ISLAMABAD:
On Wednesday, the Minister of Federal Information, Marriyum Aurangzeb, said that the government is currently evaluating the list of items that are prohibited from being imported, and that a decision about this matter would be made in due time.
This statement was made by the minister when she was addressing the media in Islamabad. During the same press conference, she also discussed the allegations of corruption against Bushra Bibi & Farah Gogi and blasted the government of Imran Khan for ruining the country.
“The prohibition on the import of things that are not considered necessary, including luxury goods, is now under review. There will be some changes made to the list, including the addition of some new things and the deletion of others. There will be a formal announcement made,” she said.
As part of the emergency strategy to stabilize the economy, the government had put a restriction on the import of goods that were not considered vital in order to safeguard the country’s foreign exchange reserves.
In a scathing attack on the administration of the PTI, Marriyum Aurangzeb claimed that the law would run its course in the matter of the corruption committed under former Imran Khan during his four years in office.
She said that an inquiry into the alleged acts of corruption committed by Farah Gogi & Bushra Bibi had been initiated in accordance with the law. She said that since the money of the taxpayers was stolen, the former Leader would be required to provide an explanation.
The Minister of Information has said that throughout his time in office, Imran Khan mistreated his political opponents by bringing false cases against them and making false charges, but he did not provide any proof to the courts.
According to Marriyum Aurangzeb:
The administration of the PTI is to blame for the recent increase in prices, as well as power outages and a scarcity of gas. She said that the current administration is making the completion of electricity projects of 4,000MW, which had been postponed by the government that came before it, a priority.
According to the minister, the current administration will rescue the nation from all of its difficulties and restore economic stability.
She said that the rupee would also stabilize if an agreement is reached with –IMF–, and she added that the tough choices that needed to be made in order to push the country mostly in correct way have been made.
Stabilize Economy:
The Minister of Information gave the public the assurance that Prime Minister Shehbaz was working nonstop to get the economy back under control. Aurangzeb said that as a result of this, a decision was made to put a stop to the import of any luxury goods that were not required for daily life. She referred to imported autos as one example of this category and said that these are things that are not in the use by broader population.” Cars, cellphones, dry fruits, air conditioners, crockery, private weapon systems, shoes, items used for decoration, doors or glass panels, sauces, frozen foods, fruit and vegetables, carpets, tissue paper, interiors, make-up, chocolates, candy items, shampoos, sunglasses, tobacco products, & musical instruments” are all on the list of items that are prohibited.
The decision was made as a result of the dollar’s spectacular climb and against the rupee and over previous several weeks. This is due to the fact that the country’s expanding import bill, widening current account deficit, and diminishing foreign currency reserves all contributed to the dollar’s rise. On Thursday, the value of one United States dollar broke every previous record and reached Rs200 in the money markets. Marriyum Aurangzeb said that it was “an emergency type circumstance,” and that Pakistanis would be had to make sacrifices in accordance with the economic strategy. She also mentioned that the effect of these prohibitions would’ve been around $6 billion. She said that trade orders whereby the Letter of Credit -LC- were already opened or for which money had been completed would be handled, but that any further ones would not be accepted at this time. She said that “we will need to minimize our dependency on imports,” adding that the administration was now focused on exports. “We will have to lessen our dependence on imports.”
According to the minister, the economic strategy that the government has devised would result in the flourishing of local enterprises, as well as the creation of new job possibilities. She said that the new measures will also have an influence on the present account deficit, and she also mentioned that this action had been adopted as part of an emergency economic strategy.
Federal government has decided to impose a complete ban on the import of luxury and non-essential items, says Marriyum Aurangzeb
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The government bans certain imports:
- Mobile Phones
- Home Appliances
- Fruits and Dry Fruits (except from Afghanistan)
- Crockery
- Private Weapons & Ammunition
- Shoes
- Chandeliers & Lighting (except Energy Savers)
- Headphones & Loudspeakers
- Sauces, Ketchup etc.
- Doors and Window Frames
- Travelling Bags and Suitcases
- Sanitary ware
- Fish & Frozen Fish
- Carpets (except from Afghanistan)
- Preserved Fruits
- Tissue Paper
- Furniture
- Shampoos
- Automobiles
- Confectionary
- Luxury mattresses & sleeping bags
- Jams & Jelly
- Cornflakes
- Bathroom ware / Toiletries
- Heaters / Blowers
- Sunglasses
- Kitchen ware
- Aerated water
- Frozen Meat
- Juices
- Pasta etc.
- Ice cream
- Cigarettes
- Shaving Goods
- Luxury Leather Apparel
- Musical Instruments
- Saloon items like hair dryers etc.
Economy rate Discussion:
An earlier meeting, which Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif presided over, discussed the current state of the economy and the ongoing devaluation of the Pakistani rupee in comparison to the United States dollar.
In addition, President Shehbaz Sharif was given an update on the preparations being made for the budget for the financial year 2022-2023, and he gave instructions to the economic team to implement as many measures as possible to provide economic relief to the average person.
