By Ali Hussain

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), while terming Prime Minister Imran Khan’s relief package as a “fraud package”, Wednesday, asked the premier to step down as the sole solution to rid the country of the menaces of inflation, unemployment, and poverty.

Speaking at a news conference and later in a statement in response to the prime minister’s relief package, PML-N secretary-information Marriyum Aurangzeb maintained that it was not a relief but a “fraud” package and a formal announcement of the upcoming “storm” of inflation and price hike.

“It’s not a relief, but a Takleef package, which would bring a new storm of inflation, price hike and unemployment in the country, and would put an additional burden on the people who are already stricken by the historic inflation for the last three years of the ruling PTI,” the PML-N spokesperson said, asking the prime minister not to do anything else but tender his resignation.

“The prices of flour, sugar and other commodities would automatically come down, once he [the PM] tenders his resignation. It has now proven that Imran Khan’s resignation would be a big relief package to the people,” she added.

She accused the prime minister of lacking the competence to run the country and its economy, saying that the premier has no ability to decide the fate of 220 million Pakistanis.

“You are here to facilitate the mafia that are at good terms with you,” she alleged.

Further terming the Prime Minister’s package as a “cosmetic” one, she said that if the prime minister intends to provide relief to the inflation-stricken people, then he should revert wheat price to Rs35 per kg and power tariff to Rs11 per unit.

“The inflation, price hike and unemployment would further increase during the next six months. Is it a relief package when there would be an economic collapse?” she asked.

She reminded the prime minister about his promise to eliminate corruption within the first three months of his party in power.

“It was nothing, but an eyewash,” she further maintained, adding that the premier has also promised the nation to convert the PM House into a university.

“You should refrain from adding to your “sins” by befooling the nation through addresses over the national television,” she asked the premier.

Giving a comparison in the prices of essential commodities between the PML-N government and the current PTI government, she maintained that in 2018, sugar was being sold at Rs52 per kg, today it is Rs130. In two days, the price of sugar has increased by Rs20, she added.

In 2018, she added that electricity was Rs11 per unit which became Rs24, gas price increased from Rs600 to Rs1,400, ghee price was Rs140 per kg in 2018, it was increased to Rs360, medicine became 500 percent more expensive. She said that the price of milk was Rs90 per litre in 2018, today it is Rs130, what was Rs100 yogurt, today it is Rs200.

Rice increased from Rs80 to Rs180, vegetable prices increased by 200 to 300 percent, she said, adding that the statistics department reports that the prices of pulses, potatoes, ghee, and rice have gone up many times over.

“Imran Sahib used to stand on the container and say that he would not take loan, would not go to the IMF, and rather would prefer to commit suicide,” she added.

“The truth is that because of the PTI, national debt jumped from Rs29,000 billion to Rs48,000 billion,” she said, adding that the GDP growth plummeted from 5.8 to negative.

“Imran Khan has been proven a “internationally-certified pathological liar” after being embarrassed and proven a “liar” by Pakistan’s top court. This finger pointing won’t spare Imran Khan from explaining where did the two-kilogram gold, diamond jewellery sets, and three expensive watches vanish from the treasury’s foreign government gifts,” she blamed, adding: “If Imran Khan returns the trillions looted in public sugar, flour, medicines, wheat, petrol, LNG, electricity and gas the prices of everything will be halved automatically and the economic disaster will come to an end.”

Referring to the agreement between the government and the banned Tehreek-e-Labaik Pakistan (TLP), the PML-N spokesperson asked the government to make the details of agreement public, so that the nation get to know.

She also condemned the loss of lives of the police personnel during the clashes with the banned TLP protesters in parts of Punjab and also questioned the conflicting statements by the government ministers and the spokespersons. She also demanded that the details of the agreement should also be tabled in parliament for discussion.

She maintained that the government was “deceiving” the nation by not making the details of the agreement public, adding that people have the right to know the details and the conditions the government has agreed with the TLP.

This article first appeared in Business Recorder