PPP issues white paper against PTI government

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) on Friday issued white paper against the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government and termed that it has missed almost all targets relating to tax collection, growth, exports, employments, borrowing, inflation and deviated from all promises made with the nation before general election 2018. 

Central Secretary Finance of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Pir Haider Zaman Qureshi and PPP-P Secretary Information Dr. Nafisa Shah presented white paper against PTI government in a news conference on Friday.

According to white paper, “Almost all sectors of the economy decelerated. The factories were shutting down leading to deindustrialization and commodities production of sugar wheat and cotton came down in Naya Pakistan. Net foreign direct investment has also declined by 51 percent to $1.273 billion in the first nine months of the current financial year as against $2.62 billion during the corresponding period last year.

In one year the rupee lost nearly 25 percent of its value from Rs 125 to 160. This has added to the overall debt burden of Pakistan. The devaluation was haphazard and adhoc, leading to economic instability in the country. In one year of PTI government, the stock market lost nearly 25 per cent of its value sliding from 42,900 points to 32,000. The stock market is generally considered a barometer of economic activity, and this huge loss indicates how badly managed the economy was.”

The white paper further described that “in 2018-19, budgeted expenditures witnessed an Rs449 billion surge despite the adoption of austerity measures by the government. But austerity in tandem with poor fiscal management seems to have cost the country its developmental progress largely, where the Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) saw a 32 percent decrease during fiscal year 2018-19, and ‘General Public Services’ expenditure registered a 21 percent increase in the backdrop of increase in debt servicing, driven by abrupt borrowing and a devalued rupee. Expenditure on ‘Economic Affairs’ witnessed a 75 percent increase than budgeted while ‘recreation, culture and religion’ expenditures saw an increase of 14 percent during the year.

Cumulatively, the impact of missed revenue targets and inflated expenditures has resulted in a 27 percent increase in fiscal deficit in 2018-19. Is this an indication of ill-planned austerity, poor fiscal management and weaker oversight and control over expenditures or are previous regimes to be blamed for this? The treasury benches need to explain these arbitrary trends in spending and collection trends in light of the promises made under the banner of tabdeeli.”

About the Inflation, the white paper described that “according to the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS), prices of general and non-food items have dramatically increased during PTI’s one year in office and inflation has soared from5.84 to10.83 percent. The inflation is now in double digits. The prices of all basic commodities like wheat and sugar have risen and in many cases sky-rocketed, forcing people in vicious poverty trap.

When PTI government took power, oil prices were Rs 95 per litre. Today they are nearly 117 rupees per litre which is about 24 per cent increase. Ironically international oil prices have gone down by 10 per cent.

In its outlook for 2019-20, the World Bank forecast the crude oil prices hovering around $67 per barrel. At present, government is charging 17 percent sales tax on all products. The federal government is charging Rs18 per litre petroleum levy on HSD, Rs15 per litre on petrol, Rs6 per litre kerosene oil and Rs3 per litre on LDO.”

PTI Government increased the prices of medicines 200 per cent and despite changing the Advisor for health half way, the prices of medicines saw no decrease. This was to be the biggest jump in the past ten years, making it difficult for the common man to survive.

The past one year has witnessed more than 600 per cent increase in gas prices, and more than 30 per cent increase in electricity bills which has broken the back of the poor and the middle classes in Pakistan. The only announcement that comes each month is either an increase in gas bills or electricity bills. This has made businesses uneconomical and daily lives of the people miserable.

PTI government promised 50 lakh houses in 5 years. After one it should have at least build 1 million houses. Instead we have seen razing of homes, shops, and plazas in the name of encroachment removals in Karachi and Islamabad. Till this date, we have seen several launches of Naya Pakistan housing but have not seen a single house on the ground. It is also not clear who will be building these houses, and how resources have been organized for the purpose.

With GDP down to less than four per cent, there is no way the government could provide ten million jobs Instead as is estimated by economists that with every one per cent decrease in growth about 800,000 thousand jobs are lost. Using this estimate Imran Khan’s Tabahi government has probably led to loss of nearly 2 million jobs.

About export of the country, PPP white paper against the PTI government explained that “despite narrowing of our high current account deficit due to massive devaluation of the rupee, the growth in our exports of around 1.6 per cent has been negligible. The tightening of the fiscal and monetary policies has sharply lowered the GDP growth rate, thereby, aggravating poverty and increasing unemployment in the country. The inflation has once again entered the double-digit territory. Contrary to PTI’s pre-election promises, government’s current expenditure has increased while that on development, especially on education, health and infrastructure, has registered a marked decline.

About debt, white paper sayd that contrary to Selected PMs claim of not taking any more debt but PTI has borrowed heavily and will perhaps be the heaviest borrower in Pakistan’s history.

According to the State Bank of Pakistan, Pakistan’s public debt increased to Rs.27.1 trillion by the end of January 2019, that is, an increase of Rs.2.4 trillion in just five months since August 2018. This is more than double the rate of increase in the public debt recorded during the tenure of the previous PML (N) government. If the impact of devaluation of the rupee is added, and the increase in interest rate, then the overall impact on debt burden is more than 7.2 trillion, which is the largest that any previous government has borrowed.