Army Chief should not be refrained from speaking on economy: Shah

SUKKUR: Opposition leader in the National Assembly Khursheed Shah said on Saturday that the Army Chief should not be refrained from speaking on the country’s economy as every person has the right to talk about it.

Speaking to the media here, Shah said that he does not agreed to the interior minister’s statement in which he had urged military spokesman Major General Asif Ghafoor to refrain from making statement on state of economy in the country.

Army Chief is a commander of our armed forces and stable economy will help make the Line of Control safer, he said.

Shah said that the government should have made an offer to brief the Army Chief in case the latter has any misunderstanding.

Earlier on Friday, Interior Minister Ahsan Iqbal said that Director General Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) should refrain from passing comments on the country's economy.

The interior minister also said that irresponsible remarks can affect the international standing of Pakistan.

“Pakistan’s economy is much more stable now than in 2013," said Iqbal.

Iqbal further said that there has been an increased pressure on imports due to the investment in energy projects, but added that the pressure is bearable.

The interior minister further elaborated that there has been a two-fold increase in the collection of taxes, adding that the biggest development budget in the country's history is being implemented.