When PTI came into power, circular debt had crossed Rs1000bn: Hammad

ISLAMABAD (92 News) – Minister for Revenue Hammad Azhar on Thursday said that when the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) came into power, circular debt had crossed Rs1000 billion. The state revenue minister said that from August to December 2018, the country received foreign direct investment worth $1.72bn. “This is more than double the figure reported in the first five months of the previous government,” he said while addressing a press conference. "When it comes to circular debt, the PML-N say they left Pakistan ‘happy and prosperous, with rivers of milk flowing and claimed they had had good governance throughout their tenure’,” Hammad Azhar criticized. He added that in reality, the figures more than doubled from the previous tenure. “When they came into power, they first cleared the circular debt without conducting any pre-audits — that's a separate scandal,” he mentioned. “But by the time they left the corridors of power, circular debt had crossed Rs1,000 billion.” Azhar said that if the losses incurred by public sector companies are examined, the total annual loss by these companies stood at Rs190bn when the PML-N took the government’s reigns. The latest data, from financial year 2016-2017, shows that this figure had crossed Rs453bn, the revenue minister said — highlighting the sharp increase in public sector losses by the time the PML-N entered its fourth year in power. “Our government took charge of a destroyed economy and I think, with the exception of a few from PML-N, that there is near unanimity, even in international institutions, that Pakistan has never experienced a deficit larger than this. However, we took corrective measures to improve the economic situation. “Those who wish to throw dust in the eyes of the people will continue to be exposed by us,” he said. The minister also warned the PML-N to kindly refrain from citing wrong figures and fooling the people. Hammad Azhar sought to set the record straight regarding the economic situation of the country and the progress towards its recovery during the first six months of the incumbent government.