ISLAMABAD / LAHORE: Finance Minister Miftah Ismail on Monday accused the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) leadership of attempting to sabotage the revival of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) bailout package after leaked audio clips of purported telephonic conversations between PTI Senator Shaukat Tarin and the finance ministers of Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa mired the former ruling party in controversy.

In the clips that surfaced on Monday, former finance minister Tarin can be heard telling Punjab Finance Minister Mohsin Leghari and KP’s Taimur Jhagra to tell the federal government that provinces could not post a budget surplus — an IMF demand — in the light of devastating floods.

On Monday, PTI leader Shireen Mazari admitted that the clips were authentic. Fawad Chaudhry, while speaking at a news conference outside Banigala, said the recording of Shaukat Tarin was a “montage” but the conversation of the two provincial ministers was authentic.

Meanwhile, former Punjab governor Omer Sarfraz Cheema, who is currently an adviser to Punjab chief minister, said: “There is nothing wrong in what Senator Tarin is saying to the Punjab and KP finance ministers.”

Shireen admits clips genuine; Miftah demands resignation of KP finance minister; Tarin says finance minister’s own party ‘wants him gone’

In one recording, Mr Leghari — who has yet to comment on the veracity of the clips — asked Mr Tarin whether such a letter would hurt the interests of the state. Mr Tarin purportedly replied: “They (PML-N) continue blackmailing us in the name of the state and we keep on helping them. This cannot happen.

“The federal government is registering terrorism cases against the party chairman so how we can let it go scot-free?”

Asking Mr Leghari to write a letter, Mr Tarin purportedly stated that the KP finance minister was also sending the letter to him and he would send both letters to the federal government and consequently release the letters on social media. Mr Tarin also told the Punjab finance minister that party chairman Imran Khan would decide whether the letter be released to the IMF or not. “If we will send the letter to the federal government alone, we can always raise the issue with the IMF,” he said.

In the purported leaked conversation with Mr Jhagra, Mr Tarin asked him whether he had prepared the letter for the federal government but Mr Jhagra said he would get the letter prepared and send it to him. Mr Tarin purportedly asserted that the letters should immediately be sent to the IMF representatives so that the PML-N coalition government could be taught a lesson for maltreating the PTI workers. Mr Jhagra purportedly added that he would “send all information and letters to the IMF’s second in command representative”.

Mr Tarin purportedly added that the Punjab and KP’s letters would persuade the IMF to ask the federal government to show money as committed. “In order to meet the funds’ shortage, the coalition government in the centre will be compelled to bring mini-budget…,” he said.

Mr Jhagra had sent a letter to Finance Miftah Ismail saying that the surplus by the KP government was not possible due to floods, but there has been no letter from the Punjab government so far.

When asked, Mr Leghari stayed silent on whether he had plans to send such a letter to the federal government.

Miftah’s presser

In his press conference, the federal finance minister lashed out at the PTI leadership for allegedly conspiring against Pakistan.

“Pakistan is sinking and needs the life support of the IMF to sail through and avoid default while they (PTI) took such a cheap move … shameful act to sacrifice interests of the state just because Imran Khan is not the prime minister,” the minister added.

He asked Mr Tarin to quit politics and Mr Jhagra to resign for stooping so low for party politics instead of protecting the country’s interests. The finance minister said Mr Jhagra had told him that he had not shared the letter with IMF but his audio clips and subsequent developments proved otherwise. “I checked with the IMF within an hour and they already had it [the letter],” he thundered, asking the PTI chairman Imran Khan to “apologise to the nation”.

“Taimur Jhagra should resign and Shaukat Tarin should quit politics. Is this why you do politics?” he questioned.

He said he never conceded it publicly but told Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif first thing in office that Pakistan was facing default after the PTI reneged on its IMF agreement and left behind about Rs1.6 trillion primary deficit against a commitment of Rs25bn surplus. He said not only his party but other coalition partners like PPP and MQM sacrificed their political capital to save Pakistan but “they (PTI) are committing treason”.

“Should we sacrifice everything even Pakistan for personal politics on Imran Khan’s directives? Should we change Pakistan’s name to Banigala? Is Imran Khan bigger than Pakistan? Don’t they feel ashamed?” he asked.

He called upon the PTI “to be like Mohsin Leghari” who asked Mr Tarin if the state’s interest would not suffer because of the letter he proposed. “Nobody else asked this. Jhagra said I know IMF’s number 2 and I will give him the information. Did you become politicians for this?

“When I raise the price of petrol, Shaukat Tarin and Asad Umar criticise and people of my party join in as well. What choice did I have? Would we bankrupt the country to save our ministries? he said, adding the coalition government had saved Pakistan from a Sri Lanka-like situation.

The finance minister confirmed that the KP government had demanded additional funds for merged tribal districts but when asked for details of expenditures, these were not provided.

He said similar demands were also on the table from other provinces, including Sindh, but such demands can be discussed but “does this mean you derail the IMF programme” at the eleventh hour.

Tarin fires back

However, when Mr Ismail took to Twitter to slam Mr Tarin, the latter recalled that the finance minister was facing a ‘mutiny’ within his own party.

“Miftah, for asking you to think of the marooned people of the country, we have nothing to be ashamed off. It is you who should seek forgiveness from the the people of Pakistan for inflicting misery and the highest inflation in our history. Your own party wants you to go,” he tweeted in response to the minister.

Ikram Junaidi also contributed to this report

Published in Dawn, August 30th, 2022