‘Country back to where it was in 2013’

ISLAMABAD: The PML-N government has borrowed over $44 billion during its tenure, which is a record high, said Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) Chairman Coordination Malik Sohail Hussain on Saturday. Despite borrowing on such a massive scale, the standard of living of masses or the national economy could not improve, he said. “Now, the country is on the brink of bankruptcy as it was in 2013 when the PML-N came to power,” Hussain added. Recounting failures of the previous government, the official said that foreign exchange reserves continued to fall, necessitating another IMF bailout package on harsh conditions.

The business leader remarked that energy imports reached almost 60% of total exports, but the government failed to end load-shedding or settle circular debt, which reached new heights during its tenure. “Mismanagement in the LNG deal inflicted heavy losses on the exchequer and paved the way for gas sector circular debt for the first time in history of the country.”

Published in The Express Tribune, June 10^th, 2018.

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