Deficit budget to further raise inflation: JI

LAHORE: Ameer, Jamaat e Islami, Pakistan, Syed Munawar Hasan, Friday said that the deficit federal budget for the next financial year was bound to raise inflation rate and lead to record price spiral that would crush the poor masses.

Commenting on the federal budget, he said that the government would meet the deficit of about 1200 billion by printing currency notes and squeezing the blood of the poor through price hike.

He termed as ridiculous the Finance Minister’s claim that the government had reduced its expenditure by ten per cent as compared to the last year, and said that the foreign tours of the rulers along with heavy entourage were still continuing which belied this claim.

He further said that the annual installment of billions dollars to the IMF was actually the interest being paid by this poor nation and this amount was increasing every year.

Syed Munawar Hasan said that the economy of the country could not improve unless the government pulled out of the US war, cut its spending and corruption was controlled.

JI Secretary General, Liaqat Baloch, in his reaction, rebutted the Finance Minister’s claim of presenting a tax free budget and said the weekly raise of POL prices and electricity tariff belied this claim.

Liaqat Baloch further said that the rulers had purchased electricity at high rates by plundering billions as commission from the RPPs and the entire burden was being placed on the poor masses.

He said that as long as the government did not adopt the policy of self reliance and ended its dependence on the IMF and the World Bank, no relief could be provided to the common man. (PPI)