Irony appears to have picked its golden-haired, blue-eyed lad this season: politics in Pakistan. Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif and all his men (and women) are busy huffing and puffing about the dire straits prevailing in the motherland that urgently call for a comprehensive austerity plan. They shake their head and proclaim that like it or not, the masses better be prepared for an onslaught of “tough decisions’ in the name of “structural adjustment.” In the meantime, just one hop, skip and a jump away from his seat of power, members of the Upper House ferociously highlighted the “protocol culture” under the realms of which any judge was allowed to merrily make his way post-retirement with hefty perks and privileges of a “luxury lifestyle.” Similarly distasteful was a barrage of bulletproof luxury vehicles in use of cabinet members whose maintenance alone was carving a big dent in the fragile treasury. PM Sharif should be appreciated for prioritising the proceedings of the committee formed to save the taxpayer money. No qualms about that. Many of his cabinet member’s voluntary decision to give up salaries in the name of national interests, most prominent of which has been Planning and Development Minister Ahsan Iqbal’s surrender of a four-wheel drive, have indeed realised the gravity of the situation and are trying to do their individual bits to help save the sinking ship. Alas! Mere bucketfuls cannot do wonders when the floorboard is littered with holes. In principle, the executive should have contemplated something that has been argued to the point of repetition: restricting the cabinet size to as minimum as possible. Cutting the bloated public sector, more specifically the army of ministers needs no further deliberation or any afternotes. Furthermore, the realisation that we should not spend beyond our means should be enough for the government to apply cost reduction to those who have gotten accustomed to living like royalty. May it be the post-retirement perks of the judiciary and army or the unbelievably sprawling residences of bureaucrats, no one can claim to have resisted milking the cow. Any ordinary Pakistani watching the debate (followed by a spree of colourful analyses) on his television might think out loud why he alone is being forced to carry the back-breaking burden of saving the country. Sadly for him, people who can actually bring about a change by tightening the drawstrings are ready for the axe to fall anywhere but themselves. *