Daily Times

Prime Minister Imran Khan on Wednesday dismissed the possibility of imposing governor’s rule in Sindh province.

“No one has talked about imposing governor’s rule in Sindh and nor will it happen in near future,” the prime minister said while talking to media here. He reiterated that all the corrupt elements, who had burdened the country with whopping debt of Rs 30,000 billion, will be brought to justice because the country cannot progress without holding accountable such corrupt politicians and former rulers.

In a veiled reference to the leadership of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), the prime minister said they are out to create panic by blaming the government for the price hike. “Unless they are held accountable, the country cannot be put on track of progress. They just want to hear three words ‘NRO’ from me, which I will not utter as it will amount to treachery with the country,” he added.

The prime minister said the country is passing through hard times because of the two previous NROs and the subsequent debt of Rs 30,000 billion. “Why we should not talk of the past corruption and plunder of the previous rulers,” he said, adding that keeping silence on their misdeeds will amount to treason with the country. He maintained that unless the nation punishes the corrupt elements who burdened it into huge burgeoning debt trap, there will be no future. “In the past, about 10 to 12 billion dollars were laundered from the country. When these corrupt elements are not brought to book, there will be no end to corruption and no future for the country,” he added. Citing China, which is witnessing fast-paced economic progress, the prime minister noted that it has jailed about 415 ministers and bureaucrats on allegations of corruption in the last five years. The prime minister said the country has immense potential to move ahead on the path of progress and prosperity, and appealed to the people to pay taxes for a strengthened economy. The country cannot move ahead if the people and traders are reluctant to pay taxes, he said, and maintained that only one per cent out of the total 220 million population pay taxes.

He said fewer people in the country are overburdened with taxes as the industry is paying 70 per cent of taxes alone. The government cannot go on printing currency as it will escalate price hike, he said, and cautioned that if the people do not realise their responsibility to pay taxes, the country can run into hyperinflation. “There is dire need to change the mindset for paying taxes,” he emphasised.

The prime minister said the government is striving to generate taxes. He said the business community has been told to become a partner with the government in its efforts for the stability of the economy. “When there are investment and business activities, there will be ample employment opportunities and industrialisation, thus enabling the country to shake its debt off,” he opined.

The prime minister said Pakistan is ideally located in the region and gifted with immense potentials, adding that it is surrounded by the countries rich with natural resources. He said he has himself taken the responsibility to introduce tax reforms in the country as well as reforms in the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR). The government set the target of collecting tax amounting to Rs 5,550 billion in the next fiscal year, he added.

Imran Khan regretted that half of the country’s tax collection in a year was spent on the payment of interest on Rs 30,000 billion debt. He said for economic stability, the business community should be taken on board and industrialisation be given a boost with surge in exports. On the contrary, in Pakistan, export is on the nosedive with rampant mismanagement and corruption, he added.

Imran Khan spelled out that with the collective efforts of the government and the business community, the gap between imports and exports can be bridged. The government is keen to facilitate the business community with all the possible incentives to enable a thriving industry, he added.

Referring to the presence of his economic team, the prime minister resolved that they will remove all the hurdles for the business community. He said the country’s exports have witnessed a quantum term of 30 per cent by reducing the import. “The government is trying to lure investments. Different memorandums of understanding have been signed with a number of countries, including Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, etc, while negotiations are underway with others,” he said, adding that Pakistan has also entered into the second phase of free trade agreement with China. He also mentioned the austerity measures the federal government has introduced by slashing its expenditures and cited the announcement made by the federal cabinet and army in this regard.

The prime minister said during his forthcoming visit to the United States, he will stay at the Pakistan Embassy with a very small entourage, which is also a part of the austerity measures. Replying to different media queries, he said the governments of Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar and China extended financial help to Pakistan as an honest leadership was in power here. “Had they not helped out Pakistan on time, the country could have been bankrupted,” he added.

Citing the examples of Scandinavian countries, the prime minister said all those states are prosperous today where there is no corruption, while the ones ruled by the people like Asif Ali Zardari and Nawaz Sharif are poverty stricken. Lashing out at the leadership of PML-N and PPP, Imran Khan said former prime minister Nawaz Sharif siphoned off the Hudabiya Papers Mills money, laundering the same abroad through Hundi and then bringing it back through banking channels for whitening it. Former president Asif Zardari also did the same in the fake bank account cases, while Leader of Opposition Shehbaz Sharif’s sons are also involved in the benami account cases, he added.

The prime minister said the leadership of both the political parties had filed corruption cases against each other during their 10-year rule and now they have started raising a hue and cry just to avoid accountability. Imran Khan said he has no personal business and no foreign accounts, and that he will ‘live and die only for Pakistan’.