Islamabad, September 27, 2022 (PPI-OT):Former President of Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI) Dr. Shahid Rasheed Butt on Tuesday said Senator Ishaq Dar should take strict action against the currency mafia after assuming the portfolio of the finance ministry. The influential mafia is manipulating the exchange rates to make millions overnight and causing huge damage to the country, he said.

The reason behind the fall of the Rupee is not based on economic fundamentals but it is an outcome of the tricks of the currency mafia, he added. In a statement issued here today, Shahid Rashid Butt said that keeping the Pakistani rupee stable has remained the focus of Ishaq Dar’s policy and it is hoped that he will give priority to this policy so that inflation and the suffering of the people are reduced.

In 2017 when he left the portfolio of the ministry, Pakistan was becoming the eighteenth largest economy in the world. The rupee was stable, the interest rate was low, the tax situation and foreign exchange reserves were satisfactory and the overall economic conditions were very good.

Those who came to power after Ishaq Dar played havoc with the economy in a way that even the enemy did not do, which closed their fortunes and left the country bankrupt. Due to their wrong policies, industries closed down, agriculture was destroyed, unemployment was common and the rupee became as worthless as tissue paper for which the public paid a heavy price, he observed.

The business leader said that the former finance minister Miftah Ismail also made every possible effort to save the country and improved the country’s reputation among the international institutions. The business community was also somewhat satisfied with his actions, but he could not reduce inflation due to which he did not gain popularity among the masses.

Shahid Rashid Butt said that the renowned economist of the country, Dr. Ashfaq Hussain Khan has recently said that commercial banks, central bank and forex association was involved in the manipulation of currency. His statement should be taken seriously and action should be taken against all those who are making fortunes at the cost of the country’s economy, he demanded.

For more information, contact:
Dr. Shahid Rasheed Butt
Consul General Ghana
Former President ICCI
Former Patron ICST
Tel: +92-333-5132199, +92-51-2822571