The government intends to remove the riba within the next five years, according to Finance Minister Ishaq Dar, who also praised a Federal Shariat Court (FSC) ruling.
Numerous legislations in the nation were deemed by the FSC to be incompatible with Islamic tenets because they allowed for the charging or payment of interest, which the FSC determined falls under the definition of riba.
“Earning money through interest is easy but it is not legitimate,” according to Dar, who spoke at a seminar on Wednesday in Karachi hosted by the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) and Markaz Al Aqtisaad Al Islami.
The country’s current interest-based structure will be eliminated, according to the financial czar.
“If we sincerely decide only to please the Almighty then in five years riba can be eliminated from the country and it can be replaced by a system based on Zakat and Ushr,” he added.
Dar claimed that he had given the secretary of finance the directive to initially look at borrowing money through Islamic Sukook Bonds and to only use interest-based loans as a last resort.
“I wish that Allah grants me powers so I could eliminate interest in a week or a month, but a state has [to conduct] its business, and the interest-bases system has been in place for the past 75 years,” he added.
He welcomed the FSC’s decision and said that 20 to 21 percent of the nation’s banking is now Islamic, adding that the government hopes to fully integrate Islamic banking within the next five years.
Dar expressed worry that the Shariat court’s ruling had been appealed by two state institutions, the State Bank of Pakistan and the National Bank of Pakistan.
To read our blog on “Ishaq Dar promises to implement a zero-interest system in Pakistan,” click here.
