Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting, Attaullah Tarar, said on Sunday that the country had been saved from the brink of default, and that the government’s primary focus was now on ensuring economic stability and fostering growth.

Addressing a press conference in Lahore, Mr Tarar said that as compared to last year, the prices of essential items had begun to decrease, and the prices of petroleum products had also been reduced. He said that all key macroeconomic indicators were showing improvement across the country under the dynamic leadership of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

The information minister pointed out that the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government was facing a financial deficit of Rs152 billion, despite the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party’s rule over the past 11 consecutive years. He highlighted that the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government was allocating Rs51 billion towards questionable expenditures.

The information minister also revealed that billions of rupees had been paid to fake companies to fund baseless propaganda on social media platforms. He further said that the annual debt servicing requirement for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa amounted to Rs355 billion.

He asserted that the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government had been plagued by corruption and fiscal mismanagement. Tarar expressed the confidence that maintaining law and order was the fundamental responsibility of provincial governments.