Opposition parties on Wednesday blasted the federal government’s economic performance and governance failures, warning that rising poverty, unemployment and fiscal mismanagement were pushing the country toward an unmanageable crisis. Addressing a joint press conference, Tehreek-e-Tahaffuz-e-Aain-e-Pakistan (TTAP) leaders, including Zubair Umar and Asad Qaiser, claimed that the ruling setup had failed to honor constitutional obligations, particularly those related to provincial shares and economic parity. The former Speaker of the National Assembly, Asad Qaiser, said the government had "failed in terms of economic policy"and added that inflation and unemployment had risen to such an extent that people no longer have money for two meals a day. He also dismissed the long-delayed meeting of the National Finance Commission (NFC) and said that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) was not receiving the share it was entitled to. He recalled that the committee headed by Sartaj Aziz had recommended to allocate Rs 1,000 billion. to FATA’s development and that after the merger of the tribal areas, the province’s NFC share had been set at 19 percent. However, he claimed that even payments of gas royalty due to KP had been stopped. Qaiser said that the province had been converted into "part of international politics" by handing over airports to foreign entities, and reminded reporters that the KP bore scars from both the Afghan war and the war on terror. He noted that these conflicts had deterred investors and left the tribal districts without employment opportunities, educational facilities or functioning markets. He said the trunk tape covered 2,000 kilometers, and yet "tribal people’s business has been branded as smuggling."
Qaiser further said that the suspension of Afghan transit trade had worsened unemployment in KP. While acknowledging that Pakistan had "problems with Afghanistan"he insisted that there was "different ways" to resolve them and noted that PTI founder Imran Khan had also expressed concern over deteriorating ties. He questioned why Pakistan was willing to negotiate with India but not explore diplomatic solutions with Iran and Afghanistan. "We are democrats, this country is ours," he said. He added that TTAP was "with the Pakistan Army, not against it," but stressed that any institution must remain confined to its constitutional domain, noting that during PTI’s tenure, Pakistan had improved trade relations with Afghanistan and several African countries. Former Sindh Governor Zubair Umar said Pakistan’s exports had fallen while the trade deficit had widened by 37 percent. Citing various officials, he said senior military officer General Sarfaraz had admitted it "business can no longer operate in Pakistan," while SIFC had admitted that the investment climate was not conducive.
