the federal government had nothing to do with it.

Fawad blamed Punjab, Sindh governments for mismanagement, price hike

Mr Chaudhry also blamed the government of his own party in Punjab for the mismanagement and price hike.

“Had I been the prime minister, I would have sacked both chief secretaries of Punjab and Sindh. They have been unable to check price hike and wheat,” he said, adding that it was the federal government and the prime minister who had to face criticism for the inefficiency of chief secretaries of the two provinces.

When asked as to why the prime minister was unable to take action against them, he said the prime minister was unable to do it due to “political compulsions”.

Mr Chaudhry had in the past criticised the performance of Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar in party meetings.

In reply to a question, the minister said that he believed that the chief minister and the chief secretary of a province were actually responsible for “provincial management”.

Commenting on Mr Chaudhry’s remarks, Ms Palejo said the minister could not disclose in media the names of those behind the wheat and sugar scams as “these people are the blue-eyed boys of Banigala”.

Meanwhile, in a statement issued from London and released by PML-N’s information secretary, Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Shahbaz Sharif said that “the government’s silence over wheat and sugar crisis is a confession of the crime”.

“Who made money through wheat and sugar? How crises were born? Why these two commodities were exported when there was a ban? Which are the government figures who earned billions of rupees? The nation is awaiting replies to all these questions,” he said.

Mr Sharif alleged that the prime minister was “hands in glove with the criminals” which was evident from the fact that the investigation report was not being made public. He called for “raiding the PM House to arrest the smugglers”.

Published in Dawn, February 21st, 2020