DLP Report
PESHAWAR
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister’s Adviser on Finance Muzzammil Aslam on Tuesday criticised the federal government over its economic policies, saying Pakistan’s credit rating had suffered a sharp decline before recovering in recent years.
Reacting to the latest Moody’s rating, Mr Muzzammil said Pakistan had maintained a B3 stable rating during former prime minister Imran Khan’s tenure from 2018 to 2022. He claimed the rating started declining in June 2022 under the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) government.
He said the country’s rating fell by four notches within a year, reaching Caa3 in February 2023, a category he described as carrying an extremely high risk of default. According to him, Pakistan took three and a half years to return to the B3 level.
The finance adviser said the people had faced historically high inflation, unemployment and poverty during the period. He added that a large number of Pakistanis had left the country in search of employment opportunities abroad, which, he said, reflected the difficult economic conditions.
Mr Muzzammil questioned the federal government’s portrayal of the latest rating as an economic achievement, saying the government should instead apologise to the nation for the economic difficulties faced by the people.
He also criticised the media for what he described as presenting the current economic situation as a major government achievement without providing the broader historical and economic context.
He urged the media to present a complete picture of the country’s economic performance and the challenges faced by the people.
