Finance Minister Miftah Ismail Tuesday warned that the country’s economy will sink if the power sector was not revived.
Addressing a budget seminar in Islamabad, he said that Rs1,110 billion has been allocated for the power subsidy this year.
The finance minister added that more than Rs4,000 billion was required to repay interest on loans next year.
“Our billing and decision-making system is very outdated. The prices for electricity were supposed to increase last year, but the notification for that hike was issued a year later,” he said.
He added that former prime minister and PTI Chairman Imran Khan took 79 percent of the loans taken by all the prime ministers combined.
“But former finance minister Shaukat Tarin claimed that Khan had taken 76% of the loans,” Ismail said.
Ismail also said that the development budget for this year was Rs550 billion, while the next year’s development budget had been allocated at Rs800 billion.
