Transparency Int'l survey suggests more than 90pc of Pakistanis believe inflation highest in PTI regime

ISLAMABAD – A recent survey of Transparency International shows that 92 percent of Pakistanis believe that inflation and price hikes are highest under Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf government’s tenure as compared to previous regimes.

The National Corruption Perception Survey Pakistan 2021 displays breakdown of general public perception about the frequency and levels of corruption in the South Asian country.

Around 92.9% consider price hike to be the highest during the incumbent setup, compared to 4.6% who thought the same for the previous government of PML-N and 2.5% of the PPP government.

The survey reveals most people consider the PTI government’s self-accountability unsatisfactory. Around 52 percent opted weak accountability, 29 percent said the greed of powerful people, and the other 18 percent terms low salaries responsible for the corruption. Around 66.8% termed the PTI government’s accountability drive partial.

Some 85% of Pakistanis said their income levels have been squeezed during the Imran Khan-led government.

Police and judiciary most corrupt institutions, survey shows

Police and judiciary turned out to be the most corrupt institutions in the country, according to the survey which said around 41 percent terms law enforcers as the most corrupt, while 17.4 percent voted for Judiciary, and 10.3 percent said the tender and contracting sector is dishonest.

When asked about measures to curb corruption, around 40% of Pakistanis say pace in stringent punishments for corruption cases, 34% said accountability of public officers by expediting NAB’s handling of corruption cases, and 25 percent picked a complete ban on those convicted of corruption from holding public office.

Furthermore, 72.8 percent of people believe that public sector corruption at the grassroots levels has increased in wake of the absence of local government.

The survey took responses from 1,600 people from four cities each in every region of the country, Transparency International Pakistan said.

The fifth most populous country ranked 124 out of 180 countries dropping four spots over last year in the Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) by Transparency International released earlier this year.