ADDRESSING a 73rd Independence Day parade of Gilgit Baltistan, the PM expressed the resolve to take on the powerful criminals after fixing the economy. He referred to the irresponsible remarks made on the floor of National Assembly by a senior leader of PPML-N and said that people have witnessed Mir Jafar and Mir Sadiq incarnate in the persona of Ayaz Sadiq. He said that tirade launched against the institutions of the state is aimed at getting NRO, which the corrupt elements cannot get. He said that ones who are targeting the institution are speaking the language of Narendra Modi. The Prime Minister paid glowing tributes the sacrifices made by the security forces in effectively combating the menace of terrorism and defending the frontiers of the country. The ground reality is that the financial crimes of tax evasion and operation of foreign exchange black market is still on. The conviction rate in high profile NAB case is not encouraging. Opposition leaders are openly demanding winding up of National Accountability Bureau. They are satirizing the government for not bringing to justice the elements involved in sugar and wheat shortages. Moreover, they are lambasting the PTI leadership for high price spiral of food commodities and increasing unemployment.
The economy in a precarious condition and cannot be stabilized by availing International Monetary Fund bailouts and application of its shock therapies. The previous three governments of PML-Q, PPP and PML-N availed the loans packages of this global lender but the economy cannot even reached the door of takeoff stage, what to speak of putting it on the road towards sustainable growth. The essential ingredients of economic growth include the monetary autonomy of central bank, creation of favourable economic environment by lowering production cost and substantially raising the domestic production of both industry and agriculture to significantly increase exports. These measures did not get priority in decision making neither in previous governments nor in the present one. The PML-N government entirely relied on foreign loans and spent the borrowed capital on least productive grandiose projects such as building motorways and Orange Train, while completely neglecting the domestic productivity boosting hydropower project for agriculture and industrial development, and investment in human resource development.