Shahid Khaqan lambasts govt for rising inflation

ISLAMABAD (92 News) – Former prime minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi Thursday criticized the PTI government for causing price-hike, saying increase in prices will have direct adverse impact on people. Speaking on the floor of the house, the PML-N leader said power and gas was surplus in the system when PML-N completed its term last year. He said the energy minister would have to take independent decisions in addition to the moves by his ministry and the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) to bring the tariff down. Abbasi further said the country’s economy on the verge of collapse though it has not collapsed totally. “The gap between the income and the expenditure is growing fast and as a result, the debt will continue to soar,” he said, adding the problems couldn’t be resolved by giving more powers to the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR). The confidence of business community had further shattered in the last 10 months of the current government, he said. Khurram Dastgir, another PML-N MNA, said the currency market had become a killer for the Pakistani currency, doubting the current government had struck some agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to determine the rupee value. PPP MNA and former foreign minister Hina Rabbani Khar said the additional taxes worth Rs390 billion had already been imposed before the federal budget.