Islamabad June 7 2022: Finance Minister Muftah Ismail has said that all the prime ministers from Liaquat Ali Khan to Shahid Khaqan Abbasi together borrowed Rs 24,000 billion, while Imran Khan borrowed more than Rs 20,000 billion during his tenure.
Addressing a pre-budget business conference in Islamabad, Muftah Ismail said that the debt is more than what we were left with today and when we came in the government there was a budget deficit of Rs 5600 billion.
He says 20 million people have fallen below the poverty line in the last four years.
Regarding the increase in petroleum prices, he said that it was very difficult for any Prime Minister to increase the price of petrol by Rs 30 twice. Imran Khan gave a subsidy from the IMF against the agreement and if the agreement was followed, the price of petrol would have been Rs 300.
Muftah Ismail says the government will provide a subsidy of Rs 81 billion in the petroleum sector and Rs 1,100 billion in the energy sector this year.
The Finance Minister said that when our government was in power we were exporting wheat and sugar but today we are importing.
Muftah Ismail says no one will be ignored in his government, and all sectors will be taken along.
He further said that Pakistan was found in difficult circumstances but will be left in better conditions and will also control inflation.
