ISLAMABAD: Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi on Friday praised the policies of the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), saying that the government revived the country’s economy despite challenges faced due to Covid-19 pandemic.
Speaking during a session of the National Assembly, Qureshi said that the government took “painful decisions” to revive the economy, and after two years the economy is in the “recovery phase”, while citing this from the “unbiased” reports of the World Bank, Bloomberg and The Economist.
“The agriculture sector that was stagnant during the previous governments recorded a 3.3% growth due to the measures taken by the government,” he said, adding that the large-scale manufacturing (LSM) sector also witnessed growth during the PTI’s rule.
Comparing the economic development to that achieved during the PML-N government, the foreign minister said the PML-N’s economic growth at its zenith was 5 per cent, whereas the PTI, despite all the obstructions, managed to surpass that.
Qureshi also talked about the alleged audio clip of ex-chief justice Saqib Nisar and an affidavit of the former top judge of Gilgit, terming them an attempt to influence the judiciary for favourable decisions. “This trend is dangerous, we should all take notice of it and put an end to it,” he added.
The remarks made by the foreign minister irked the opposition members. Responding to FM Qureshi, PML-N leader Ahsan Iqbal said the foreign minister’s remarks were not taken into consideration by the PML-N as they were “non-serious utterances”.
“When the foreign minister was with us [PML-N], he would sing our praises,” he said, adding that the minister also used to praise former president Asif Ali Zardari as well.
The PML-N leader said the remarks made by the foreign minister seemed like an “interview” being given to someone. “The federal minister through his speech has tried to present himself as an alternative leader,” he added.
Speaking about the presidential system, he said he never understood who always stirred the debate in Pakistan. “If we are not sure about the governance system to run this country despite a passage of 75 years, then we don’t need an enemy to hurt us,” he lamented.
