KARACHI – The prospected finance minister, Muhammad Aurangzeb, is ready to renounce his Dutch citizens and over 30 million salary job as he aims at playing his role to address the ailing economy of the country, it emerged on Saturday.
Local media claimed that Aurganzeb, who is serving as chief executive officer of Habib Bank Ltd (HBL), would be appointed as finance minister, but the renowned banker is not a member of the parliament, a key requirement to assume charge as full minister.
It is expected that he would be nominated for Senate elections and later appointed as finance minister if he win the polls.
Reports said Muhammad Aurangzeb r has initiated the process of renouncing his Dutch citizenship because, according to Pakistani laws, a person holding dual citizenship cannot hold a government position.
Muhammad Aurangzeb is included in the list of the top five highest-paid CEOs of banks.
According to the annual report of HBL for 2023, Muhammad Aurangzeb was drawing a salary of Rs352 million annually along with other perks and facilities. This means that his monthly salary is approximately Rs30 million.
As the newly-elected premier has hinted in the past, the South Asian country would need another bailout package from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to overcome financial challenges amid high inflation and depleting reserves. The current $3 billion IMF programme is all set to expire in April 2024.
