ISLAMABAD:
Tehreek-e-Tahaffuz Ayeen-e-Pakistan (TTAP) leaders on Thursday accused the government of misleading the public about the country’s economic condition, alleging manipulation of growth data, underestimation of trade deficits and a worsening business climate that has driven major international companies out of Pakistan.
Addressing a press conference in the federal capital, former Sindh governor Muhammad Zubair said the ruling elite had misled the nation by presenting an overly rosy picture of the economy.
“We only present the truth about the economy,” he said.
“The government and the elite say something else. The impression is given that the prime minister’s visits to Malaysia, Saudi Arabia and China brought unprecedented prosperity.”
Zubair claimed that from 2022 to 2026, Pakistan would witness the lowest growth rate in its history, rejecting official claims of 5.7 percent GDP growth. “These figures are false. This government has become a nightmare for the people,” he remarked.
“The investment made in the last two years is the lowest in the country’s last 70 years.”
Zubair said the government failed to declare $11 billion worth of imports and did not respond to the IMF about the discrepancies.
“This means that both the trade and current account deficits were deliberately underestimated,” Zubair said, urging accountability.
“[The government] I should be ashamed [of itself.]. “If it was the previous government, they would have been asked to resign.”
Speaking on the occasion, former Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa minister Taimur Saleem Jhagra said the government’s claims of economic stability were a “pack of lies”.
He noted that major multinationals had abandoned Pakistan and described it as a devastating blow to investor confidence. “Those were among the largest corporations in the world. Their departure reflects [government’s] policy failure,” he said, adding that there has also been no significant investment in the automobile sector. “People are suffering, but there is no relief.”
