Country needs visionary FM

Comment



NOW that Shaukat Tarin has finally bid farewell to the government, efforts should now be on for selecting a visionary finance minister, a person who could keep the socio-economic objectives of the nation in mind.

Budget is not just a jugglery of figures. Unfortunately it had been made to look like that so far. Country’s woes began when late Mohammad Shoaib, from the world bank, took over the control of the finance ministry. He pursued policies which may have served western philosophies, but conditions are totally different in India and Pakistan. They need to be studied dispassionately.

India always had a political foreign minister, be it Manmohan Singh or Chidambaram. They had their fingers on the pulse of the nation, knew exactly the aims and objectives of the country, both short and the long term. After late Mr Shoaib, the practice of having imported finance minister continued. Dr Mahbubul Haq, Sartaj Aziz, Shaukat Aziz all came from abroad. They hardly knew the fundamentals of the country’s financial goals, relied mostly on balance sheet. Budget, presented annually is an important document. It reflects ideals and aspirations of the people. Taxes alone seemed to our ideal so far. Emphasis on education, health, social welfare, and economic uplift, transport and communication sectors were either completely ignored, or taken almost little care. PPP’s first government of Benazir Bhutto had a half finance minister in Mian Ihsanul Haq. We needed to fill the office with a committed man which was never done.

The result is obvious. Pakistan continued to slide downwards. Shaukat Tarin is a man of integrity, is a thorough gentleman, has been a successful banker. He served the citibank well, was a success in Habib Bank, and did well with his Union Bank which he sold later for a smart return, and now owns the Silkbank. His brother Azmat Tarin runs that.

But Shaukat found himself in turbulent waters at the time he was made Adviser on Finance. He had to rely on IMF, which, due respect to him, was not the solution of the economic malaise Pakistan suffered from. Domestic savings and domestic investment was given secondary importance whereas these two sectors should have been on the priority list. Even today domestic savings does not get the importance it deserves. Loaning operations had been on the rise. The result will be automatic money expansion and inflation.

Among the names floated in the media for his successors are former State Bank Governor Dr Ishrat Hussain, former University teacher and minister Dr Hafeez Pasha, and one Naseem Beg. Ishrat will be a poor choice. A finance minister should have independent thinking to channelise his policies for the betterment of the economy. In two tenures of three years each, which is the maximum under the Constitution for a central bank chief Ishrat, was supposed to give a totally new direction and dimension to the economic goals. There was unfortunately none in his days. Dr Hafeez Pasha is good, knows economy, has been teaching at the Karachi University, but does he has the stature to take stands in the PPP set up, governing the country at present. How strong or how weak will he be, is best known to himself. But Pakistan needs a powerful, strong finance minister who could guide the government with his vision, and farsight, and assert himself in framing economic and financial policies. Neither Ishrat nor Pasha, have that ability.

I cant say anything about Naseem Beg because for me he is unknown commodity. My suggestion to the Prime Minister will be to pick up a politician with economic background and grasp over the subject to frame economic guidelines which could uplift the economy from the morass it has been allowed to dip to.

We do need an economist, but with political insight, not just those who believe in filling the coffers and end up in doing nothing, or more bluntly in making a greater mess. That’s what exactly has been happening with the country. We had money managers more than real, genuine finance ministers. Shaukat Tarin developed differences with the government over rental power plants and in under-writing projects with bloated image, and little efficacy. He took a correct stand and preferred to say goodbye to a job with which he could not, or was not allowed to do justice. We done Shaukat. You stood up your ground and that should give you self satisfaction. Sartaj Aziz too came from Planning Commission, and picked up differences with then prime minister on finances for the motorway. He was changed, but he too had no philosophy of his own as to what are the social objectives of the country.

Pakistan needs to find a finance minister from amongst the parliamentarians to determine the direction the country needs to be put on. We need to know our path, and start a new beginning, a beginning that is worthy of nation’s aspirations. We need schools, hospitals, health care units, social uplift projects, communication, and related projects.

We don’t need to just opt for tax hike to show to the bosses that the finance ministry has done well, filled the coffers of the country. They need to understand that people are starving, prices have gone beyond their reach to fill their stomachs, power and gas sectors ought to be subsidised to lower their rates. Power and gas companies are opting for profits. Recently gas prices have been doubled. Domestic and Industrial consumers will be unable to cope with the situation they have been forced to face. Industrial and agricultural production need to be increased, and priced at affordable levels. That is the priority for which the people have voted the PPP to power, not for raising taxes and prices, and fattening the power companies. OGRA should be brought under political control. A political minister must review and command their policies. OGRA at the moment is rudderless ship. It has grown bigger in its boots. The bureaucracy should not be allowed to have its control in a political government. People expect result from the government. They cannot understand why sugar is being sold at Rs 70 a kilo, and flour rates have gone up. Education is in mess, and still the army of the ministers are busy in their luxuries. They have fuel bills which is consuming enough money. The new finance minister should be strong enough to advise the premier to cut down on the number of ministers, and cut down on expenses and allowances. Even parliamentarians can voluntarily surrender some of their allowances and bills which have been bloating beyond control.