Imran awaits no-trust vote as Pakistan’s inflation soars

Embattled Prime Minister of Pakistan Imran Khan is set to face the toughest innings of his career ahead of today's vote on no-confidence motion brought against him by opposition leaders.

In preparation, the former-cricketer-turned-politician's party Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf has instructed its lawmakers to attend the crucial session and participate in the voting process, a source told Geo News.

Earlier on March 30, Khan had directed PTI's members of the National Assembly (MNAs) to either abstain from voting or not attend the no-confidence motion session, The News reported.

But now the PM may himself attend the crucial session of the Lower House, sources said.

Imran Khan will have to sustain his fight till the last ball if he has any hopes of becoming the first Pakistani PM to complete a full five-year term.

On Saturday, he told a group of foreign journalists that he might not accept the result of the no-confidence vote as he deemed it not a democratic process, reports Reuters. 

The PTI's rise came amid Khan's popular rhetoric of putting the country's economy back on track and maintaining an independent, anti-American foreign policy. These two promises sealed his victory in the 2018 elections.

And while the anti-American policy has been executed – with the PM even publicly accusing the US of orchestrating the almost month-long political turmoil – on the economic side, Imran Khan has clearly faltered.

Pakistan has seen extreme inflation for months. In January, the country's Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose to 13%—the highest in two years, according to the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics.

As living standards deteriorate and the middle-class feels the squeeze along with the average wage earner, Khan's political opponents view the growing public dissatisfaction as the perfect opportunity to strike as evidenced by the no-confidence motion. 

Khan, meanwhile, maintains that the country's economic problems are not of his making. The pandemic-induced inflation has affected supply-chains across the world, while the impacts of rising energy costs can also be felt everywhere.  He has also blamed the previous government for the huge foreign debt that he has inherited.

"I am not here to check tomato and potato prices, but to raise a nation," he said at a rally in Hafizabad last month. He then went on to accuse the opposition of "being bought with looted money", the New York Times reported.

Khan has also changed his economic team several times. The $6billion bailout he got from the IMF came a little late, a fact that he has also admitted.

The IMF loan, the first $1 billion of which was agreed to in November, came with economic reforms that have sent fuel and electricity prices soaring.

The CPI in March has stayed in the double digits for the fifth month in a row, due to higher commodity prices and analysts said inflation could stay uncomfortably high in 2022 on weak rupee, The News reported.

The CPI inflation increased 12.72% in March from 12.24% in February, PB data showed on Friday.

According to the PBS, food and beverage prices, utility charges, health and education costs went up by a range of 8% to 14% in a month.

During one month, prices of chicken, fruits, mustard oil, onion and cooking oil shot up.

Pakistan ties with US excellent: Army Chief Gen Bajwa

Pakistan's army chief Qamar Javed Bajwa has said that Pakistan was positioning itself as a melting pot for international economic interests by focusing on connectivity and friendship, the Dawn reported.

"Pakistan does not believe in camp politics and our bilateral relations with our partners are not at the expense of our relationships with other countries," General Qamar Bajwa said on Saturday.

Pakistan enjoyed a close strategic relationship with China which was demonstrated by the country's commitment towards the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), he said, adding, "equally, we share a long and excellent strategic relationship with the US which remains our largest export market."

He said that Pakistan sought to broaden and expand relations with both China and the US "without impacting our relations with [either]", the Dawn reported.

About the Ukraine war, he said, "Sadly, the Russian invasion against Ukraine is very unfortunate. Despite legitimate security concerns of Russia, its aggression against a smaller country cannot be condoned."

On the same day, PM Imran Khan said the move to remove him was an attempt at regime change backed by the United States, Reuters reported.

Khan told a group of foreign journalists that, "the move to oust me is (a) blatant interference in domestic politics by the United States".

The White House has denied that the United States is seeking to remove Khan from power after he made similar accusations in the past days.