ISLAMABAD: Minister for Information and Broadcasting Marriyum Aurangzeb on Sunday said Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman could not justify ‘his tenure of destruction’ including “corruption and incompetency” by simply issuing a white paper.
“Whether he issues white, red or yellow paper, nothing can help Imran Khan cover up his corruption and incompetency, besides the violation of the Constitution he committed during his government’s tenure,” the minister said in a news statement while reacting to the PTI’s chief remarks.
She said it was the ruling alliance which had made concerted efforts to steer the country out of economic crises created by the previous government of Imran Khan.
“How can Imran Khan, who himself plunged the country into an economic quagmire which ushered in sheer poverty, extreme inflation and massive unemployment, question the performance of a government which came into power just one year ago,” the minister wondered.
She said a person who brought the country at the brink of default issued a white paper which ironically had no mention of circular debt in the power sector, which jumped to Rs 2400 billion from Rs 1100 billion during his own government’s tenure.
There was also no mention of circular debt in the energy sector which soared to Rs 1400 billion during the PTI’s government tenure, she added.
Marriyum said Imran Khan had not also dared to mention the wrong policies of his government which resulted into a whooping increase in the prices of wheat and sugar that went up to Rs 100 from Rs 35 per kg and Rs 120 from Rs 52 per kg, respectively.
She said he also forgot to highlight the increase in the prices of electricity and gas which were raised to Rs 25 from Rs 11 per unit and from Rs 600 to Rs 1400 per MMBTU, respectively.
The minister said the PTI government had taken record loans of Rs 20,000 billion which was also not mentioned in the white paper. It was the coalition government which had repaid $11 billion debt in one year.
No mention of the budget deficit was also found in the white paper which was nothing but pack of lies, she remarked.
Marriyum said Imran Khan had angered almost every friendly country by pursuing wrong policies during his four-year rule.
There was no mention of the policies which rendered 6 million people jobless and pushed 20 million below the poverty line.
She said Imran Khan, who made Pakistan the third most expensive country in the world should be ashamed of him for issuing a white paper on the one-year performance of the government.
Terrorism was resurrected due to the wrong policies of Imran Khan government which was marred by corruption with direct involvement of his wife Bushra Bibi and her friend Farah Gogi, she said, adding in the white paper, he (Imran Khan) should have published pictures of an expensive wrist watch which he stole from Toshakhana and the five karat diamond ring which was demanded by her wife from a business tycoon as corruption.
In the white paper, there was no mention of the IMF agreement which was violated by Imran Khan to bring the country at the brink of default as part of a conspiracy hatched by him against the country, she stressed.
She said inflation went up to 25 per cent from 4 per cent and growth reduced to -0.4 per cent during the tenure of Imran Khan’s government, but he still had audacity to issue a white paper which did not point out the massive embezzlement worth Rs 1200 billion in the COVID-19 funds.
Neither he highlighted his foreign funding in the white paper nor there was any mention of Tyrian whom he had denied fatherhood, she noted. Marriyum said Imran Khan had not also dared to explain in the white paper that how he had unleashed violence against the journalist community. He was also declared “predator” for journalism by the international organization.
He (Imran Khan) had also not mentioned about the loot of 190 million pounds which was committed during his government’s tenure, she added.