PTI White Paper 'Devoid Of Context', Dar Says

PTI White Paper 'Devoid Of Context', Dar Says
Finance minster Ishaq Dar termed the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s (PTI) white paper on the state of Pakistan's economy as "selective", "misrepresented" and "devoid of economic context".

“The PTI’s presentation is selective and misrepresented, showing misleading economic indicators,” Dar said at a press conference.

He was flanked by planning minister Ahsan Iqbal, energy minister Khurram Dastgir Khan, economy minister Ayaz Sadiq, information minister Marriyum Aurangzeb, and state minister for finance Ayesha Ghaus Pasha.

Finance minister Dar said the comparisons made in the PTI's white paper were incorrect and did not have sound economic context.

Dar said the economic situation since April 2022 was strongly influenced by the legacy that the PDM government inherited from the previous PTI regime.


What the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) government received would be a more accurate basis for comparison of performance, than what the PTI received in 2018, according to the finance minister.

“This context was totally missing in the PTI’s presentation while it had also ignored international economic situation, the commodities super-cycle, Russia-Ukraine war impacts and the catastrophic floods in the country", Dar observed. “These realities should have been kept in mind for making a fair analysis,” the finance minister added.

Ishaq Dar said the International Monetary Fund (IMF) had predicted that one-third of the world would be facing a serious recessionary crisis during 2023, and this included Pakistan. The Fund has projected Pakistan’s GDP growth at 2.7%.

It is pertinent to mention that the PTI, in its white paper published on Tuesday, had painted a bleak picture of the national economy.