KARACHI: Lashing out at the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf government for “not bringing improvement” to the people’s lives during its two-year rule, former finance minister and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz leader Miftah Ismail on Wednesday opposed a much-hyped plan of the centre regarding taking over Karachi.

“The federal government should not declare Karachi a federal territory since there is no provision in the law and the Constitution,” he said while speaking at a press conference at the Karachi Press Club.

He said that problems of Karachi could be resolved if governments gave power and resources to the people of Karachi.

Mr Ismail condemned what he called unjust loadshedding in Karachi and claimed that the PTI government had started loadshedding in the entire country and raised the power tariff multiple times that caused price hike.

He said that the Pakistan Peoples Party government in Sindh did not disturb the elected local government system in the province and it was completing its tenure, whereas the PTI government “prematurely wrapped up” the elected LG system in Punjab.

He said that it was former prime minister Nawaz Sharif who restored peace to the metropolis.

He said that his party was ready for accountability of the five-year term of its federal government.

‘Charge sheet’ on economy

Commenting on the two-year performance of the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf government, he said that the growth in national income decreased from 5.8 per cent in 2018 — when the five-year term of the PML-N government ended — to minus 0.4pc in 2020.

“Our per capita income has decreased from $1,652 to $1,388. Sugar, wheat flour, medicines, natural gas and electricity prices have nearly doubled. Taxes on petrol are highest ever. Food inflation is over 15pc and between six and eight million people [have been] pushed into abject poverty,” he added.

He said that a government which had promised to give 10 million jobs had rendered additional two million people unemployed over the past two years.

The former finance minister said that the per kilo price of flour was Rs35 when the PML-N left the government in 2018 and now the same commodity was available for more than Rs70 a kilo.

He said that during the two years of PTI rule, a whopping Rs10 trillion had been added to the national debt.

He said that the PTI government had raised power tariff by 50pc to 100pc but failed to end circular debt. “The circular debt today is more than double where the PML-N left it.”

Talking about gas tariff, he said despite a huge and unnecessary increase in gas rates, the financial conditions of Sui Southern and Sui Northern became worse.

He said that the collection of taxes by the Federal Board of Revenue remained stagnant during the two years of PTI rule. He said it was beyond anyone’s understanding why this government had changed five chairmen of FBR during two years.

“What kind of proposals can we give to a government that has failed to increase exports despite 40pc devaluation,” he told a questioner.

Published in Dawn, August 20th, 2020