ISLAMABAD: Former caretaker prime minister, Senator Anwarul Haq Kakar, on Tuesday took full responsibility for the decision to import wheat during his tenure, amidst mounting pressure from farmers and an oppo-sition alliance gearing up for nationwide protest rallies due to an inordinate delay in wheat purchases.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has responded to the brewing crisis by forming a committee upon learning that over 600,000 tons of wheat were imported during the first two months of the incumbent government, despite the country already possessing a stockpile of over 113,000 tons of wheat.
The decision to import wheat was initiated during the last caretaker government’s tenure and contin-ued after the PML-N government assumed office.
Addressing a press conference in Quetta alongside Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi and Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti, Kakar clarified that he had never shifted the responsibility of wheat pro-curement onto the provinces or any other entity.
He asserted his full accountability for the decision to purchase wheat during his tenure, noting that under the 18th constitutional amendment, the provinces are responsible for collecting data on wheat procurement.
Kakar explained that wheat procurement occurs in two phases: firstly, the government purchases it from the world market and provides it to the people at subsidised rates to stabilise the market; sec-ondly, the private sector is permitted to import wheat.
He lamented the oversight of a crucial third point amidst the crisis, emphasising that with research and development investment, the country could potentially produce over four million tons of wheat.
Reflecting on his role during the wheat importation in the caretaker government, Kakar, who also served as the Minister of Food and Security at the time, clarified that the decision was based on data provided by the provinces to the PDM government, which was then passed on to the caretaker gov-ernment for action.
Regarding the wheat importation under his tenure, Kakar highlighted that the government operated within the framework of an SRO issued during the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) era, with no addi-tional laws enacted for the private sector’s involvement and no special permissions sought.
Kakar said that it is being claimed that a profit of Rs85 billion was made on the import of wheat, asking, “Did we order any cocaine that got so much profit in six months?” On one hand we are being tarnished and on the other an attempt is being made to make a purely legal object (SRO) illegal, he added.
Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, speaking on the occasion, said that some people desire that an inquiry is launched with Kakar and me on the issue of wheat import. –Agencies
