Shah contests govt claims on economy

Urges Sharif brothers to work for the welfare of those living in cities other than Lahore

SUKKUR: Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Khursheed Shah delivered a scathing verdict on the national economy on Sunday, saying it was in ruins due to unprecedented borrowing.

Speaking to media representatives in Sukkur, he said that the federal government could not prolong its political life by telling lies to the people.

Rejecting the government’s assertions regarding improving the national economy, he said that the federal government’s claims were untrue. “The national economy is not moving in the right direction,” he asserted.

Referring to the record borrowings of the federal government, he wondered who would pay back these debts.

In addition to “ compulsively lying to the nation”, Shah said Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan was acting as if he was the Taliban spokesperson.



The interior minister, he said, claimed that the matter of missing persons was not his responsibility. “If it is not his job, then whose responsibility is it to protect the lives and properties of people?” he asked.

Directing a query at the federal government, he wondered where ‘Sasti Roti’ and Danish School projects had been phased out. “Please spare the nation … stop raising hollow slogans,” he said.

Referring to the scandal of Panama Papers, he said that the Supreme Court needed no further proofs after the BBC report.

Expressing concern over the plight of growers, Shah said that the federal government was exploiting them.

Thousands of workers had been rendered jobless because of the closure of nearly 50 per cent of textile units, he said. Shah urged the government to announce a relief package for the textile industry without any pre-condition.

Shah also wondered what the government was doing to accommodate nearly 100,000 engineers who were returning from Middle Eastern countries.

Taking a jibe at the Sharif brothers, he said: “You are not just the ruler of Lahore alone … Therefore, think about the welfare of the people living in other cities and towns of Punjab, including, Mandi Bahauddin, Multan, Faisalabad, Gujranwala, Sialkot and elsewhere.”

The government, he said, is responsible for providing basic rights to the people across the country.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 16^th, 2017.