The Chief Minister of Punjab, Maryam Nawaz, deserves special credit for cleaning up the city of Lahore and other cities in the province. The Lahore roads have been widened, and the staff in uniforms are always found on the roads doing their cleaning job. What is terribly missing is orderly traffic. Huge chaos and commotion […]
Tightening Fiscal Policies
The good news is that the IMF has approved a loan amounting to US$3.3 under various heads. It would provide a critical sigh of relief for the government that urgently needs funds to meet its various requirements. Helping the people of flood affected areas should be its first priority. At the same time, the IMF […]
Prophetic Resemblance
President Donald Trump announced he would take two weeks to decide on bombing Iran’s nuclear sites. He changed his mind and ordered the bombing of the Iranian sites within forty-eight hours. Changing his precept within hours surprised many at the international level. What immediately reminded me was Pervez Hoodbyoy’s article – Pakistan’s Donald Trump. Hoodbhoy […]
What about Austerity?
Since this government took over, Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif has been advising the nation to exercise austerity. He even sought proposals to cut government spending. After the recent budget, it seems he hasn’t succeeded in his mission. Muhammad Aurangzeb, the new finance minister brought in from outside the typical hierarchy, hasn’t been able to achieve […]
Taxing Solar System
Tortured and sick of the high electricity bill and frequent power outages, when the consumers who could afford, to set up solar systems on their houses, the government contemplated taxing them. When the government didn’t pay for the single solar panel, how come it arrogates to itself the right to tax solar system users at […]
Unruly Road Traffic
Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz has gained the reputation of an achiever. She is on the move to take up new ventures in public interest. The other day, she appeared in a police uniform to preside over a police women passing-out parade. Even though she invited criticism from those who are in the habit of criticising […]
National Interests
The official visit of the Iranian president has just ended. Dr Ebrahim Raisi was given a red-carpet treatment in Islamabad where he met the president, prime minister and the army chief. Some of the most important decisions in the mutual economic interest of both countries were taken during his visit. Small skirmishes that took place […]
Mismanaged
Jeffery Sacks’ book The End of Poverty is worth the read. He writes, “Currently, more than eight million people around the world die each year because they are too poor to stay alive.” There are two kinds of poverties. First is self-created either by wilful ignorance and intentional oversight or to suit particular interests of […]
Never-ending Crises
During the last few years, including the period of PTI rule, our country has been moving from one crisis to another. By looking at the situation from a distance as a spectator, there are two options. First, read the newspaper’s sobering headlines or listen to TV media news of a similar nature and sit back […]
Pakistan Lacks Human Development
The nation represents the country. The UN Human Development Report 2023-2024 categorized Pakistan at 164th place in the list of 193 countries in terms of human development. It essentially means that Pakistan’s nation occupies an unenviable status among the above-mentioned countries. The situation becomes even more perplexing to realise that ours happens to be a […]