Imran Khan Says He's 'Ready to Reconcile With Everyone to Save Pakistan From Disaster'
13:58 05.03.2023 (Updated: 16:56 05.03.2023)
© AP Photo / K.M. Chaudary
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Since being ousted from power in April 2022, Pakistan's former prime minister Imran Khan has continuously slammed the current government led by Shehbaz Sharif.
Striking a reconciliatory note with his political opponents and rivals, Khan recently said that he is "ready to reconcile" with everyone to save the country from "an imminent disaster."
"I am ready to talk to everyone, reconcile with everyone — because the entire nation needs to get united to save Pakistan from an imminent disaster," he said in his address to party workers in the city of Lahore.
The cricketer-turned-politician, however, clarified that he would not join hands with anyone involved in corruption - in what appeared to be an indirect reference to the present coalition ruling Pakistan.
Khan has repeatedly accused Shehbaz Sharif and his cabinet of what he described as "looting" the wealth of the nation and has blamed them for the financial woes engulfing Islamabad.
Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf chief's olive branch to his rivals comes at a time when he has been engaged in a bitter war of words with Finance Minister Ishaq Dar over his handling of the country's economy.
Earlier this week, the Pakistani Rupee plunged to an all-time low, breaching the Rs 285 mark against the US dollar. At the same time, inflation has hit a 50-year high of 31.5 percent.
In this context, Khan had launched a scathing attack on PM Sharif and Dar.
"Rupee slaughtered — lost over 62% or 110/$ in 11 months of PDM. This has increased public debt alone Rs 14.3 [trillion and] historic 75 [year] high inflation 31.5%," he tweeted on Thursday.
Hitting back at Khan the following day, the Pakistan Finance Minister claimed that it was the "mismanagement and bad governance" of the previous government, headed by Khan, that had left the country's economy in tatters.
Though Pakistan's forex reserves have risen to $3.82 billion from $3.25 billion this week, Islamabad remains in desperate need of funds to avert a sovereign default.
Talks with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to revive a stalled $7 billion loan program are currently ongoing and the global lender is expected to disburse a $1.2 billion tranche next week, Dar said on Friday.
The cricketer-turned-politician, however, clarified that he would not join hands with anyone involved in corruption - in what appeared to be an indirect reference to the present coalition ruling Pakistan.
Khan has repeatedly accused Shehbaz Sharif and his cabinet of what he described as "looting" the wealth of the nation and has blamed them for the financial woes engulfing Islamabad.
Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf chief's olive branch to his rivals comes at a time when he has been engaged in a bitter war of words with Finance Minister Ishaq Dar over his handling of the country's economy.
Earlier this week, the Pakistani Rupee plunged to an all-time low, breaching the Rs 285 mark against the US dollar. At the same time, inflation has hit a 50-year high of 31.5 percent.
In this context, Khan had launched a scathing attack on PM Sharif and Dar.
"Rupee slaughtered — lost over 62% or 110/$ in 11 months of PDM. This has increased public debt alone Rs 14.3 [trillion and] historic 75 [year] high inflation 31.5%," he tweeted on Thursday.
Hitting back at Khan the following day, the Pakistan Finance Minister claimed that it was the "mismanagement and bad governance" of the previous government, headed by Khan, that had left the country's economy in tatters.
Though Pakistan's forex reserves have risen to $3.82 billion from $3.25 billion this week, Islamabad remains in desperate need of funds to avert a sovereign default.
Talks with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to revive a stalled $7 billion loan program are currently ongoing and the global lender is expected to disburse a $1.2 billion tranche next week, Dar said on Friday.
