It is the economy of Pakistan on which foreign policy, national security, the welfare of over 220 million citizens and future destiny as a sovereign independent state depends. We have an enemy India which is obsessed with hatred for us and have never accepted the reality that Pakistan has emerged.

The enemy that we face has achieved self-sufficiency after years of effort. For over forty years, they placed restrictions on import of luxury items and even foreign wrist watches etc. From the President, PM, senior bureaucrats, army generals and even their Bollywood stars used a locally made vehicle called Hindustan. The paid elite did not live in luxurious, gated societies. Dual nationality was not allowed. This austerity and restrictions on imports continued for years, while they invested in education, health and research sectors. The IT graduates of India are treated at par with those from prestigious Ivy League universities like MIT, Yale etc. Today, our enemy’s exports exceed their imports; their GDP is higher, and their foreign exchange reserves are adequate to buy the latest military hardware. Their reelected PM Modi has gone to the Maldives, Sri Lanka offering them aid. This is the enemy we face.

Nowhere in the world do analysts and members of the ruling political party sit on various channels forecasting a continuous rise of the dollar creating panic in the market. People voted for PTI because they lost confidence in PML(N) and PPP, which in their opinion had failed to provide welfare to them. Therefore, the PM Imran Khan and his cabinet are wasting energies harping on the damage done to the economy by predecessors. He needs to focus upon boosting the economy and providing citizens subsidised education, health and other necessities of life, including the security of life and property. Our sole nuclear defence deterrence is courtesy of few scientists and engineers. The judiciary and parliament must be independent.

MALIK TARIQ,

Lahore.