LAHORE: Enlisting the developmental projects undertaken by the Pakistan Muslim League – Nawaz (PML-N) during its past tenures, PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif said their growth reforms were copied by India as they proved to be very successful.
Speaking in Lahore on Tuesday, Sharif said India continued with the developmental work and hence prospered, whereas Pakistan did not as the PML-N government was dissolved.
“Pakistan was better than India in every sense back then, our currency was stronger, we had more electric power, our economic growth rate was close to 8% while India’s was around 2% to 3%,” Nawaz stated.
“India would look up to Pakistan as our country was fast developing,” he added.
Explaining their current struggle in Pakistan, Sharif said his party is “not struggling for power but for values; for the future of Pakistan.”
“We only want power that can help us make Pakistan a better place,” he said.
Pointing out the problems in Balochistan, the PML-N chief said that the crisis would have not cropped up if PML-N was allowed to complete its tenures.
“We had planned to build motorways, schools and hospitals in the province just like other provinces,” he claimed.
Boasting about the nuclear tests done during his stint in power, Sharif said the step brought Pakistan on par with India, which had become a nuclear nation earlier.
“This made Indian leader Vajpayee come all the way to Pakistan to talk about solving issues through dialogues,” he said.
Mocking Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) chairman Imran Khan for his claims of change in a matter of few days, Sharif said these problems cannot be solved in days, it takes years to bring about a change.
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In 1998 Vajpai came to Pakistan and wished to import electricity from Pakistan because Pakistan had excess electricity. But this was never due to NS but due due IPPs setup during BenazirBhutto period(1993-1996) against which PMLN always made propaganda. But BB initiated power projects saved us from loadshedding during 1998-2005. Nawaz did not establish a single power project.
@ali: Absolutely false, PMLN has goondas, liars, and propagandaist in its ranks. Show me a single instance when PMLN came up with a program to solve various crisis facing Pakistan. In his first stint power he destroyed economy which came down to 3% growth from 7% during 1980-1990.
You cannot mislead people in this information age. Nawaz Sharif had become a burden on Pakistan. Other than his whims and dictatorial inclinations, he had damaged the economy. Pakistan just had $300 millions in reserve, one forth of what Mr Nawaz Sharif had in his personal coffer. He as a Prime minister introduced ethnic preferences and people were gauged not by merit, but their ethnicity and pliancy to the house of Sharifs. If he couldn’t run his government with heavy mandate, how come deliver in divided house.
Whether India copied Pakistan or not, it is true that in 1991 when India started economic reform, Pakistan had instituted many reforms ahead of India.
Yeah country was at par with Switzerland in ur era...but would you explain why did you introduced Qarz Utaro Mulk Sanwaro, when according to you our GDP growth was 8%
@NO BS: "I would love to hear our Indian friends on whether India’s economic success is a result of Nawaz Sharif’s policies?"
Please see my earlier response which really is a qualified yes. India was jetisoning 44 years of bad policies and trying to adopt new ones. In doing so, it was willing to accept good ideas from anywhere including Pakistan.
@NO BS: i would seriously not mind, until it helps india. and certainly not from pakistanis..
though, i have a doubt, that india was on liberalisation path not because of our leaders foresight, but because of their inability to deal with crisis, and india was even forced to mortgage her golds....and, then had reluctantly set out walking on the liberalism path...
and, imitating others qualities, to improve ourselves, is a good step.
Implemented by India without the thievery or nepotism. Plus I dont recall the Indian PM wanting to nominate himself as Ameerul Momineen - a perpetual position in the hands of the Sahrif clan.
If you want any brownie points, draw in India. What a country has become that breaths India/USA/Isreal.
I would love to hear our Indian friends on whether India's economic success is a result of Nawaz Sharif's policies?
@Ahsan Iqbal: vajpayee asking nawaz for advice is a sarcastic form of flattery and the fool fell for it !!!
pak was an inspiratin to india in the 1960s (and before) ...in teh sense that our pujabi brothers across the border showed what a punjabi CAn do ! ....so we werent against you in that sense .- same language brothers !
i am genuinely sorry ( believe me ) to see that pak went into free-fall once the wonderful zulfilkar bhutto took over with his insistence to eat grass - but pak being rich ( relatively speaking ), the results didnt shouw up till a decade and a half later
then when his daghter benazir took over , that was the final nail in the coffin for pakistan
after her robbery, in the 1990s pak was already in free- fall - all the way
so to say vajypayee asked NS for advice ? that is just flattery
So? Is the india the only criteria you measure success by?
@Ahsan Iqbal: well Mr. Iqbal, we agree Mian sb is better among the current worst lot of politicians. But is it a leader's job to take pride in constructing motorways and airports?
Most of us remember our peaceful childhood, when there was no terrorism, loadshedding and inflation. We used to live happily and i remember wheat crisis once had become so prominent. After 90's, name any crisis and you will find it there. I have to give NS credit for making my childhood peaceful.
Please forgive Nawaz Sharif for this outburst because his memory span is only for few minutes and his IQ is very low. He urgently needs to see a shrink.
why compare every thing with india?,look at some other country.By the way india's growth rate was so low because it adopted soviet style economic planning. Everything was nationalized,and 70% indians worked for the goverment,there was very little private sector.On the other hand pakistan was american alley and received aid in billions.Pakistan too never developed any private sector,except fattening its army to fight india.Now the aid has dried up,no private sector and nothing else to attract any investment from outside,on top of that extremism and anger to fight the whole world.
@Ahsan Iqbal: I have a summary of PML-N's performance on the following link:
http://greenflagbearers.blogspot.co.uk/2012/06/why-i-dont-support-pml-n.html
Please read if you have time and let me know if I am wrong or incorrect, I have used World Bank data to analyse issues.
@Ahsan Iqbal: Dear Sir, If you are the real Ahsan Iqbal :) can I ask you that you have often said that you have built motorways and so on and on. Lets take the issue of motorway for the sake of discussion, I say that the motorway gifted to Pakistan by PML-N was the same as a poor jobless person spends his life savings to buy a 50" LCH HD Flastscreen TV when he can't afford food or clothes, please prove me wrong by giving facts and figures that suggest that the M-2 has earned Pakistan more than what was spent on it, or is on the road of earning the initial investment or its a white elephant?
Also please clarify that when your political party and leaders were politically incompetent and immature to handle threats and conspiracies against their government and hence failed to complete term TWICE. What is the guarantee that you will do it now?
It is a matter of record and not a matter of dispute that for the first 50 years Pakistan's per capita GDP was higher than India. There were many factors: - India's command and control economy pursued for the first 44 years depressed growth - While partition may have led to a loss in self esteem for Pakistan, it improved the per capita GDP by around 33% since about 55% population left and GDP reduced by only 33% - Pakistan got aid during Ayub's time and Zia's time that India did not. While other consequences of that aid are not coming to fruition, the positive economic impact was obvious. - Pakistan's privatization program and some other IMF suggested reforms were helping Pakistani growth.
Since per capita GDP of PAkistan was almost 33% higher than India in 1997 it is not inconceivable that when Vajpayee met Nawaz, he may have wanted to learn from Pakistan. Intellectual curiosity and willingness to learn from others are a sign of confidence not weakness.
I think NS is talking about Riwind Farm growth. Otherwise during NS era KSE in Pak history first time dropped below 1,000 points and GDP below 2%, while reserves dropped below $600 millions.
Please straighten the facts and do not fool us.
@Only PTI I can only say PTI plan is a wish list like running car with water drama.
@Ahsan Iqbal: You cannot mislead people in this information age. Nawaz Sharif had become a burden on Pakistan. Other than his whims and dictatorial inclinations, he had damaged the economy. Pakistan just had $300 millions in reserve, one forth of what Mr Nawaz Sharif had in his personal coffer. He as a Prime minister introduced ethnic preferences and people were gauged not by merit, but their ethnicity and pliancy to the house of Sharifs. If he couldn’t run his government with heavy mandate, how come deliver in divided house.
well not only econimic reforms we indians are best in emulating the best of each and every thing happening around us.................. thats why we are the 3rd largest economy...PPP
@Ahsan Iqbal: … I think you very conviniently forgot to include economic blunders including freezing foreign currency accounts, flopped and flawed “qarz utaro muhim”, yello cab scheme, “new roshni schools” and tonnes of others purely nonsesical and politcally driven initiatives that Mr. NS did. Let’s forget them for one moment and focus on what you are boasting now…” We were building motorways, airports, new sea ports, telecom, and services. Financial and Telecom sectors were opened for privatne sector by NS government.”. If these are your team’s past/current/ and future economic priorties…. then I ecourage all PMLN supporters to think and re-think about voting you folks again. I have already made up my mind and nothing can change it.
Vote PTI for a change and for a better vision.
Pakistani's should boycott the election on the ground that there are no candidates qualified to lead the country and demand all existing parties dismantle. 60 plus years clowining around is sufficient for any nation.
Well said The day will not far when again Pakistan regain its track to prosperity IN SHA ALLAH Move on LION
1999 was not that long ago; we all remember NS rule quite well; people were fed up with his incompetence and corruption!! IF U WANT CHANGE VOTE PTI !!
@Shahid Shah: But Bajpeyee jee told us that Sharif is very Sharif .
@Ahsan Iqbal: Had we also followed what India was doing right then and that was spending on education, we won't be where we are; its not motorways, airports, new sea ports, telecom, and services that determine the productive capacity of the nation but the social development expenditure and for that sorry to say, neither PMLN nor PPP did anything significant. In fact social development expenditure has constantly declined since 1988 and replaced by either interest expenditure or defense expenditure. Furthermore, India also does not have the habit of pulling favorite generals through the ranks like Bhutto and NS did. So, NS fall in 1999 was partially an outcome of his own lack of political acumen.
I am surprised he did not tout his state-sponsored money-laundering scheme: foreign currency deposits which had to be shut down after the nuclear tests.
He always cry this tenure but who brought Musharaf on us. He superseded him over more competent armymen. Nawaz never believe in merit and it is evident in his party of cronies. He has no sense of competitive system of running government. Pakistan Government is like factory to him and he knows how to bilk it.
It is my personal observation that he is mullah without beard.
becuase of Nawaz economic plan pakistan is the most developed country in Asia having no unemplyment,no load shedding and people r coming from India and Arab states to do job in Pakistan! Wake up Nawaz, we r fed up with jokes and its 2012 not 1992.
@ Mr. Ahsan Iqbal... I think you very conviniently forgot to include economic blunders including freezing foreign currency accounts, flopped and flawed "qarz utaro muhim", yello cab scheme, "new roshni schools" and tonnes of others purely nonsesical and politcally driven initiatives that Mr. NS did. Let's forget them for one moment and focus on what you are boasting now..." We were building motorways, airports, new sea ports, telecom, and services. Financial and Telecom sectors were opened for privatne sector by NS government.". If these are your team's past/current/ and future economic priorties.... then I ecourage all PMLN supporters to think and re-think about voting you folks again. I have already made up my mind and nothing can change it.
Vote PTI for a change and for a better vision.
We can see great mess in Punjab!!! Go back to London!!
@Abubakar can you support your claim with any evidence? because I can refute your claim with evidence, (look here)
hahahaha mian sab we are no more kids, am 20 plus already :) you can't fool me anymore! good try but you must try something else...
If India copied your plans why couldn't you implement any of your own plans in TWO opportunities you had, both of which you spoiled yourself, what do you want? 100 more chances? Fool me once shame on you, fool me twice shame on me, no more shame on me Mian sb no matter what you say I am not giving you my vote ever again, I will give it to anybody who stands opposite to you and hasn't looted my country but not you.
In your terms the country's reserves almost emptied, find evidence over here (http://greenflagbearers.blogspot.co.uk/2012/06/why-i-dont-support-pml-n.html)
@Jibran: liked your sarcasm . Unfortunatly this is the reality of the subcontinant . That is why faith on religion is incresing in both the countries . India may choose Modi this time .
I think this claim from Mr. NS should be verified from India's foreign office and if found false then s case should be initiated against him and if true then Ministry Of Finance should be handed over to his team of experts for 10 years.
Yes if the crisis in banking and yellow cab scam was a yard stick then PML-N has no parallel in sout Asia. They were number one in the world of scams.
lol
We must appreciate what is good and give credit where it is due. Probably some of the comments come from those who opened eyes in post 99 era. It is a fact that deregulation, liberalization, and privatization reforms introduced by first Nawaz government were later followed by India and PM Narsima Rao sought PM Sharif help to study Pakistan's reforms. Till 99, Pakistan was the leader in South Asia in economic initiatives. We were building motorways, airports, new sea ports, telecom, and services. Financial and Telecom sectors were opened for privatne sector by NS government. These are facts of history.
He is right. Vejpayee came to Pakistan during the 90s and asked for Pakistan's economic success...let's not forget, Pakistan gdp per capita was higher than India's and excelled in far a lot of fields, too. The western media called India's growth "the hindu growth", as it was sub par for decades.
long live NS!! he is the only true leader left and he is the only one who with goverenance expereince at the top most level
What a joke!
@Ali: No, no, no .....Mr. ALI ...He is the only person who can talk to Modi on an equal footing . The ppp after all is in power till the US is there in Afghanistan .
yes there are also leg pulling and hypocrisy in india now sure they are also following u.
Sir! not sure what growth you are talking about. If it means "personal growth", then yes definitely you are a legend in Pakistan and India. You revolutionized this industry. All Indo-Pak politicians, judges, generals, and bureaucrats are rookies compared to you.
IK is a cub before the cow , Bajpayee jee has also appriciate the friendly gesture of NawaaZ but now he is no more in power his son Modi if became the next PM it is only then the deal could be metarilised . The present govt. is dealing with PPP .Hope for the best .....
Indeed & I guess during his first tenure Pakistan saw major economic reforms but unfortunately his govt. was toppled and the process couldn't continue... Similarly in his second tenure Ahsan Iqbal presented a very comprehensible & pragmatic steps as vision 2010 which again got sabotaged by Musharraf's marshal-law
No one can deny that after Ayub's economic reforms, it was Nawaz Sharif's govt. who delivered on this front.
Mr. Sharif, your sick jokes are not amusing anymore. If you open up the newspapers of your time, self-immolation as a form of protest against poverty started during your tenure. And if you carefully read the news of that time, you will quickly find out that you also tried to force the newspapers not to report these incidents, as according to your government it reflected bad on your boasts.
I think NS is exaggerating his past achievements.He left the country close to bankruptcy.I still remember the fiasco with the foreign currency accounts.Luckily I decided against opening an account at the last minute otherwise I would lost a huge amount of money.Now lets talk about the present and future policies.PMLN has been in power for four and half years and its achievements are zilch.All social and economic indicators show that Punjab is going downhill for the last four and half years.
Absolutely right. No doubt PMLN has most competent team.
His tall claims had already sent him to Jeddah but the irony is he is not still humble.
so he is making our mind already that it take years to bring change than why not believe IK who is at least willing to bring some change in days.
No current leader is a sincere of Pakistan. End of Story.
Mian saab please it's time for you retire! If you don't retire then you may get retired hurt. It's a sincere advice
we have trust on you. plese keep moving
Great leader
I find it funny that he is mocking IK for talking about "unrealisitic" change, but he himself said that he will make pak into top 10 global ecomony (currently we are 47)..i.e. bigger economy then canada....I guess he is planning on building a lot more motorways and providing a lot more yellow cabs!!
By the way, did he provide any answers to those 11 questions IK asked of him :)
Haha this has to be the biggest joke of the century. Nawaz is the best wordsmith out there. It's patehtic how easily they lie and fool people around. Vote for PTI for change !!