Dr Baqir’s appointment: Zardari cautions against ‘IMF man-managing your house’

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Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Co-Chairman Asif Ali Zardari on Wednesday deplored the new State Bank of Pakistan’s (SBP) Governor Dr Reza Baqir; calling his appointment the ‘biggest’ mistake in the country’s economic history.

He said this while speaking to media sources outside the Islamabad High Court (IHC). Flanked by his daughter Aseefa Bhutto Zardari, the former president was present in the court for a hearing on his petition for pre-arrest bail in a National Accountability Bureau (NAB) reference.

He along with public office holders, legal persons and other accused are being investigated for the illegal award of a contract by Sindh government’s Special Initiative Department to M/S Harish & Company.

When asked to comment on a statement by Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi over accepting requests of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Zardari noted that the decision to appoint Baqir as SBP governor was unwise.

“This will prove to be a major mistake; you can’t have an IMF man managing your house, even if he is a Pakistani, ” he added.

The former president shrugged off Dr Abdul Hafeez Shaikh, who was a member of his finance team during PPP tenure in 2008-2013. Dr Shaikh has now joined Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) governing team as PM Khan’s finance advisor.

He was also asked, “Prime Minister Imran Khan keeps reiterating that the government will not grant a National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO). What would you say to that?” To which the PPP Co-chairperson responded, “I don’t know. Maybe he will not grant himself an NRO.”

Started from the late 1980s, Pakistan is now seeking its 13th bailout to deal with a current account deficit that could translate into a balance of payments crisis.

However, talks have been delayed by difficulties in reconciling IMF reform demands as Islamabad fears the push would be too drastic and hurt economic growth.

Amid a worsening macroeconomic outlook, the IMF talks continue while the country’s growth expectations slash from the previous six per cent to about 4 per cent for the current fiscal year.