Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leaders have strongly rejected the figures presented in the Economic Survey 2024–25, accusing the government of manipulating data and failing to meet its economic targets.

Speaking at a press conference in Islamabad on Monday, Leader of the Opposition Omer Ayub and PTI Information Secretary Sheikh Waqas Akram criticized the government’s handling of the economy, claiming that poverty, inflation, and industrial decline have reached alarming levels.

“The stoves of the poor have gone cold,” said Omer Ayub. “Poverty has surged to 44.7%, and 114 million people are now living below the poverty line. The government’s claimed growth rate is nothing but a bubble -- detached from ground realities.”

According to Omer Ayub, the actual growth rate stands at a meagre 1.5%, not the 4.7% touted by the government. He argued that inflation continues to choke common citizens, with the prices of basic commodities such as wheat, sugar, and milk skyrocketing over the past year.

“Wheat is 50% more expensive, chicken has jumped 109%, daal mash is up by 70%, and milk costs 70% more. Sugar prices have risen 96%, cooking oil 30%, and tea 74%. What has actually decreased, if not the purchasing power of the people?” asked Ayub.

He went on to claim that the value of Rs50,000 has dropped to Rs20,800 since March 2022 -- a decline of 58% in real purchasing power. The PTI leader also slammed the government for mismanaging industrial growth, saying that both large and small industries are suffering from negative growth.

“If big industries are incurring losses, how can small industries survive?” he questioned. “Agricultural growth is also in the negative. The government has spent less than Rs 4 billion out of a Rs 19 billion development budget. This is economic misgovernance.”

Sheikh Waqas Akram likened the Economic Survey to the controversial "Form 47", used in reference to alleged rigging in the 2024 elections. “This is not an economic survey -- it’s Form 47 in disguise,” he remarked. “The nation was promised economic recovery, but instead, 30 million people have been pushed below the poverty line in just three years.”

Both leaders accused the current coalition government of relying on foreign aid and external excuses while failing to address internal inefficiencies. Omer Ayub also revealed that Punjab’s caretaker government imported Rs400.5 billion worth of Ukrainian wheat but did not procure wheat from local farmers, damaging the domestic agricultural sector.

Furthermore, he alleged that 72,283 oil tankers smuggled petroleum products from Iran under the government’s watch and claimed the government would face a revenue shortfall of Rs1,250 billion this fiscal year.

“This government has shaken the confidence of the poor, farmers, and industrialists alike. We will expose their real face to the public,” Sheikh Waqas Akram concluded.