ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Friday termed the three years of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government in power as the worst era of mass exploitation, alleging that it was brought into the power under a conspiracy to sabotage CPEC projects.

In a statement, PML-N president and leader of the opposition in the National Assembly Shehbaz Sharif said that in the three years under the PTI government, the people only got inflation, corruption and frustration, while they recall the Pakistan of three years back under Nawaz Sharif's government.

He maintained that in Nawaz Sharif era the country was witnessing 5.8 percent growth, three percent inflation, Rs35 per kg flour, Rs52 per kg sugar, adding that Nawaz Sharif put the economy of the country on its feet and said goodbye to the IMF by giving China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and created jobs for the people. He claimed that Nawaz Sharif brought the nation out of darkness by giving electricity and gas.

"In these three years, this change has made Pakistan the most expensive country in the world. PTI's three years have been years for profiteers, hoarders and mafias," he said, adding that three years of "change" has become three centuries of oppression for the poor, as inflation has snatched away their livelihood.

He said that everything from petrol, electricity, gas, medicine, vegetables, cooking oil to ghee has become expensive and out of the reach of the common man.

He said that inflation has crushed the people, the burden of taxes has brought the businesses to a standstill.

He said that debt has increased by over Rs16,000 billion, the per capita income has decreased, while unemployment has reached the highest level in history.

He said that five million existing jobs were lost instead of the provision of the promised 10 million jobs.

He said that 20 million people were pushed under the poverty line instead of giving them the promised five million homes. "The realisation of the dreams sold to the people ended up being extremely scary and traumatising," he maintained. Meanwhile, speaking at a news conference PML-N secretary-general Ahsan Iqbal termed the PTI three-year term as the worst era in the country's history, alleging that the PTI was brought into power under a conspiracy to sabotage the CPEC projects.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2021