Govt will not allow to derail macroeconomic stability, says Dar

FRANKFURT: Pakistan’s Minister for Finance Ishaq Dar has said that his government would not allow derailment of restored macroeconomic stability as different political parties, including the |Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), had agreed on it in its meeting held with them on April 18.

The minister disclosed that on the sidelines of the Electoral Reforms Committee deliberations, he held discussions with the representatives of different political parties in which it was the consensus that the macroeconomic gains should not be derailed as these will help achieve a higher growth trajectory in the range of 6 to 7 percent, thus helping the country to generate more jobs.

The minister also said that the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) agreed to finance around $100 million road project probably Shor Kot-Khanewal in Pakistan as the AIIB would be fully operationalised by coming July 2016. 

“We will have to protect the restored gain of macroeconomic stability and will now focus on achieving higher growth of the last eight years by crossing 5 percent of GDP for fiscal year 2016 ending on June 30. We should not allow derailing of these gains,” Finance Minister Ishaq Dar told reporters after reaching here on Sunday evening after attending the 49th Annual Meeting of Asian Development Bank (ADB. Secretary Economic Affairs Division Tariq Bajwa was accompanying the minister for this conference.

When a journalist asked about the powers being enjoyed by the coming Judicial Commission to change their terms of reference, the minister said that the judges of the Supreme Court of Pakistan did not require holding of hands.

The government wrote a letter to the Supreme Court of Pakistan and the most senior judges knew how to move on this subject, he said.Confirming The News story regarding the finance minister’s instruction to FBR, SBP and SECP to assist the Judicial Commission, the minister said that now this information had come into public domain so he could confirm that all institutions working under his jurisdiction would assist the upcoming Inquiry Commission of the Supreme Court of Pakistan.

When asked about protecting the country’s interest on account of protecting environment, Dar said that Pakistan would use super critical technology for generating electricity through different means including coal energy.

“Pakistan will touch the peak by generating total 5,300MW from coal, including 1,300MW at Thar Coal,” said the official.US, India and China obtained energy through coal so Pakistan told them that it would go on peak and then would come back on tapering down the agenda.

Federal Minister for Finance Ishaq Dar reached Frankfurt, Germany for attending three day annual conference being arranged by Asian Development Bank with the theme ‘Cooperating for Sustainability’ this week from Monday to Wednesday.To a query regarding Panama Leaks, the minister said that there would be no amnesty granted to anyone so those would have to face music because they were hiding facts.

The minister said that Pakistan had achieved highest growth of 4.24 percent and there were projections that the country might be touching six countries in terms of generating revenues.“We hope that the country will cross 5 percent of GDP,” he said and added the government restored macroeconomic stability and now consolidating gains for achieving growth in the range of 6 and subsequently 7 percent.