Most men would rather deny a hard truth than face it. The prime minister has asked his party spokespersons to inform the masses that there is no inflation in the country and the opposition is lying.
The ministers are still telling the public that inflation is dropping since the past three months and the economy is on the right track. Finance Minister Shaukat Tarin has also informed the prime minister that inflation dropped in December 2021 as compared to the previous month.
However, the statistics show a rather different picture. The inflation rate in Dec was reported at 12.3 percent by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics, up from 11.5 percent in November. The government spokesperson still blames global commodity prices and claims that inflation will drop to single digits in the coming months.
The prime minister has directed government spokespersons to inform the public that inflation is declining. In order to divert attention, the premier wants them to defend ‘Brand Imran Khan’ by comparing him to other opposition leaders. This will be the narrative of the government spokesperson in the coming months as they have been given the arduous task to convince a burdened public that there is no inflation in the country.
The new strategy is rather preposterous to say the least. Denial and twisting of reality in order to present some desired image to the nation is in fact disinformation. On the contrary, the government should tell the truth over the prevailing economic situation which is not ideal and is worsening ever since.
The government should formulate strategies to control the rising tide of inflation. There is no doubt that the coronavirus pandemic has resulted in a supply chain crisis which has exacerbated global prices. But inflation cannot disappear overnight and requires prudent economic policies to control it.
The government can no longer blame the opposition for the crisis and complain about inheriting a weakened economy. This economic crisis is part of government follies which it should own and rectify, rather than living in a state of denial that believing that all is well and the country is on the track towards prosperity.
