ISLAMABAD: Chairman of the Senate Standing Committee on Interior, Rehman Malik, has instructed the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) to probe the abrupt decline in the value of Pak Rupee, asking its officials to investigate all stakeholders, including the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), under the Foreign Exchange Act and submit a report on the issue by December 22.
In a letter, Malik pointed out that the enduring currency depreciation was weakening the national economy. He also expressed concern that the central bank had not informed the Ministry of Finance and the Prime Minister Office before such massive devaluation.
The Senator requested the government to take people into confidence over its negotiations with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), wondering if the recent crash of PKR had anything to do with the ruling administration’s desire to secure a substantial bailout package from the international financial institution.
It may be recalled that Pakistani Rupee plunged to its lowest level on November 30, hitting the 144-rupee mark against US dollar, just a few hours after the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government was triumphantly announcing its achievements in the first hundred days of its tenure and Finance Minister Asad Umar had noted that the country was not facing any economic emergency.
The PTI government has been dealing with tough economic challenges since winning the last general elections in the country and has been trying to handle a major balance-of-payments crisis. It has been negotiating with the IMF for external funding and will resume the next round of talks with the Fund next month.
