Daily Times

The horrors appear to have just begun. With an extended rout at the Karachi Stock Exchange and even further degradation of sovereign credit rank (as if it was even possible for a functioning economy to perform so deep down in the barrel), Pakistan’s financial troubles are taking a turn for the worse while the ruling elite is interested in nothing else but kicking the can further down the dusty road. Going by the experts, we already know what needs to be done. Increasing the tax net; Attracting foreign investment and finally waking up to the fact that we have to learn to survive within our means. To this nation’s greatest misfortune, the direness of our straits is still not enough for the politicians to rattle out of complacency, stretch their arms and aim for the main switch. The honourable finance minister is far too busy fancying himself with tales of milk and honey flowing across the length and breadth of the country before his party’s president fell victim to a grand conspiracy. Little does he realise that the past few months saw him try all those previous tricks in his playbook (burning dollars for the sake of an artificial support system in the currency market and sprinkling subsidies here, there and everywhere). The about-turn on the so-called pro-business policies saw containers upon containers of essential goods languishing at ports when a controversial video of a property tycoon’s family enjoying a fresh-off-the-deck latest model of uber-luxury SUV is merrily making rounds on social media. What’s the prickly predicament here, one may wonder!

The Economic Coordination Committee has just approved the latest of the tariff bombs (124 per cent hike in prices of gas across-the-board). Elsewhere in the markets, most of the 220 million Pakistanis are forced to bear the brunt of a whopping 30 per cent food inflation, which is in no mood of slowing down. In a country where the fight for survival is becoming tougher and tougher and very soon, people would have to make the tough choice between food in their tummies or clothes on their backs, those at the helm of affairs cannot afford to hide behind mistakes of the years gone by. Crying crocodile tears over the have-been would not earn any brownie points. The blinkers are off and now, the masses want to see performance and more performance. If the default dilemma cannot force them to roll up their sleeves and get down to the business of making arrangements, what on God’s green earth would? *