ISLAMABAD: Accusing Finance Minister Ishaq Dar for the drastic decline of the rupee vis-à-vis the US dollar, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader and ex-energy minister Hammad Azhar Thursday claimed that if the State Bank of Pakistan’s independence and market exchange regime rate had been maintained, the rupee would not have even crossed 200.
Speaking at a presser, he said that the humiliating record of the downward spiral of rupees vis-à-vis the US dollar is due to political economic destruction of the last nine months in the country.
“This is just the start as there will be a huge economic crisis due to currency depreciation which could become a worst-case scenario if not dealt with suitable economic policies and political stability,” he warned.
In the same breath, he claimed that Dar had also tried to “fix the exchange rate in the past, and used $32 billion of the country, which led to a sudden devaluation of rupee and when came out of that exchange rate regime, which caused a spike in inflation”.
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He reiterated that if there had been no regime change in April 2022 and the autonomy of SBP had been maintained, the rupee would not have even crossed 200, adding from 1981 till date, the devaluation average per year is 6.1pc as the inflation rate in the country is higher than others.
“The dollar appreciated by 3.4 percent per month against the US dollar in the last nine months,” he lamented. While referring to a Financial Times report which says Pakistan is on the brink of economic collapse, he said that the incumbent government ruined the country’s economy which is evident from the decline of the rupee, skyrocketing inflation, and political instability. He said that there was a downward pressure when the market was closed at 255, which will further go down as no rate open is fixed yet, and this is happening when you have placed artificial restrictions and capital control on imports.
“It’s not the job of SBP to open every LCs [letters of credit] and due to flawed policies of Ishaq Dar, there is a shortage of basic things in the country. Supply chain of every industry has been disrupted right from edible items, raw material, medicine, and petroleum products, etc,” he added.
He warned that there could be hyperinflation in the country as Ishaq Dar and his predecessor Miftah Ismail have brought the country to the brink of complete economic collapse.
Responding to Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi, whose party was an ally of the PTI in Punjab, he said that at a time when there was no rule of law, and there is economic and political chaos everywhere in the country, the PTI could not have thought of enjoying provincial governments.
The worse is yet to come as the impact of the exchange rate in the next three months will be worse, he said, adding the imported regime will further increase the prices of electricity and gas rates, which will impact the common man.
He said that the way the incumbent regime targeted Fawad Chaudhry and the way he was presented in the court blindfolded, was enough to expose the “fascist regime” and its “handlers” as it was the worst form of political victimisation of opponents.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2023
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