ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad Chamber of Small Traders (ICST) on Sunday questioned the tall claims of economic turnaround, enhanced power generation and increased revenue collection by the incumbent government.
The ground realities would not support the tall claims of the government of an economic turnaround as the country is heading towards bankruptcy.
Similarly, the claim of adding thousands of megawatts of electricity to the national grid as load shedding has become the order of the day is hurting masses and businesses, it said.
The claim of doubling the revenue collection merits verification as the country is heavily dependent on borrowing to meet its needs, said Patron Islamabad Chamber of Small Traders Shahid Rasheed Butt.
He said that circular debt has crossed the mark of one thousand billion rupees with no move to pay the power producing companies while the refunds of exporters have also surpassed several trillion rupees.
If the power generation and revenue collection has increased, why is the government unable to function without borrowing and make payments to settle the power sector’s circular debt which proves that little has changed, he added.
Refunds have been held back and the amount has become so large that it is hampering the industry’s ability to function properly, he noted.
Shahid Rasheed Butt said that industry is not getting refunds but promises of payment which are seldom honoured damaging the government’s relations with the business community.
The business community is skeptical of the last-minute commitments made by the government to settle a portion of outstanding payments, proving that whatever half-hearted reforms have been initiated have alreadyfailed, especially in the areas of taxes and the power sector, he said.
He said that the government must settle a whole or at least a  portion of its obligations as well as commitments and promises made to the business community and the population before it leaves.
