(May 15, 2019)
President Pakistan Businessmen and Intellectuals Forum (PBIF), President All Karachi Industrial Alliance (AKIA), Senior Vice Chairman of the Businessmen Panel of FPCCI and former provincial minister, Mian Zahid Hussain on Wednesday said the long-delayed agreement with IMF may help calm the markets. After the agreement the local and foreign investors will be able to take decisions as uncertainty spanned over ten months has subsided, he said.
Talking to the business community, Mian Zahid Hussain said that the country is also facing challenge of facing the FATF which has grey listed Pakistan and hoped that the new economic team would tackle it successfully.
The veteran business leader said that after the IMF deal, the international institutions will feel comfortable to deal with Pakistan; therefore, the government should keep economic revival on the top of its preferences list. The government should not waste time in blaming the former government and give proper attention to the economy, he added.
The former minister noted that the IMF conditions will hit GDP and PSDP to take a toll on the businesses and the masses, therefore, some steps to boost economic activity should be taken to shield the poor from the negative impact. He said that many independent economists have voiced concern over leaving exchange rate to the market forces, therefore, this matter should be considered seriously.
Mian Zahid Hussain said that failed institutions like PIA and PSM should be sold without delay as the former has inflicted a loss of Rs400 billion while the later has added Rs467 billion to the losses while keeping WPADA afloat also require trillions of rupees per annum.
He informed that the first loan was acquired from IMF in 1958 when the dollar was available at Rs3, the golden period of democracy started in 1988 when the dollar was traded at Rs18 which has now jumped to Rs144 but it has not helped exports. He called upon the authorities to establish sector specific export companies to change the situation for good. He said that barring future rulers through legislation from getting loans without solid reasons would be a great success for the Prime Minister Imran Khan.
