Pak govt's foreign junkets 'trip' exchequer; PKR 121 million splurge amid economic crisis

Shehbaz Sharif's government indulges in extravagant expenditures as Pakistan's economy nears a complete collapse. The splurge was exposed in a written reply by the government to a member of the Pakistan National Assembly. A total of 121 million Pakistani rupees were spent by the Shehbaz Sharif-led government on foreign trips and the purchase of protocol vehicles during the first nine months in power since April 2022. The splurge could be much higher as the reply in the Pakistan Assembly is reportedly "incomplete." Dawn newspaper stated that the government's response mentions Federal Minister Ahsan Iqbal visiting Switzerland in December, but his name is missing from the expenditure list. The embarrassing data has surfaced when the country is facing a major economic crisis.