ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif acknowledged that the terms of another long-term loan from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) would not be easy during the federal cabinet meeting on Thursday, though he reiterated it was important for the country to seek a fresh bailout facility to ensure macroeconomic stability.
Pakistan has faced significant financial challenges in recent years, forcing it to rely on external borrowing. The country successfully carried out structural reforms under a $3 billion short-term IMF loan signed last year which came to an end this month.
The government now seeks a bigger loan from the international lending agency to effectively deal with its financial commitments during its five-year term.
“We are expecting the last installment $1.1 billion under the standby agreement with the IMF this month,” he told the members of his cabinet. “We will receive it after the IMF board’s approval. With this, the finance minister [Muhammad Aurangzeb] will to Washington with his team, where he will conduct spring meetings and discuss a new program with the IMF.”
“We think that another program with the IMF is very important for us which can bring stability to the economy and ensure trust from international institutions,” he continued. “The contours of the new program will be revealed once the talks are initiated and certainly the IMF terms are not going to be easy. But we plan to put less burden on the underprivileged and those who are already paying taxes and shift it toward those who can pay [taxes].”
LETTERS TO JUDGES
The prime minister also announced the government would probe the letters suspected to be laced with anthrax which were sent to judges of Pakistani courts this week, vowing to get to the bottom of the incident.
The incident targeted judges of the country’s superior and higher judiciary just as the country’s top court started looking into a case related to the alleged meddling of Pakistan’s spy agencies into judicial matters.
The case was initiated after six Islamabad High Court judges complained last week the country’s intelligence agencies had been using intimidation and coercive tactics to influence judicial verdicts.
“The letters sent to various judges in which suspicious powder was reportedly found, I think we should observe patience and not let any politics come in this,” Sharif said during the meeting.
“The government of Pakistan, with a sense of responsibility, should hold an inquiry into this matter so that the truth is made clear.”
