[B]A Horrid Reality: An Economic Perspective on Pakistan in Simple Words.[/B]

It is highly unfortunate and comes as a matter of grave concern for our country –our dearest ‘Pakistan’ (some would still like to call it Jinnah’s)—to have been left at the mercy of a cohort of ‘helpless, corrupt, incompetent and the incapable’ leaders. Pakistan and it’s Policy makers have long been free-wheeling with regards to its Economic imperatives and obligations –failing to meet even the basic needs of the common man –having culminated into the worst economic state of affairs in its sixty six years of ‘’Independence’’.

The latest developments have resulted in the life-blood of our economy –The Pakistani Rupee, being ridiculed in the international market which will have dire consequences for the domestic people. The foremost consequence will result in the increase of oil prices, that shall subsequently pass on to producers in the form of higher costs of production (which apparently also means an increase in cost and shortage of energy) which shall further pass on to the consumers in the form of higher prices as a result of which real incomes will fall drastically thereby deterring the consumers to obtain the same level of their already low consumption, with the cycle continuing –Cost Push Inflation –diabolical! Even worse is that our National Treasury will have to shoulder a greater –additional ten percent –burden of the IMF debt in real terms. This implies that every individual in Pakistan is approximately 10% more indebted than he was a week ago. (As a result of the depreciation of the rupee by approximately the same percentage)

The Federal Minister for Finance mentions that ‘’Under the IMF dictations, the Government of Pakistan is not to intervene with regards to volatility in the Pakistani Rupee against the USD’’. Clearly this implies either that our honorable minister didn’t see it coming, aloof to the actual intensity of the crisis or adopting ‘’idealist’’ strategies to aspire for unprecedented gains –an untimely aspiration, a risk we cannot afford at this juncture, or maybe so pushed to undertake the initiative that gives us a good reason to believe he is concealing the actual truth about the intensity of our economic crisis. In either cases one is anguished and distressed –in the former that proves the incapability, handcuffed in one’s own authority whereas the latter justifying the element of complete helplessness and incompetency as mentioned in the preamble.

We have to hand it to the people of Pakistan for the level of patience and tolerance they have demonstrated through the years. As unlikely as it may be, they still lie in the hope for a better tomorrow. At present one may not be able to regard a single major factor at a macro-level that is commendable or worth appreciation –energy crisis, water shortages, deteriorating law and order situation, political conflicts, economic crisis, corruption, inflation, delayed justice.. and counting.

What our respectable leaders need to realize is that there is more out there than the spoils of office. They need to remind themselves of their moral obligations to the people of Pakistan who have given them a right over making decisions about their lives, the very people who are inflicted severely by their wrong decisions by a ‘multiplier effect’. It is time for our leaders to ‘cop a plea’ and avoid the inevitable backlash building up in the nation, a time to remind them of what it is like being an Independent Nation.

Hassam Khan Toru

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