Daily Times

Sir: Finance Minister Asad Umar has said that the first decision of the new cabinet was to form a high powered taskforce to recover unlawful wealth stashed abroad. In a tweet message, he maintained that those who have stolen public money and hide it abroad will be brought to justice as soon as possible.

He visited the finance ministry and held a media session. He asserted that the PTI will make revolutionary changes to the economy, with the support of the people. He stressed that the tax base will be increased for revenue generation by revamping the FBR. He also said that the looted wealth of the country will be brought back and the public’s money will be spent on the public for once. He also said that all decisions would be made in parliament. “After approval from the cabinet, bonds and sukuk will be issued for overseas Pakistanis. The task force will present its report in two weeks. No information is yet present regarding the foreign assets of Pakistanis but they have done $8 billion investment in Dubai alone,” he explained.

All the steps can be successful only with the cooperation of the people of Pakistan. Asad Umar said the newly elected government will create employment opportunities for the youth as part of its election manifesto. He went on to say that Karachi, being the largest city and financial hub of the country, is the engine of the economy. He said all our resources will be used to generate more revenue for the economy. The FM added that our immediate focus will be on giving relief to pensioners and widows. He also ruled out the possibility that the employees of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), Pakistan Steel Mills and Prime Minister House might lose their jobs.

Tahir Rafique

Karachi

Published in Daily Times, August 22^nd 2018.