PTI leader Shaukat Ali Yousafzai claims dollar hike good for Pakistan

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf leader Shaukat Ali Yousafzai on Friday came up with a bizarre explanation for the alarming rise of the dollar price in Pakistan over the past few months, claiming that the hike was actually good for the country in the long run. 

Speaking on Geo News program Aaj Shahzeb Khanzada Key Sath, the PTI leader referred to the hue and cry following the hike in the value of the dollar and said that the people with limited knowledge do not know that the dollar hike is beneficial for Pakistan.

“We have an edge over the rising dollar rate [in the country] because its cost has increased by Rs3 billion and we can save up to Rs3.75 billion since Pakistan has to pay back in rupees, not in dollar," the minister can be heard saying in the video, trying to explain his position. 

"...therefore, we do not have to spend anything from our pockets,” he bizarrely went on, trying to explain his strange theory. Yousafzai added that needless confusion was being stirred on the matter. Despite follow-up questions, Yousafzai refused to take back his bizarre remarks. 

The ill-thought statement earned the PTI leader lots of negative reaction from social media. Users of social networking platform Twitter mocked the politician for simplifying a complex economic principle, and trying to mislead the general public into believing him.  

According to an economic principle, a depreciation in the country’s currency can propel the increase in its exports; the country’s goods become cheaper internationally and gain a competitive edge over international competitors. 

However, social media users were also hesitant to take the statement of Yousafzai at face value since, a few days ago, he had advised people to use yogurt instead of tomatoes for cooking during the fiasco of the tomato price hike.

He backed his advice with a demand-supply mechanism, adding that the price of the commodity would go up due to high demand and low supply. Prices of the item in question would come down if people stop using the item completely for a brief time, he had claimed.