PTI govt could’ve convinced US on Russian oil deal: Imran Khan

KARACHI: Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf Chairman Imran Khan said on Tuesday that if the PTI government had been in power, it would have persuaded the US to allow Pakistan to buy oil from Russia.

“We could have convinced the US on buying Russian oil as Pakistan is facing a severe energy crisis,” Imran stated, saying the current rulers are afraid of doing it, whereas India bought the Russian oil for the sake of its people.

He was speaking at a seminar on economic performance and challenges ahead, organised by the PTI through a video link here at a local hotel.

Imran reiterated his demand for early free and fair elections in the country and said that it was the only way to lead the country towards economic stability. “Pakistan is currently entrapped in an economic quagmire, and only political stability through the holding of free and fair elections can steer the country out of the crises,” he said.

The PTI chief criticised the present government for ruining the economy and melting down the economic gains of PTI government.

“When we learned about the conspiracy against our government, we informed the neutrals about the economic disaster that regime change would bring to the country.”

Imran claimed victory in the upcoming elections, claiming that the PTI would win due to inflation and the country’s economic situation. “However, we are afraid of the worst economic conditions that this government will leave for the next government to handle. We are afraid that the new government would be in great trouble because of the way the economy has been destroyed,” he said. He again called for a clear majority for the new government, as a government with a thin majority can’t take bold decisions that would be required to fix the economy and other key problems.

Imran Khan said that a weak government can’t establish the rule of law in the country, which was required to tackle the challenges, especially the economic ones. He said that some powerful groups and mafias can be challenged by the rule of law to be asserted by a strong government.

He said that economic stability would come through political stability, as it would restore the confidence of local and foreign investors in the country. He emphasised the importance of exports as a tool for wealth creation, which the PTI government has prioritised by increasing exports to high levels.

He also deemed the role of overseas Pakistanis important for the economy of the country and said that the PTI government had incentivised them. He stated that if 1.5 to 2 million overseas Pakistanis were willing to invest in the country, it would not need to rely on donors to meet its financial needs.

He said the PTI government gave the amnesty schemes to whiten the black money but these schemes should have allowed only the black money that should have been invested in the industry to be whitened.