LONDON, Sep 19 (NNI): PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif has said his party, which headed the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) government, saved Pakistan from default by putting their politics at risk.
He also rued the fact that India had moved far ahead of Pakistan by copying “our agenda” – a reference to the economic liberalisation introduced under his 1990-93 government – with Pakistan currently experiencing the worst economic crisis in its history.
Nawaz recalled that when he assumed the role of prime minister in December 1990, India emulated the economic reforms initiated by his government in Pakistan. Unlike Pakistan, India had achieved significant milestones such as reaching the moon and hosting G20 meetings, he added.
The former prime minister also noted the stark contrast in economic progress, with India now possessing foreign reserves of $600 billion.
Addressing a gathering of the PML-N officials in Punjab through a virtual platform, the former prime minister said it was important to unmask the individuals responsible for the country’s current dire situation. He was the view that the public must not forgive those who he referred to as the culprits, including his political rivals in the PTI.
Nawaz, who intends to end his self-imposed exile in London and make his way back to Pakistan next month, emphasised that while certain losses could be mitigated, others were irreversible.
He asserted that without the intervention of the PDM government to avert a financial crisis, the cost of petrol might have surged up to Rs1,000 per litre.
Expressing empathy for the financial hardships experienced by the general populace, Nawaz observed that the majority of people were finding it exceedingly difficult to make both ends meet, given the rising food inflation, exorbitant utility bills and the cost of essential medical care.
The PML-N supremo lamented the irony that during his tenure as prime minister, Pakistan became a nuclear power, but he was subsequently deported, imprisoned and sentenced to 27 years on terrorism charges.
Nawaz alleged that former army chief General (r) Qamar Javed Bajwa and Lt-Gen (r) Faiz Hameed, in collaboration with former Supreme Court chief justices Saqib Nisar and Asif Saeed Khosa, conspired to remove him from power.
He also recalled that he and other PML-N leaders, including his family members Maryam Nawaz and Hamza Shehbaz, endured imprisonment and hardships without having committed any crime.
Nawaz expressed his dissatisfaction by highlighting that the Prime Minister of Pakistan was compelled to seek assistance from other countries amid the prevailing state of affairs.
Despite the challenges his party has faced, Nawaz emphasised that they were not interested in pursuing political vendettas against their opponents, declaring that they harboured no desire for revenge. NNI
