Govt ready to hold talks with PTI: Ishaq Dar
Talks will resume from the point they were left at, don’t want to repeat bitterness, says Dar
ISLAMABAD: (Dunya News) – Finance Minister Ishaq Dar has said that the government was ready to hold talks with Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI). He said that the government did not want to repeat the bitterness of the past and will resume talks from the point they were left at, reported Dunya News.
Talking to a press conference today (Tuesday) in Islamabad, Ishaq Dar said that the government wanted a solution of current political turmoil through talks. He said that the government was sincere but sincerity should be displayed from both sides.
Ishaq Dar said that the name of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) will be finalized by December 5. “The name will be finalized between government and Opposition Leader Syed Khurshid Shah by tomorrow”, Dar said. He said that if Prime Minister and Opposition Leader failed to agree upon one name then the decision will be made by parliamentary committee.
Dar asked PTI to call off the strike on December 5. He said that strike would be detrimental for the economy. “Traders have rejected PTI’s call for strike”, he said. Ishaq Dar said that the government was trying to strengthen and stabilize the economy. Country’s economy would have been in even better a situation had there been no sit-ins, he claimed.
ECONOMY:
Ishaq Dar said that the foreign exchange reserves will be raised to 15 billion dollars by the end of the year. He told that the Sukuk bonds experience was successful for the government as it attracted more offers than expected.
Holding a press conference today (Tuesday) in Islamabad, Ishaq Dar said that meetings with 29 different investor groups were held in London regarding issuance of Sukuk bonds. He said that he received 5 percent more offers than the target. Dar told that offers worth 2.3 billion dollars were received for Sukuk bonds but the government accepted only 1 billion dollar offers.
Ishaq Dar told that Pakistan’s balance of payments is getting better and the internal loans have reduced significantly. He told that Russia was interested in selling agricultural machinery to Pakistan.
