Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Friday said that those who go to seek loans have to ‘keep their head bowed down", admitting the financial crunch Islamabad has faced in recent times.
Sharif admitted that he, along with Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir, has had to travel abroad seeking financial aid. He made the statement while addressing top Pakistani exporters in Islamabad on Friday night. Sharif also described the challenges faced by his government in managing the country’s economy.
"When you go seeking loans, you have to pay the price at the cost of your self-respect. You have to compromise. Sometimes, undue demand may come up and you have to implement it even when there is no reason to fulfil it," he said, adding, “We feel ashamed when Field Marshal Asim Munir and I go around the world begging for money.
He further said,"Taking loans is a huge burden on our self-respect. Our heads bow down in shame. We cannot say no to many things they want us to do,” he was qouted as saying by Hindustan Times.
For the unversed, Pakistan is heavily dependent on financial aid from several countries, including China, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Qatar, to manage its foreign exchange reserves and debt. These nations, along with the IMF, provide regular loans and rollovers to the cash-strapped nation.
